- [Tom] On this installment of "UTR," it's our second supercharged episode where we zap around the state in an awesome EV, only this time we try a smooth Ypsi brew, an electric roll, and containers full of cuisine in Detroit.

Then we hit Holland for a state park plugin, and Muskegon for a delicious dinner on the deck.

Get ready to explore Michigan's cool people, places, and things in an excellent electric vehicle.

- [Announcer] Pure is what you make of it.

It's taking it all in and never taking anything for granted.

The sun sets, the moon rises, and you realize the end of one perfect summer day is the beginning of another.

Pursue your pure in pure Michigan.

- [Announcer] A visit to the Stahls auto collection will take you back to a time when cars were more than just a way to get around, a fantastic assortment of gas pumps, neon signs, and automated music machines dating back 150 years that must be seen and heard, info at stahlsauto.com.

- [Announcer] Destinationannarbor.org is your gateway to Chelsea, Dexter, Manchester, Milan, Saline, Ypsilanti, and Ann Arbor.

Find out the best spots to eat, festivals to attend, activities to do, and places to discover at destinationannarbor.org.

- I've been around the world, but there's one place I keep coming back to, and the more I explore, the more I realize it's the place to be.

I'm Tom Dalton, and this is "Under the Radar Michigan."

(upbeat music) Get ready, because we're gonna be zapping down the highway, for one of our patented awesome UTR EV adventures and the best part is with these things you don't get gas on your shoe.

Bonus.

That's right, electric vehicles are an important part of preserving our planet's future.

So as we at "UTR" lessen our carbon footprint, we thought we'd put our other foot down in Ypsi's historic Depot Town, and find us a smooth and meaningful cup of coffee.

Yep, if coffee done right and for all the right reasons is your cup of, well, Joe, Hyperion Coffee in Ypsilanti is a place you need to brew into.

Here, coffee is a mindset, a philosophy, a way of life, and the elixir of the gods.

And speaking of creators, Eric Mullins did exactly that.

I usually start these conversations with a single question, but since we're drinking coffee, I'm gonna give you three.

Are you ready?

- Yeah.

- Okay, what made you decide to create Hyperion Coffee?

Am I saying it right, and wasn't Hyperion a Greek god?

- Hyperion was a Greek god.

- Like what, the Greek god of coffee?

- I think it was a Greek god of harvest, and so for us, we were trying to link in a few different thoughts, and the tallest tree in the world is Hyperion, located out in California, and we figured since our proximity to TreeTown in Ann Arbor, we might as well bring some of those ideas together.

So we have the Greekout Harvest, TreeTown, where like Hyperion's a very strong name, and it's also, if you look at our logo, it's one of the moons around Saturn.

- [Tom] This is really getting complicated now.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure, but like for us it was like a name that was really strong, and a very complex background with history of Greek gods, and planets, and moons, and so we actually carried that out into the rest of our branding.

So we have Helios blend, and the Titan blend, and Prometheus, which are all moons around Saturn, and so we just kept that theme going, and so that's been really fun.

- But what made you decided to do coffee?

- So we decided to do coffee, like me and my business partners, because we were working at other coffee shops, and we worked for so many other people where their goal was to start a brand, or just a coffee shop, and that was it.

There was no intention behind what they were trying to do.

I really wanted to know where our coffee was coming from.

I wanted to know the producer.

I wanted to know how it was roasted, why it was roasted a certain way.

I wanted to know the profiles of everything going into it.

I wanted to know the soil content that was in the trees, in the coffee farms.

- Well, all the time you hear fair trade coffee, so explain that whole concept.

- Yeah, so the Fair Trade Organization does a really great job of setting a floor on coffee pricing in our industry, and so basically it's guaranteeing the coffee producer a certain price, and regardless of coffee quality or harvest.

And so for us though, we wanted to kind of marry that with the idea that we can bring in high quality coffee, and actually have conversations with our producers and say, "Hey, you know, if you produce better coffee this year, we're gonna pay you more money.

If it scores higher for us, then you get more money, and if your coffee farms yield more coffee, then we're gonna give you a yield bonus," those kind of things, and have those conversations with producers and with importers and exporters in order to try to increase the coffee quality, and then provide that for our local community, and convey those stories.

- So last question, does it drive you absolutely nuts when people order an expresso?

- No, so I don't think that it's really wrong to say it that way, although I wouldn't, you know- - It's espresso.

- Yeah, we usually just say like, "Gimme a spro," you know?

- Gimme a spro, bro.

