This week we are visiting the Side Hustle Lounge, a retro bar which is located and part of Mootz Pizza in Downtown Detroit.  Mootz Pizzeria opened its doors in late 2018 or early 2019 serving their authentic New York style pizza.  Shortly thereafter they opened their “side hustle”, which is a walk up “grab n go” pizza by the slice, for those who do not want to have a sit down meal.  It is designed to resemble a NY subway station.  Fast forward to April of 2024 when they opened The Side Hustle Lounge.

Eat Detroit 2024 is now just a memory, but we wanted to take a minute to highlight some of our favorite restaurants, and the food that we enjoyed, as we ate our way through the city.

If you are not familiar with Eat Detroit it is THE foodie event of the year.  It features numerous restaurants throughout the city, all offering a selection of small plates and signature cocktail. Some were created specifically for the event.  It is a great opportunity to get in and feel the vibe of the new places that have recently opened, or maybe reacquaint yourself with a place that has been open for a while.

The story that we heard, was that in 2008 Bogdan Tarasov, a Romanian construction company owner was working in the downtown Detroit area and would bring in sandwiches for his crew.  His sandwiches were so good that he was encouraged to open his own place, serving these delicious shawarma sandwiches. Bogdan was able to secure a place, inside the Park Bar, at the corner of Park and Elizabeth . . . and The Bucharest Grill was born. It was a small “walk up” and “order sandwiches to go” place which quickly grew in popularity. 

This week we are back in Downtown Detroit, at a restaurant that opened in the fall on 2020. Probably not the best time to be opening a new restaurant anywhere in the world . . . but they pulled it off.  Who are they?  We are talking about Holly McClain, the owner, and Chef Andrew Shedden from Olin Bar & Kitchen.

It was a Thursday, March 29th to be exact.  It was Opening Day for the Tigers in 2018 and the weather was not good.  The game actually was rained out.  But that didn't stop all the pre-planned opening day parties and celebrations from happening.  My last destination was the Corktown Tavern, yes in Corktown.  Due to the weather and the game being canceled they closed down early.  I parted ways  with the group I was with, and suddenly realized I could not find my car keys.  Yes, I had locked them in my car.  The Corktown Tavern was closed.  It was raining, cold, and my phone was on life support.  I was able to get someone to rescue me, but they couldn't be there for over an hour.  I couldn't wait outside in the rain and I needed a place to stay dry and warm. So…I stumbled into Bobcat Bonnie’s . . . this week's Fun Food Friday feature.

This week, we are in Detroit’s Midtown neighborhood, at its newest upscale Italian restaurant, Mad Nice.  While the name doesn’t scream “restaurant”, it makes sense once you have seen the place . . . It is Mad Nice!  From the outside, you don’t even think this would be a restaurant. It looks more like a nice modern office building.  The only signage is “Mad Nice” in bold letters along the front of the building, which is on Second Ave between Alexandrine and Willis. 

This week we are visiting Coriander Kitchen and Farms, in Detroit’s Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood of canals . . . sometimes referred to as “The Venice of Detroit”. Coriander is a farm to table restaurant that not only uses locally sourced food in their dishes, but they are also the farm that grows the food, making them the only restaurant in the city that owns the farm and the table.

This week we are visiting a Mid-town Detroit Burger Joint that opened it’s doors in 2017, in the heart of Detroit’s Cass Corridor: Royale With Cheese. Honestly, we have driven by this place a thousand times, yet we had never been here until recently. We thought “well it’s just a burger joint” which it is, but it is so much more than that. Sure they have burgers . . . . some damn good burgers!

This past Tuesday, June 27th, Mitch Albom’s Say Detroit Charity hosted it’s 3rd Eat Detroit event downtown. Mitch started this charity following the Super Bowl in Detroit in 2006. His vision was that the city “should be super all the time, not just for one weekend” and helps Detroiters in need. Fast forward 13 years, to 2019, and Eat Detroit was born. This is an event where a number of local restaurants are involved and offers an evening of strolling and dining throughout the city. This year there were 25 restaurants on the list in the Downtown, Midtown and Corktown neighborhoods. Every restaurant offers 2-3 signature small plates, plus a specialty cocktail, which is all included in the price.