[HOT LIST] Burgers

iBurger. All photos by Nicole Rupersburg.

May is National Burger Month. While summer for some means trying to squeeze their pasty white Midwestern blubber butt into last year's bikini only to find that winter has not been kind to them, some of us (hi) have made (an uneasy) peace with the fact that maybe bikini season stopped for us a few years back, and this summer isn't looking much better. There is a certain freedom in realizing you're not Kate Upton, and with that freedom comes the ability to go on the summer #burgercleanse. (Use that hashtag on Instagram plz; trying to make it a thing.)

Perhaps you'll recall when just last week I noted that Detroit is still very much a meat and potatoes town. That being established, you can go ahead and assume that we know our way around a beef patty.  Now, you know all the old familiars -- the ones that have been written up in national publications, the ones that people will Instagram with words like "yum" and people will comment with "want" and "I love that place!" I'm talking about places like Red Coat Tavern and Miller's. Then there's the burger elite -- which, to just go ahead and reference myself again, I already covered them last week -- Vinsetta Garage, Roast, and burger n00b Monk. Iron Chef Michael Symon is also looking to expand his B Spot Burgers into the metro Detroit market, probably because we are a bunch of fat asses. Bottom line? We know some damn burgers.

For the purposes of making this list manageable, chains and fine(r) dining restaurants that serve burgers have been excluded. This is all bar burgers, diners, and straight burger joints. I've also ruled out sliders (sorry Green Dot) because that is a separate list. Also, I am a burger purist: while I concede the notion that burgers can be all dressed up and fancified for the betterment of burger enjoyment, I prefer to experience my burgers in their natural state -- beef, cheese, bun. Nothing more. All assessments have been made based on purely the plain old burger. (With cheese. Because it HAS to have cheese.)

#1 East Side Tavern Mt. Clemens
There is an episode of How I Met Your Mother in which Marshall spends the entire episode on a quest to find the Manhattan burger that changed his life. A burger of such superior quality, that was so much more than JUST a burger but an experience, that it had become legen-waitforit... in Marshall's mind. A burger so transcendent that no other burger could ever live up to its impossibly high standard. A burger that is almost cultural mythos. The burger at East Side Tavern is that burger. But don't take my word for it. Take my word for it.

#2 The Bronx Bar Detroit
Take a giant burger the size of your head and throw it on a sizzling flat-top grill with all of its other burger friends in plain view of the bar (so close, in fact, it would not be unreasonable to assume that the burgers occasionally get seasoned with Jameson's). Then take a giant ciabatta bun, slather it in butter, and throw it on the grill too. For good measure, add a couple of slices of melty American cheese -- which, and I know I'm going to catch some flack for this, in my own very much experienced burger experience is THE superior cheese for burgers -- and a giant pickle on the side. And there you have the Bronx Bar burger. Simple. Magical. It's the burger you just can't quit.

The Emory. 

#3 The Emory Ferndale
The Emory's burgers are something of a local legend. It just goes to show that the secret to a great burger is all in the beef, and theirs comes from Eastern Market's Fairway Packing. (Note: For those who are not familiar with Fairway, their burgers are consistently the best in the business. Any restaurant that serves them is automatically among the top in town.) The big fluffy buns come from Royal Oak bakery Hermann's. And the best part? A burger and fries will cost you only $5 on Tuesdays, and the Emory also rocks a brutal beer list to go with your beef.

From @eatitdetroit Instagram feed.

#4 Good Burger Dearborn
Dearborn is not lacking for good burgers. People still love the shit out of Miller's. There's also Howell's, which some say has the better bar burger. Moo Cluck Moo just opened in Dearborn Heights and is looking to be a game-changer. But I have seen the future, and in this future gas station food is the new trendy pedestrian blue collar IT food that "foodies" will flock to. And it starts at Good Burger. Located inside a BP gas station on Ford Road just a few blocks off of I-94, Good Burger is perhaps the most efficiently-named restaurant in metro Detroit. Because you will leave saying, "Damn, that WAS a good burger." Everything is made fresh in-house -- condiments are made from scratch, fries and onion rings are hand-cut; grilled-to-order burgers are never frozen and served on either a pretzel roll or brioche bun sourced from local bakeries, and the meat itself is expertly seasoned. I told you my rule about eating burgers plain? With this one you won't even WANT to dilute the flavor with any other frippery. Burgers are served with perfectly-crispy (and made to order) seasoned shoestring fries, and they also deliver.

#5 iBurger Dearborn
It would seem that metro Detroit's REAL cheeseburger paradise is Dearborn. Dearborn is just great. I love Dearborn. Have I told you how much I love Dearborn? Such a cultural mish-mosh and I LOVE that. Black people, white people, Arab people, Mexican people -- if you want diversity, it's all in Dearborn, and it's actually properly integrated instead of the street-by-street segregation you find in other "diverse" cities. Now, with a large population of ethnic Arab Muslims, this also means that you'll find a lot of halal restaurants. They're not all Mediterranean, either. You'll find halal Mexican, halal Italian, halal fried chicken, halal pizza, halal sushi. America! Bless you melting pot, and bless you fatass Midwestern eating habits and cultural assimilation. iBurger is a halal burger joint, and, you know, maybe it's because Muslims don't eat pork and can therefore put ALL of their energy into the beef (even the bacon is beef) instead of being distracted by the temptations of pig parts, but damn this is a tasty burger. Read more about it here. They also serve raw juices and ice cream. Raw juices at a burger joint (and they're not talking about the burgers, though those are plenty juicy too). Don't you just freaking LOVE that?

