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About The Macotta Club

Chef preparing a meal

The Macotta Club will bring together six restaurant options and 16 different food concepts on the first floor of Downtown Lansing’s historic Knapp’s building. The space will also include three food trucks and food makers, along with a full-service bar.

As an incubator kitchen, The Macotta Club will offer local food startups with a place to build a solid foundation as part of a 36-month program. These businesses will have the support needed to serve their creations as part of The Macotta Club, and visitors will be able to taste the newest, most innovative foods our area has to offer. It’s truly a win-win.

The Macotta Club is expected to open to the public in winter 2024.

What to expect
  • Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and after hours
  • Six restaurants
  • 16 food concepts
  • Classic bar
  • Five food trucks
  • Five food makers
  • Private dining rooms
Bowl of salad
Chef preparing a meal
Mission

We uplift Lansing by uplifting its exceptional culinary talent.

Vision

The Macotta Club is the go-to spot for people in Downtown Lansing to connect over food and drink any time of day, whether it’s a lunch meeting, a family dinner, or evening cocktails.

Values
Elegant doesn’t have to be exclusive.
Residents and visitors alike deserve a dining experience that inspires and connects them, regardless of price point. By providing a shared space and a variety of food and drink options, everyone is a part of the club.
Dreamers are the building blocks of our community.
Lansing is brimming with entrepreneurial spirit. These dreamers lay the foundation for our economic and cultural development — an accomplishment we can only achieve together.
Our history matters.
Countless incredible stories make up Downtown Lansing’s iconic past. By honoring these stories we not only connect through traditions that unite us, but can identify patterns to help us make history today.
Historical photo of the Knapp's building
Our space: The J.W. Knapp’s Building

The Macotta Club is honored to be located on the first floor of the J.W. Knapp’s Building at the corner of S. Washington Square and Washtenaw St. in Downtown Lansing. A historic gem, the building was constructed in 1937 and is considered one of the earliest examples of Streamline Moderne style. Lansing locals know the space as the former home of the iconic J.W. Knapp’s department store, which was considered to be “one of the most modern retail merchandising establishments in the country” by local newspapers upon its construction.

Nearly a century later, The Macotta Club strives to uphold and preserve the rich history of this local landmark. Our name pays homage to the iconic “Maul Macotta”-style concrete blocks that make up the exterior facade of the Knapp’s Building. These yellow, blue, and dark blue macotta concrete blocks, with an enameled metal finish hung from a steel substructure and glass block, were a copyrighted product of the Maul Macotta Company. Today, these blocks have been preserved to uphold the distinctive look.

Like each macotta block coming together to build a piece of architectural history, business owners, visitors, and partners of The Macotta Club are coming together to build something iconic. In the same way that the Knapp’s department store transformed Downtown Lansing back in 1937, this establishment will welcome a new era in Downtown Lansing that has been building up for some time — an era of bustling streets, “grand opening” signs, and laughter in the distance.