[HOT LIST] German food

Cheese and sausage platter at the Berkley Front. All photos by Nicole Rupersburg.

Pretzels and mustard. Sausage and sauerkraut. Beer and ... beer. And cheese. And beer. And more sausage. Beer, brot* and brats are the base elements of German cuisine -- much as the Irish stew everything, the Germans grind everything and stuff it inside animal intestine then eat it with beer. So what I'm getting at here is that they're really into sausage -- bratwurst and knackwurst and wieners of various form.

With Oktoberfest officially beginning this Saturday there is no shortage of Oktoberfest-themed parties at brewpubs and restaurants all over metro Detroit (basically it's St. Patrick's Day: The Fall Edition, but with lederhosen instead of leprechauns), but these are the places where it's pretty much Oktoberfest all year round. Some are decidedly German; others are German in spirit if not so much in name and décor. PS, straight-up cheese and meat plates totally count -- in Germany it's called Frühstück if it's breakfast, Abendbrot if it's dinner; either way it is an extremely common meal (served with bread, mustard and other accoutrements; many sauered, of course). Plus bier. Viele bier.

I never said it was pretty.

#1 Richter's Chalet (Dearborn)
I love this place so hard. From the Bavarian chalet-style facade (barely noticeable from the road as it is located right where Telegraph eats Michigan Ave.) and the lovely older ladies who take exceptionally good care of each customer, right down to the German music playing nonstop (everything from polka to German pop, which is really, really bad), this place is homey and quaint and kind of kitschy and totally adorbs. Specialties include Jaeger Schnitzel (sauteed veal with mushrooms in gravy) and Rindsroulade (round steak rolled and stuffed with bacon, rice and onion served in gravy), and schnitzel and sauerbraten and spätzle and Spaten ... German words are fun. They've also got Bavarian chicken dinners as well as American options, and entrees come with about 18 different sides for under $15 so come hungry.

#2 Jacoby's German Biergarten (Detroit)
"Spaghetti and meatballs" in German is Koenigsberger Klopps. That's actually not a literal translation but basically it's German meatballs over slightly crispy spätzle covered in lemon beurre blanc served with a side of red cabbage, and you can get it -- as well as a variety of other German specialties and American pub food -- at Jacoby's Biergarten (though, technically, the name is a misnomer; really it's just an indoor beer hall). They've got a great selection of German beers and other imports with a smattering of Michigan crafts to keep everyone happy, plus they've got those communal tables everyone seems to be so fond of now and have had them for, like, over 100 years. Once upon a time -- in the before time, the long long ago -- the beer hall upstairs was a riot on weekends, but now they just rent it out for private parties. Back in the days when people hung out in Detroit not because there was some intrinsic value attached to hanging out in Detroit but because it was cheap and kind of seedy and nowhere carded or cared was when Jacoby's used to have live music upstairs every weekend, but those days are gone and now people would rather drink in empty lots without indoor plumbing. (Though, to be fair, Jacoby's version of indoor plumbing isn't much of an improvement over an outhouse.)

#3 Dakota Inn Rathskeller (Detroit)
They serve traditional German dishes, but that's not why people come here. People come here for the chicken hats. At the Dakota Inn, located in Detroit's Palmer Park neighborhood and owned by the Kurz family since 1933, Oktoberfest is six weeks of sing-alongs and ceremonial keg tappings. And chicken hats. Design nurds will dig the beautiful Bavarian architecture and rugged antique furniture (and cuckoo clock!), beeries will lurv the selection of seasonal German biers, and everyone will love the polka because polka is the music of The People.

The Dakota Inn.

#4 Wurst Bar (Ypsilanti)
Wat is more German than wurst? The Wurst Bar might not be QUOTE-UNQUOTE "German" per se, but close enough. Beer? Check. (Really killer Michigan beer at that.) Brats? Pick an animal. There might not be sing-alongs or chicken hats, but all craft on draft is $2 after 8 p.m. on Fridays and probably that is all you really need to start your own damn sing-along. To, like, Slayer or something.

#5 Metzger's German Restaurant (Ann Arbor)
They've been serving traditional German dishes like schnitzel and stuffed cabbage for over 80 years, and they also pack some awesome German beers like Einbecker Schwartz. Try the "Haus Platter for Two" with wiener schnitzel, bratwurst, mettwurst, knockwurst, spätzle, sauerkraut, red cabbage, potato salad and house salad or soup for the most delicious of Deutsch-ish experiences. (Alternatively, their fresh lake perch is also a house specialty.)