Bubbling under The Detroiter Bar (Detroit), One-Eyed Betty's (Ferndale), Red Hawk (Ann Arbor), the Avenue Pub (Wayne), Cutter's (Eastern Market), McShane's Pub (Corktown), Rosie O'Grady's (Ferndale), Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger (Ann Arbor), Nemo's (Corktown), Mae's (Pleasant Ridge), Greenwich Pub (Detroit), Sidetrack (Ypsilanti), Clubhouse BFD (Rochester), Jay's Stuffed Burgers (Plymouth), Honest John's (Midtown), Doyle's Tavern (Plymouth), Brownie's on the Lake (St. Clair Shores)

[Real Detroit] Younger's Irish Tavern

This post written by EID Co-Conspirator Stefanie Cobb.

Irish potato wedges. Photo by Stefanie Cobb.

In the quaint little village of Romeo resides a not-always-quaint and not-so-little Irish pub. Brothers Glenn and Bill Wilhelm were inspired to open Younger's Irish Tavern with the hope of carrying on the "Younger" name – originating from their great, great Grandfather's brewery in Ireland. The Wilhelm brothers chose to open their tavern in Romeo because they admire the village for its small town feel and historic homes.

Read more.

[Real Detroit] Old Shillelagh

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

The Old Shillelagh in Greektown is known as a lot of things to a lot of people. Or maybe it is simply known as one thing to a lot of people: a really big party spot. A rooftop bar and patio, a tent in the parking lot for special events like St. Patrick's Day (when they get over 10,000 people through their doors in a single day) and Opening Day (this Friday!) and a clientele that is wholly focused on their liquid assets. As one of Detroit's most popular watering holes, the Old Shillelagh isn't really known first for its food.

And that makes head chef, kitchen and bar manager Sarge sad. Because Sarge loves his Fucking Awesome Burger. (The "FAB." That's really its name.) And he wants you to love it too. As well as the other items on their menu that are all made from scratch in-house.

Read more.

[Real Detroit Weekly] Dick O'Dow's

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

It can be hard to find a place in Biiiiiiiiiiiiirmingham where you feel comfortable enough to kick back and enjoy a few pints in your jeans and tennies without feeling out of place. Dick O'Dow's offers exactly that kind of laid-back, casual atmosphere, a dark corner pub (though not really on the corner) in the midst of all the bright lights, big city bars and restaurants and lounges of B-ham.

Open since 1996, Dick O'Dow's has been one of Birmingham's best watering holes for many years, and while they most certainly served food during this time, it wasn't until after the smoking ban went into effect in May 2010 that customers started seeing them less as a bar that serves food and more as a restaurant with a great bar.

Read more.

[Real Detroit Weekly] Pat O'Brien's

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

Pat O'Brien's in St. Clair Shores is known for its friendly, comfortable atmosphere, great service and its extensive whiskey selection – in fact, the bar was named "Best Whiskey Selection" in Real Detroit Weekly's Best Of issue for 2013 – Pat O'Brien's is pretty much everything you could want in an Irish neighborhood bar.

Their selection of Irish whiskeys is indeed huge. They've got them all – your mandatory Jameson in multiple different flavors ("flavors" being the 12-year-aged special reserve and 18-year-aged limited reserve, because whiskey does not come in flavors beyond "less whiskey face" and "more whiskey face"), Knappogue Castle, Michael Collins, Paddy, Tullamore Dew ("Tullie"), Feckin and more. Haven't heard of it? Just shut up and drink it: that is the Irish way.

Read more.

[Metromix] One-Eyed Betty's

All photos by VATO for Metromix.

There has been a surge of business growth in downtown Ferndale over the past year, and One-Eyed Betty’s is another new concept to add to your “fast new favorites” list. Located in the space that was once home to Cantina Diablo’s, a Tex-Mex joint-cum-sports bar that never really gelled with the Ferndale crowd, Betty’s feels like the ultimate hometown bar for the slightly more sophisticated Ferndale clientele.

Beth Hussey was the Director of Operations for Brian Kramer (owner of Rosie O’Grady’s and Cantina Diablo’s) before moving out to Grand Rapids for a year where she got “quite the beer education.” (Western Michigan is hugely into the craft beer industry, home to some of the top-rated breweries and beer bars in the country.) When business at the Ferndale location of Cantina Diablo’s began to slow after the Royal Oak location opened, Hussey called Kramer and pitched him the idea of turning into a craft beer bar. He made her a partner and stayed on as a silent partner, and work began immediately to transform the space into a comfortable neighborhood pub.

“I’ve always loved craft beer and always thought a craft beer bar would do really well in Ferndale,” she says. “Ferndale is really the place for it. I saw it can be done when I was [in Grand Rapids], so learned more about beer and said, ‘Let’s go for it.’”

The Mood

The interior design is all Hussey’s. “It’s my concept. I designed it; we had no general contractor,” she states. “We had to make do with what we had since they had just put $2.5 million into it.” She wanted the space to have a “kind of divey, edgy, neighborhood bar kind of feel,” so the space is stripped down to the bar basics of what makes a good beer bar: wooden floors, long communal tables (reminiscent of a German biergarten – which is intentional, since they do not have an outdoor patio), comfortable booths, exposed ductwork giving it that bit of industrial chic appeal, and chalkboards announcing the specials and newest beers on tap.

Hussey also connected with Richard Gage of Richard Gage Design Studios (“my design superhero”), a local artist based in Hazel Park who put her in touch with other local artists and helped her source interesting reclaimed pieces to decorate with. Some works inside Betty’s are from Clinton Snider, who (along with prominent Detroit artist Scott Hocking) was commissioned to go around the city and find “relics” to turn into art pieces which were then displayed at the Detroit Institute of Arts “Relics” exhibit. There is also an “Exit” sign located by the door which was an actual sign on I-75 that had fallen and left discarded on the side of the road; Gage then framed it in metal. Gage is also currently working on an elaborate bottle cap logo sculpture, and later on customers will be able to actively contribute to a bottle cap mural that will be designed as a sort of paint-by-numbers project on the back wall.

