OP
OP
I've been to CMO, it's pretty rad if you crave real fast food. Beyond that it really isn't particularly fancy food.
-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
Yep. Love getting a shawarma sandwich and a Sam salad from there.
The Mr. Kabob expresses are great too. Chipotle style shawarma sandwiches.
Same with the mid-Atlantic. There's no comparison.
My absolute favorite is La Pita in Dearborn.
I live right smack in the middle of Detroit near New Center Area. I drive the QLine, come holla at yo boi! Im in the center of it all!
Theres so many new places thats popping up all over the "New" Downtown Detroit area that Ive lost count. And I hear Dan Gilbert bought a hundred more store front properties up woodward toward 8 mike. So that should be fun.
Theres so many new places thats popping up all over the "New" Downtown Detroit area that Ive lost count. And I hear Dan Gilbert bought a hundred more store front properties up woodward toward 8 mike. So that should be fun.
My favorite hummus is La Saj in Sterling Heights. Literally the only place I've ever had better hummus was Israel.
Try La Pompa on the corner of Canfield and John R next to the DMC. Deliciousness!
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!
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!
OP
OP
Anyone done the Mackinac Bridge Walk before? That sounds like fun too. 😎
Hello fellow SE Mich vegan! You may joke about Slow's, but there's a vegan pop up called Street Beet Detroit that does occasionally do a vegan night there. I haven't been to that one, but I have gone to a couple of their other events at other places (Taco Hell which happens like once a month at PJ's Lager House and a brunch at the Lunch Room in Ann Arbor) and the food was delicious. I'm closer to Ann Arbor so my food recs are mostly going to be farther away, but any way:
Detroit Vegan Soul has two locations in Detroit, only been once but it was great.
I love Chili Mustard Onions. The Spicy Peppernell was something I immediately needed to recreate.
Neehee's has one location in Canton and one closer to you, I think in Troy? It's vegetarian Indian street food, probably half or more of the menu is available vegan and it's delicious.
Vegorama is in Canton and Ypsi does lots of fast food, most of the menu is available vegan. Highly recommend their Cuban.
Cream and Crumb in Ypsi is a coffee house that carries a lot of baked goods from the vegan Sugarbeet Bakery.
And of course in Ann Arbor there's the Lunch Room and Detroit Street Filling Station, run by the same people. Love their food, love the live music at DSFS, they're an institution.
There's also Seva, a vegetarian restaurant in Ann Arbor and Detroit with a lot of vegan options. They're not my favorite, but they aren't bad at all.
Chive Kitchen in Farmington is very tasty but kind of annoying to get to from where I live so I don't visit all that often.
And of course, there's so much good falafel at the middle eastern restaurants around. I'm not sure if I know any near Royal Oak, but I'm fond of La Pita, Country Chicken, and Al Ameer.
(Also, my unsolicited comment is that I find Royal Oak to be too bro-y, much prefer the vibe in Ann Arbor and Ypsi).
I get lunch from there on the regular, I work in the building across from them! Their Cashew sour cream is lovely.
OP
OP
The "chicken" nuggets at the Detroit Filling station are legit. But the vegan Tiramisu they serve is probably the best I have ever had!
Vegan Soul was good but similar to CMO probably too comforty/fast foodie for me to go all the time.
The GreenSpace Cafe is delicious
Seva is pretty good.
Still plenty to explore. 😁
I'm not vegan but I work in downtown AA and the Lunch Room is part of my lunch rotation. Since the Lunch Room is in Kerrytown, I have to mention that Monahan's Fish Market is great too. It's a fishmonger first and foremost but you can have any fish in the display cases cooked to order at their lunch counter. They even had Anthony Bourdain stop by for oysters and smelt several years ago.
Bridge Walk is fun but be prepared to deal with crowds and traffic from all the downmitten folks driving up I-75 to go, too. :)
No no.. you guys got.. uh. Drug problems. And uh? A few party stores....
.... Oh what about Fort Fraser! Oh wait... Wasp and Bees made them closed it down.
... Well you got things to do on Gratiot.
Yup, I was there about a week ago. They have some amazing stuff there. There's also a really cool Star Trek exhibit going on there until September in case if anyone is interested.
oh man, get your ass in Ajishin next time you're in Novi. It's cheap af (7.95 I think for the Ajishin udon special), tastes amazing, and the portions are HUGE. Might honestly be one of my favorite restaurants in the world. I know i'm hyping it up a ton but it honestly deserves it
OP
OP
I've volunteered with:
Greening of Detroit
Friends of the Rouge River
Anyone that doesn't know, this coming weekend is the Dream Cruise on Woodward. T-shirt stuff was already going up. Plus the 75 construction has started from 12 to 8 mile.
Plan ahead if your going anywhere.
Plan ahead if your going anywhere.
Also FYI, usually every Monday evening they do slow roll downtown if anyone is interested. https://www.slowroll.bike/
If you're in to museums at all, I highly recommend checking out the Detroit Institute of Arts. It's taxpayer funded, so if you're a resident of Wayne, Macomb, or Oakland county, you don't have to pay admission. Definitely my favorite place to check out on the regular.
When I think of what's good in SE Michigan, I think maybe pizza first and Mediterranean second.
Kabob Hut in Sterling Heights is my personal favorite, but tbh any random place around here is probably above average at worst in the grand scheme of things.
EDIT: Hmmm on second thought, maybe I also think coney dogs second then Mediterranean third although I much prefer the latter.
