Flowers everywhere: Milan restaurant blooms with Beautification Award

Bobby Steers is proud of his Beautification Commission Award that greets visitors at the front of his restaurant, “Bobby’s Kitchen,” in Milan.

His customers assume the Beautification Award is just for the colorful array of flowers sprouting up around the building on Wabash Street near the Wabash railroad crossing.

Steers points out that since he bought the place in late 2021, he has put in quite a few upgrades, inside and out. “I repainted it. The façade. All new lighting outside, new gutters, everything,” he said.

The floral landscaping is eye-catching, but his building is more than just the pretty flowers.

It wasn’t easy, he says. According to Steers, he started out with a professional landscaper, but the plants all died out.

“I paid the landscaper a lot of money, and it didn’t work out,” he said.

To the rescue: a customer from his restaurant started planting flowers for him. Barrels of flowers on the south side; loads of little flowers along the front, and some more in the parking lot.

“I’ve had flowers in previous restaurants, but not as nice as these,” Steers said.

Steers says he pays her by giving her gift cards for his restaurant—free meals. He says her name is Dianne but he doesn’t know her last name. Customers sometimes call her the “Flower Lady.”

In fact, the “flower lady” is Dianne Poplawski.

Dr. Shannon Dare Wayne, Chair of the Milan City Beautification Commission, said she was pleased to see Bobby’s Restaurant receive the award.

“It’s always wonderful to see business owners improving their property,” she noted.  “Bobby’s looks especially beautiful, and deserves the recognition.”

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Milan restaurant blooms with Beautification Award