OP! Welcome to the area! I've lived here for 28 years and have a great idea of some great spots around the tri-county area.
Waterford
- Hot Pepper Thai - don't care what anyone says, this Thai in a strip mall in Waterford is the best Thai food I have EVER had.
Clarkston
- The Union - Fantastic brunch spot in a renovated old church with lots of rotating dishes. Classic homestyle cooking, lots of great staples such as the pot pie and the meatloaf,
you MUST eat their mac & cheese. It's nationally famous (Here's an article about it in the WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB104517622648216703) and they've sold over a million dishes of it (there's a counter in the restaurant).
- The Woodshop - Owned by the same guy that owns the Union, has for my money
the best bbq in the state. Amazing sauces, delicious meats, a really lovely upstairs for just grabbing a drink, and you
must get the sweet potato mash (or Union Mac) as a side.
Royal Oak
- Ye Olde Saloon - If you like dive bars, this place is a fantastic dive bar in terms of ambiance. I know Charlie LeDuff hangs out here.
- Vincetta's Garage - Owned by the same guy that owns the Union and Woodshop, so it's always a great time. More focused on Burgers
Ferndale
- Detroit Fleet - Bar with options on craft beers, but
has food trucks that stay permanently
(try Matt & Mo's, the only place around I know that does a proper Chicago style hot-dog and an Italian
Beef Sandwich)
- Imperial - Great taco spot
Non Food
- Found Sound - Awesome record shop with a lot of variety
- Grasshopper - Good for house/techno if you don't want to venture to Detroit
Dearborn
- Miller's - Best burgers I think I've had. Bring cash.
Hamtramck
- Polish Village Cafe/Polonia - The two best spots for Polish food in town.
- Balkan House -
MUST TRY THE DONER KEBAB. People are starting to go crazy around town for this sandwich.
Non-Food
- DCFC Games (Detroit City Football Club) - Semi-Pro soccer club with a HUGE following. Their fans are dedicated and passionate.
Must go to one of these games.
Detroit
Food/Drink
- Supinos - Best NY Style Pizza in the state. Fight me on this.
- Pie-Sci - Second best NY style pizza, offering more creative options that rotate
- Pop+Offworld/Checker Bar - Downstairs is a fantastic dive bar with really good burgers (Try the Mount Olympus). Upstairs is an arcade with good pizza slices and cheap Strohs beer.
- Honest Johns - No frills brunch spot. Perfect when you're hungover and don't want to deal with the BS hoighty-toighty suburbanites at the posh joints around town.
- Cafe D'Mongos - Really, really cook speakeasy only open Thursday - Saturday, and is always PACKED to the gills. Must travel to once.
- Slows - Very good BBQ, but not the best in my opinion.
- Sweetwater - Some of the best Wings in the City (though I prefer City Wings). Used to get this often when I lived across the street
-
GREENDOT STABLES - YOU MUST GO HERE!!!!!!!!!!!! The most quintessential
Detroit restaurant
in my opinion. Unique take on sliders (from your plain cheeseburger, to kimchi, to a coney version, and a rotating mystery meat), cheap drinks, cheap sides, and everything is phenomenal. I take everyone here first when showing them Detroit. Nobody is disappointed.
- San Morello - Probably the hottest Detroit restaurant right now. Haven't been myself yet. Located in the newly built Shinola hotel
- Telway - If you want the classic slider experience (and don't want to risk what White Castle will do to your bowels). 24 hour slider joint in Southwest Detroit.
- Jacoby's - German bar with good food and one of the best beer selections in the city.
- Sugar House/Candy Factory/Ghostbar - Craft cocktails. There's a few other places I'm forgetting
- Lot's of great Mexican in Southwest/Mexicantown. You really can't go wrong.
So many food options that I'm probably forgetting, but those are some great places to start with.
Non-Food
- Like House & Techno Music? -
Marble Bar + TV Lounge are two of the best venues for this type of music in the city. City Club does a lot of industrial/goth stuff.
- Live Music? - Saint Andrews, El Club, Fox & Filmore are a few of the venues in the city
- Belle-Isle - State operated park with a driving range, slide, beach property, and a ton of space for recreation with a phenomenal view of the city skyline.
- DIA/MOCAD - Art museums
One of the premier cities in the world for electronic music. Lots of options to find house/techno music.
Events
- Arts, Beats, and Eats - Somebody already mentioned this
-
Dalley In the Alley (9/8/19) - Kind of like Detroit's Arts, Beats, and Eats but substantially less commercialized. Police block off a few streets of midtown-Detroit, and a bunch of local bands play with booths from local artists. Really fun event where lots of debauchery happens after dark. I prefer this to Arts, Beats, and Eats, but if you have a family, I'd stay away from this after 8pm.
-
Lincoln Street Art Park Parties (Sporadic Events) - THE BEST THING ABOUT DETROIT IMHO. There's a park in the Woodbridge neighborhood where a bunch of local artists put up art installations. Every so often, these artists host parties at the park where there's usually a theme involved (the last one was Buttcon, a celebration of Butts). The events happen sporadically (I know there's usually one for every full moon), so if interested, I can send you the group info OP.
NOT FOR FAMILIES OR THE FAINT OF HEART. There is a TON of debauchery going on at these events. It's usually BYOB, BYOD, and usually you can find people running around with nitrous filled balloons. If you're down to hang with the freaks and the weird, come join. It's an amazing time and there is nothing like it.
Hopefully this helps you and others out, OP!