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Detroit, MI


demandalicious

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No one goes to Detroit to eat. Period.

Me and my midwestern palate only ever went to Detroit for warehouse parties or to drive over the bridge to Canadia.

As for finding food worth writing home about in the state that is shaped like a hand, you can find a few worthy spots in Grand Rapids, Traverse City or Saugatuk. Most people from the Midwest travel to Chicago if they are jonesin' for some fine dining.

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No one goes to Detroit to eat. Period.

Me and my midwestern palate only ever went to Detroit for warehouse parties or to drive over the bridge to Canadia.

I have spent a lot of time in the Detroit area, as my wife is from there and my in-laws are still there. I wish I could disagree. I would add, though, that there are some fun and reasonably good Greek restaurants in Greektown. (We had our rehearsal dinner at one.) There are, indeed, some good Middle Eastern restaurants in Dearborn. (I could not tell you their names, though.)

Aside:

Although I didn't much explore them when I was in AA, ...

I totally misconstrued this sentence.

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Where in Saugatuck? I lived in Douglas for a bit and found the dining options pretty limited.
Limited, yes. But compared to Detroit, the Belvedere Inn in Saugatuck is downright cosmopolitan. Resort towns and cities in Western Michigan (namely, G-Rap) are much more tummy-friendly than Eastern Michigan and the Dirty D. The last time that I was in Detroit, I was there for the DEMF - which is a very large festival that draws in at least 500,000 people each year - the only time I actually ate at a restaurant was during my daily brunch in Greektown. One of the biggest problems with Detroit is that NOTHING is open downtown on the weekends except for nightclubs, liquor stores and/or bars. It's a dead city.
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From two Detroit boys here at Vidalia..............(Doug & RJ). One should not go to Detroit to get phu phu gourmet food. Take advatage of the ethnic groups that hibitate in the metro area.

  • greek town-great flaming cheese and lamb......the best greek food in the midwest
  • Laffayette Coney Island..........The only coney Doug and I would ever eat right Rocks!!!!!
  • all kinds of middle eastern foods that are heads above the make shift we get here
  • the best jewish delis are in oak park......come on now
  • Hamtramick is the largest population of Polls oustide Warsaw (ahhhhhh sausages)
    • the greatest slider in the US is in Farmington.......... Greens Hamburgers......55 years of the best greece
    • Detroit is not about great chefs....its about great ethnic foods.........blue collar.......stick to your ribs food.
    • And Rocks Doug says stick up for the Dog

    No, you're right...even though it was never my intention to suggest that there are no adventurous palates there, the "bland midwestern palate" is a stereotype that adds no information to this discussion, and doesn't need to be perpetuated. One might draw the same conclusion about DC if you only ate at Tara Thai. I apologize, and have edited out that comment.

    My original assumption was that it was a compromise to local tastes, but the fact is that I don't have a counterexample of a more authentic Ethiopian restaurant there that's faring poorly. My guess would be that they might simply not have enough Ethiopians there to anchor against cultural fusion. The place was packed, but with nary a recognizable Ethiopian among the diners or wait staff, save for the one fellow I presume was the owner or GM. I didn't get a look in the kitchen to see who was cooking, unfortunately.

    Detroit is noted for its excellent middle-eastern cuisine (supported by a large and vibrant Arab community), something I had mentioned in an earlier draft of my posting but which I must have deleted. I've visited and loved the aforementioned local La Shish chain many times in the past (their uber-garlicky chicken shwarma is divine), but this past year they've fallen on hard times amid charges of their founder's tax evasion, and boycotts triggered by the discovery of his unflattering association with major Hezbollah figures.

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Detroit is noted for its excellent middle-eastern cuisine (supported by a large and vibrant Arab community), something I had mentioned in an earlier draft of my posting but which I must have deleted. I've visited and loved the aforementioned local La Shish chain many times in the past (their uber-garlicky chicken shwarma is divine), but this past year they've fallen on hard times amid charges of their founder's tax evasion, and boycotts triggered by the discovery of his unflattering association with major Hezbollah figures.
La Shish/Talal's in Dearborn is by miles and miles the best Middle Eastern food I have ever eaten. The kabobs there put what we have in the DC area to shame, and their hummus with olive oil and roasted pine nuts is in a different class than any other hummus I have ever eaten. Even their pita bread can't be compared to anything else.

If you're in the Detroit area, dinner there is definitely a destination and worth the drive.

Looks like they went out of business recently. ;)

What are the best alternatives for Middle Eastern food in the area? I am headed up to Detroit for business later this month.

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I've flown to Detroit for depositions and client meetings eight times since April and eaten all over the place.

Favorite meal was at Giovanni's. Far and away the best calamari I've had anywhere. Perfectly tender. The owner stops by every table and couldn't be more welcoming and gracious. Linguine with clams was excellent too.

