Moro’s of Allen Park, long-standing Italian restaurant, up for sale after 42 years

Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press
·2 min read
Moro's Dining in Allen Park has offered its Mediterranean-influenced steakhouse fare in a formal setting complete with tuxedoed waiters since 1980.
Moro's Dining in Allen Park has offered its Mediterranean-influenced steakhouse fare in a formal setting complete with tuxedoed waiters since 1980.

Moro’s of Allen Park, an Italian eatery known for its tuxedoed servers, is up for sale, according to a listing on Loopnet.com.

The restaurant has been on a busy stretch of Allen Road for more than 40 years. On the market for a few months now, the restaurant's chef/owner is Thomas Moro, a veteran in metro Detroit’s dining scene. He opened Moro’s in 1980.

“I am over 70 years old,” Moro said. “It’s about time to throw the towel in.”

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Moro said he started at his grandmother’s restaurant in Detroit. And, according to its website, Moro also started honing his culinary talents at the well-known Mario’s restaurant in Detroit. There he started out washing dishes, busing, and waiting tables in the late '60s and later joined the kitchen, becoming a line chef, doing prep work, butchering, and final prep of all entrees.

Moro said business has been good and they are getting busier. The restaurant serves lunch up until 4 p.m. followed by dinner service. The restaurant does not take reservations.

The nearly 2,000-square-foot building is listed by Signature Associates in Southfield for $1,650,000 and includes all furniture, fixtures, equipment, and a liquor license.

Moro’s is known as a white tablecloth restaurant with tuxedoed waiters serving fine Italian cuisine. The restaurant is also known for its selection of its entrees served tableside, a large selection of veal and beef dishes, spaghetti and fettuccine, steak and seafood, and flaming desserts. Inside, the dining room, known to be cozy and dimly lit, seats about 80.

In 2019, Moro’s was deemed one of the 9 definitive Downriver restaurants by then Detroit Free Press restaurant critic Mark Kurlyandchik.

Moro's Dining is at 6535 Allen Road in Allen Park; 313-382-7152 and morosdining.com. Signature Associates in Southfield, 248-799-3143, is the listing agent.

Contact Detroit Free Press food writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news to: sselasky@freepress.com. Follow @SusanMariecooks on Twitter.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Moro's Dining, Italian restaurant in Allen Park, up for sale