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HOUR
T R O
T
VOLUME THIRTY ONE ISSUE ELEVEN
PUBLISHER: Jason Hosko
EDITORIAL
EDITOR: Kate Walsh
DEPUTY EDITOR: Scott Atkinson
DIGITAL EDITOR: Christina Clark
ASSOCIATE EDITORS: Rachael Thomas, Ashley Winn
COPY EDITOR: Olivia Sedlacek
DINING EDITOR: Dorothy Hernandez
CONTRIBUTORS: Chuck Bennett, George Bulanda, Steve Friess, Ryan Patrick Hooper, Janina Parrott Jacobs, Mickey Lyons, Jenn McKee, Patty LaNoue Stearns, Lauren Wethington, Brad Ziegler, Khristi Zimmeth, Ashley Zlatopolsky
DESIGN
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Lindsay Richards
SENIOR PRODUCTION ARTIST: Stephanie Daniel
JUNIOR DESIGNER: Steven Prokuda
CONTRIBUTORS: Kate Francis, Nick Hagen, Kailey Howell, Lians Jadan, Monica Jadan, Hailey Kasper, Mary Ann Mangano, Karl Moses, Sal Rodriguez, Rebecca Simonov, Joe Tiano, Jessica VanAssche, Holly Wales, Brad Ziegler
SALES
PUBLISHING AND SALES COORDINATOR: Kristin Mingo
SENIOR SALES & MARKETING CONTENT CREATOR: Cortney Woody
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Cynthia Barnhart, Regan Blissett, Karli Brown, Maya Gossett, Donna Kassab, Lisa LaBelle, Mary Pantely & Associates
OUTREACH SPECIALIST: Jessica VanDerMaas
SALES INTERN: Gabrielle Mancini
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR: Jenine Knox
SENIOR PRODUCTION COORDINATOR: Jill Berry
PRODUCTION ARTIST: Jonathan Boedecker
ADVERTISING COORDINATOR: Erica Soroka, Amanda Kozlowski
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS: Jim Bibart, Colin McKinney
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IT DIRECTOR: Jeremy Leland WEB
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CIRCULATION COORDINATORS: David Benvenuto, Cathy Krajenke, Rachel Moulden, Lisa Sawyer, Michele Wold
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MARKETING & EVENTS MANAGER: Jodie Svagr
MARKETING & EVENTS COORDINATOR: Jaime Presnail
COMMUNICATIONS & EVENTS LEAD: Cathleen Francois
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CONTENTS
33 The Weird and Wild Political World of James Craig
Detroit’s former police chief opens up about the untimely breakdown of his once-promising campaign for Michigan’s gubernatorial seat.
40 Best Dressed
Hour Detroit’s 2022 Best Dressed metro Detroiters are embracing the “do you” era of fashion. The looks range from headto-toe designer labels to thrifted finds and sleek sports gear, but each is uniquely personal — and places the wearer a cut above the rest.
53 Give
Read up on local volunteer opportunities, community projects, and this year’s National Philanthropy Day awardees in our annual charitable registry.
cheer.
What will you find in Ohio?
Discover all that’s merry and bright in Ohio this season!
The Holiday Lights Trail displays showstoppers throughout the state that will add festive warmth to your family’s winter nights.
Explore the Holiday Lights Trail at Ohio.org
Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Columbus
CONTENTS
Up Front
GIRLS R ULE
On the 50th anniversary of Title IX, a local writer and athlete reflects on the impact of the legislation — in her own life and on generations of women nationwide.
TAKE THE HEAT
A new book chronicles the epic 2021 season of the Michigan Wolverines.
HIS LAST FLYBOY What started as a photo project turned into a lifechanging process of healing, letting go, and finding purpose.
24/Seven
THE SPIRI T OF GIFTING
Our staff shares their favorite local products to give (and to receive as) the host.
ELEGANT ESCAPE
A piece of Detroit’s past lives on at the West Village’s historic Frederick Stearns House.
THE BOMB DOT COM From Givenchy to Prada, bomber jackets left their mark on fall/winter 2022 runways. Add one of our picks to your own wardrobe this season.
Agenda
CULTURE C ALENDAR Hamilton’s return to Detroit, the Berlin Philharmonic’s Ann Arbor debut, and more November events.
WITCHES’ BREW
This ‘crazy teenage lesbian’ murder tale is one its author would have killed to read.
THE COUPLE WHO TRAVEL TOGETHER launch an award-winning business together. This new online travel platform aims to cut vacation planning from 10 hours to 10 minutes.
Food&Drink
HAPPY DRINKSGIVING Celebrate Thanksgiving Eve at these local bars.
JUST LIKE NONNA USED TO MAKE Romantic dining destination
The Cook’s Shop seamlessly marries something old with something new.
WHAT’S COOKING? This month’s metro Detroit dining headlines.
FEAST LOCAL Add zest to your Thanksgiving dinner — and the rest of the holiday weekend — with these tasty local products.
LETTER
Hamtramck, 1957
From Our Readers
EDITOR’S LETTER“In the middle of Fashion Week, Gucci traveled to Detroit for a Gucci Changemakers celebration,”
said the headline on Vogue.com on Sept. 13 in an article detailing the Italian brand’s commitment to the Motor City. That commitment began in 2019 when it identified Detroit as a focus city for Gucci Changemakers North America, a social impact initiative aimed at increasing inclusion and diversity within the fashion industry and across communities and cities.
When I spoke to society columnist and fashion journalist Chuck Bennett at our photo shoot for this year’s Best Dressed list, he was not surprised that Gucci Executive Vice President and Chief Brand and Client Officer Susan Chokachi was at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit instead of at the first full day of New York Fashion Week on Sept. 8. The fact that world-renowned designers and brands “pay a lot of attention to what goes on here,” Chuck says, is nothing new. “In early 1980, the late iconic fashion designer Bill Blass told me how important Detroit is to the fashion industry. Not just because of the large amounts of money that we spend but because of our unique style choices as well. Since then, several other established designers repeated his sentiment.”
I must admit, when I moved back to Detroit after 30 years in New York, I was a little surprised by Detroiters’ obsession with fashion. I learned about it quickly during my first week with Hour Detroit It was the closing week of last November’s Best Dressed issue. As I proofread the pages, I got great insight into the blend of careful thought and creativity that goes into the looks of some of the city’s and region’s most fashionable folks.
