The Week We Ate (The EID Week in Review)

BUT DID HE GET FREE PARKING????

Yesterday was truly an historic day. "A staggering defeat...for the former mayor," says Jim Schaefer of the Detroit Free Press in their live blog announcing the verdict of Former Mayor and Convicted Felon Kwame Kleptocrat Kilpatrick's corruption trial. This was the day that Detroiters made it clear that we're taking our city back. It was the equivalent of the moon landing and the day Kennedy was shot for Detroit citizens, as all of us will remember exactly where we were when Kwame was found guilty on 24 counts. This was also the day that Ferndale's city council finally acquiesced to Ferndalians' incessant whining about a 25-cent-per-hour parking rate increase and decided to roll back the rates to the much more community-friendly 50 cents per hour AND continue offer free parking until March 24. WE TOTALLY WON, YOU GUYS. [Freep / Lower Ferndale's Parking Rates FB]

Chef James Rigato of The Root Restaurant and Bar is the only Michigan Chef nominated for Food + Wine's People's Best New Chef Award for the Great Lakes Region. 1 of 10 in the Great Lakes Region, 1 of 100 in the US. Show your support for the local food movement; a vote for James is a vote for Michigan! [F+W]

Awrey Bakeries, LLC is here to stay. Unlike Kwame. [MLive]

Where to go for St. Patrick's Day in Detroit? All of these places. [Visit Detroit]

Plus Mudgie's special St. Pat's menu is available through March 17. [Mudgie's]

And Bastone's goes until the 24th. [Bastone]

So guess who decided to talk to Crain's Detroit Business after all? David Overton, Detroit native and CEO of The Cheesecake Factory (which has its roots in Detroit), explains why Novi, why now, and why it took them so long to come home. [Crain's]

New Food Network show produced by Gordon Ramsay and hosted by Tyler Florence is now casting; local teams with pre-existing relationships battle it out for their own restaurant space inside a Michigan mall which they will get rent-free for a year. [RO Patch]

So now both Barrio AND the Hamilton Room are closed; apparently it's just getting too hard to be a nightclub in Birmingham. But never fear, the former owner is a partner in the new venture taking over the old Sangria space in Royal Oak, because Royal Oak is A-OK with nightclub douchebaggery! [Downtown Publications]

One of Mila Kunis's favorite places to eat while staying in metro Detroit to film Oz The Great and Powerful was Ronin Sushi. So there you go. Go there and you just MIGHT be putting your mouth on the same silverware that touched Mila Kunis's and, like, 700,000 other people's. But Mila Kunis! [My Fox]

Bruce Campbell's chin made an appearance at Tom's Oyster Bar in Royal Oak. [Tom's FB]

Atwater Brewery has been in a very (very) slow process of expanding over the past several years, with a whole lot of best laid plans falling through in between. Now it seems like they're about to (finally) explode, not with just expansions but with a brewpub in Grosse Pointe Park - another project spearheaded by the Cotton family, who are pretty much re-building that area themselves - and plans for a distillery operating by the end of 2014. [Crain's]

For those of you who like to piss and moan that Zingerman's Delicatessen et.al. is too expensive, shut up. For the love of God and Jesus and Allah and Obama and Jehovah/Elohim/Adonai, just shut up already. [RH Reality Check]

The official grand opening of Sauced at Go Comedy! Improv Theater was Sunday featuring lots of Guinness-ified food stuffs. [Thrillist]

B. Nektar in Ferndale has added jobs and a second location. [Metromode]

The Dunch Club is back in biz every Thursday 2-8 p.m. [Dunch Club FB]

Oh good, someone else repurposed this press release. eat ... catering and chef services in Ann Arbor has expanded their menu offerings! [AnnArbor.com]

Somewhere on the Facebooks I made a comment about the coming craft-beer-MEETS-craft-cocktail craze. (Wouldn't it be nice if you could search your own FB history?) Anyway, so the Daily Mail UK has confirmed: yes, beer cocktails are indeed becoming A Thing. [Daily Mail UK]

Historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects are talked about a lot in Detroit, but Oakland County isn't slacking either. Here OC Preservation Architect Ron Campbell talks about different projects going on around the county and why historic preservation is better all around, with shout-outs to Vinsetta Garage and Clarkston Union Bar + Kitchen. [Prosper]

Auburns Hills is working hard at establishing their own downtown Main Street community, and the cozy modern American Elwell Grill is part of that development. [Prosper]

Noam Kimelman isn't trying to "save" Detroit, but he is trying to get more healthful food options in the locations where Detroiters often grab quick snacks on the go: gas stations, convenience stores and the like. While others quibble over the definition of "food desert," Kimelman actually did something about it: hence, Fresh Corner Cafe was born. [UIX]

Tony Wisne Sabina, the uncompromising founder of Tribute and Epoch Hospitality Group, died at age 48 last week. May her legacy not die with her. [Crain's]

Detroit's iconic Sydney Boggs candies (which went bankrupt and closed in 2002) are reborn at Berkley's Sydney Boggs Sweet Essentials, run by long-time Boggs candy makers. [Prosper]

Miscellaneous
~Taco Bell's Cool Ranch Doritos Taco Loco is as real as gonorrhea. [Daily Finance]
~We've been abiding for 15 years now. [CNN]
~Of interest to Detroit/Brooklyn comparisons; this is what it means to be "the new Brooklyn." (Do you see a little bit of Detroit in this already?) [Esquire]
~Pyongyang has threatened to end a 60-year armistice with South Korea, which would likely lead to imminent war. Meanwhile, in New York, a judge says to Mayor Bloomberg "Let my sodas go." [Guardian / Death + Taxes]
~Staged or not, this is the best photo bomb in all of history. [106.9 WRQK FB]

[HOT LIST] Valentine's Day

Because it's never too early to start planning (and also and also and also FIRST), here is a preliminary list of events and other points of interest for celebrating (or actively anti-celebrating) this Valentine's Day.

#1 Clubhouse BFD V-Day B-Day, Feb. 14
Don't have it in you to face down yet another Valentine's Day alone? So don't. Join all of your beeriest of friends for a BIRTHDAY celebration at Clubhouse BFD ... a b-day that juuuuuuust so happens to fall on V-Day. But don't focus on that: instead, focus on how this place was just named by DRAFT Magazine as one of the 100 Best Beer Bars in the country. See? Don't you feel better already? Where there's beer, you're never alone.

#2 Single's Night at 8 Degrees Plato Beer Company, Feb. 14
Again: where there's beer, you're never alone. 8 Degrees is hosting a Valentine's Day Single Mingle Thursday, Feb 14th from 9:30 to 11pm. 15 single guys and 15 single ladies plus 6-8 beers to taste. Oh, and pizza. $15 per person. Reservations required please.

#3 The Dirty Show, Feb. 8-16
Early word on the Dirty Show this year is that there is a particular piece debuting that show producer/mastermind Jerry Vile has called "the most important thing the Dirty Show has ever done." (I've seen it, and it is truly a groundbreaking moment for the 14-year-old show. For naysayers that dismiss the Dirty Show as mere smut, this piece by Gregory de la Haba truly embodies that intersection of erotica and high art.) Also: boobs. The burlesque performances alone are worth the price of admission (even if you're a straight girl/gay boy who just likes the pretty costumes and is impressed by the caliber of performances). But the question REALLY is ... will Roxi be there???

#4 Detroit Passport to the Arts presents Detroit Loves Cinema, Feb. 14
A red carpet, a screening of Oscar-nominated shorts, and an afterparty at the newly-renovated Detroit Historical Museum. For couples looking to do something besides the usual dinner-and-a-movie, this is the ticket. You do not need to be a Passport holder to attend this event; click the link for ticket info.