For entertainment, there is a small stage for live music ranging from Tony Lucca (a native Detroiter who is currently competing on The Voice) to rockabilly act Delilah DeWylde and the Lost Boys. There are also fully functioning vintage pinball machines located at the front that will continuously get switched out thanks to Hussey’s friend who is a vintage pinball machine collector. “It fits our ‘dive bar’ appeal. There’s nowhere else you can go that has these”

The total turnaround time from the Diablo’s-to-Betty’s transition was about a month and a half, but the space is entirely reborn. The end result feels like an arts-minded urban beer hall that fits in so well with Ferndale’s forward-thinking creative community that it feels like it has always been there (and, more importantly, it’s already hard to imagine a Ferndale without it).

Pork belly sandwich.

The Food

Chef Emmele Herrold along with Hussey has created a menu of beer-themed and beer-friendly food. “The food concept is simple,” Hussey says. “We just wanted a menu that’s all food that is either cooked with beer, or a classic pairing with beer, or food that fits the beer drinkers’ demographic,” she pauses, then asks rhetorically: “Would Homer Simpson like it?”

There is a huge emphasis on oysters (oysters and stout are a classic pairing), which Hussey is very proud of. They get oysters fresh six days a week and price they very aggressively to ensure they keep moving and are always fresh. “We only want to order what we use that day because we want them to be the freshest oysters possible,” she explains. During their 4 to 6 p.m. happy hour the “One-Eyed Oysters” are $1 each by the dozen or half-dozen, “half of what other places charge which helps keep them moving and keep them the freshest possible.” They use Naked Cowboy East Coast oysters, and in addition to serving them on the shell they also serve them baked (Oysters Beatrice, $7), broiled (Oyster Roast, $12) and fried (Po’Boy, $10).

Other staple beer pairings include mussels (great with Belgian beer), a rotating selection of cheese and charcuterie boards (most appropriate with German beer), and fire-roasted wings (great with any beer), plus they also make one of the best Beer Cheese Soups (“au gratin” style, $3/5) you’ll find in metro Detroit. “Bacon with a Side of Bacon” ($8) is already a huge fan favorite, comprised of braised pork belly, applewood smoked bacon strips, and a fried poached egg. They also have “Some Sorta Special” nightly, which lately has been a lot of seafood and cockles (clams) and crispy brussel sprouts. “There’s always something different and interesting to check out.”

If you like seafood, you’ll love their “Obligatory Fish and Chips” ($14), a massive piece of haddock that doesn’t even fit on the plate served with their hand-cut fries, homemade coleslaw and lemon-caper aioli. The haddock is fried in their secret-recipe house beer batter, which is not the crispy-crunchy batter you might expect but thick, doughy, pillowy batter. The haddock is snow white and juicy.

Another “handwich” that has already gained a cult following is the “Pork Belly Sandwich” ($9) with pickled veggies and Asian mayo served on a French baguette. The pork is so tender and succulent it drips all over your plate – have plenty of napkins handy.

No proper beer bar is complete without a signature burger. The “Betty Burger” has bacon, sharp cheddar and garlic aioli ($10) on a hearty bun, served with hand-cut fries or substitute their giant, pillowy onion rings – more like onion doughnuts – for a buck.

On Saturdays and Sundays they serve one of Ferndale’s most infamous breakfasts – a giant grilled homemade Cinnamon Roll French Toast with gooey caramel sauce ($8). They also serve a “German Breakfast” ($9), an assortment of meats and cheeses served with a huge piece of baguette and whole grain mustard.

Save room for dessert: their Homemade Donuts ($5) are served fresh and piping hot right out of the fryer with chocolate and raspberry dipping sauces, and the Chocolate-Covered Raspberry Float ($5) is definitely an adult’s dessert with Atwater Brewery’s Vanilla Java Porter and Framboise in ice cream.

The Drinks

This is a beer lover’s beer bar. They have 44 handles and up to three hand pulls at a time. Can’t decide? Build your own flight, 3 for $7 or 6 for $14. Right now they’ve got about 100 additional beers by the bottle and are slowly building their inventory over time. It’s all American and European craft beer, though they do have PBR on tap and a selection of “yellow fizzy beers” like Black Label and High Life. “[For macro beers] we stuck to semi-local or retro-fabulous,” Hussey explains. “There’s no Bud Light or Miller Light or Coors Light and we’ll stay true to that forever.”

Instead the beer list is a best-of of Michigan and American craft beers and interesting imports. There are a lot of seasonal brews on the list as well as special releases, like the highly sought-after Kentucky Breakfast Stout from Founders Brewing Company in Grand Rapids (named the number 2 beer of 2011 by Wine Enthusiast). Just make sure you check the ABV because a lot of those Belgian, Belgian-style and American strong beers tend to have double to triple the alcohol content of an average beer. Know your limitations!

Another good friend of beer is whiskey. One-Eyed Betty’s has over 56 whiskeys and the list is still growing. “We’re really putting a lot of focus on whiskey,” Hussey says. “Beer and whiskey go really well together, and whiskey is big right now.” They’re hoping to put Hudson Baby Bourbon – a new whiskey that just launched in Michigan from a boutique distillery on New York – on tap, and being the first to do it. They’ve got bourbon, single malt scotch, Irish whiskey, American whisky (note the difference in spelling; Irish whiskey is with an “e”), and soon they’ll even have a Japanese whisky called Suntory Yamazaki.

On weekends, enjoy your brunch with tableside Bloody Marys ($5). “I’m a Bloody Mary connoisseur,” Hussey says. “I’ve always like the idea of a Bloody Mary bar but they creep me out and I’ve never enjoyed it or seen it done right.” So instead, they bring the Bloody Mary bar right to your table! If that’s not your thing, they also have bottomless mimosas for $12 and BEERmosas made with Wittekerke and orange juice.