Reporting on Detroit’s best dressed is nothing new to Chuck Bennett, who wrote and largely curated this year’s Best Dressed list. He attends at least five events a week, giving him the opportunity to see “all kinds of people on a regular basis dressed in their Sunday best.” The first best dressed list he curated was in the late 1970s. It featured all men and was called “The Dapper Dozen” and was presented in The Detroit News He repeated it annually for about three years and then moved the concept to a couple of other media outlets before finding a home with Hour Detroit in 2008.
This year’s list includes many folks Chuck has observed throughout the year, those Hour Detroit’s staff has seen at events around town, and suggestions from some owners of local shops and boutiques. This is not just a list of deep-pocketed folks who throw their money into their wardrobe. To our choices for Best Dressed, their style is a form of art and a way to express themselves. It can reflect and create confidence and happiness. “It is your calling card to the world,” says one honoree.
In “We Wear the Working Day,” a poem commissioned by Gucci Changemakers, poet jessica Care moore sums up the style of the Detroit community:
We are the runways of possibility
The rule breakers, the swagger creators, the void fillers
Alligator shoes trimmed with poetry
Suede patches on a slightly perched to the side feathered brim.
We dress for the sun and moons reaction irregardless of the destination
I hope you enjoy this issue and find some inspiration within these pages, whether it be from our Best Dressed list or in our annual Give section, where we highlight local philanthropists and nonprofit organizations.
KATE WALSH, EDITOR K WALSH@HOUR-MEDIA.COM“Amazing in everything he does (‘Emmy-Nominated Detroiter Sam Richardson on His Rise to Stardom,’ Septem ber). [The Afterparty] was a great role for him, too.”
—@rbr75, Instagram
“I love Sam [Richardson]. His Veep character is my fave (‘Step Inside Sam Richard son’s Detroit,’ September).”
—Kelly Karsten, Facebook
“Great looks (‘Color Play: Color Blocking, Neon Brights, and More Ways to Wear “Fall Color,”’ September)!”
—@cheesetopleaseboards, Instagram
“Sylvan [Table] is amazing (‘Restaurant Review: Sylvan Table Offers Fresh Farm to Fire to Fork Eats,’ September)! I used to live within walking distance from there and would go often.”
—@sseasword, Instagram
“Unfortunately for me, I’m one of those fans that had to endure those 65 years of futility (‘Essay: In Like a Lion, Out Like a ???,’ September).
I’m really tired of watching the Lions on NFL classics only because they’re the team that always loses! First, win — then I’ll start believing again!”
—@jlew52x, Instagram
Digital Extra
A homemade meal not in the cards this Thanksgiving?
Head to hourdetroit.com for our roundup of local eateries that have you covered with holiday to-go dishes.
Follow us online at hourdetroit.com or on social media: @hourdetroit @hour_detroit @hourdetroitmagazine
Dive into endless activities in the warm Gulf waters of St. Pete/Clearwater. From kayaking to kitesurfing and paddleboarding to snorkeling, the emerald stage is set for unforgettable memories. Let’s shine—start your adventure at VisitStPeteClearwater.com
ESTATE AGENT?
Behind the Scenes
OVERSIZE PAINTINGS AND GRAND ENTRYWAYS framed our Best Dressed honorees as they showcased their style at this year’s venue, The Whitney. “Every little detail was perfect for the shoot,” says junior designer Steven Prokuda. Having a space where every location is picturesque allowed us to move quickly and photograph all of our honorees (that’s 12 total) in one day. That is not an easy feat! (Pictured: Hour Detroit staff, photographer Lians Jadan, and stylists with three of the best-dressed folks in metro Detroit.)
ITEM
JADAN PHOTOGRAPHED
“BEST DRESSED,” PAGE 40 “I love scarves — especially when the weather starts to get cooler. One of my favorites was given to me by my wife, Monica. Knowing I’m a huge fan of Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, she surprised me with an amazing black and gray cashmere scarf that has become my go-to.” Photographer Lians Jadan has experience in a wide range of styles, including fashion, advertising, lifestyle, portraiture, and automotive. His editorial work has appeared in such publications as Vogue Italia Graphis Business Destinations, and Cliché Magazine. Jadan has recently been selected for the American Photography Open and named among Lürzer’s Archive’s 200 Best Ad Photographers.
JESSICA VANASSCHE
STYLED “BEST DRESSED,” PAGE 40
“Every fall, I look forward to wearing my vintage jackets (I shop at Boro in Detroit and Recollection in Los Angeles) but this year specifically my Mauritius Leather moto jacket with stars. I purchased it at Youngbloods in Hazel Park from my friend and the owner, Angie Yaldoo. They sell primarily men’s clothing, but she occasionally has some special pieces for women.”
Jessica VanAssche is a Detroit freelance wardrobe and set stylist who also does production and costume design for television and movies. She is writing and illustrating a children’s book series about rescue animals, inspired by her own rescues. She plays keyboards, writes, and sings in the Detroit-based band The Mythics.
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY WROTE “THE COUPLE WHO TRAVEL TOGETHER ,” PAGE 109
“As simple as it is, my black North Face fleece jacket that I bought three years ago at Nordstrom. Every year, I can’t wait to wear it. Sometimes I even wear it around my house because it’s that comfortable.”
Ashley Zlatopolsky is a Detroitbased writer and editor. Previously, she worked as a branded content strategist at USA Today. Ashley has been covering metro Detroit for more than 10 years and loves everything about fall in Michigan, especially cider mills. Her work can be found in Hour Detroit Self Real Simple Sports Illustrated, and more.
Front
STILL ON A MISSION
IN JUNE 1972, I’d completed my junior year at Pershing High School in Detroit, heading toward senior status. Even though I’d played competitive golf since age 9, an invitation from coach L. Chenevert to join the men’s team for their fall 1972 season was unexpected. In the ’60s and ’70s in Detroit, there were few opportunities for girls’ golf — and certainly no teams.