(Tom laughing) - Shorten it out, you know?

- That's the joke show.

- 'Cause I always come into the cafe and I'm like, "Can I get spro, bro?"

and you know, that's kind of the fun.

- They go, "For show."

- Yeah, my baristas, they always roll their eyes at me, because I'm the elder statesman in the coffee company.

- You got a kid now, so you do dad jokes.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.

(both laughing) - Well, after a quick coffee talk, I literally bolted, pun intended, over to the roastery for more caffeinated confirmation from Eric's co-creator Dan Kubera.

You know, I think for any true coffee lover, the chance to go to a roastery like this is like going to Disney World or something.

It's like, I got all giddy when we walked in here, just because you can smell the coffee, you see the giant bags of beans.

I mean, you must love being here.

- Absolutely.

We've been here for about two years now, and yeah, we've just kind of grown into our new home, and it's awesome working with coffee every day.

- I just love the fact too that you have the photographs on the wall of the farmers, the producers that you guys work with, 'cause like Eric was saying, I mean, you guys have a relationship with these people.

You're not just buying big bags off a truck.

Well, I'm sure they do come on a truck, but I mean, you know the people, right?

- Yeah, and that's been the biggest thing for us.

We really want to highlight who's making the coffee, and the people who are really behind the coffee, and you know, showcase their work, and not necessarily our work.

We're just one step in the process, and I kind of view it as being a caretaker for the coffee.

We're the final step before it gets to the customer, so our job is just to, you know, handle the coffee and roast it the best we can to bring it to its full potential, and represent the producer the best we can.

- Well, fire these babies up, 'cause I could use my 18th cup for the day.

- You got it.

- Well, even though I usually limit myself to about 43 cups a day, I decided to have a heaping helping of Hyperion.

And not only was it awesome, but once again, all was right with the world.

So if you're looking for a cool and comfy place to conquer a cup or three, stop by Hyperion Coffee in Ypsilanti.

It's the perfect place to recharge your brain while you're recharging your awesome EV, bonus.

(whoosh) (whoosh) Well, as always, we named our EV Steve.

So with Steve the EV full of electricity, we headed downtown Detroit for a roll along the river that would prove to be as much fun as it is good for the environment.

That's right, we're talking about convenient forms of alternative transportation, because affordable, lean, and green mobility is something that's on more and more enlightened minds lately.

Yep, getting from point A to point B needs to get cleaner.

So Kathryn Snorrason met us on Detroit's awesome River Walk to help me wrap my thick, carbon-covered cranium around this concept.

Kathryn, I have to be honest, when I read your title, I was so impressed, I had to talk to you.

Say your title again.

- Managing Director of the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification.

- Oh my gosh, that sounds like something out of outer space.

That's so cool.

- [Kathryn] Yeah.

- It's such an important topic right now.

So many more enlightened minds now have that topic in their mind, because it's a place we need to go.

- Yeah.

- And truth be told, I snuck down here earlier today, and I got on one of those scooters, electric scooters that they have in a lot of cities all across America, and I used to make fun of 'em until I got on one.

- [Kathryn] Yeah, you gotta experience it.

- [Tom] Oh my gosh, it's like, talk about a quick, easy, clean, inexpensive way to get from point a to point B.

- [Kathryn] Absolutely.

- What does clean mobility and electrification mean to you personally?

- Yeah, I mean, we're working toward the state's carbon neutrality goal by 2050, so as we talk about electric vehicles, it's all building up to that larger state goal.

And when we talk about electric vehicles, it's not just cars, right?

Cars are great, but it's also e-bikes, supported by MoGo here in Detroit.

It's also scooters, and companies like Commute who have charging stations where you can charge any form of mobility right there on the charger.

- There was a whole year I rode my bike 12 miles to work every day, and home for a whole year.

People would laugh, they'd yell at me, but it just, it's not that hard.

- No, no, not at all, and people could think about their commute in a multimodal way, right?

You could take a bike to public transit, or to, you know, an Uber, and there are many different ways you can get from point A to point B, and that's what the state's supporting, multiple ways to get to where you're going.

- Yeah, and point being even if you do a little bit.

- Yeah, everyone can do that, and the state is doing its part to support that overarching goal by announcing that we are going to install 100,000 chargers across the state of Michigan by 2030 to support 2 million electric vehicles on the road.

That's huge.

- That is awesome, because we all know that this whole thing depends on infrastructure.

- Right, exactly, we need the chargers.

- Right, and once that's in place, I think more and more people will say, "You know what?

