[HOT LIST] Scotch eggs

Ye Olde Scotch egg. Technically not era-appropriate but whatevs.

The Scotch egg. In addition to thanking the British for Shakespeare and Doctor Who, we can also thank them for this. It is a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage, coated in bread crumbs and deep-fried. Brilliant! Places that serve them are in short supply in metro Detroit (most people's first and probably only experience of them was likely at the Ren Faire, which only merely does the trick like any festival food), but no need to go all arse-over-tit trying to find some -- I've done the work for you. (With thanks to my western beerespondent for being my steel-stomached guinea pig.)

#1 Grange Kitchen + Bar (Ann Arbor)
All good things are made with duck. It's a Scotch egg only the egg comes from ducks from Our Family Farm in Manchester, MI. Duck eggs might be smaller but they are soooooo much richer than those of their pedestrian poultry cousin chicken. And if you question Chef Brandon Johns's commitment to local sourcing (or are just really passionate about it yourself), don't miss his annual 52 Mile Dinner on Nov. 7.

#2 One-Eyed Betty's (Ferndale)
Can you believe this place hasn't even been open a year yet? I feel like it has always been and forever will be. Like having a cell phone. Like, I know intellectually that there was a time in my life before it but it just seems so foreign and far removed from me now. So anyway, the Scotch egg is a fairly new menu item and it is ON POINT. Their secret to Scotchy awesomeness? Panko bread crumbs. It makes ALL of the difference. Not some. ALL.

#3 Red Coat Tavern (Royal Oak, West Bloomfield)
One of these days these guys are going to jump into the new millennium and get a real website. Until then you'll just have to take my word for it: they have Scotch eggs, and they are good. And as one of metro Detroit's mainstays of awesome Belgian beer lists, this place is a consistent win (maybe you've heard of their burgers?). Also now that Vinsetta Garage is reeling in all the traffic it might actually be easier to get a seat here!

#4 Wurst Bar (Ypsilanti)
You may have noticed that I pretty much love this place. (They are featured in three of the last five Hot Lists, including this one.) So yes, I really pretty much entirely love this place. But please take note: these are not Scotch eggs. These are motherfucking pterodactyl eggs. And for $5.95 you get two of these monsters, which are soft-boiled so that the yolks are all yummy and runny. Fair warning, if you eat them both you will likely spend most of the next day feeling like there is an actual pterodactyl in your intestines that is about to rip its way free Alien-style.

Pterodactyl eggs from the Wurst Bar.

#5 Dominion House Tavern (Windsor)
There are Scotch eggs and they have them, but the interesting thing about "the DH" -- located juuuuuuust across the border in Windsor, making it all of about 10-15 minutes depending on bridge and tunnel traffic (heh heh heh ehhhhhh, that only means something to New Yorkers) -- is its history. It is the oldest continuously-run tavern in the Border Region and would have served well on my Prohibition bars hot list except for that OH WAIT, CANADA DIDN'T HAVE PROHIBITION. Canada is awesome. And living on a border is also awesome. And also you can see metal bands play there without any of that "bridge and tunnel" newly-minted Canadian legal/American minor nonsense you get on Ouellette.

Bubbling under Concrete Cuisine (food truck; menu varies), Ye Olde Saloon (Royal Oak), Sean O'Callaghan's (Plymouth), Fort Street Brewery (Lincoln Park), O'Connor's Public House (Rochester)

Now THAT is a Scotch egg. 

[HOT LIST] French onion soup

French onion soup at Kiernan's Steak House.

There is a certain kind of restaurant that is neither neighborhood diner nor flashy fine dining, but exists somewhere in a weirdly indefinable food purgatory in-between. These places are dark and rarely have interior windows; the décor dates back to whenever the place was built (which could be anywhere from 20 to 50 years ago); the food would be considered American by the standards of when "American" fine dining was heavily influenced by French cuisine and all that really existed in the country's culinary oeuvre were steakhouses and burger joints.

They serve frog legs, filet mignon and planked fish usually in rich, creamy, butter-based sauces, specialize in tableside Caesar salads and chateaubriand, and serve oysters in various incarnations as staple items. These places are remnants of a bygone era in American dining history ... and more often than not, so is their clientele. These are the blue hair restaurants, serving up "old people food" to our most revered elders. 