As a 16-year-old, I was oblivious to current events and totally unaware of the recently passed Title IX, the monumental legislation that stated, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
I was overjoyed at the idea of playing on a team — any team — even the men’s. Growing up with three brothers, I’d always competed against boys anyway, given no quarter because of my gender.
Clueless as to the importance of my new status, I wasn’t on any quest to make history, but I did: I was the first woman in Michigan to play on a men’s team in high school (and later in college) after Title IX was passed. I played, won some, lost some, then graduated from high school in June 1973.
College golf options were extremely limited, but as co-valedictorian at Pershing, I’d earned a four-year full academic Michigan Competitive
Girls Rule
BY JANINA PARROTT JACOBSNo women’s team existed, and it would not until 40 years later.
I was immediately accepted by the guys, even earning a nickname, “The One Woman Golfer” somewhat tame compared with those of my teammates “Titanic” Thompson, “Harry the High Ball,” “The Windmill,” and others. My older brother, Chris Parrott, was also a team member.
Scholarship to attend Wayne State University and, quite frankly, had no money to apply anywhere else. An invitation arrived from coach Joel Mason, a former Green Bay Packer with a tough reputation, to join the WSU men’s team when their season began in March 1974.
As the ramifications of Title IX permeated academia, local media attention soon followed not only me but also WSU diver Dacia Schileru, who became the first woman to compete in an NCAA championship on March 15, 1973. Suddenly, there was much to prove, at least in my mind. I wanted to earn my spot on the men’s team and not simply be “gifted” with it because I was female and the law said so.
Not every athletic director or coach embraced the tenets of Title IX. Some were openly defiant, publicly sabotaging efforts to initiate progress and skirting the law. Such intolerance and malice were factors many female contemporaries and hopefuls learned to navigate, but some simply gave up.
It’s no surprise that studies conducted by the Women’s Sports Foundation reveal that the benefits of girls’ participation in sports are both far-reaching and lifelong, especially in the areas of physical, social, and emotional health; confidence; academic success; and leadership.
Today, I’m a golf, travel, and business writer/ editor/media consultant; motivational speaker; and professional music director, musician, and performer. I own a Detroit restaurant; am a Golf Association of Michigan governor, Michigan Women’s Golf Association adviser, and local Navy League president; sit on several charitable boards; and work with military members and veterans. No grass grows under my feet with the exception of fairways, since I still play golf. None of this would have been possible without the confidence instilled during my youth by my dad, Buck Parrott, (he never said, “Girls don’t do that.”) or my acceptance on
“All the young women of my era were told, ‘Women don’t play sports. Women aren’t interested in sports.’ Well, Title IX showed how interested we are, and it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to women in sports.”
—U-M’s Carol Hutchins (left), winningest NCAA softball coach in history
“I was overjoyed at the idea of playing on a team — any team — even the men’s.”
—JANINA PARROTT J ACOBS
those men’s golf teams so long ago. With belief in oneself, there are no limits.
In 2000, I was inducted into the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame, and I am still amazed to see my portrait staring back when I attend new inductions each year. In 2017, I joined the Michigan Women’s Golf Association Hall of Fame, established earlier that year specifically to celebrate those who have made outstanding contributions to women’s golf in Michigan.
For progress to continue, we “girls” must keep on playing, showing up, and asking for what we want. We must show the world our talents without apology. Sometimes that means winning a collegiate championship — but it doesn’t have to.
In 1999, the late PGA Tour golf great Tom Weiskopf and I met during the pre-party for
the grand opening of his Cedar River course at Shanty Creek Resort in Bellaire.
“You look like a golfer. What’s your handicap?” Weiskopf asked. I told him it was 1, and he replied, “Then I should be playing golf with you! Why don’t you play the exhibition round with me tomorrow morning?”
Flabbergasted, I accepted. Of the hundreds attending, the men were shocked and the women delightfully surprised at Tom’s rare decision to include a woman. But not everyone is like Tom. Despite many gains, attitudes remain within sports and business that result in women being excluded, ignored, or held responsible for something.
We should never forget why Title IX had to happen, why we need to keep pushing forward and keep winning every inch of ground we can.
THE POWER OF PLAY
BY SCOTT ATKINSONMore than 200 girls participated in an Aug. 12 event designed to get them excited about — and in some cases introduce them to — what sports can do for them.
It was organized by a local chapter of Project
Play, an organization dedicated to making sure kids throughout Michigan’s southeast region have access to sports and physical activities. It was formed after a study in the area found that on average, only 13 percent
of youth were spending at least an hour per day being physically active (11 percent for girls).
For the August event, Project Play’s southeast Michigan director, Alana Glass, says they wanted to focus on girls to honor the 50th anniversary of the enactment of Title IX —
legislation meant to prevent discrimination based on gender in schools.
“Title IX wasn’t enacted specifically to address sports, but it has allowed girls to have equal access,” Glass says. “So at Project Play, we wanted to honor and celebrate the history of Title IX and how far we’ve come but also highlight that there are still challenges that exist for girls.”
Working with several partner organizations, Project Play’s event, held at the UWM Sports Complex in Pontiac, brought girls and young women from Livingston, Wayne, Macomb, Washtenaw, and
Oakland counties to participate in eight different sports, including soccer, tennis, basketball, and cheering done on TikTok, “which was really popular,” Glass says, laughing.
Some of the girls were experienced athletes, while others were trying things out for the first time. Glass says she was glad to see that the girls felt welcome to try new things, even in front of their peers.
“It was inspiring. I have to say I was emotional half a dozen times that day just seeing the girls just having fun and being championed for being who they are,” Glass says.
DIGITS 294,000
girls played high school sports in 1972 (compared with 3.7 million boys). 3.4 million
girls were participating in high school sports as of 2019. 30,000
women played college sports in 1972 (compared with more than 170,000 men).
000
women were playing college sports as of 2021.
,000
additional collegiate sport opportunities are available to men as compared to women.
%
of all college athletes are white women.
%
are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color).
%
of women’s NCAA teams had a woman head coach in the 2020-21 academic year.
%
of men’s NCAA teams had a woman head coach in the 2020-21 academic year.