The Service

Hussey works hard at making sure her staff is knowledgeable about the different styles of beer and proper pouring, and is also working on a beer school for her employees. “We’re focused on educating people,” she says, “but we don’t want to be intimidating [or snobby]. The staff will take people by the hand [and guide them through the beer list]. We also have a lot of great ‘segway’ beers … baby steps!”

Even if you’re not a self-identified beer nerd, this is still a totally comfortable and friendly neighborhood bar that also happens to have an amazing beer list. Really this is a place for everyone where everyone is made to feel welcome. Service is consistently casual and unobtrusive; you’ll get as much or as little assistance as you want, and servers are always friendly and attentive.

Insider’s Tip

Since they only just opened in February they’re still getting their bearings, and Hussey is finding out that they’re going through so much beer that the beer list is changing faster than they can print it. Be patient when things listed on the menu have run out. They’ve got a lot of fun things planned for the future, including beer to go, a beer club, a women’s beer group (called Friends of Betty’s), beer dinners (Kuhnhenn Brewing Company will be their first), and an app that will allow you to keep track of the beers you’ve tried with tasting notes and prizes at certain benchmarks. Happy hour is every day from 4 to 6 p.m., though drink specials change monthly.

The Verdict

They were popular from the minute they opened their doors and that popularity is only growing. “I knew it would do well but I did not know it was going to do this well,” Hussey says. Basically, everyone loves the place, and with great bar food, a fantastic beer selection, friendly people and a relaxed beer-drinkin’ environment … well, that’s exactly WHY everyone loves the place!

[Real Detroit Weekly] Red Ox Tavern

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

"Red Ox Tavern defines itself as an 'upscale sports bar,' and that's probably the only way to really describe it. A massive building on Walton just north of Squirrel Rd., in what is formally listed as 'Auburn Hills' though others insist it's Rochester (we'll just say it's 'on the edge' of both), Red Ox is a large, impressive space with quite the eye-catching waterfall behind the bar and a large outdoor patio with a firepit.

'As far as 'sports bars' go, this is the kind of place where you can go to watch sports in an atmosphere that still feels like a casual-upscale restaurant – in other words, you won't find the walls plastered with vinyl Budweiser banners or fat dudes named 'Tiny' with their faces painted the colors of their fave team. The clientele here is mostly business types from the nearby Chrysler headquarters, as well as students from Oakland University (which is right across the street). Suits and newly-legal seniors may make strange drinking buddies, but the mix works well here. (Weekends, obviously, are a different beast altogether.)..."

Read the rest of the story here.

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

[Real Detroit Weekly] Orleans Billiards Cafe

All photos by Nicole Rupersburg.

"Downtown Mount Clemens has seen plenty of change over the last two decades. Before it was the charming, somewhat quaint brick-paved hub of independently-owned businesses and outdoor art installations that it is now, it was ... well, NOT that. When Orleans Billiards Café opened 15 years ago, it was right at the beginning of downtown Mt. Clemens' transformation, and the place is still evolving.

''We have to keep it fresh,' says Paul Boone, who owns Orleans with his brother Mark. 'We have to do something new every year. I want people coming back asking, "what's he done now?"

'His latest change will be a revamping of the menu. Wait, what? What's that you say: Menu? They serve food in a pool hall?

'First off, DON'T call it a pool hall! Yes, there are six pool tables. There are also three shuffleboard tables, three dartboards, 27 plasma TVs (32''-63''), 10 LCD TVs, Keeno, Quizzo, even beer pong on Tuesdays (and starting in August, Thursdays too). There's also a nice outdoor patio. So it's not a pool hall. It is the watering hole equivalent of an everything bagel..."

Read the rest of the story here.

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

[EID Feature] Star Lanes Inside Emagine Theatre: It's a Restaurant, Too

All photos by Nicole Rupersburg.

I have a secret. This secret might shock you. Some of you might be disappointed. Others might even be so devastated they'll choose never to read this blog again as a silent act of protest. I accept these potential consequences because I feel that it is time to unburden myself so I can stop living this shameful, deprived lie. I love food, I do, OBVIOUSLY I do because I'm doing this, but there is something that has my heart even more than all the Neapolitan pizza, craft beer and raclette cheese in the world: movies.

I am a hardcore, unrepentant film and media uber-nerd. So when the $19 million Emagine Theatre in Royal Oak broke ground, as others bemoaned the "big box corporateification" of Royal Oak (something I am prone to do myself) I was silently rejoicing.

It opened on May 16. I saw X-Men: First Class there on June 3. I fell in love immediately. DBOX motion effects! Luxury seating with bar service and 56'' of legroom! Digital posters that play the trailers! Sparkly! SPARKLY!!! Emagine is a movie palace, a SHRINE to movie worship, the Taj Mahal of Michigan movie theatres. It is majestic. And shiny. The 71,000 square foot 10-screen sparkling cinema masterpiece pays homage to the magic of the movies with its grandiosity, and grandiose is certainly nothing new to the Emagine chain: this was the first movie theatre chain in the world to offer all-digital projection, and the first chain in Michigan to offer all-stadium seating (Metromode recently ran this fantastic piece on the chain and its ambitious owner Paul Glantz so you can read about all of their innovations in movie-watching). The chain is also known for offering a full bar at each location (can't really go wrong there), and supporting the local film industry by hosting premieres and screenings of Michigan-made films.