#5 The Brunch Underground presents Dinner Theatre at Planet Ant, Feb. 16
The lovely folks of the Brunch Underground have partnered with Planet Ant for a dinner theatre combo, $30 individual/$55 couple which includes your theatre ticket, dinner AND drinks. And here is the menu: Parmesan risotto with braised short ribs, red wine reduction and a horseradish gremolata. An arugula radicchio salad with celeriac, apple and toasted walnut, in a creamy dressing. Individual pots de creme, with whipped cream. Herbed cheese popcorn for all! Also includes a champagne pomegranate punch and a pear rosemary cocktail.

#6 Anti-Valentine's Party at Whiskey in the Jar, Feb. 19
Who says Valentine's Day is for lovers? Haters unite! Elsewhere in Hamtramicka, the second-annual Anti-Valentine's Party will happen at Whiskey in the Jar. Bring a photo of your ex to throw darts at.

#7 Lobster Lovers Valentine's Day at Tom's Oyster Bar, Royal Oak, Feb. 14
Lobster specials and flaming Spanish coffees.

#8 Pete's Chocolates Company, Feb. 9-14
Ah yes, you also need a gift. Skip the mass-marketed over-priced chocolates and keep it local. Pete's Chocolate Company is a small-batch artisan chocolatier that specializes in hand-rolled truffles made with the finest ingredients. Pete will be at several events leading up to V-Day, so you can place your orders and pick-up at various locations in Ferndale and Detroit (check the schedule for where he'll be and when).

#9 VLNTNSDYMRKT at Pot + Box, Corktown, Feb. 14
POP-UPS! Detroit loves a pop-up. Especially one with a theme. This pop-up is happening at the eventual home of Pot + Box in Corktown, and will feature a number of Detroit vendors (including Pete's Chocolate Co.) selling gifts and goodies ideal for V-Day.

#10 Valentine's Package at Weber's Inn, Ann Arbor, Feb. 15-17
Maybe a staycation is in order? Weber's Inn in Ann Arbor is offering a whole hotel package that includes the room, champagne, chocolate-covered strawberries and a long-stemmed rose. The recently-renovated rooms are quite nice, the facility rather modern, and there's a very popular indoor pool-slash-pseudo water park that is especially popular in the winter. Plus the food at the attached restaurant(s)/bar(s) is excellent.

Bonus round:
Gourmet Valentine's Day Dinner for Two at the Produce Station, Feb. 14
If you're lazy, and I am most certainly that, Chef Steven Grostick has what you need for a perfectly romantic Valentine's Dinner for just the two of you to enjoy at home ... with no mess to clean up afterwards! $60 includes a salad to share, two entrees, two desserts, chocolate-dipped strawberries, two long-stemmed roses, and an optional cheese board (for an extra $20). Let the professionals worry about the food; you worry about the rest.

[HOT LIST] Spanish coffee

Spanish coffee. Photo source: The Internet.

The Spanish coffee is one of those holdover dessert drinks from the Reagan Era of steakhouse sovereignty. While once the grande dames of dining, these places are now mostly houses of old people food (though the "classic" steakhouse certainly seems to be coming back into vogue as of late). While other dessert drinks (like the ice cream-based Hummer) have been mostly relegated to the realm of revived steakhouses and horrible national chains with apostrophes in their names, the Spanish coffee has managed to attain a certain level of credibility, even amongst the craft cocktail crowd. Part nouveau trendy, part nostalgic throwback, the Spanish coffee is simply a lovely winter warmer and always will be. The places you'll find it are as varied as the recipes they use, but certain things are consistent: coffee, whipped cream, sugar rim, booze (usually coffee liqueur, brandy, rum, or any combination thereof).

#1 Tom's Oyster Bar (Royal Oak)
The secret to an excellent Spanish coffee is Tia Maria, a vanilla-infused Jamaican coffee liqueur. For many years, Tom's was widely renowned across metro Detroit for having the best Spanish coffee EVAH. This was because of Tia Maria. Then Tia Maria was suddenly and inexplicably unavailable in Michigan for a hot second (sometime in/around 2010-ish), and people took notice: Tom's Spanish coffee simply wasn't what it used to be. But then! Tia Maria just as suddenly and inexplicably became available in Michigan again (because the MLCC is awesome and is obviously a rational and consistent entity) and now Tom's Spanish coffee is just as awesome as ever. And not just because they set it on fire. But a little bit because of that.