This is quiet, clean."

I mean, I've driven an electric vehicle a few times now, and every time I do, I'm impressed.

There's fewer moving parts, they're more inexpensive, they're quieter, they're clean.

It's just, and they've got pick up, oh my gosh.

- Absolutely.

I just took a ride in a Rivian vehicle on Friday.

I was able to drive it myself too, and the pickup was so impressive, such a fantastic ride, and the capabilities in that vehicle to go through different modes, and to change the level of vehicles, technology is fantastic, and it's right here in Michigan.

- Yeah, I mean, what's wrong with an electric car?

My toaster's electric.

I've got an electric blanket.

- [Kathryn] Yeah, absolutely.

- Well, it is so exciting right now in Michigan, because we're so close to be, it'll be a reality for everybody.

- Right, exactly.

- So thank you for everything you're doing.

- Yeah.

- I know it's sometimes an uphill battle, but yeah.

- It's a lot of fun too.

- Oh, yeah, I mean it's a ton of fun.

You should see me on the scooter, oh my gosh.

I had more fun than should be allowed by law on that thing.

So yeah, thanks for everything you guys are doing.

- Of course, yeah, thank you.

- [Tom] Well, thank goodness people like Kathryn are helping take us into a greener and more efficient future.

Now, if you can only get me off this scooter.

I'm just loving this thing.

Excelsior.

(upbeat music) (whoosh) (whoosh) Well, with our lungs full of fresh air, and Steve the EV full of active electrons, it was time to eat, and not just because we worked up an awesome appetite, but because this is "UTR," and that's what we do.

So we headed for a place that totally rethought the whole meaning of new construction.

That's right, when was the last time you went to an awesome place to eat where both the people and the food were in containers?

Well, while you're thinking about that, why don't you go ahead and watch this?

Welcome to Detroit Shipping Company, where they configured a cool culinary conclave out of conventional shipping containers, crazy?

I think not.

This place has a bar, a bunch of eclectic eateries, communal tables, an art gallery, live music, and as John Hartzell will tell you, it all started with a drawing on a napkin.

You know, John, I wanted to get here early in the evening, 'cause I know it's quiet here right now, but when this place starts hopping, it's a wondrous thing.

I mean, you've created such an awesome sense of place and space for the community, and you did it with one of the shipping containers.

I mean, where do you even get containers like this?

- Wonderful, not very far, about a mile down the road at a container port.

You know, we import more than we export, so there's a surplus of containers just waiting to be used.

- Well, what I love about this place is it's so multidimensional, it makes your head spin.

I mean, there's art galleries here.

There's retail stores here.

There's a plethora of different kinds of bars here and food.

I mean, where do you find all the chefs that have all the food here?

- Great question.

So when we knew we wanted to do this, we also understood that, you know, the venue is interesting, but the stars are the chefs, and that's who represents your community is who works in each one of these spaces, and Southeast Michigan is truly a melting pot, right?

I mean, we really are super diverse, and we wanted to showcase from downtown to the Northern communities, the Western communities and the South, right?

And so we probably had about 120 applicants, and it wasn't always necessarily is this the best food, though they all do an amazing job.

We also had other criteria, right?

Like what age the person was, where'd they come from, what are their secondary influences?

We really wanted to represent the community around us.

- Everything is food you can grab and go with, so you can grab something to eat, you can walk around, you can mingle, you can share, you can meet your new best friends.

There's live entertainment in the evenings.

You can go see art, you can shop the shops.

Yeah, it's, how do you describe this place?

And then it's and it's all in a bunch of shipping containers, it's beautiful.

- Honestly, it's sort of a community center in reality, you know, 'cause we programmatically, you know, Tuesday through Sunday, we have something going on.

If it's a bar class, it's painting with a twist, if it's a comedy show.

313 Comedy's been running comedy here for four years out of our little container up there, a small, great little room, like 30 person room, and you got, you know, standup going, it's awesome.

Live music multiple nights, and then we always have different community events.

Canine To Five right next door comes over and does a lot of dog experience, which my favorite was the puppy kissing booth.

- Oh, I thought said puppy kicking.

- The puppy kissing booth was awesome, but anyway, so there's just always something to do, and we get back to that statement of everything needs to be experiential.

You know, we wanted our food to be handheld or shareable.

We wanted it to be a community space.

We wanted long tables that if you're a group of four, you're sitting with four new people, and you know, someone's like, "What are you eating?

Where'd you get that from?"

We want people that really get together.