The Royal Oak location is the fifth in the Emagine chain, but it is the first to introduce Star Lanes, an upscale 16-lane bowling alley with three enormous projection screens at the end of the lanes and three flatscreen TVs on each lane (there are over 70 flatscreen TVs throughout the complex, playing everything from Tigers games to PGA tournaments and anything else you might request). And located in Star Lanes is a restaurant, a full-service restaurant with a full bar offering upscale tapas-style bar food. And upstairs is the Skybox Lounge (overlooking the lanes) which can hold private parties for up to 250 people with full sit-down meals, staffed bar and live entertainment, as well as the High Roller Room, which can accommodate up to 50 people with four private bowling lanes, a pool table, shuffleboard, full catering and a private bar.

When you think "bowling alley restaurant" you're probably thinking pizza, burgers, etc. And, yes, you're on the right track ... but how many bowling alleys boast an American Culinary Federation-certified Executive Chef?

"When you go to a bowling alley its greasy burgers and hots dogs. We wanted to get away from that stereotype," says Executive Chef Matthew Johnson. The operation is a full banquet facility which can cater to ANY request. Johnson most recently came from Great Oaks Country Club in Rochester, and if there is one thing a country club chef knows how to do best it's everything (a recent soul food party paired with the film The Help was a huge hit). "We have the chance to 'wow' everyone who comes in the building." Kids' parties, corporate functions, wedding receptions - they can (and do) do it all.

Johnson was recently certified as an Executive Chef through the ACF. He says his has been a "storybook career," starting out as a dishwasher at the Farm in Port Austin and working his way up from there. "I was 16, my parents said 'If you want a car you have to have a job; you can either find a job or we can find a job for you," he explains. "Me being a lazy teen I said, 'Go ahead and find me a job.' They found me a job as a dishwasher at their favorite restaurant in Port Austin."

He remembers the very first day he walked in and instantly knew this was his life's calling. "Sean Loving was there working on his menu" - for what would eventually be the Loving Spoonful in Farmington Hills - "I saw him and the chef who owned the restaurant, I saw the way they talked and acted and lived their lives, how much fun they had cooking ... it was meant to be. I could never imagine myself having as much fun doing anything else."

Loving would end up being Johnson's Intro to Cooking instructor at Schoolcraft College. He would also be Johnson's coach in culinary competitions, and is now a consulting chef for Star Lanes. "It's cool to see it go full circle," Johnson says.

At the Farm, the tiny Port Austin restaurant owned by ACF-certified Executive Chef Pamela Mary Gabriel-Roth, they have a 1-acre produce garden where they grow the majority of their vegetables. "I think that’s a great environment for a chef to grow up in," says Johnson. "If I had to make pesto I had to go and pick the basil!"

He completed his Culinary Arts program at Schoolcraft in 2006. "I would gauge it as one of the top two culinary schools in the country," Johnson proclaims. "The classes only have 16 people so you get more hands-on training with certified master chefs than anywhere else in the world." After the Farm and while attending Schoolcraft, Johnson worked at Great Oaks for almost seven years. With his varied background ranging from remote farm-to-table restaurants to massive country club banquets, Johnson takes his professional training and personal ethos to define the kitchen at Star Lanes.

Johnson demands his vendors source as much from Michigan as possible for him. In the kitchen they make about 80% of the food from scratch - they make their own short ribs, brisket, pulled pork, chicken wings, pizza dough, soups, potato chips, dipping sauces, guacamole, even desserts (like warm chocolate chips cookies served with milk!). The tortillas for their nachos are bought pre-cut and raw from Michoacana in Mexicantown. They have a $40,000 wood-burning oven ("I call it my Ferrari") for their pizzas, and use recipes from Crust Pizza and Wine Bar.

The menu boasts items like Thai Sweet and Spicy Calamari, cheese fondue (win), baked brie (win!), and a variety of hearty salads, but their signature items are the wood-fired pizza and the nine "Celebrity Row Sliders," mini gourmet burgers made with items like Angus beef, crab and shrimp cakes, tuna, BBQ pulled pork, and portabella mushrooms. But the REAL star - the Marilyn Monroe of sliders - is the "Paparazzi:" a hand-packed Angus beef patty stuffed with a braised short rib, covered in Gruyere cheese and their secret-recipe "galaxy sauce," served on a bun that I swear was dipped in butter and grilled up crispy. This burger is AMAZING. As I sampled/inhaled it I could only grunt and moan. "If I can give someone a culinary orgasm, that's what it's all about!" Johnson laughs. Well Matt, it was good for me, thank you.

Coming for a movie? Great; eat here. Just want to bowl? Great; eat here. In Royal Oak and hungry? Great; eat here. You don't have to be bowling or about to watch a movie to enjoy the food; they're open 10 a.m. to 12 a.m. seven days a week, with happy hour specials 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you bring your same-day movie ticket stub, you'll save up to 25% off food and drinks from their "Why Go Home?" menu. This fall they'll also be participating in the Royal Oak Restaurant Week Fall Harvest with a three-course seasonal Michigan-themed prix fixe dinner menu. So it's not JUST a movie theatre. And it's not JUST a bowling alley. It is a welcome addition to Royal Oak's dining scene, and a progressive Michigan-owned chain that thinks outside the big box.

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.

[Real Detroit Weekly] Brownie's on the Lake

(Photo by Nicole Rupersburg)

"Earlier this year when the Andiamo Restaurant Group announced they would be re-opening the iconic Joe Muer's seafood restaurant in downtown Detroit, the positive response and excitement over the resurrection of this Detroit staple was so overwhelming that the Vicari brothers decided to try their hand at another metro Detroit institution: Brownie's on the Lake.

'Brownie's was formerly located where the Beach Grille is now but was shut down after 40 years of business when a devastating fire destroyed it. When Jack's Waterfront Restaurant on the Nautical Mile in St. Clair Shores closed earlier this year, the Vicaris secured the rights to the old Brownie's concept from the previous owners and even brought in Brownie's long-time (and now retired) chef Sam Giardano.