#2 London Chop House (Detroit)
This is one of those recently-revived steakhouses of sovereignty but done so impeccably well (provided one can appreciate such painstaking throwback) that you just have to sit back (in the plush red leather booths) and enjoy the point at which historic preservation, well-funded nostalgia, museum-like reverence, and unapologetically untrendy classic steakhouse cuisine collide. The Spanish coffee is about half rich, creamy homemade whipped cream and half booze with a dash of coffee for warmth and color. With a lounge singer crooning hits from the Great American Songbook and a belly full of oysters and steak and starch and heavy cream sauces, it's hard not to get into the spirit of the place. The Spanish coffee is a perfect ending to a meal that is, by necessity, already over the top (and there's probably enough calories in that whipped cream alone to fully replace an actual dessert). They also serve that classic Hummer concoction, which they made famous back in the diz.

#3 The Emory (Ferndale)
They're not really known for their Spanish coffee, but they should be. Known best as a beer and burger bar (REALLY good beer and REALLY good burgers, and a build your own Bloody Mary bar on Sundays), their Spanish coffee is a local best kept secret. But if you're hanging out there one day and you see a blue flame and sparks emanating from behind the bar, that's their Spanish coffee - they light the brandy on fire and then spark it with cinnamon. Topped with rich whipped cream and a maraschino cherry, you totally won't feel like a wuss for ordering this because (a) fire, and (b) hipster bar. (Probably it's ironic?)

#4 Torino Espresso Bar (Ferndale)
Their Spanish coffee recipe is modeled after Tom's, right down to the orange twist, though it feels like it makes more sense here being that this is a cocktail bar with an emphasis on coffee and not a seafood house with an emphasis on oysters.

#5 Bacco Ristorante (Southfield)
Italian, Spanish, whatevs, there are no boundaries here. At Bacco you get a bowl of Spanish coffee to enjoy on its own (it's enough) or with one of their house-made pastries or gelato.

Bubbling under The Hill Seafood + Chophouse (Grosse Pointe), Santorini Estiatorio (Greektown), Clawson Steakhouse (Clawson), Terry's Terrace (Harrison Twp.), Fishbone's (Greektown, Southfield, St. Clair Shores)

 

[Real Detroit Weekly] Tom's Oyster Bar

(All photos by Nicole Rupersburg)

"So, who is Tom? Well, Tom is a recent retiree enjoying his golden years in Charlevoix, Michigan. But his legacy continues on at his namesake Tom's Oyster Bar in Royal Oak.


'Tom's has been a Royal Oak staple for as long as anyone can seem to remember – back when you could still smoke in coffeehouses, anyway. Back before there was a Starbucks there, even. While this city offers no shortage of lively nightlife, it is the old-school style of service at Tom's that makes this place one of the favorites amongst the locals.


RDW: 'So why is this such a popular spot for the locals?'

Customer at bar, overhearing the question: 'Because we love the bartenders!'"...

Read the rest of the story here.

Want to see more? View the Flickr gallery here.

Real Detroit Weekly: New Year's Eats

7 in West Bloomfield

To celebrate its one-year anniversary (they opened 12/1/2010), 7 in West Bloomfield is offering an all-inclusive evening of dining and dancing for only $60 per person (and that includes tax and tip). The four-course meal runs from 9 to 11 p.m. (limited seats are available). The upscale appetizer buffet will have shrimp cocktail, smoked salmon, oysters Rockefeller, sushi, assorted cheeses, fruits and vegetables and a gourmet salad display.Options for the sit-down entree selections include filet mignon, pan-seared Chilean sea bass and lemon chicken piccata, all served with loaded whipped potatoes and a vegetable medley. And, of course, be sure to save room for dessert. There will also be party favors, a champagne toast and balloon drop at midnight, late-night snacks and a DJ spinning all night long. Cash bar; VIP booths and bottle service available. Call 248.737.9777 to reserve yours in advance.

