LEGENDS DINER
SOARING EAGLE HOTEL
Mt Pleasant MI

The new Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, MI was completed in 1997 and quickly became the standard by which other Native American casinos around the country were measured.  The original facility contained a very large buffet restaurant named “The Firefly” primarily due to its extensive fiber optic ceiling.

Over time, management realized that this buffet was so large that, for much of the week, significant portions of the space went unused.  In addition, in order to better meet the needs of their guests, they felt they should add a full-service 24 hour “diner” style restaurant.  ArchiVerde Design, LLC was hired to produce a two phase project.  The first phase would be to design a new buffet restaurant in one half of the existing space.  The second would be to design a new diner in the other half.

The diner is themed as an upscale 1940’s/1950’s establishment where a person, back in that time, might have run into the likes of Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, and James Dean.  The facility’s art deco motif is reinforced with a black, red and white color scheme.  Traditional art deco light fixtures, furniture, and stainless steel accents contribute to the theme.  The restaurant also contains a classic Wurlitzer juke box and black and white photos of Michigan born stars from the entertainment and sports world.  There are also images of some of Michigan’s architectural icons such as the Grand Hotel on Mackinaw Island and the Olympia arena in Detroit.