Like I said, it's more of a community center than a restaurant food hall, right?

'Cause you're intertwining so many different pieces.

We eventually added sand volleyball in the back, 'cause we said, "Hey, you know, what are things we can really do on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, draw people in here doing a different thing that's not really food-centric?"

And they'll come in here and experience again.

It's more community, just different sectors of our society looking to experience.

- Yeah, this place is a three dimensional manifestation of live, love, shop, eat local.

I mean, you've got some of the best young chefs.

You've got, you know, local, I mean Michigan beers.

You've got Michigan talent.

It's yeah, I'm speechless.

You're the first person in a long time that's rendered me speechless, but yeah, this is a great place.

- Thank you.

- [Tom] Well, with containers explained, I could contain myself no longer.

So with appetite fully engaged, I explored the many featured foods.

Wow, you can get amazing burgers, Greek cuisine, Caribbean fusion, dumplings from Nepal, incredible Thai street food, and even ice cream cooled with liquid nitrogen, bonus.

I munched, mingled, meandered, and had a marvelous time.

This really is a cool place to greet, meet, and eat.

So if you're tired of typical nights out, take your taste buds on a trip to Detroit Shipping Company.

I guarantee you, all five of your senses will thank you for it.

(whoosh) (whoosh) Well, since Steve the Bolt still had a considerable amount of volts, we headed west across our great state to find out how Michigan's own DNR is making EV technology convenient for campers.

Yep, at beautiful Holland State Park on the shores of Lake Michigan, the DNR installed a place where yes, you can juice up your electric vehicle.

Now, why are they being so nice to EVs like Steve?

Well, park super Sean Mulligan is gonna tell us right about- You know, in order for EVs to be successful, it all depends on the infrastructure.

Once the infrastructure's there, I think more and more people are gonna get 'em, and that's why I think it's so cool that the DNR, that you guys are actually installing these charging stations at all these, because there's how many state parks, 105?

- Right, yep.

- And I know you've just started the project, but it's gonna be so convenient for the people that come here.

- Right, yeah.

You know, recreation and the outdoors is such a big part of going green, you know, that's what we're here for.

We're protecting the resource, and changing over to the renewable resources like that for our energy is part of that, and you know, we're happy that we were the first park to actually see the EV stations getting installed, because you know, like I said, we need the infrastructure, and it's a question we've had.

These do get used, you know, we just got them in earlier this summer, and they've been used quite often.

- Well, like you said, I mean, what a perfect place to start to, you know, the whole infrastructure of electric vehicles in state parks, because they go hand in hand with nature.

I mean, nature loves quiet, nature loves clean.

Campers want quiet and they want clean.

People that come to the beaches, and speaking of beaches, we should say, I mean, you know we're at Holland State Park.

This has gotta be one of the prettiest parks in the world.

Isn't the lighthouse out there one of the most photographed lighthouses in the country?

- Yes, the iconic big red lighthouse, yes indeed it is.

It's a particular draw for us.

The lighthouse itself actually sits on the other side of the channel, but the best place to view it is right here in our park.

- Yeah, so you guys are the first park in Michigan to get these stations?

- Right, right, yep, and the initial phase is done in connection with Rivian in their adopt a charger program.

The first phase is around the lake shore, basically, so it goes through all the Midwest states that touch on the Great Lakes, and then later I think this year they're working on parks over on the Southeast side of the state too, over near Lake Huron.

- Yeah, it's a perfect combination, so I think it's great what you guys are doing.

It's such a natural, and just the quietness.

Every time I get in the car that we're driving right now, it's so nice to turn it on and there's nothing.

It's just quiet.

- You can enjoy it, yeah.

- Yeah, you can enjoy.

You can actually hear the nature around you.

When you're in a place like this, it makes sense.

- [Sean] I mean, not a bad place to do it.

- No, not at all, and like I said, last time we did one of these EV adventures, we traveled around for three days, and it was like $18.

- That's not bad.

(laughing) - Leaves more money for the concession center.

- That's right.

(laughing) - Well, thanks to Michigan's Department of Natural Resources, camping at our great state parks is getting quieter and cleaner, and after all, when you're interacting with nature, isn't that the whole point?

(whoosh) (whoosh) And speaking of point, now that Steve was all charged up, both he and we were ready for the challenge of finding our next mouthful, so we headed about 45 minutes north to magnificent Muskegon, and it's there where we hit the deck.

And when I say the deck, I mean, well, the Deck.