Bookies Bar & Grille

Downtown Detroit's favorite entertainment destination bar, Bookies Bar & Grille, will be popping bottles precisely how you'd expect them to: with lots of music and booze. For their New Year's Eve party they are offering a $50 ticket, which includes an open bar from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. (four hours to drink $50 worth of booze? EASY) as well as a late-night coney dog buffet, champagne toast and balloon drop at midnight, and three floors of the hottest hip-hop, dance, house and top 40 mash-ups featuring DJ Technician and DJ Salvador Rivera. Watch the ball drop in Times Square on their HD TVs and 16-foot projection screen. Reserved seating and coat check is available, and a four-course prix fixe dinner menu is also offered for an additional $30 (not including tax or tip). Tickets can be purchased at bookiesbar.com.

Fishbone's

If Greektown's Monroe Street can substitute for the raucous French Quarter in Virgin on Bourbon Street (you'll only know that movie because it was filmed in Detroit, and not for any other reason), then Fishbone's Rhythm Kitchen Cafe is a wholly acceptable fill-in for the candy-colored hedonistic Creole vibe conjured by Mardi Gras. Fishbone's is a Detroit-styled homage to the voodoo jazz of the Bayou, complete with plastic beads and krewe masks. If you're looking for a New Year's Eve that requires a little less planning and preening — something as easy as, well, the Big Easy — head to Detroit's own Fishbone's. Enjoy their usual selection of fresh seafood and sushi as well as steaks, pastas and Creole cuisine, then kick back when the Brian Sheehan Band kicks off at 10 p.m., playing classic rock, new wave and original cuts on what is rumored to be a "sparking" guitar.

Gaucho SteakHouse

The only authentic Churrascaria in metro Detroit, this Brazilian steakhouse offers the kind of dining experience you won't get anywhere else. Your meal is presented in the Brazilian and Portuguese "rodizio" style where "gauchos" (meat carvers) bring a seemingly endless stream of fire-roasted skewered meats to the table (16 in all) and shave off unlimited portions to your pleasing — use the green and red chips to signify when you're ready for more or when you're throwing in the meat towel. Beef ribs, baby back ribs, lamb leg and chops, rump roast, bottom and top sirloin, chicken, sausage, pork tenderloin and more await you, along with their gourmet 30-item salad bar with accompaniments such as smoked salmon, salami, asparagus, and grana padano (a hard cheese similar to parmesan). The prix fixe menu is always $43.99 per person, and they will be open until midnight on New Year's Eve.

Bourbon Steak inside MGM

There are few other restaurants in metro Detroit that come even close to matching the atmosphere of sophistication and distinction of Michael Mina's Bourbon Steak inside the MGM Grand Detroit. This is not the kind of place you visit unless you have extra money you don't want anymore; that being said, the exceptional staff ensures that your experience is well worth the splurge. If you're after something a little more champagne and charcuterie and a little less bump and grind this New Year's, Bourbon Steak's indulgent tasting menu is calling to you. This special menu is $100 per person with an an additional wine pairing available for $50 per person (tax and tip not included). Start with an amuse bouche of caviar parfait, first course choice of lobster bisque or steak "Oscar," entree choice of prime rib or curried lobster thermidor and a Knob Creek malted milkshake with chocolate ice cream sandwich and salted bourbon caramel for dessert. Truly spectacular wine pairings include Moet & Chandon Cuvée Dom Pérignon 1992 and Louis Carillon Puligny-Montrachet Burgundy 2006. Dinner service is offered 5 p.m. to midnight and reservations are required.