''We brought him out, picked his brain, reinvented some of the things Brownies was famous for,' explains Andiamo's Corporate Executive Chef James Oppat. 'The heritage is very much the same as Andiamo: everything made fresh, prepared from scratch daily, with an emphasis on quality ingredients and methods of preparation...'"

Read the rest of the article here.

Want to see more? Check out the Flickr set.

[Real Detroit Weekly] Danny's Irish Pub

Nicole Rupersburg     

For the latest edition of Real Detroit Weekly, I head out to Ferndale, where I learn that cool and trendy aren't necessarily the same thing -- Nicole

"25 years ago, Ferndale wasn't the charming community full of cute boutiques and cozy brunch spots with forward-thinking community organizations, arts programs and edgy theatre troupes that we know it to be now. 'People told me not to buy a bar here because it wasn't a good area, but I grew up here and I liked the area; I had high hopes for it. Now it's justified!'

'That's Dan Reedy. And this is his bar.

'Danny's Irish Pub opened 25 years ago and stands as a testament that a traditional friendly neighborhood pub never goes out of style. It looks pretty much the same as it always has – lots of Irish paraphernalia on the walls, long wood bar, wood paneling on the walls. Not much else. It looks like a bar, the kind of place you come to NOT crane your neck to see who's noticing you, but the kind of place you go to whet your whistle and flap your jaw with your fellow humans..."

Read the rest of the story here.

Real Detroit Weekly: Northern Lights Lounge

We all love the bathrooms (So big! So clean! So nice!) at Northern Lights Lounge, but this place is more than just a pretty potty. If the Big Lebowski were set in Detroit instead of Los Ang-ga-leez, this is where the Dude and Walter would have hung out and debated whether or not "Chinamen" was the preferred nomenclature ... something about the orange vinyl and white aluminum lounge chairs, the scuffed-up shuffleboard and the old-Vegas-esque multi-colored neon sign out front.

But even if the carpet-pissers hadn't dragged the Dude down the rabbit hole to chase one Bunny Lebowski, this place would still have the slickest L.A.-retro/desert-deco vibe and the most diverse entertainment offerings in the city. It kind of feels like New York in the '80s – there's punk rock night (Mondays), retro goth night (Tuesdays), live jazz night (Wednesdays), hip hop night (Thursdays), house and electronic night (Fridays), live rock bands (Saturdays) and karaoke (Sundays). They also hold burlesque shows, Noir Leather shows, fashion shows and IF there's a cover it's rarely more than $5.

So much for not having a reason to go out on any given night...

Read the rest of the article here.

Real Detroit Weekly: The Hub Sports Bistro

"'Sports Bistro' may sound like an oxymoron, but at the Hub in Macomb Township, you can have your ESPN and keep it classy, too.

'There are plenty of places you can go to watch sports in the MC, but few places that have the same upscale (but still fun) atmosphere. Slate floors, a separate lounge and an expansive wooden bar top so glossy you don't even need to take your eyes off your beer to watch the game all give the Hub its 'bistro' chic, but the beer pong room makes sure it stays a good sport..."

Read the rest of the article here.

Real Detroit Weekly: Bookies Bar & Grille

It's hard to imagine a time before Bookies was around for Tigers Opening Day. It's like asking what did people ever do before cell phones or computers. But, much like teenagers today don't know a world without Facebook and iPhones, Detroiters never need to question where to spend this most sacrosanct of Detroit holy days. Bookies has been a downtown drinking destination for 8 years now; this year marks their third Opening Day in their new three-floor building on Cass Ave., and it is THE place to be for Opening Day.

"Opening Day is exciting for the entire city," says owner John Lambrecht. "It's the first sign of spring and summer and warm weather, and can be celebrated by everyone in the city whether they're into baseball or not."

Read the rest of the article here.

Real Detroit Weekly: CK Diggs

"Tucked away in the corner of a strip mall in one of the less-dense spans of Oakland County, you might not have noticed CK Diggs, or maybe you dismissed it as merely a 'strip mall bar.'

'Expect the unexpected, my pets. CK Diggs is a venerable beer bar, easily in the top ranks of true beer bars (that aren't breweries) in the 'burbs.

'They have 40 beers on their custom-built tap system and not one of them is from Anheuser-Busch – think all imports and local craft brews, plus another 90 by the bottle. Those of you with a graduate beer degree will be stimulated with Belgian ales from Delerium and Trappist ales from Orval, Chimay and Rochefort. Locals have a strong show with favorites like Short's Bellaire Brown and Huma-Lupa-Licious, New Holland's Dragon's Milk and the popular brewery partnership label Milking It. You'll also find Bell's, Dragonmead, Arcadia, Frankenmuth ... it's a beer nerd's nirvana..."
Read the rest of the article here.

Real Detroit Weekly Extended Cut: Union Street

It can be easy to get caught up in the glitz and glamour of all the pretty, shiny new restaurants opening around town (and Slows), but there’s nothing quite like the old favorites, the places that have become Detroit staples: reliable, dependable, ever-present. Like your best friend from grade school who you don’t get to see as often as you’d like but you know will always be there for you.

Going into 2011, start revisiting some of these old favorites, like Union Street in Detroit’s Midtown. Located right across the street from the Majestic complex, Union Street has offered the local crowds a relaxing, comfortable, friendly place to eat and drink for more than 20 years. Whether it be hipster spillover from across the street, students from WSU, medical professionals from the DMC, older couples from the suburbs in town for a show at the Fox or DSO, art lovers from the DIA, area residents, black or white, young or old … you get the picture. Union Street is one place that is truly a melting pot of local culture. Even the workers – many of whom have been there for 10 years or more – run the gamut from artist to writer to musician to Master’s student to physicist. And that’s ultimately what the heart of Detroit is all about, and one of the things that make it great.

