It looks like Restaurant Week in Ann Arbor will continue after a successful inaugural launch in June.

The next one will be organized in January, Main Street Area Association director Maura Thomson told about two dozen restaurant and retail business owners and managers Thursday at a meeting I attended at the Workantile Exchange to critique this year's event. The goal thereafter is to do two Restaurant Weeks annually. Restaurant Week was the brainchild of former Bella Ciao owner Kathy Macdonald and Thompson.

This year participating eateries offered a choice of several three-course meals every day for a week for a flat fee of $25 for each meal. Most restauranteurs said the celebration boosted their sales, although the few retailers in attendance didn't seem to see much of a business increase.

Among changes discussed for upcoming Restaurant Weeks were offering memorabilia such as a decorative dessert spoon, employing people to stand on the street corners and give directions, setting up contests or giveaways, asking retailers to stay open later and using banners and other decor to make downtown more welcoming to folks visiting specifically to patronize the restaurants.

Photo: Poster advertising the first ever Restaurant Week in Ann Arbor this past June, courtesy of (and designed by) Angela Pierro of Zero Gravity Designs.