I stayed at the Westin Book Cadillac twice and ate at Michael Symon's Roast a few times. Roast beast of the day is decent, especially when you get lots of crispy skin. Best dish is probably the bacon appetizer with haloumi cheese and pickled tomatoes. Thick chunks of pork belly that I liked even better than at Ray's the Steaks. Also, the weekday happy hour deals are INSANE. All food items are $3, and the portions are ginormous for the price, including the roast beast tacos, burger with fried egg, and stuffed peppers. I was stuffed from three plates!

Sora (the Japanese restaurant at DTW) was a place I ate regularly before flying back to DC. Ramen and udon are so-so, sushi and sashimi are decent. There is now also a Popeye's!

Dema (restaurant at the DTW Westin) is overpriced but has passable options if you order correctly, such as the salmon ceasar and the chicken cobb salads.

I also drove twice to Zingerman's. Definitely pricey, but I enjoyed both the pastrami and the whitefish salad sandwiches tremendously. Quality of ingredients is obvious and the service is super-friendly.

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Things have changed since 2009! 

I've been visiting Detroit every May since 2005 and have seen things change drastically. No longer are you forced to eat in Greektown on the weekends because everything else is closed downtown. 

Had some very good Detroit pizza at Loui's (yeah i know it's not the original) and fried chicken at a place I forget. Detroit is still not upscale but it's great for southern fare.

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Loui's is awesome! Great food in the city / suburbs. Vinsetta Garage, Imperial, Johnny Noodle King, El Barzon for Italian/Mexican (weird, but good!), Green Dot Stables, great taquerias, Supino's pizza, Selden Standard, Al-Ameer and a million other middle eastern places (and the amazing garlic sauce!), excellent Thai food in most suburbs, very good Indian in Oakland county, Coney Island diners galore, Slow's BBQ and many more. With rent being super cheap, people can be inventive and distinct. For it's size/composition, it's a GREAT food city, particularly for ethnic food. It's worth a visit... And I swear I'm not biased just b/c I'm from there.

 

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I was eager to visit Dearborn to try Middle Eastern food.  I looked in Simul’s recommendation, Al-Ameer, but it was crowded and, as a white table-clothed place, seemed like dining there would take more time than I had.  In doing online research on Yelp and other websites, I read about Al Chabab.  I had never eaten Syrian food, so stopped there.  The restaurant is pretty barebones, with maybe seven tables and a small kitchen.  Mr. Barakat was very welcoming and was happy to explain the menu items.  Since he specializes in Aleppian cuisine, I asked for his recommendations of Aleppian food.  I ordered the Kabab al-Halabi (a spicy kabab) with hummus and fattoosh salad. 

The kabobs were expertly grilled, with a nice char and a juicy medium rare.  The seasoning was mild.  The spiciness came from slices of pita laid on top which were smeared with a red pepper paste.  There were raw onions and chopped parsley scattered on top.  Delicious.  The hummus was different from what I am used to- there seemed to be very little lemon and garlic but there was a heavy dose of tahina.  It was velvety smooth and it went well with the fattoosh, which was very lemony.  I had never eaten fatoosh before and thought it was a very well-conceived dish.  Well worth the $15 for the meal.

When I was leaving, I noticed that the people behind me had ordered a sheep head.  Seeing the skull was disconcerting but it looked like it would have been quite a feast with pickles and raw vegetables, broth, the soft meat, and side dishes.   Mr. Barakat told me the sheep head was very good.  I have attached the menu and hope that if you’re in the Detroit area, that you’ll try Al-Chabab.  

I also wanted to get some desserts.  Middle Eastern desserts, like Indian desserts, don't spare the sugar, so I’m a big fan.  I had read about Shatila.  It’s a very popular place and well-known outside of Detroit- my dentists are from Lebanon and they order bread from there.  I didn’t get anything because there were no labels on the desserts, which all looked like versions of baklava, and the staff didn’t have time for an extended discussion on the relative differences among the items.  Instead, I went to Lebon Sweets.  It’s a small shop.  I don’t know if they specialize in cheese but everything was some version of it - sweet cheese, salty cheese, sweet and salty cheese, sweet cheese with pistachios, etc.  I bought several different items and enjoyed them.

I hope to return for an extended visit to the area. 

al chabab 1_1.pdf

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We hit a couple spots on our latest trip to Detroit.  Tried Loui's and Buddy's for Detroit style pizza.  Both were good but Loui's was clearly better because it was a more substantial and better crafted pie.  Glad I tried Detroit style but I do prefer thinner crust pizzas.

The Farm Grill in Southfield was an excellent Lebanese diner.  Just ones lady cooking everything behind the counter, but service was still quick and friendly.  The food was delicious and perfectly prepared, and surprisingly big portions ( so the reverse of that old joke complaint about a bad eatery).

Arkin's Sweet BBQ Pit in Southfield was also wonderful (though the chicken was slightly less wonderful than everything else) and huge portions.  

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