“This is Detroit’s best side, what it is and what it can be,” says Executive Chef John Wesenberg of the restaurant’s always-eclectic crowd. “People interact here, do business here. There’s a lot of laughter here,” he says, ironically over the din of laughter and conversation at 2:45 on a Wednesday afternoon. “We’re right here in the heart of it.”

Wesenberg was a patron here before he was the chef, and himself has been here 10 years. This is the kind of place where people come to talk to each other without distractions: there are no TVs anywhere, no sports or CNN, just a diverse mix of people all enjoying each other’s company.

The menu is equally diverse to fit the patronage. Union Street’s menu doesn’t easily fit into any kind of categorization, so let’s call it upscale casual contemporary American as a catch-all. But the prices are modest, appealing to all wallets, and the food is consistently GOOD. Wesenberg has two culinary degrees and has worked in high-profile kitchens, but ultimately it is this rich comfort food (don’t hold the butter) that he loves. They take great care in everything they do, from the housemade sauces and dressings to butchering their own meats and seafood and smoking their own brisket made with their own dry rub blend.


Take the Jumbo Lump Crab au Gratin, made with meaty chunks of shelled sweet crab in a decadent béchamel sauce topped with a six-cheese blend baked on top and served with sourdough toast points. Or the Lobster & Shrimp Casino Pasta, made with black tiger shrimp and lobster claw and tail meat sautéed with garlic, shitake mushrooms, diced tomatoes, spinach, white wine and crushed red pepper tossed with vermicelli pasta and “casino butter” (made with garlic, red pepper, white wine and, naturally, butter). Say it with me now: butter makes things better.

These dishes are downright decadent, and also damn delicious. You'll find a lot of seafood on the menu here since that is Chef John's particular passion, much of it doused in some sort of butter or cheese or cream (blessed be). For lighter fare try the black sesame seared Ahi salad, a top-grade cut of succulent Ahi tuna encrusted in black sesame on a bed of greens with their housemade mustard vinaigrette (French mustard grain and white wine, making for a light, complimentary flavor).

There is of course their popular Dragon Eggs – chicken breast stuffed with gorgonzola then battered and tossed in their HOT Rasta hot sauce. (No, really: it’s hot. If I’m saying it then it’s true times 10.) And as a pizza lover I can also tell you the thin-crust pizza made with a four-cheese blend is garlicky buttery deliciousness, and the Marghertia Pizza is one of the options available on their $5 special menu offererd Monday and Tuesday nights after 6 p.m. (Have I mentioned that yet?) And for my fellow turophiles (I love that word!), Union Street always has had and always will have baked brie on their menu (there was a period of probably 3-4 years where that was all I would order whenever I came here just because I could. Remember when Friday's had baked brie on their menu? Now I'm going waaaay back. That was actually how I discovered baked brie, and just as I started getting excited about it, it started disappearing from menus everywhere. Now it's rare to find it on a menu unless it's just a special, but not at Union Street, heavens no. No, it's always there. Dependable, like I said...).

The menu is updated regularly and there is always a different batch of specials worth investigating (like an asiago cheese tomato bisque I tried on a recent but unrelated trip); this is the kind of place where you will NEVER be disappointed. Also a great place for bottomless mimosa Sunday brunch, as well as a great place just to get a drink: they’ve got a small but handsome boutique wine selection and a nice collection of craft beers. Tuesdays are $2 beer specials, Wednesdays are half off wine bottles, and the selected Beer of the Month is available for only $2 all month long. A motto above the bar reads “Life is too short to drink cheap beer,” which is a true statement though I’ll tell you what, those $2 drafts ain’t Bud Light. (Short's award-winning Key Lime Pie ale was a recent selection, and while the selection of Michigan craft brews is humble they always have Founders Porter or Breakfast Stout by the bottle, which is enough for me.) Also, every Monday night select martinis are only $5 from 4 p.m. to close.

There is another sign posted above the bar that states "Dignity cannot be preserved in alcohol." Ay, there's the rub. But without alcohol I probably wouldn't be able to convince myself I still had any dignity so it's all very circular, no?


Union Street has an eclectic urban saloon-meets-speakeasy-meets grungy rock bar feel, and the crowd and menu is equally as idiosyncratic. It is friendly and comfortable, the kind of place you can go by yourself to get some work done and not be hassled but also great for meeting a friend to catch up or getting together a rowdy group. Or if you’re Jack White or Kid Rock, you can totally hang out here because that’s what you did before you were famous and in this place, this place that isn’t really known as a see-and-be-seen kind of place, no one will even bat an eye in your direction and the waiters may still remember you from when you played at the Gold Dollar. Your hands WILL be greasy when you leave (BUTTER), but you will be full and happy. And while you may have forgotten about it or taken it for granted while caught up in all the Roast-crepes-OMGSLOWS hysteria, Union Street is still there for you. Like a good neighbor. Like State Farm. It is the Detroit restaurant equivalent of State Farm.


Jumbo Lump Crab Au Gratin Recipe

8 oz. jumbo lump crab (shelled)
12 oz. white wine (chardonnay, pinot grigio or Chablis)
6 oz. heavy cream
1 oz. grated parmesan or Romano cheese
1 oz. Asiago, shredded
1 oz. mozzarella, shredded
1 oz. aged Spanish Manchego cheese, shredded
1 oz. Swiss Emmentaler cheese, shredded

Mix all cheese together

Reduce wine by half in sautee pan
Add jumbo lump crab
Add heavy cream and reduce by 20%
Add 2/3 of cheese blend – DO NOT stir by hand – gently fold in cheese with spatula
Pour into oven-proof ceramic serving bowl, top with remainder of shredded cheese and place under broiler in oven or in toaster oven

Cook until cheese is bubbling and lightly browned

Serve with toast points, tortilla chips or pita bread

Read the original version here, but know it is less one Slows reference, one self-deprecating joke about my dignity, and two mentions of State Farm.