Kickers All American Grill.

I remember having a conversation years ago with Diane Geiger TenHoopen about how a restaurant's French onion soup is the litmus test for the overall quality of the place itself--the richness of the broth, the sogginess of the bread, whether they use Swiss or provolone cheese--the devil is in the details, and if a restaurant can't get their FOS down then there's not much hope for the rest of the menu.  When I decided the world needed an EID Hot List on FOS, I contacted Diane immediately. She previously authored a blog that was dedicated entirely to French onion soup (called FrenchyO!), and I knew with our shared passion for FOS she would understand just how important it was to get this list absolutely right. Her assistance has been invaluable.

#1 The Brewery (Clinton Township)
The Brewery is a huge facility located at 17 Mile Rd. and Hayes in the heart of Clinton Township, an area not exactly known for dining refinement. The inside is dimly lit and yes, there are a lot of blue hairs here. The Brewery never ends up on any "best of" lists and isn't typically named among the local "foodie" favorites (its location in Macomb County doesn't help it gain new fans either, as popular opinion seems to hold that the world is flat east of Mound), but the French-inspired American food is fantastic (helloooooo escargot) and the FOS unmatched. The cheese bubbles over and drips down the sides of the crock bowl in buttery gobs, and the Brewery nails what many places seems to overlook: proper gratinization (with bread crumbs and butter along with the melted cheese). The top is browned and bubbled with a slight crunch from the bread crumbs; don't be ashamed to pick the cheese from the sides of the bowl.

#2 Kiernan's Steak House (Dearborn)
Kiernan's has been a Detroit tradition for nearly 50 years, a small remnant of early 20th century Irish heritage in the now markedly more ethnically diverse city of Dearborn. At this point it's something of a stodgy old steakhouse--the interior is DARK, there's fringed overhanging lights, faux Tiffany shades, lots and lots of wood paneling. It's dated but it's so dated that it has that retro hip potential ... speaking of hips, you'll hope the senior sentinels guarding the bar don't throw any out, but they're a jolly drinking crowd and the staff and stool fixtures all seem to know each other quite well. Prime rib is Kiernan's specialty, but their FOS is pretty tough to beat--very rich broth, hearty bread thoroughly soaked, bubbled and crisped Swiss cheese. They also have a small but respectable selection of Michigan craft beer (peep the Soft Parade in the pic), and upstairs is the more modern Silky's Martini Bar, which has a hell of a happy hour.

Weber's Inn.

#3 Weber's Inn (Ann Arbor)
Weber's Inn is the grand dame of all the old area institutions. It's been around for 75 years now and has managed to evolve with the times enough to stay relevant and popular with each generation (the different sections of the restaurant have a combined capacity of some 500 seats, and they still fill up on weekends), but not so much that there aren't still comfortable, familiar items that haven't changed much over the years ... particularly their prime rib, which they sell more of than any other restaurant in Michigan. Inside is a mix of modern (Habitat Lounge) and rustic Bavarian (the main dining room), and they even have their own sophisticated boutique hotel attached. This place is a true destination, and the FOS meets the same high standards of quality and excellence of execution as the rest of their menu.

#4 Redcoat Tavern (Royal Oak)
True, it's a burger joint, but it's so much more than that. A very dark, very comfortable British-style pub, they serve British-style pub food like beer cheese and Scotch eggs along with their multi-award-winning burgers (voted "Best in Detroit" by various publications over 60 times). They also have a phenomenal list of European beers for proper pubbing. Their FOS is solid and served piping hot; try it with Short's Publican Porter on tap while they've still got it.

#5 Lucy's Tavern on the Hill (Grosse Pointe)
Everywhere else mentioned here has certain specialties and good French onion soup. At Lucy's Tavern on the Hill, their specialty is French onion soup. They say the broth is "labored over" daily and they serve over 20 gallons of FOS every week. Patrons come out specifically for the FOS, which is made with caramelized Spanish onions simmered in beef broth, dry sherry and herb sachet, finished with garlic crostini and a gratin of provolone cheese. At $2.95 for a cup and $3.95 for a bowl, this is probably also some of the least expensive FOS you'll find.

