By Jessica Webster, Ann Arbor News
MLive Michigan, April 3, 2014
Sometimes a hunch pays off. When you're the food and dining reporter at the local newspaper, you might find yourself one of the only people left in the office on the day when the President of the United States is in town. ... And at some point, you might just decide that you should grab a camera and head over to Zingerman's Deli, just in case the president had a craving for a Reuben. ...
After all, the president - or a member of his staff - ordered takeout from Zingerman's during his last two visits to Ann Arbor. And Zingerman's co-owner Paul Saginaw recently traveled to Washington to advocate for an increased minimum wage - the very subject the president was scheduled to speak about during his visit.
I arrived at Zingerman's at 12:50 p.m. to find co-owner Paul Saginaw and marketing guru E.J. Olsen standing in front of the deli. Olsen explained that Saginaw had gotten the call - the president's people would be sending a car to pick Saginaw up for an offsite meeting. ...
At 1:35, the presidential limousine pulled up, and President Barack Obama stepped out. Students at the adjacent Community High School began chanting: "USA! USA!" The president waved and quickly disappeared into the deli. ...
By 2:29, the president was back in his limousine, headed to campus. During his remarks at UM's Intramural Sports Building, he spoke about his Zingerman's visit.
"Before I came here today, I stopped at Zingerman’s, which is the right thing to do when you're in Ann Arbor. I stopped for two reasons. The first is the Reuben is killer. ...
"So one of the reasons I went was because the sandwiches are outstanding. The second reason, though, is Zingerman’s is a business that treats its workers well, and rewards honest work with honest wages."
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