PORTAGE, Mich. — Several businesses in a Portage plaza were forced to close temporarily after a foul odor emanated from a nearby restaurant preparing to reopen.
The smell began on Friday and intensified on Saturday, prompting neighboring establishments, including Solasta Salon, to close their doors until Tuesday.
"Friday morning, my staff called me, said that they smelled a foul smell, a horrendous smell," said Ashley Whited, owner of Solasta Salon.
The source was traced to Maui Poke, where owner Janey Chen had begun restocking the inventory ahead of reopening the restaurant, which had been vacant for about six months.
"I ordered a couple of boxes of fish and some crab, and some sample food. And then the cooler died on me, to be honest. I don't know when," Chen said.
Chen believes recent storms may have caused a power surge that damaged the freezer, allowing the seafood to spoil.
By Saturday, neighboring businesses reported not only worsening odors but also an infestation of flies.
"Saturdays are probably the busiest days in our industry, and it's extremely frustrating when it's something that's out of our control that makes us close," Whited said. "I would say we probably lost thousands of dollars in those two days."
A Thai Café on the other side of Maui Poke also reportedly closed for two days due to the situation.
Chen has apologized for the incident but emphasized it was unintentional.
"I did not unplug the cooler, the freezer. I did not let my food just rot there. Why would I do that to the restaurant I'm about to open up? And if I had known the problem sooner, I would have fixed it," she said.
Chen said the Kalamazoo County Health Department inspected Maui Poke on Tuesday and cleared it to reopen. Chen plans a grand reopening on July 3.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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