Bubbling under Cadieux Cafe (Detroit), The Oxford Inn (Royal Oak), Terry's Terrace (Harrison Township), Max and Erma's (various locations), The French Gourmet (Ferndale), Mr. Paul's Chop House (Roseville), The Chop House (Ann Arbor), Peabody's (Birmingham), Kickers All American Grill (Livonia), Bath City Bistro (Mt. Clemens), The Hill Seafood and Chophouse (Grosse Pointe Farms), Bogartz Sports and Music Cafe (Detroit), Merriman Street Grill (Romulus)

[Real Detroit Weekly] Burger Bonanza

Attack! Slows' Special Purpose. (Photo by Nicole Rupersburg)

Eat It Detroit's own Nicole Rupersburg along with the Hungry Dudes' Joe Hakim ingested a grand total of 13 burgers in two days for Real Detroit Weekly. This not even a month after we went Coo-Coo for Cupcakes.  We would like our next feature to be about salad.

[From RDW]
There are few things more 'merican than hamburgers. And what do we, as Americans, do better than anything else? Make things bigger and better! Mount Rushmore, the Statue of Liberty, John Goodman and Super Bowl commercials. You get the drift. Well, we did a small-scale burger tour of metro Detroit, and here's a few unique (and some mammoth) burgers that we sought out. Sit back, loosen your belt and feast your eyes on the following. (It was a pun, just roll with it.)

Read the rest of the story here.

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

Irony at the Red Coat Tavern

I love the Red Coat Tavern. Always have. There's just something so terribly precious about it ("precious" as in "gimmicky"), but it's also a damn good place to get a beer and burger.

After nearly 40 years in business and opening sister restaurant Zinc Brasserie in West Bloomfield in 2004 (which has been voted to have the "Best Brasserie Burger" by the Free Press), Red Coat is still one of the most popular casual restaurants in Oakland County, always packed with a line at the door, and still sporting the same Olde Tyme décor as it has for...well, ever. Dark and dingy and fabulous, the red lights and plaid carpet are garish but make the place what it is. This isn't a trendy lounge atmosphere (unlike sister restaurant Zinc); it's a place to get some authentic, high-quality tavern-style grub.

The beer list is one of the best in the area (in my immediate mind, second only to the Berkley Front and Cadieux Cafe), featuring labels from the UK, Scotland, Brazil, and Belgium. This is where I first discovered Delerium Nocturnum, a strong Belgian brown ale, and I've stuck with it ever since.

And while the many other offerings on the menu are noteworthy--including traditional Euro-style dishes such as English Prime Rib with Yorkshire pudding and Scottish smoked salmon, as well as two different kinds of Clam Chowder and a hearty French Onion Soup--at the end of the day, this is a burger joint. Choose from 5 different breads (like onion rolls and pumpernickel), 8 different cheeses (like Muenster and Smoked Gouda), 20 different toppings (like burnt onions and avocado), and a variety of cuts to create your own ground beef masterpiece. Red Coat is also the only restaurant in Michigan to offer the very lean Piedmontese beef, clocking in with fewer fat grams than chicken or salmon (only 2 grams of fat per serving). The leanness gives it a little less flavor, but you can make up for that as I did by adding on a thick slice of Smoked Gouda and what must have been a 1/4 lb. of crumbled Bleu Cheese.

And that's where the irony comes in: order the lowest-fat meat on the menu, then slather it in high-cholesterol, high-fat cheeses. And it was goooooooood.

Red Coat Tavern is eclectic; you know when you first walk in and see the shaky statue of the British Red Coat and are told that it will be at least a 30-minute wait for a table, then see rich old people and trendy young people scarfing down their infamous burgers in the antiquated (that's a nice way of saying old and dingy) dining room, that this isn't going to be your average dining experience. It is creative and adventurous and just plain tasty, without all the bells and whistles of other restaurants that go for image over quality.

They also serve food until almost 2:00AM, which makes it the perfect place to hit after the bar.