You heard right, the Deck is Muskegon's tropical seasonal summer hotspot that serves up great food, live music, good vibes, and awesome views of Lake Michigan.

And that's not hard to do, because it's right on a huge, beautiful white sand beach at Pere Marquette Park.

Michelle Harris and her husband Fred channeled their inner Jimmy Buffet to build this proverbial paradise.

It's absolutely amazing what you've created here.

I mean, it's like a little oasis in paradise.

What did this place used to be?

- Well, it was a lot of things before we took it over.

When we took it over, it was Captain Jack's, and this is our eight season being here, and it kind of evolved over time.

We didn't start with this.

We just started with the same footprint as restaurants prior to us, and then over time, we just kind of expanded and figured out what we needed.

- [Tom] A few shoe sizes larger.

- [Michelle] Yeah, exactly.

- You call this place the Deck.

You should call it the Decks, because there are so many cool places to sit, watch the sunset, you know, watch the beach-goers, enjoy dinner, enjoy drinks, and you've got the swing seats and a boat.

I mean, there's a booth that looks like an actual party barge.

- [Michelle] Yeah.

(chuckling) Well it's funny, if you blindfolded somebody, and brought them and sat them right where we're standing, and faced them this way, and said, "Where are you?"

They'd probably say, "The Bahamas, Key West, I mean, it's Jamaica."

(Michelle chuckling) I mean, are you in love with the tropics?

Is that why you did it?

(Michelle chuckling) - Well, I do love Florida, but yes I do.

But we just kind of wanted to, you know, Muskegon is really evolving into our tourists town, and a lot of people are really starting to vacation here, and I think we kind of just wanted to create a place down by the lake that when people came here, whether you're from Muskegon or out of town, you felt like you were on vacation, you know?

And it's just kind of a little getaway from, it's nice that you can just get in your car if you're from Muskegon, hop like five minutes to get here, and you kind of just feel like you're on vacation.

- And I've heard your food described as crave-worthy.

- Yeah, it's very good.

All of our food that we do is homemade dressings, sauces.

Our drink mixes are homemade.

We, you know, smoke our own meats.

They come in raw, you know, we process them, we season them, we smoke, do overnight smoking.

So we really take pride in our food, and I think that kind of is what sets us apart from high volume restaurants as to like, where we are really able to, you know, make the homemade food and, you know, give that, you know, next level of just great food.

- Well, to be able to sit, like I said, in paradise like this on this beautiful lake shore, and have good quality food and drinks, that is vacation.

I mean, that's what people look for vacation.

- And I think having a barbecue makes us able to do mass volumes, because barbecue is all about the preparation ahead of time, you know, so it's a lot of hot holding your meats, and hot holding, you know, your pit beans, your mac and cheese, your stuff that you've made the day of and the night before, so it is able, it does allow us to be able to serve a mass amount of people.

- And speaking of sand, when you're here, 'cause you can actually literally sit in the sand and watch the beach, or watch the band, and enjoy your beverages and your dinner, is the sand you take home free in your shoes?

- Exactly, you should see my house and my car every day.

(Michelle chuckling) - If you only had a dollar for every grain.

- Yeah, you definitely know when it's Deck season at my house.

(chuckling) - [Tom] Well, with all of our who, what, when, and where's answered, how's about we just relax and enjoy some great food, new friends, and cool surroundings?

Yep, if you're looking for a good summer destination that'll feel like vacation, the Deck in Muskegon is one heck of a place to plop yourself down.

And if you do see Jimmy Buffet, tell him I found his busted flip flop.

Huh, I can't believe that even fits him.

And remember, if you see us heading down the road in trusty Steve the EV, just know that we're doing our part to help save the planet, and we're probably also on our way to another great meal.

Hey, this is "UTR."

Hit it, Steve.

- [Announcer] Pure is what you make of it.

It's taking it all in and never taking anything for granted.

The sun sets, the moon rises, and you realize the end of one perfect summer day is the beginning of another.

Pursue your pure in pure Michigan.

- [Announcer] A visit to the Stahls auto collection will take you back to a time when cars were more than just a way to get around, a fantastic assortment of gas pumps, neon signs, and automated music machines dating back 150 years that must be seen and heard.

Info at stahlsauto.com.

- [Announcer] Destination Annarbor.org is your gateway to Chelsea, Dexter, Manchester, Milan, Saline, Ypsilanti, and Ann Arbor.

Find out the best spots to eat, festivals to attend, activities to do, and places to discover at destinationannarbor.org.

(upbeat music)