Bill Cones’ Restaurant In Jackson: Where To Eat If You Wanted to Impress a Date

Bill Cones was responsible for many of Jackson’s restaurants, which in turn, made many fond memories for a seemingly infinite amount of customers. Establishments with the Cones touch included Brandywine, Gilbert’s, W.C.’s.....and the one that was my favorite, Bill Cones Fine Food & Cocktails.

This is the one located at 2500 E. Michigan Avenue that became a favorite place to go in order to impress a date.

Bill Cones Fine Food & Cocktails began as a small tavern in the 1950s called the Ten Pin Bar. After Bill added midday and evening meals to his fare, it became the place for factory employees to visit for lunch or after work. Word spread, and soon expansion was inevitable.

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In 1957 an addition was built to accommodate the more and more people that heard the word. A name change was necessary, as the atmosphere and clientele were changing; it was now known as Bill Cones' Place.

Another quick name change to Bill Cones Fine Food & Cocktails solidified it as the place where local businessmen could head for lunch and a quick respite. It went on for a good number of years gaining more word-of-mouth momentum and a stellar reputation. Another name change took place – Pointe East – but the date of that change is unknown.

Then it finally came time to sell; which Bill did in 1974 to his trusty restaurant managers. Another thirteen years went by and in 1987 the restaurant was sold again. After three years, it closed down in 1990.

Now it's an Auto Zone.

According to MLive, here’s one last tale about Bill from the beginning when the establishment was still known as the Ten Pin: "He would line up glasses on the Ten Pin bar before 11 a.m., maybe 20 or 30 of them, and put bloody Mary fixings in them, everything except for the ice. So when his customers came in, they were ready to go. And he covered the pool table with a sheet of plywood for a lunch buffet that featured roast beef sandwiches."