Sangria Tapas Cafe & Sky Club

SalsaDetroit.com, Metro Detroit Salsa, NuestroDetroit.com and Cuatro Cirios Tequila are bringing you the kind of New Year's Eve celebration you can step, twirl and cha-cha your way through with Salsa Explosion. Sangria Tapas Cafe and Sky Club will be doing what they do best: creating a sexy-as-hell culture of Latin food, music and dance in downtown Royal Oak. Four DJs will be spinning salsa, merengue, bachata, reggaeton and top 40 tracks to keep your pulse pounding and your hips swinging until 4 a.m. Tickets are $25 at the door or $15 in advance or with dinner purchase, and include continental breakfast. Three-course dinner packages include one tapa, entree and dessert and range from $30-50 (paella for two is $70 and includes two tapas and two desserts). Prix fixe dinner packages do not include tax or tip. Make reservations for one of three dinner seatings at 248.543.1964; tickets for the party afterwards are available through salsadetroit.com and sangriaroyaloak.com.

Tom's Oyster Bar

As luck would have it, New Year's Eve falls on a Friday this year. For those of you out there unfortunate enough to have to work that day, never fear: your after-work happy hour is continuing as scheduled at Tom's Oyster Bar in Royal Oak. From 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. enjoy $4 martinis, $3 calls, $3 pints and $1 oysters. And since you're already here, stick around for their NYE lobster specials: an a la carte lobster tail dinner and a surf and turf with lobster tail and prime rib (specials will run 5 p.m. to midnight). They will still have the full board of fresh fish that they're known for, as well as their namesake selection of six different cold water raw oysters. They — you know, THEY — do say oysters are an aphrodisiac ... and who doesn't want someone to kiss at midnight? Just some things to keep in mind. You're welcome.

Andiamo on the Riverfront

The tricky thing about New Year's Eve is all too often trying to enjoy it safely. This year Andiamo on the Riverfront is offering guests a package that will allow them to pop bottles without worry and let the booze flow like water. Guests will start with a four-course dinner at Andiamo and afterwards enjoy the evening doing all of the pure and innocent things people do in hotels, such as play Yahtzee in a deluxe room at the Marriott Renaissance Center. Enjoy its stunning views of Detroit and Windsor, all for only $279 per couple (tax, tip and alcohol not included). Call 313.567.6700 for reservations. RDW

Originally printed here.

Real Detroit Weekly: Tom's Oyster Bar

"Much has changed in Royal Oak over the past decade — gone are the punk stores (Editor's note: read--independent record stores, one of which I met Scott Ian from Anthrax one time...that was cool; also the OTHER Noir), head shops and independent coffee houses you could smoke in (Editor's note: remember THAT???); in are the upscale boutiques, chain eateries and high-rise loft developments. But Tom's Oyster Bar remains a monument of a former era, as relevant as ever in this Royal Oak Redux.

'Tom Brandel opened the first Tom's Oyster Bar in downtown Detroit in 1985. He had a vision of serving the freshest fish in the simplest ways, and having fresh fish and oysters delivered on a daily basis. His recipe for success led to the opening of this Royal Oak location in 1994, and Tom's still remains a Metro Detroit favorite...."

Read the rest of the article here.

Eat at Tom's

Perhaps not the typical everyman placeholder-type establishment that the originator snowclone "Eat at Joe's" phrase refers to, but Tom's Oyster Bar is certainly worth a second look.

I admit to not giving this place a fair shake. Whenever someone would mention "Tom's," I would immediately think of its Royal Oak location, which would immediately make me think of Royal Oak, which would immediately make me think of the overly-trendy and sub-par restaurants that are all the rage in Royal Oak, which would immediately make me think of how much I dislike Royal Oak, which immediately made me react to the mention of Tom's with a dismissive "Ugh."

However, a few days ago I was out walking towards Hart Plaza and was a bit peckish, so I decided to scope out the territory of this one downtown eatery I have so stubbornly resisted. If you'll recall, I sneered at the Metro Times Best of 2009 Reader's Poll where Tom's was voted as having the best appetizers ("I think this is one of those instances where people didn't know what else to put"). Well, I might talk a big game, but I must admit it piqued my curiosity. So off to Tom's I went.