A local event brings metro Detroit girls together to celebrate their abilities on the court and the fieldHundreds of girls spent a summer afternoon playing at the UWM Sports Complex in Pontiac
A Year of Michigan Football
BY JENN MCKEEMY HUSBAND — whom I originally met while playing in the University of Michigan Marching Band’s trombone section — consulted U-M’s football schedule as we planned our wedding. (He believes everyone should, calling it a “common courtesy.”)
So when I received a copy of Slate senior writer Ben Mathis-Lilley’s new book about Michigan’s 2021 season, The Hot Seat: A Year of Outrage, Pride, and Occasional Games of College Football, my other half swiped it, skipped to the Ohio State game chapter, and proceeded to giggle and read passages out loud to me, including this one, in reference to Mathis-Lilley traveling to a fire truck parade with his three kids on the day of Michigan’s game against the University of Wisconsin: “It was a huge error, putting my family ahead of college football.”
It takes one obsessive fan to know one, of course, and this particular mania is something The Hot Seat wryly unpacks, along with the increasingly loud calls for Harbaugh’s termination (hence the book’s title) in advance of the 2021 season.
We asked Mathis-Lilley — who grew up in Midland but opted for Harvard University after high school — about how he came to bleed maize and blue.
Q: You never went to Michigan games as a kid, and neither of your parents were Michigan fans. How did your intense Wolverine fandom take root?
A: [When I was 6 or 7] I remember picking between the Michigan colors and the Michigan State colors, and for whatever reason, I liked the Michigan colors more. Michigan State was actually pretty good — I think they’d won the Rose Bowl. So it wasn’t as if Michigan was totally dominating. I just liked the colors more.
Q: That reminds me of Heisman winner Charles Woodson, who essentially grew up in OSU’s backyard, saying he’d thought Michigan’s winged helmets were cool.
A: It’s funny, because I spend so much of the book talking about how the teams that you root for in college football, … how conscious and important the choice is and how it reflects your values for this or that.
But it’s also certainly true that so much of it is totally random chance, and you could probably argue that some of it works the other way, especially if you’re as young as I was when I picked my team. Maybe that kind of ends up shaping your personality a little bit, too.
Q: So given your longtime fandom, how come you opted to attend college elsewhere?
A: I was everything but packed to go to Michigan. … I had a friend already in the Michigan Marching Band, and I was ready to do that. I played trumpet when I was younger. … So I was all ready to go. I applied to Harvard almost as a kind of joke. [My dad and I] found the brochure in a box we were cleaning out. We thought, “Oh, Harvard. Everyone’s heard of that, right? It’s the most famous one, so we should do this.” … Then I got in there and — I don’t know. I felt almost obligated to go try it out because the name brand pull was so strong. … Now I joke that I went to Harvard and I root for Michigan, so that makes me the most insufferable person in the world.
Q: One of my favorite parts of the book is a three-page list of Michigan fan site comments — all morose and hypercritical — that were written during the televised University of Washington game, which Michigan won handily. Are Michigan fans just never happy?
A: There was something special and compelling about being a Michigan fan last year, because of the whole losing-to-Ohio State streak. … Obviously, I thought [the comments] were funny. That’s why I put them in the book. At the same time, I’ve got to defend those people a little bit because usually,
most seasons, their attitude would have turned out to be the more reasonable one.
Q: As it happens, because Michigan did upset Ohio State at the end of the season, your book will have much greater appeal to Michigan fans. Were you worried about the fortunes of your book being contingent on the team’s success?
A: I spoke to John U. Bacon [author of a few bestselling books on Michigan football], … and one thing he said was, “You’ve got to root for either a really good year or a really bad one. … You don’t want them to go 8-4.” That was definitely on my mind up to the very last minute. … No one wants to read another book about how Michigan had a pretty good year but then they lost to OSU again.
Q: Michigan’s postseason — its highlight (Big Ten championship) and its lowlight (Orange Bowl playoff appearance) — gets the driveby treatment in the epilogue. Tell me about that choice.
A: I think my deadline for the book in my contract was something like the middle of January, so I had to … research the whole thing and then write as much of it as I could before the end of the season.
…
And then simultaneously, the actual way that it went was that the Georgia game is one that Michigan fans would rather forget. … Emotionally, narratively, I knew even as the Ohio State game was ending, this is the end of the book. This is the end of the journey.
A new book chronicles the epic 2021 season of the Wolverines
“There was something special and compelling about being a Michigan fan last year, because of the whole losing-toOhio State streak.”
—BEN MATHIS-LILLEY
The Seen
A monthly feature highlighting events, promotions, and opportunities of interest to Hour Detroit readers. 2022 Gold Ribbon Classic presented by Northwestern Mutual Photographs by Christine M.J. Hathaway The White Party at The Statler French-American Bistro Photographs by Christine M.J. Hathaway Friends and Family Menu Debut at Tigerlily Photographs by Lindsay Schweikert Dave Wojcik, Paul Costanid, and Chris Wundrach Mike Cunningham and Jeff Guy Chris Olinicenco, Richard Haines, and Erika Sanderson Bryce Davenport, Brian Kramer, and Kevin Downey Sue Dudgeon, Kim Dunn, Michael Gerardi, Kathy Wojcik, and Karen Scheipner Addie Mirabella, Alexandra Mills, and Molly Reeser Cynthia Owens, Danny and Vanessa Warren Gary James, Florena Sadik, and Tina Bellomo Kathy Wojcik and Ruth Heidebreicht Annette Testa-Young, Christine Sieracki, Mark Smith, and Sierrah Maskill Kelly Summerfield and Doug Hintzman Jennifer and Nick Weise Chloe Winchester, Sue Dudgeon, and Madison Janabet Dominic Mirabella and Mark Smith Mitchell and Ellie Barnett Joe Harris and Andrea Isom Samaritan House Charity Golf Outing presented by Performance Remodeling Photographs by Samaritan HouseHIS LAST FLYBOY
What started as a photo project turned into a life-changing process of healing, letting go, and finding purpose
TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRAD ZIEGLERIN 1999, my grandfather was dying of cancer. I was with him almost until the end, a time during which he told my dad to “get my book” — his ship book from the USS Tuscaloosa during World War II. We spent hours going through the pages. I had rarely seen him so engaged and determined. What stuck with me most from those final special days with him was why and when he’d joined the Navy: After Pearl Harbor was attacked, he wanted to do something and he wanted to contribute. He lived life with a mission.
