I concur. The pizza was very nice -and I suspect it will get better with experience. Also, the ordering and paying system was a bit raw, but happily the workers were all helpful and they will get better with experience. I bought the panini was a little greasy. The desserts - cannoli, tarts, cookies - looked good - maybe next time.

Crispelli's will be a nice casual spot, right on Woodward south of 12 Mile, without the parking hassles of Royal Oak or Ferndale

Can anyone tell where I can get first clear flour in Metro Detroit? Apparently Holiday Market in RO has it occasionally. Anyplace else?

Dinner at Giovanni's in Detroit tonight. It was wonderful, but...

I had the ravioli with boursin cheese and sun-dried tomatoes in a champagne cream sauce with crab. The sauce and crab were extraordinary, the sauce carrying the crab to an intense level, as good as these items get. Call it a crab-champagne-cream sauce. Alas, the pasta kind of disappeared in the sauce - I did not even really taste the cheese and tomato. The disappointment is that Giovanni's generally offers great pasta, but I didn't really get to enjoy it. The green salad with honey vinaigrette was just darn exciting. The vinegar and honey danced an energetic tango in my mouth. I loved it.

The other diners: I would not have guessed that seared salmon in tomato sauce would work. It worked. It worked, worked, worked. The veal in caper and lemon sauce was superb, the veal being perfectly cooked. I did not taste the perch in capers and lemon, but two of our party loved it. As always, the risotto was lovely, silky and flavorful.

What else? Um, the waitress was nice, enthusiastic, cheerful, attentive. She wasn't very experienced here and it showed.

I was pleased to a decent crowd on a Wednesday night - one nearly full service. I worry about Giovanni's - the owners are aging and Detroit's economy hurts them as much, I suspect, as their industrial location. I hope they survive.

Don't get me wrong - Giovanni's is always a treat. But, for the first time in a long time, it wasn't perfect. We'll be back.

Giovanni's is at 300 Oakwood, Detroit, down the street from the Marathon refinery. The neighborhood is not the best, so use the valet parking ($5, plus tip.)

I stopped in this morning at Mae's Diner on Woodward in Pleasant Ridge. The site has been a diner, but a young couple has taken it over and opened as Mae's recently.

I liked the buttermilk pancakes a lot - very light with nice, tangy buttermilk flavor. I suspect there is more egg than usual in the cakes which makes them very light and airy. They were smaller than the usual diner 'cakes, which was OK with me. The older I get, the less I can handle the giant pancake breakfast. I am less a fan of the bacon - it is thick cut, reasonably flavorful, but I lean more to the thin and crispy side of the bacon spectrum.

Coffee ws fine - and they offered skim milk, soy milk, 1/2 and 1/2 or whole cream. Imagine that - whole cream in your coffee.

The site is pleasant, sunny, clean, roomy, though only a half dozen or so tables with a counter. The staff is pleasant and cheerful. Cakes, bacon and coffee was about $9.00 with tip.

Located at 26040 Woodward, about a 1/2 mile north of Toast and Fly Trap, Mae's is fine addition to the Ferndale breakfast scene.

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Fly Trap Restaurant
22950 Woodward Ave, Ferndale, MI 48220

Thanks for the recommendations. Bommarito's version is pretty good. We had their half chocolate/half vanilla-cinnamon block. It was pretty good - certainly reminded me of Rome, but didn't blow my socks off. (Also, I am not a big fan of cinnamon ice cream.) $5.99 a quart

Brooklyn Pizza's version is better - much more intense flavor, good texture. I liked it a lot, though I would like a wider, or different selection of flavors - they only had 6, I think - chocolate, chocolate-hazelnut, pistachio, mango, banana-coconut, and I can't remember the last. $3 for about a six ounce scoop.

Zingerman's next. At $4 a gallon, I'm trying to decide if I need a better reason than gelato to drive to AA....

Having recently returned from a week in Rome and Florence, I am desparately in need of some real gelato. Every evening there, we finished dinner somewhere between 8 and 10 pm, then found a gelateria to sample the wonderful stuff and stroll the streets of Rome. Help me, friends, gelato in Metro Detroit?

Is there a good chow place for breakfast here? How about lunch?

OK you guys, this is Berkleybabe, have been a stalwart on the board. I HAVE to know if Low Tide 2 is still the great place it was three years ago. I've posted, no response. OK, I'll play the guilt card...a hospital visit and good food. OK? Anybody know anything?

Thanks and Chow!