As soon as I walked in I was an immediate sucker for the hand-written chalkboard signs announcing the wine list and the raw bar items (modeled after classic New England fish market fresh catch chalk board signs), the old-fashioned-y enormous wood bar, the waitstaff dressed in crisp shirts and Boston-ish aprons (I don't know what is so distinctly Boston-ish about them, but when I think of what a Boston-ish waiter’s ensemble would look like, this is what I see…that, or a barbershop quartet), and the classic Detroit-style stamped-tin ceiling, all illuminated by the brilliant early afternoon sunlight. The overall effect is of an airy, seaside 19th century pub, and I was smitten. It felt clean, cozy and inviting. I plopped down and studied the wine board, settling on a Late Harvest Riesling from Leelanau Cellars--a deeply honeyed, crisp Michigan wine, and one that sadly many local sommeliers do not choose to keep in their cellars.

From there, it was on to that famed appetizer list: order off the Raw Board and choose from a wide selection of fresh oysters from such shucker hotspots as Prince Edward Island and Virginia, or perhaps try one of the house-smoked appetizers, including salmon, shrimp, and a variety of pates. Hot appetizers run the gamut from seared scallops to crab cakes (as well as steamed mussels served in a cute miniature tin bucket), and cold appetizers boast peel-and-eat shrimp and a variety of sushi (which I’ve heard is only so-so but that’s what they get for trying to do a Japanese dish in a New England-style fish house). The prices are admittedly a little high—most apps will run around $10.00-$12.00, which is a bit north of the standard $6.00-$8.00 for this type of mid-level casual restaurant. However, the offerings here are a little higher-quality than at the average “Joe” establishment, what with the wide range of fresh oysters flown from all over the country as well as the fish smoked in-house daily and the housemade sausage and pate.

I opted for the Charlevoix Whitefish Sausage, since I’ve found that you really just can’t go wrong ordering whitefish anything (and if you agree with my assessment here and are ever out by way of St. Clair, the whitefish pate at the Chuck Muer restaurant the River Crab, served as a precursor to every meal—or at least it was 8 years ago when I was last there—is absolutely outstanding, and even worth the drive). And it was wonderful, served very simply with crackers, horseradish (or some such god-awful seafood dipping sauce), and a lemon. The waiter was even kind enough to bring me some dinner rolls, since I had a mad carb craving not easily satisfied by the menu items.

The rest of the menu deserves a good perusal as well. Tom’s is always crowded at lunchtime and offer a great selection of salads and sandwiches that appeal to a wide range of tastes (though again, $12.99 for a Po-Boy is approaching criminal, and $13.99 for a spinach salad is downright unreasonable). Tom’s also offers a selection of seafood chowders and bisques which I’ve heard are unanimously meh; what can I say, once you’ve had good chowder it’s hard to go back to the standard stuff. The dinner menu is actually the most reasonably priced of the bunch (in fact, some of the fish actually cost less than that spinach salad), offering a pretty average range of fish, chicken, steak, and pasta. Perch, Sea Bass and the like—nothing quite like the Nairagi you can get at Northern Lakes Seafood Co., but good enough when you're hungry for some seafood. For dessert, you can sample a Detroit classic: a Sander’s hot fudge sundae. Or their renowned Key Lime Pie, made with the same recipe for 20 years and lauded for its southern Florida authenticity.

I applaud the presence of the Michigan wine on the menu, but it appears to be a stand-alone. The rest of the wine list hails mostly from California, though the Avalon and Sterling Cabernets listed by the glass makes me happy. The beer list here is outstanding, however, with an extensive list of bottled beers from all over the world. Most are relatively common, but take into consideration that the places where Asahi, Sapporo, and Kirin are stocked are typically not the same places that keep Pilsner Urquell and Spaten Optimator lying around.

And so it is I’ve come to the conclusion: I’ve been a little too hard on Tom’s. It’s got a great vibe and offers an eclectic mix of food and drink, even if some are hits and others misses. The biggest drawback here are the menu items that can’t justify their own high price points (the spinach salad is served with bacon! No other meat, just bacon!), but barring that Tom’s is a fun casual eatery, with a great location right by the Riverfront and GM's world headquarters, making it a perfect place for locals, travelers, and business types alike to meet.

So, uh…sorry about that, Tom.