Two years later, on Sept. 11, 2001, I was supposed to be taking photographs on the top of the World Trade Center in the afternoon. That was my Pearl Harbor. I never completely understood my grandfather until that day, but suddenly things became clearer. Unlike my grandfather, though, I had no clear mission. I had attended military college, but I never served. It was a very odd feeling, something I couldn’t shake after all my classmates were called up to serve and I didn’t go. There was something I needed, and I wasn’t sure what — until I met the Flyboys, a local World War II veterans’ group.
My wife at the time heard Bill Rosnyai speaking on the radio and called me to tell me, “This is the
guy to talk to.” I’d been wanting to photograph World War II vets since watching Band of Brothers, and I learned that Bill and a group of other vets had formed a lunch group. They let me come to lunch, and I sort of never left.
In 2006, we went out to the Yankee Air Museum for a surreal experience. I photographed the Flyboys for Hour Detroit, and, incredibly, the museum let them fly in — and “take the stick” of the exact bomber they’d once flown in the war.
They all said that day was better than the day they came home from the war. We continued to go to lunches and even share a Guinness after from time to time. I knew I was getting myself involved in something that would eventually cause great pain: I would eventually be attending many funerals for incredible friends. And I knew that one day, there would only be one Flyboy left.
Bill Rosnyai is possibly the sweetest man I have ever met. He was a navigator on a B-17 during World War II. After meeting him for lunch for years and learning of his story, I felt it necessary to share. I think Bill has cracked the secret of how to age gracefully.
The World War II vets I knew were active right up to the end. Burt, whose last mission was lead plane on June 6, 1944 (D-Day), had me get in a Pontiac G6. He looked over at me and said, “I’m fast but I’m safe.” He was in his 80s. I about died laughing. Bob Stachel, a pilot, would have us over to his house for a Heineken, and we talked Cole Porter and the passionate music of the ’40s.
Murray Cotter, a bombardier, was hysterical. “Here’s looking up your address,” he would say over a Guinness. “My wife hated that toast,” he’d say every time with a huge smile. Fred Reichel had been a pilot and had been shot down and pursued
Bill Rosnyai was a navigator on a World War II bomber. Decades later, he became a “surrogate grandfather” to photographer Brad Ziegler. Rosnyai lingers outside his home shortly after returning from the war. Photgrapher Brad Ziegler (front right) and friend Nate Strong (front left) kneel with the Flyboys lunch group in 2009.through the mountains by civilians before being incarcerated in Germany. He served his time in Stalag Luft III, where The Great Escape took place. Fred Nunnold was a tail gunner who had been shot down in Germany and also held as a prisoner of war.
Other than his walker, Bill is the same man he was when I first photographed him in 2006. He’s a bit slower but still sharp as a tack. He loves to see my daughters growing up. He does pushups against the wall and has fought to maintain his independence. He’s 97 and still lives at home. Last year, he tragically lost his wife of over 50 years. Vivienne was a sweetheart, and he was dedicated to her until the end — just as any soldier would be. Bill never gave up on her. I think he has unlocked something so important, and that is “the mission.” Just like in 1944, he was given a mission to succeed. Now he has a new mission, and it’s to keep being engaged in life, to keep being relevant.
I believe these are the things that keep us going longer and with greater success. If we have a mission, a goal, or a purpose, then we have a reason to keep going. I want other young and middle-aged men to know how important it is to find a mission and to keep going. Bill is the model young men need to look up to. His stories are the playbook on how to live a long and healthy life.
That lesson, whether he realizes it or not, was the gift he and the other flyboys gave me.
I never realized my work with World War II vets was helping me through my 9/11 experience, but it was by going back week after week to speak to these men that I slowly worked through my trauma. It was through knowing them that my guilt for not serving slowly diminished. It was from getting to know them in their final years that I learned how to move forward, how to create purpose, how to have a mission, and ultimately, how to live.
Flyboys Rosnyai (right) and Bob Stouffer (below) visit the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.GIFTS
In the Spirit of Gifting
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COMPILED BY HOUR DETROIT STAFF STYLING AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY REBECCA SIMONOV“When
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Elegant Escape
It’s also a fitting introduction and an appropriate sentiment for the historic bed-and-breakfast especially in the autumn, when the trees and gardens surrounding the Tudor-style structure on East Jefferson Avenue turn gold and a crisp feeling fills the air.
Undeniably large at some 16,000 square feet, the stucco and timber mansion was built in 1902 for Frederick K. Stearns, a pharmaceutical magnate and a key player in the city’s turn-of-the-century cultural scene. Active with the Detroit Orchestral Association (later renamed the Detroit Symphony Orchestra) and the Detroit Museum of Art (now the Detroit Institute of Arts), Stearns also donated more than 900 vintage musical instruments from around the world to the University of Michigan, thus providing the foundation for the institution’s respected Stearns Collection.
Architect William Stratton, husband to Pewabic Pottery founder Mary Chase Perry Stratton, designed the mansion in a medieval-arts and crafts style, filling it with leaded glass windows (including one in the dining room that dates back to 1580), paneled walls, and a glowing blue Moravian tile fireplace that lights up the spacious dining room.
The mansion recieved a spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 and was serving as office space for local law and real estate firms when Rachel and her husband, Eric, purchased it for $1.2 million in 2018. Rumors abound about other functions the property may have served through the years, including one claiming it was was once a bowling school for children. “I was told all kinds of things,” Mitchell says. “It’s hard to imagine a place like this being used for that, but who knows? We were just fortunate it was still here for us to discover.”
So are their guests. Fans of both history and architecture, the couple recognized a rare chance to bring a landmark back to life. It took four years to restore the mansion; the Mitchells did the majority of the work themselves.
“It was totally different when we started,” says Mitchell, a mom of five who has a background in both interior and garden design and real estate and now runs the inn. Original woodwork had been painted and stained, covering up intricate carvings. All the walls were damaged. And the floors — especially those in the paneled library facing Jefferson Avenue — had to be refinished and restained. “The floors were a strange orange color from so many layers of varnish,” she explains.
When selecting furnishings for the inn, the Mitchells aimed to preserve architect William Stratton’s medievalarts and crafts styling.