Bubbling under Ye Olde Tap Room (Detroit), Fort Street Brewery (Lincoln Park), Berkley Front (Berkley), Biercamp (Ann Arbor), Heidelberg Restaurant (Ann Arbor), Schnäck (Detroit-area pop-up), One-Eyed Betty's (Ferndale), Georgio's Apple Orchard Inn (Washington)

*brot = "bread"

 

[Real Detroit Weekly] Dakota Inn Rathskeller

All photos by Nicole Rupersburg.

"Why do Germans celebrate Oktoberfest in September? They just do, no need to worry your pretty little head over it. But at the Dakota Inn Rathskeller in Detroit's Palmer Park neighborhood, Oktoberfest starts late September and runs through the end of October because this is America and dammit, the name says 'Oktober.'

'The Oktoberfest celebrations at the Dakota Inn are infamous in metro Detroit, with people making reservations months in advance just to ensure a seat (never you fear, late-planners: the 'late' crowd, from about 9 p.m. on, is all on a walk-in, first-come/first-served basis). As Detroit's only sing-along bar, the Dakota Inn is always guaranteed to be a good time; but it's during Oktoberfest that things get extra-rowdy ... and when the chicken hats come out in full force.

'What harvest season Old Country German tradition do the chicken hats originate from? None. Not a damn one. They're just fun. They're chicken hats. Also, the Kurz family, which has owned the Dakota Inn since 1933 and is now in its third generation of ownership, makes the hats themselves and then donates the proceeds to charity. Also, they're chicken hats...'

Read the rest of the article here.

Want to see more? Check out the Flickr set here.

[Real Detroit Weekly] Berkley Front

(Photo by Nicole Rupersburg)

"The year was 1994. Through the fog of flannel-shirted grunge there was still a glimmer of raw punk ethos and rockabilly pompadours in the likes of Social Distortion and Detroit's own Suicide Machines. It was also the year that the Berkley Front opened. One has nothing to do with the other, but the Front certainly looks like the kind of place Mike Ness and Jason Navarro could be spotted grabbing a beer together, with its stamped tin ceiling and old school jukebox filled with the Morrissey, Wilco, etc.

'For 17 years running, this place has been a beer bar. It has always been a beer bar, and it will always be a beer bar. They were here before being a beer bar was cool. It's pretty much the protopunk of metro Detroit beer bars..."

Read the rest of the story here.

Want to see more? Check out the Flickr set here.

Oktoberfest Menu at Grizzly Peak

Technically "Oktoberfest" really happens in September, but this isn't Munich and who's really keeping track anyway?

I've already put together a guide to Oktoberfest parties and brews, but there is one brewery in particular that is going the extra Meile (that's "mile" auf Deutsch) with their Oktoberfest-ivities.

Grizzly Peak Brewing Company in Ann Arbor (A2 if you're hip) is currently offering a Deutschland-centric menu along with their seasonal brews. Enjoy Bavarian Pork Chops with fingerling potatoes and a mustard glaze, Beer-Braised Bratwurst with herb spaetzel and pan-fried cabbage, Pretzel-Crusted Salmon with horseradish potatoes and wilted spinach, or Chicken Schnitzel with horseradish potatoes, pan-fried cabbage, and raisin sauce.

I was over there a couple of weeks ago and sampled the Beer-Braised Bratwurst. I'll be honest with you--German cuisine is not one of my favorites. Maybe it was the mounds of stinking sauerkraut I would watch family members shovel into their mouths as a child (oh, that smell) or the "German" potato salad made with mustard and vinegar that my parents finally stopped trying to force me to eat when they learned I really would just opt to go hungry, but when someone says "German food" to me my stomach always turns just a little.


And so it is that I say with the utmost sincerity that the bratwurst at Grizzly Peak is actually rather good. The brats were juicy and flavorful and the pan-fried cabbage was actually quite delicious, with only a hint of the vinegar-like quality of sauerkraut and a palatable companion to the brats.

So, maybe my perception of German food was all wrong. My family isn't exactly known for being great cooks (this is why I merely eat), and surely German folks eat something other than sauerkraut, yes? Grizzly Peak, you've converted me. Next time I see bratwurst at a barbecue maybe I won't make a wretching sound (provided there is no sauerkraut nearby).

Grizzly Peak will be offering this limited-time Oktoberfest menu now through October 22, along with their seasonal brews including the classic Oktoberfest Lager, the Rotweizen (a red wheat ale made with Hefe yeast so it has some of the banana and clove tones common to a Hefeweizen), the Schwartzweizen (a black wheat ale also made with Hefe yeast but with notes of chocolate and toasted malts), and their Bear Bones Brown Porter. Their regular menu also includes a wide selection of pub favorites and hearty soups, salads, and entrees made from scratch daily. Try the Cheddar & Ale Soup--because you really just can't go wrong with putting beer and cheese together in a bowl.