Real Detroit Weekly: Bookies Bar & Grille

The triple-decker Clubhouse Sandwich.

It's still Bookies Bar & Grille. It's just better.

Bookies has been a downtown destination for eight years now, and after relocating to a huge three-story location on Cass in the heart of downtown Detroit's entertainment district, Bookies started getting a reputation as more than just a sports bar. Sure, if it's sports you want, it's sports you shall get with their numerous plasma screens and the 16-foot projection screen, but you'll also get live music, DJs and dancing, and exceptionally good bar food.

"We really felt the need to have a broader menu," says General Manager Tyler Herron. "We had a lot of repeat diners who came in just for the quality of the food and we felt we could really expand on that." And so, under Executive Chef Adam Grove's guidance, their menu went from 19 items to 58, bulking up on lunchtime favorites like sandwiches, burgers and salads, and also increasing their options for dinner entrees to include filet mignon and herb-breaded chicken parmesan on a bed of angelhair pasta. "We're not trying to be fine dining," Herron adds. "We're still a bar and grill with a fun, lively crowd ... [the expanded menu] is driven off of demand in the area for a good, fun place that has good bar food."

Read the rest of the article here.

Real Detroit Weekly: Hot Wings Feature

Yes I know Sweetwater Tavern isn't on here.

Now, in it's entirety:

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Here we've got some of the hottest spots serving up the spice ... But fair warning: the pain level ratings scale was determined by someone who likes to feel the burn; adjust to your taste buds accordingly.

Gator Jake's

36863 Van Dyke, Sterling Heights • 586.983.3700

Gator Jake's in Sterling Heights is a no-frills sports bar serving up mandatory sports bar food, like classic hot wings. Spun in their house-made wing sauce made with Frank's Red Hot, dry mustard, garlic powder, black pepper and tomato juice, this is the kind of bright orange, runny hot sauce wings fans crave.

Pain level: 3 — Eat 'em by the dozen, but you'll probably poop orange.

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Nikola's

25225 Telegraph Rd., Southfield • 248.355.4695

Nikola's in Southfield is a very unassuming place, but the food speaks for itself. They do barbecue, and they do it exceedingly well. The broasted chicken wings are a thing of bountiful beauty — one order is only $7.95 and comes with 12 huge pieces, but that's not even the best part. The breading is exceptionally crispy (seriously, it CRUNCHES) and is full of its own well-seasoned flavor. Then the wings are dipped in their homemade sauce and slow-cooked (almost caramelized) with cayenne pepper, molasses, brown sugar, Frank's Red Hot and vinegar. It is thick as honey, glossy, both sweet and tangy ... the flavors are rich and explosive with only the slightest hint of heat.

Pain level: 1 — Just a tickle; like foreplay.

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Your Mother's Food & Spirits

61 North Walnut St., Mt Clemens • 586.468.4444

Named "Best Wings" by the Macomb Daily and a current nominee for WDIV's "Vote 4 the Best," Your Mother's Food & Spirits in Mt. Clemens has a rainbow of 17 different house-made sauces which include five hot sauces: Jamaican, hot garlic, hot, "Devil" and "I Dare You." These big, meaty wings are roasted and fried in oil to order, then sautéed in sauce. The Jamaican has a slightly sweet, smoky flavor with a nice kick from the jerk spice. The hot garlic is light on the heat but strong on the garlic. But the "I Dare You" is a sleeper: the sauce is thicker than marinara sauce, and bright red. Initially you feel nothing. You think to yourself, "I GOT this." Then it begins. The burn is slow, steady and severe. Mouth, meet fresh habaneros.

Pain level: Hot Garlic, 3; Jamaican, 5; "I Dare You," 8.5 — I'm not crying; it's just allergies.

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Rub BBQ Pub

18 West Adams, Detroit • 313.964.0782

Detroit's newest upscale barbecue joint is Rub BBQ Pub, where they have something called "Pig Wings." It's pork on a bone (cut from the shank), and you eat them like wings — with your hands, drenched in your sauce of choice. Their six sauces are all made in-house, including the bright orange buffalo sauce with the classic Tabasco/vinegar flavor. The wing dings are deep-fried and crispy, but for something a little different try the dry rub wings which are smoked in-house (as with all their meats). Wash it all down with one of their 30 draft or 100 bottled beers, including a large selection of Michigan's best brews.

Pain level: 4 — Slather it on thick and you can get a nice sting.

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O'Toole's

4000 Cass Elizabeth Rd., Waterford • 248.683.3494

There are three restaurants in the world making a ghost pepper sauce hot sauce. One of them is O'Toole's in Waterford. Three times hotter than a habanero, the "ghost" pepper has been weaponized by India's Ministry of Defense. And THEY want you to put it in your MOUTH!! You should not eat this. NO ONE should eat this. And yet ... you're curious, aren't you? The pain is instantaneous and unmerciful. It is the (barely) edible equivalent of hydrochloric acid. Practice saying the following lines: "I can't feel the left side of my face."

Pain level: 10 — Has anyone seen my bowels? | RDW

See the original article here.

Real Detroit Weekly: Terry's Terrace

"At first, it would be easy to assume that Terry's Terrace is just another bar taken over by boat-loving folks. But current owners Heather and Nick Ritts (high school sweethearts, by the way), who have owned the place for the past six years, are nothing if not perfectionists. They re-imagined Terry's to be a reflection of themselves and what they like and want to see.

'Hence you won't get any of the live bands cranked up at top volume making conversation impossible. But you will get 99 different beers available by the bottle and 25 on tap. And the gold star: they also carry a wide selection of Michigan craft brews both by the bottle and on tap, including big names like Bells and Cellis White, but also smaller favorites such as Founders and New Holland. Huzzah!..."

Read the rest of the article here.