The inn’s ballroom — originally the Stearns family’s music room and now available for private ballroom dance lessons — once featured a balcony overlooking the space, but it was gutted in the ‘80s by a fire that destroyed a significant portion of the paneled room. “We did our best to make everything look original,” Mitchell says of the couple’s restoration philosophy.
The home’s details are distinctive, but Mitchell says one of the best qualities is the layout, which was ahead of its time. Building on that, the couple removed the offices and returned the house to its residential status. They reorganized spaces where needed, adding bathrooms as well as new heating, cooling, and electrical. They worked with the Detroit Historic District Commission on the exterior of the home to ensure things were period appropriate.
salmon or prosciutto eggs Benedict with Champagne hollandaise, and seasoned redskinned potatoes. All are prepared to order by Shannon Tabron, the inn’s private chef. Guests can choose to enjoy their morning feast (included with the accommodations) in the dining room, the nearby breakfast room, or the sun-filled enclosed porch — where I chose to dine — which overlooks the historic homes of the West Village.
The inn’s 10 guest rooms are named after flowers. It’s a choice that reflects Mitchell’s love of gardening, also seen in the extensive landscaping around the building. Perched on the third floor overlooking Jefferson Avenue, the Zinnia room, a spacious, soft green room where I lodged, has a white brick fireplace, an elegant marble-lined bathroom, and a serene sitting area. Loofahs and hand cream in a basket atop the vanity are another thoughtful touch. The occasional sound of passing traffic was the only reminder of how close I was to downtown.
Mitchell decorated the home with the same guidelines in mind, furnishing it with art, antiques, and other pieces discovered at estate sales or on Facebook Marketplace. “Treasure hunting was part of the fun,” she says.
The Mitchells’ experiences staying at other bedand-breakfasts are evident in their attention to detail, from the silky bamboo sheets on the beds to the breakfast menu, with its signature dishes such as lemon crisp French toast (my decadent choice), blackened shrimp and grits with Cajun oil, smoked
Another standout is the Rose room (aka the presidential suite) on the second floor, which boasts a salvaged fireplace and an elegant bathroom larger than my entire New York City apartment. The Lily room, decorated with Asian antiques, is a nod to Mitchell’s Chinese heritage. After all, it was that heritage’s influence that enabled her to recognize and appreciate the diamond in the rough. “In China, we have a great respect for history and tradition,” she says.
The Stearns House is available for special occasions, including bridal showers and small weddings. There’s a new membership program that includes dinner in the lower-level pub, jazz nights, and other events. “Word is starting to get out,” Mitchell says of the inn’s growing popularity. The majority of guests so far have been Michiganders, but the inn has also hosted travelers from Atlanta and even as far away as France.
On the night I that stayed, in mid-September, Brenda and Mike Zemmin of Bloomfield Hills were celebrating their 54th anniversary with a stay in the Rose room. Mike, who had grown up on the city’s east side, recalled driving down Jefferson Avenue through the years and was thrilled to stay at the inn after witnessing its transformation. “You have to take your hat off to the attention to detail,” he said, marveling at the elegant interiors. Brenda said the inn was the perfect spot to celebrate. “We loved the size of our room, the comfortable bed, and the relaxing sitting area. We will absolutely come back and are trying to get some friends to come next time too.”
Restoring the home has always been a labor of love, despite challenges along the way. “The house has wonderful feng shui,” Mitchell says. “It gives you a good feeling and a sense of peace. The original owner left such a legacy. We wanted to bring it back to life and continue that legacy.”
Rates start at $300. The Frederick Stearns House Historic Inn, 8109 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit; 313-9525679; frederickstearnshouse.com
“It gives you a good feeling and a sense of peace. The original owner left such a legacy.”
—RACHEL MITCHELL
THE BOMB DOT COM
BY RACHAEL THOMASSay It with Silver
BY PATTY LANOUE STEARNSIn the five years since Detroit-born silversmith Michael Opipari began experimenting with jewelry design, his products have become sought after around the world. Opipari has made pieces for celebrities like Canadian dance/electronic artist Grimes — he designed a jade bracelet, emerald arm cuff, and tiara with pearls and Payson diamonds for her — and 2022 Grammy nominee Michelle Zauner of the pop band Japanese Breakfast, who sported his pearl- and citrine-studded rings at this year’s awards. Since then, he’s heard from stylists from Vogue and Netflix and from others in places as far as France, Taiwan, and China, all requesting his one-of-a-kind adornments.
This is Opipari’s third career. He spent 25 years as an editorial photographer, then several more years designing retail and auto show spaces. But in 2017, he fell in love with a silversmithing technique called water casting.
Opipari started experimenting with the process, which involves heating sterling silver to its molten stage at 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit with a torch and small ceramic crucible, then plunging it into a stainless-steel bowl filled with cold water. He fit these early creations with Petoskey and Leland Blue stones he’d gathered from the Great Lakes. “I learned from trial and error to get what I want,” the Madison Heightsbased artist recalls, adding that “everything is random.”
Opipari uses a micro welder with a microscope to put finishing touches on his necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and other designs. His favorite accents include citrines and pearls, as well as blue stones like tourmaline, tanzanite, kyanite, and Larimar from the Dominican Republic.
“I also like using domestic and ethically sourced opals from Oregon and Montana sapphires, which are a paler blue,” Opipari says.
The artist says his intention is to create jewelry as fine wearable art. To that end, he is working with several local galleries to organize a show exhibiting his works and those of other makers in the near future.
Find Opipari’s designs on Instagram @michaelopipari or his website at opiparisilversmith.com.
This local designer’s jewelry is so hot, it’s molten
THE WILD, WEIRD POLITICAL MISADVENTURES OF
JAMES CRAIG
By STEVE FRIESS Phot ography b y NICK HAGENOn a damp Wednesday in mid-August, former Detroit Police Chief James Craig waits for me alone at a large window table in the back of the vast dining room of Sindbad’s, a seafood place at a Detroit River marina known as his haunt. He’s quietly scrolling through his phone, sipping a coffee served in a glass, relaxed in a dark gray Under Armour polo, black slacks, and sneakers — and once I sit down, he wastes no time describing how pissed off he is.
