Jordan Wilcox
Assistant Publisher
The 113-year-old Historic Clare City Bakery entered a new era in 2009, when the nine full-time officers of the Clare City Police Department pooled together $13,500 to save it from the brink of closure.
After their acquisition, the cops worked tirelessly to expand the bakery into what it is today – Cops & Doughnuts – a world-famous Clare staple, with additional precincts and substations in Harrison, Mount Pleasant, Alma, Alpena, Bay City, Gaylord, Midland, St. Johns, and Standish.
Now, almost 17 years later, the bakery is once again entering a new era. On Friday, May 23rd, the former cop owners signed a merger deal with Halo Burger Owner and CEO, Achille “Ace” DiNello.
DiNello is a semi-recent entrant to the food service industry, but a very well-known one. After working in finance and logistics for years, he decided to change career paths and buy a pizzeria in Rochester, Michigan. From there, he bought two more pizzerias in nearby Birmingham and Troy, Alinosi Ice Cream in Detroit, and Melting Moments, the ice cream provider for Michigan State University and a major ice cream wholesaler in the Midwest. He also formerly co-owned a bakery in Plymouth, Michigan, but sold it in January, the same month he purchased the Halo Burger chain.
Halo Burger is one of the oldest hamburger chains in the United States. Formerly known as Kewpee, the company originated on Harrison St. in Downtown Flint. Now based in the suburb of Burton, they are known for their large burgers, hand-cut toppings, and Midwest flavors, including Vernor’s Ginger Ale, Koegel’s Hot Dogs, and Wisconsin Cheese. The chain employs about 150 Michiganders and has five restaurants in the Flint Area.
In a statement made to the Morning Sun, Cops & Doughnuts Vice President, Greg “Ryno’ Rynearson said that although there was a huge amount of interest, DiNello was chosen to help lead Cops & Doughnuts to more growth and potential mergers with Halo Burger restaurants. “Merging with Halo Burger will take both businesses to the next level, allowing for both to grow while offering Michigan-made products.”
The plan is for DiNello to take over the operations and management, but for the cops to remain involved with marketing and public relations. Everything should stay the same at the Clare bakery.
Upon Cops & Doughnuts’s Facebook announcement of the merger, many Clare residents inquired if Halo Burger had any plans to construct a new restaurant on Clare’s Hamburger Hill.
Neither party has alluded to any such plans, but Halo Burger’s original restaurant in downtown Flint closed during the pandemic. DiNello hopes to bring it back with an included Cops & Doughnuts location.
I think it should be located in the downtown area. Halo burger could be turned into an old fashion 50/60 diner with a soda fountain.
That’s what it says, they plan to reopen the halo burger on Saginaw. Which is brick street