When I think of what's good in SE Michigan, I think maybe pizza first and Mediterranean second.
Kabob Hut in Sterling Heights is my personal favorite, but tbh any random place around here is probably above average at worst in the grand scheme of things.
EDIT: Hmmm on second thought, maybe I also think coney dogs second then Mediterranean third although I much prefer the latter.
Last edited:
Stay away from the main dream cruise drag during the evening on weekdays this week as well, the cruisers will clog it up all week after 6 or 7.
OP
OP
Hidden....not really. Birmingham and Ferndale normally have stuff going on to go see if you want to avoid going down Woodward with the cruisers. 9 mile is closed so they have a bunch of stuff there.
The closer you get to Woodward the worse it's going to be. You can try parking a ways off Woodward and walking or biking up, but otherwise it's basically a day long traffic jam. I'd say figure out if there's a car show you want to see and try to park near enough to walk. As noted, Ferndale has them on 9 Mile. The other cities along the way probably have stuff too. In Ferndale it's closed to cars so you can walk, though. No idea if that's the case elsewhere; we try to avoid the cruise completely.
Heh, the Dream Cruise. If you're new to the area, get ready for a weird week. For me, it's mostly an annoyance and inconvenience but I get a good laugh every time I'm driving home from work on a Wednesday night and there's people sitting on their lawn chairs watching me and my lousy car drive by.
On the other hand, I had some friends stay with me last year around this time and just for the hell of it we checked it out and had a decent time. You get over a million people from all over and it's just a weird slice of Americana and it's a prime people watching event.
As I said, this is nowhere near one of my favorite things to do in the area, but if you're new and you even have 1% interest in cars, it can be a fascinating thing to check out every once in a while.
On the other hand, I had some friends stay with me last year around this time and just for the hell of it we checked it out and had a decent time. You get over a million people from all over and it's just a weird slice of Americana and it's a prime people watching event.
As I said, this is nowhere near one of my favorite things to do in the area, but if you're new and you even have 1% interest in cars, it can be a fascinating thing to check out every once in a while.
They've spent millions making downtown nice(think it's even getting a new tower that will dominate skyline at 1000 ft), just don't leave downtown
I remember my parents dragging me and my brother and sister to that years ago, you have to get there early, wait in a long line, and be prepared to walk 7+ miles because once you start you can't really change your mind.
Last edited:
OP
OP
Guess it's time to repost this
Ok, let's do this!
As per Illusion 's suggestion lets have a Metro DetroitEra Meetup at Arts Beats & Eats!
Bear in mind that there is a small entrance fee on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, admission is $3 before 3pm, $5 after 3pm, and $7 after 5pm. This is admission fee supports the festival as well as 13 non-profit partners.
RSVP so far
Illusion
FliXFantatier
Ok, let's do this!
As per Illusion 's suggestion lets have a Metro DetroitEra Meetup at Arts Beats & Eats!
- When: August 31st; 4PM
- Where: Downtown Royal Oak; Exact Location TBD
Bear in mind that there is a small entrance fee on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, admission is $3 before 3pm, $5 after 3pm, and $7 after 5pm. This is admission fee supports the festival as well as 13 non-profit partners.
RSVP so far
Illusion
FliXFantatier
You don't need to eat, you can still come for the arts and beats.
Hi all,
I'm a Michigander born and raised and just moved to Ferndale last week from Ann Arbor to my first adult apartment after graduating from my Master's! I'd love to make friends with some of ya'll and hear some cool places to go in Ferndale, Royal Oak, and Detroit. I grew up in Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield but I've never really explored Detroit. I'd be happy to share some of my favorite Ann Arbor spots in the thread a little later! :) I'm really into board games, video games, and anime, I have my Master's in Information Science and my Bachelor's in Psychology and Women's Studies.
I'm a Michigander born and raised and just moved to Ferndale last week from Ann Arbor to my first adult apartment after graduating from my Master's! I'd love to make friends with some of ya'll and hear some cool places to go in Ferndale, Royal Oak, and Detroit. I grew up in Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield but I've never really explored Detroit. I'd be happy to share some of my favorite Ann Arbor spots in the thread a little later! :) I'm really into board games, video games, and anime, I have my Master's in Information Science and my Bachelor's in Psychology and Women's Studies.
Hey I drive the QLine Train in downtown Detroit. Come down woodward to Grand Blvd and hop on my train to Downtown. Im the only driver you'll see with dread locs. Lol, Ill show you all the good spots to entertain yourself downtown detroit.
If I'm driving across town and dealing with that parking, I'm definitely eating lol
OP
OP
Join us for our mini-meetup in Royal Oak on Saturday!
I'm also into boardgames and such, we should hang out!
OP
OP
You can park at my apartment, we can then walk downtown together. 😉
I cannot believe there is no Metro DetroitEra! Almost four million people and no OT?
Seing as I am going to board a plane in a minute to fly to DTW and will thusly become a Michigandan in a matter of hours, I thought this needed rectifying.
So what have I gotten myself into by moving to Royal Oak, Michigan?
Any people interested in meetups or hanging out?
My family is right down the way in Pontiac. Go see the Silverdome.
Please. Provide me with such beautiful information so I may abuse a friendship, forever using your apartment parking space whenever I'm downtown.
Last edited:
I actually can't this weekend since I have some friends coming in for labor day weekend, but feel free to PM me! That goes to anyone in the thread, I'm sorry I dun know how to multi quote! :'(