This is not how Craig had expected to be spending the weeks after the Michigan Republican Party’s gubernatorial primary. A mere eight months ago, in the same space, he was the toast of the Wayne County Republican Committee at a party in his honor, where he continued to sharpen his attacks on the woman he hoped to depose, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Back then, according to the polls, he was the front-runner for the nomination in a crowded field of otherwise unknown hopefuls and a serious threat to Whitmer’s reelection bid.
He’d been seemingly anointed by the GOP establishment, most notably in the form of receiving maximum campaign donations from the last two Republican governors, John Engler and Rick Snyder. Craig had even been escorted in the summer of 2021 by soon-to-be Michigan GOP co-Chair Meshawn Maddock on the requisite pilgrimage to Mar-a-Lago to meet with former President Donald Trump in pursuit of that allimportant (and ultimately elusive) Make America Great Again endorsement.
“Candidly, if I had stayed in it, I would have been nominated,” says Craig, 66. “I was the most likely candidate to take on Whitmer. But I’m also smart enough to know that Whitmer is a formidable candidate. She has significant amounts of money. But things would have been different if I were the nominee, because I would have been able to tap into national fundraising.”
Of course, he didn’t stay in. His campaign, which had already begun showing signs of significant dysfunction by spring 2022, hit a brick wall in late May when thousands of the signatures he had submitted to qualify for the primary ballot were found to have been forged or fraudulent. The disqualifications left him and four
of the other nine declared candidates without the required number of signatures to appear on the ballot, and no amount of legal appeals or machinations by any of them would reverse it. Craig called on his supporters to write his name in, a tactic that worked for his ex-boss Mayor Mike Duggan after Duggan was disqualified from his first mayoral ballot in 2013.
Craig, it turned out, is no Duggan — and a statewide write-in campaign is a much, much bigger and more expensive endeavor than a citywide one. He admits now he knew it wouldn’t work but says he owed it to his supporters. “Me not giving up was more important,” he says. “It was an uphill challenge. I just felt strongly I needed to do it.”
On Aug. 2, 23,521 Michigan voters wrote the ex-chief’s name onto their GOP primary ballots. That was good for about 2.14 percent — and a far cry from the 436,350 votes garnered by the nominee, Muskegon activist Tudor Dixon. That outcome especially rankles Craig because he believes Dixon’s supporters were somehow involved in egging on the Democratic secretary of state, Jocelyn Benson, to dig into his signatures and find the problems.
“This was a well-orchestrated effort on the part of both Republicans and Democrats to get me off the ballot, so go ahead and call it what it is,” he says. “And it’s offensive.”
And so, instead of spending this Wednesday traipsing across Michigan stumping for votes or holding high-level meetings with advisers about who he might select as his running mate, Craig is sitting with me, and the waiter is asking if we’re hungry. I am, but I take my cue from Craig, who asks about the soup of the day. “Beef vegetable with carrots, celery, spinach, and corn,” the server says. Craig orders a cup and tells me, “Maybe I’ll get something later to take home,” which suggests to me we aren’t actually here for lunch after all, and I better move this interview along, lest he become impatient.
I should have ordered. We sat there for another two hours, excavating the highs and lows of one of the weirdest, briefest adventures in Michigan politics. He had a few axes to grind — and not just with Dixon, whom he had told me he wouldn’t support in a remark that would go viral in short order. There were also the campaign operatives who he felt had led him astray, refused to consider his perspective, and placed him in
physical danger — and who eventually defected to other, more conventional candidates.
“I didn’t know anything about being a candidate,” he says ruefully. “I didn’t know anything about leading a campaign. And the only thing I was hopeful for was that the people who were guiding me, ultimately, would guide me in the right way. But they didn’t. And here we are.”
/OUR NON-MEAL TOGETHER in August was much friendlier and less confrontational than the last time I sat down with Craig — on a Friday night in late April, on the sidelines of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce Awards Dinner at the Shenandoah Country Club in West Bloomfield Township. At the time, Hour Detroit planned to put Craig on its July cover in advance of the August primary, an indication of the media’s overall expectation that he would be a major factor, if not the likely victor. A week later, the signature-fraud scandal began burbling up, and with so much uncertainty, we scrapped that story.
Before that, however, I decided it was time to test Craig’s mettle as a candidate. He’d spent plenty of time yapping away on Fox News and on friendly podcasts, but he hadn’t given many serious journalists a crack at interrogating what he claimed to stand for.
The fact that Craig is both a Black man and a Republican was, of course, interesting, because there is no group in America more loyally Democratic than Black voters. But when I interviewed him in December 2021, he left me with the distinct impression he had arrived at his conservatism through his 44-year career as a police officer in Los Angeles; Cincinnati; Portland, Maine; and Detroit — and that his most important principle was the GOP support for law enforcement. He described to me his political awakening in 1991 when, as president of the LA Police Department’s Black officers’ group, he was dressed down by California Rep. Maxine Waters, a vocal Black liberal, following the Rodney King police beating. “How could you as a Black man work for this systematically racist police department?” he recalls her asking him. Her intimation that he was a race traitor for doing his job, he says, startled him. “That she’s representing me and she’s a Democrat — I didn’t feel right about that.”
Later, as chief of police in Portland, he reevaluated his position on gun control and concluded that he supported allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons, after years of believing that fewer guns in the public domain was better. That, too, put him at odds with Democratic political orthodoxy. As the years passed, he also came to agree with the GOP view that
government aid was counterproductive to helping poor people, especially Black people, emerge from poverty and become self-reliant.
Still, as a police officer — and especially as the chief of police in Detroit — he kept his party affiliation to himself. He was hired in 2013, at the onset of the Duggan era, and would later in the decade serve as the Democrat’s deputy mayor, in addition to being top cop. Some indications of his political leanings emerged when he appeared on Fox News to talk about his support for expansive Second Amendment rights and his condemnation of violent Black Lives Matter protests.