All good choices. I like the 'cakes at Toast. I alsio like the pancake sandwich at Orignal House of Pancakes (tho I know they've been dissed here). You might also look at the menus for Sweet Lorraine's (Greenfield north of 12 Mile) - she has crepes and her own take on French toast or Berkley Breakfast Cafe (Coolidge north of 11 Mile) for rich, elaborate Fr toast and 'cakes. All of these are convenient to a trip to Somerset

you know, from the greektown casino it's easy to jump on the people mover and travel around the downtown area. Now if only someone would take the time to suggest a few decent spots around the different PM stations........

The Whitney...I know they've changed staff/management. But the meal has courses that your order...not big buffet. Service has always been cordial and professional in gogeous surroundings. It's a specail event and we've always enjoyed itl

I love it, too! I had it at what was Innfield's in Berkley--it's ow Country Kitchen or something--a family style restaurant. You might also check Alex's in Berkley --on 12 mile between Greenfield and Coolidge, closer to Coolidge --a diner style spot with decent food. If you find a good spot, please share..maybe we can start a support group.

I'm actually berkleybabe, didn't know my husband, berkleygary, was logged on...

Thanks, Goalie --so these guys are in the sheds, not at the Gratiot Market, eh? I think I've seen them. The bacon seems really simple--how awesome to serve your own homemade! I bow to the master. Can smoking work with a gas grill?

BB

Ditto on La Pita and Al-Berdouni. Don't forget New Yasmeen Bakery, though it's a bit further.

I had a Fatburger today at the new store in the Tel-Twelve mall at 12 mile and Telegraph in Southfield. It was.......drumroll, please.......... um, OK.
I am making the assumption that these are fastfood joints and so the food should be compared to other fastfood joints - not to major league burgers. Given that perspective, I thought these were fine. The food were hot, the meat was clearly meat, the fries ("skinny fries", not the "fat fries") were hot and crispy outside and fluffy inside. The burgers are loaded with extras - tomato, lots of chopped lettuce and a "sauce" that was reminiscent of the sauces you get on Big Macs or Burger King's offerings. They advertise the buns as toasted and if they weren't deeply toasted, they weren't soggy either, which I consider a major plus.

Minor cons: I had to check to see if there really was cheese on my cheeseburger - it was there but didn't add much to the experience. The lettuce and sauce just overwhelm the actual burger part of the meal, tho. There was so much of each on the burger - I would be happy with less of each.

This is their first day and they did just fine. The food was cooked properly and quickly even though the place was packed. I got there about 11:15 and was 3rd or 4th in line. By the time I left at 11:45 or so, the line went out the door. The help seemed competent and cheerful; the place was sparkling clean.
For a fastfood burger it was good, certainly better than Mac's or BK - tho I have to say it's been years since i had a burger at either of those places. So maybe I should say better than my dim memory of those other burgers. (it was a heckuva lot better than the junk I bought at Bagger Dave's, that's for sure).

If I want another fastfood burger, I would return to Fatburger.

I spent $8.00 for a cheeseburger, skinny fries and a diet coke

ps - my daughter says I should wait for Sonic to come to Detroit. We'll see.

Like the Ferndale Toast?

Deroit Metro area

This joint has been pretty well beaten up in a previous thread, so I won't go into any detail on our experience there, except to say this place serves terrible food.

But I have a question about their claim that they serve "100% lean" ground beef. Is that possible? Can you really produce ground beef that has NO fat at all in it?

gary

'babe and I stopped in at La Colmena (Honey Bee) market in Mexican town the other day after picking up some of Evie's finest tamales for the holidays. We haven't been there for a while and were pleasantly surprised. Among the treats we don't see very often in the northern suburbs were frozen sugar cane, cactus leaves, frozen guavas, dried beans we don't see much and some nice buckets of lard. They had some guacamole out for sampling and it was the creamiest I've had in a while - very tasty. We'll be back soon.

Honey Bee is at 2443 Bagley - east of the freeway, which is torn up for construction there, but getting around it wasn't difficult (on Saturday afternoon)

how many people are you planning to have at the dinner?

We were looking forward to good food as well as good theater when we planned to go to Stratford from Detroit this weekend. Following some suggestions from this board, we ate pretty well. Saturday evening, between plays, we ate at Down the Street, 30 Ontario St.

Overall opinion, good food, and exceptional service. This is a bit funky but very convivial and warm restaurant. The owner knew we were new (who new?) and we were taken care of well, with concern and humor.

Appetizers included bruschetta and pork pot-stickers. The bruschetta was OK - the toasted bread was light on the garlic and overall nothing great, the tomato/basil mixture was fresh and bright, but a little watery. Bruschetta doesn't require cheese, but DTS's version includes a small pot of goat cheese - which my co-diner hates. I sort of enjoyed slathering a bunch on the bread before applying the tomato mixture. The pork potstickers came from the "100 mile menu" - all items on it are organic and sourced within 100 miles. Anyway the potstickers were very nice - crispy fried packages of a tasty mildly-spicy sausage-like mixture of local pork But, there were three for $9..way over priced.

