Foundation Hotel
313-800-5500
I'd say this is the crown Jewel of the Detroit, recently mentioned in Conde Naste (here's a fucking link! www.cntraveler.com/
To be honest, I feel like it was at a water-downed Schillers (RIP) or Reynard's. The problem is none of the kids working there had a frame of reference. They all tried really hard, but they don't know exactly what they're doing so it didn't come off correctly. A few examples:
1) Huge bar, tons of seating, separate menu which would be great if it were bar food. It was way too gourmet. For instance...
2) The cauliflower on the bar menu (which was okay) was served in a bowl. Try cutting through cauliflower in a bowl.
3) The bowl was plastic, but the knives where heavily weighted.
4) Then, even though I told the bartender I wasn't super hungry, from out of town, had no place to go, he pushed the burger, and then fired it well before I was ready. I was still struggling with the cutting the fucking cauliflower.
5) The bathroom was an absolute fucking disaster. Toilet paper all over the place, no hand towels, trash can over flowing, no one had attended to it for the entire dinner service.
The Hemingway's were spot on. And, I guess it's the best downtown Detroit has to offer. For whatever that's worth.
The Sugar House:
313- 962-0123
Absinthe bar. Their drink menu was absurd. This place is in Corktown, the Williamsburg or Silver lake of Detroit. In the shadow of the old train station and now new ford electric-vehicle factory, I must say this place seemed authentic. The drinks were, again, spot on. The panini was not bad, but way too much cheese.
Sister Pie:
313-447-5550
No pie. They had run out of pie. A pie place, with pie in the name had no pie. It had a good vibe though, and since my ass hurt from riding a bike all over the place, I was happy just to take a beat. In Indian Village, a somewhat expansive and vast neighborhood, and this appeared to be the only place nearby. The coconut cookies were pretty solid. Laid back with a ton of talent.. er...maybe that's the pie they were talking about?
Turnbull and Porter.
313-496-1400
This is where I stayed. It's an old cinder block something or other, and though it checks all the boxes, I think it's over reach to call it a cool hotel. I drank in the bar a few times (didn't know how to make a Hemingway) and though it drew a pretty big crowd, I'm not sure why. Sugar Cube seemed much cooler to me, and there was nothing out of the ordinary to this place. I think it's just a phenomenon of buzz. I will say that there was a huge ass roach rolled up with my bath towels. So that's a shitty amenity.
Batch Brewery.
313-338-8008
This place was right across from the hotel, and it was my first stop in Detroit after checking in. Decent beer, good scene, awesome pretzels. A lot of the beer had fruit in it, which was odd. I also learned that Michigan has a ton of microbreweries. Who knew?
John King bookstore.
313- 961-0622
Fucking worth a stop. They have a ton of titles. I got a 1st edition Foster Wallace. Seriously, Strand-sized bookstore and well organized..
Atwater Brewery.
313-877-9205
Batch is better in terms of lay out, but I'd say this place has a better location. Rent a bike (with a comfortable seat) and you can ride right along the Detroit River and the path stops basically at this place. The neighborhood has a cool old cobble-stone meatpacking district feel, and you can get a beer and relax. Again, a shit ton of fruit beer and the menu is pedestrian at best. Beggers can't be choosers.
