Detroit’s Smith & Co. closes to reopen as Vigilante Kitchen

The new concept will serve ‘elevated Midwestern food with Asian influence and classical French roots’

By Randiah Camille Green

Jun 13, 2023 at 12:39 pm

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Steve Neavling

A sign on the building at 644 Selden St. reads “Now Hiring Vigilante Kitchen.”

Detroit restaurant Smith & Co. quietly shut its doors earlier this month as a new concept prepares to move in.

A representative from Smith & Co. confirmed to Metro Times that the New-American brewpub shuttered on June 4 and is in the process of becoming Vigilante Kitchen, which will serve “elevated Midwestern food with Asian influence and classical French roots,” according to its Instagram page.

A sign on the building at 644 Selden St., which still bears the Smith Welding Supply Co. sign of its heyday, reads, “Now Hiring Vigilante Kitchen.”

Vigilante Kitchen, as first reported by Eater Detroit, is helmed by Aaron Cozadd, a former executive chef at Union Joints Hospitality Group.

Cozadd, who has previously battled addiction, told Eater he wanted Vigilante Kitchen to be a sober-friendly space that would offer employees meditation sessions before the start of each service, gym memberships, and recovery meetings.

While he plans to offer a cafe and dry bar in the restaurant's current waiting area, Eater reports Vigilante Kitchen will still have a full bar and serve beer from neighboring Nain Rouge Brewery.

Cozadd did not respond to our inquiries but Vigilante Kitchen’s Instagram page notes the restaurant plans to open on Friday, June 30.

Smith & Co. first opened in 2019, temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and reopened in 2022.

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About The Author

Randiah Camille Green

After living in Japan and traveling across Asia, Randiah Camille Green realized Detroit will always be home. And when she says Detroit, she's talking about the hood, not the suburbs. She has bylines in Planet Detroit News , Bridge Detroit , BLAC magazine, and Model D .Her favorite pastimes are meditating on...