My beef ribeye was perfectly cooked and nicely charred on the outside and very flavorful. The accompanying caramelized shallot and mushroom was sweet and lovely, but for some reason was served cold atop the steak. We were told it was supposed to that way. The potato gratin with goat cheese was kind of OK, nothing bad, but not very exciting and not particularly flavorful.

My companion had the crispy duck, also from the 100 mile menu. Skin not so crispy, but lovely flavored and huge hunks of duck. The kimchi slaw was crispy and flavorful with a slow heat. And the pho jus was very pho... which is good. The millet cake was....our first millet cake. I guess it was sort of interesting as an experience - lots of folks around the world eat millet regularly.

We also tried our first Niagara wine - Henry of Pelham Baco Noir. A sturdy, quiet strong wine that supported the steak nicely.

It's not cheap, in fact a bit pricey, but it's a wonderful experience in hospitality and and good food. We'd go back on another trip, and understand it's even better after the plays.

Breakfast the next morning was at Tango, also on Ontario near Downie. We liked it. As at Down the Street, the staff was friendly and helpful as can be. Tango also is proud of their pork - the bacon was thin and little crispy on the edges, the sausage links particularly were really porky - though we aren't sure what that means. They were meaty, not spicy and not particularly fatty. The home fries were crispy chunks, a little spicy and soft and warm inside. Excellent.

One other note - we arrived at the Arden Park Hotel later than we expected, less than an hour before the King Lear curtain. Could they manage a quick lunch for us? They did - a nice club sandwich with real turkey breast chunks was on the table in 5 minutes. I wouldn't have expected a lot from a small hotel dining room. It wasn't the most imaginative menu, but the food was well-prepared from good ingredients, served by cheerful, more than competent staff.

All in all, a nice experience in Stratford. Oh, and Brian Bedford as Lear was truly something special.

This only works with fresh, home-grown or farmers market tomatoes, but it's my summer favorite. A good whole wheat bread, mayo on one slice, honey mustard on the other, thick slices of juicy tomato, a slice of good cheddar (or muenster or provolone), lettuce of whatever sort is in the fridge, maybe a little salt on the tomato.

Isn't Sweet Lorraine's still across from Ren Cen? Always great, authentically good food. Coneys are a real Detroit benchmark. My best choice in Greektown is Laikon Cafe. I'd avoid New Hellas-"touristy" at least for Detroit.

Tamales is the choice at Evie's, plus added bonus is you can take to go...around $6 for a dozen. They freeze extremely well so you can satisfy your jones whenever.
They have the best refried beans I've ever had... why? Can you say lard....beef lard? Forget the PC eating, these beans are beefy and creamy and irrestible. Avoid the menudo unless you like/can hack "robust" tripe. Very authentic, but not my deal.

Get the private space at Al-Berdouni on Chase. I think it's got the best Mideast food in Dearborn. But, don't know about the alcohol.

We've had some wonderful meals at Dearborn Inn main restaurant. It will be beautifully decorated and the service will be good...I think that's a great venue for an upscale office event. Very gracious and food that will please probably everybody.

You might also try Evie's in Mexicantown - on Bagley, near Vernor and Grand Blvd. Super duper Mexican food

Thanks for the rec for Bo's in Pontiac. We tried it and the burgers were quite tasty and the fries were hot and crispy. The burgers were 1/2 pound, cooked properly, served hot and juicy on a serious bun that was substantial enough to stand up to the meat and juice. My only complaint would be that they no longer brew their own beer and ale and they were out of a couple of choices that sounded interesting.

Good recommendation

gary

I'm meeting a friend coming from the north. We need cheeseburgers and beer, casual, preferably between say, the Silverdome and the Palace near I-75. Downtown Rochester or near Oakland U would be fine. I've poked around the archives for this board and the only thing I see in Rochester for good burgers is a dairy bar.

Many thanks

Restaurant Equippers has opened a store on Greenfield, just north of 11 Mile. I haven't been there yet, but berkleybabe says they have everything. She loved it.

We've always liked the food at Howe's Bayou in your neighborhood at 9 and woodward. They allow smoking, but i don't recall it being oppressive. And they regularly have entertainment

I like Vincente's, a Cuban restaurant hidden behind the Compuware bldg downtown.

A litle further away is Giovanni's Italian. We haven't been there for a good while, but I have had the yen to return soon. Some of the best Italian meals I ever enjoyed were there. Giovanni's is in an industrial neighborhood in SW Detroit - 330 Oakwood. You should do a map for either Vincente's or Giovanni's