So to people paying attention, it wasn’t that big a surprise when he announced his retirement from his Detroit post in May 2021, declared himself a Republican, and launched a campaign to unseat Whitmer. The big question was, though, Just how conservative is he? This is, after all, a man who, as police chief, appeared at a 2018 Black LGBTQ event in Palmer Park to say, “I love each and every one of you. We’re here for you.” And a year earlier, he had shrugged off calls from the Trump White House for local law enforcement to help identify undocumented immigrants by telling the Detroit City Council, “We don’t do the immigration police work — we’re not going to. When we do traffic stops, we’re not interested in immigration status.”
Yet, in late 2021, as Craig delved deeper into the morass of a campaign to win the Republican nomination in a fully Trumpified version of the Michigan GOP, he leaned with gusto into some of the harder-core social issues of the day. He was making big hay out of his opposition to “critical race theory,” or CRT, a concept emanating out of law schools that looks at the ongoing legacy of slavery and the Jim Crow era in today’s society. After Republican Glenn Youngkin won the Virginia governorship in part on a campaign that claimed that CRT was being taught in K-12 schools in an effort to make white children ashamed of American history and give Black kids an excuse to underachieve, Craig went to conservative Hillsdale College to declare CRT “racist indoctrination” and blamed it for poor student achievement.
Craig also began offering a mealymouthed answer to another key litmus test for GOP primary voters: Did he believe there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election, especially in Michigan? Even though such claims had been debunked and tossed out of court several times, Craig tried to walk a tightrope of indecision, saying there were certainly a lot of people questioning it and that laws needed to be passed to improve “election integrity.”
In the days before Craig and I were to meet up in April, he took perhaps his biggest swerve right. At the time, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was in the news for punishing The Walt Disney Co.
for its opposition to a new law dubbed “Don’t Say Gay,” which prohibits any classroom discussion of sexuality or gender identity from kindergarten to third grade. Craig said the measure didn’t go far enough and that he would support banning such discussion through the sixth grade.
So when we sat down together, I had some questions. I asked directly who won the 2020 election, and he replied: “There is no evidence that the election was stolen. … However, are there concerns? Absolutely. We owe it to the American people to do an audit.” Then he took issue with people who oppose the requirement to show photo ID at the polls, insisting that it is “absolutely not voter suppression.” That was a topic that had arisen in some other states and was a big bugaboo on Fox News of late.
“OK, so we have that in this state, so how is this an issue in this campaign?” I asked him.
“Well, I’m not sure how widespread it is,” he responded.
“It’s the law everywhere in Michigan.”
“So I’m not going to sit here and tell you I know election law,” he answered.
We moved on to CRT. He repeated his contention that it was “racist indoctrination” and bristled at the idea that Black kids should be taught they’re victims. “I’ve never been anybody’s victim ever in my life. If I was indoctrinated to believe that I was a victim, I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you about becoming the next governor of the state of Michigan.” When he claimed that Black kids in kindergarten were being taught that they were victims and I questioned whether there were examples of that actually happening, he got testy: “You have your opinion. You asked for mine.”
All that, though, was a warm-up for our collision on LGBTQ matters. I’d made a decision before the interview that I would ask in this very particular way because I wanted to make the issue real to him.
“I am the gay father of two children who will go to school, where there will be family-tree exercises,” I said, “and I’m not sure if the teacher, under the Florida law that bars discussion of sexual orientation or the more expansive version that you support, would be able to acknowledge for the class that some kids have two daddies or two mommies.”
Instead of answering the question, Craig rattled off his pro-LGBTQ bona fides, telling stories of how he’d worked to build good ties between the queer community and the various police departments he’d run.
“OK,” I replied, “so under Gov. Craig, a kindergarten kid says, ‘I have two daddies,’ and the teacher says, ‘Oh, that’s lovely,’ and the next day gets in trouble because there’s another kid whose parents find that to be objectionable. What happens then?”
Craig’s answer: “I don’t know if that in and of itself is objectionable, but when you start getting into sexual orientation, sexual identification, I believe the parent should teach that to their children.” He took a beat, sat straight up, and looked at me with ire and used a firmer voice than at any other point. “I’m not anti-gay — and if you want to suggest that I am, I’m going to reject that.”
And that, essentially, was that. An aide told me my time was up, and I was ushered away as he was swallowed up in a crowd of well-wishers eager to chat up the man who, unbeknownst to anyone, would only be a viable candidate for the GOP nomination for another four weeks.
about? I’ve set a goal to one day become a chief of police.’ I had interpreted him calling me Governor as a sign that I’d become the chief of police. He said, ‘No — governor.’ The last things on my mind were one, becoming a politician, or two, being a governor. And then I get this call.”
Craig took it as a sign. He told Goodman about his late friend’s prophesy and acknowledged some tentative interest but insists he “didn’t really think that much about it” after the call.
The Michigan GOP brass, however, did. To them, at least on paper, Craig was a compelling candidate to put up against Whitmer in a state that has given every governor a second term since the early 1960s. Having just emerged from the summer of 2020, with its calls to defund the police following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of cops in Minneapolis and Louisville, Kentucky, respectively, folks like Goodman thought putting a conservative cop up against Whitmer held potential appeal for crime-fearing suburbanites. Craig’s deep, genuine ties to Detroit, where he was born and raised, might even give a Republican nominee a chance to make inroads into the state’s Black vote, too.
Craig thought he was dipping his toe in the water, but shortly after, he received calls from local journalists asking him about a rumor they were hearing. “And so momentum starts ramping up, and I’m thinking, ‘Do I just wait and see what happens?’ … I was kind of evasive about it, but I was really hooked in. The way my mind was working, I’m locked in because it was hitting the media.”
/
FOR WHATEVER REASON, months later, Craig decides to tell me the inside story of his messy campaign and its bizarre ending anyway. It starts with a call in early 2021 from Ted Goodman, the newly hired communications director for the Michigan GOP. Goodman asked Craig the right question: “Have you ever thought about running for governor?” While he wasn’t actively considering doing such a thing that year, the idea itself had resonance.
For much of Craig’s police career, his closest friend was an LAPD cop named Randal Simmons, who was shot to death on the job in 2008 during an armed standoff. Simmons and Craig had graduated from the academy together, and as Craig sought advancement in the administrative ranks, Simmons began giving him a nickname, “Governor.” “He would just keep saying ‘Governor,’ and I’d say, ‘What are you talking
He went to see Duggan to admit that the rumors were true. The mayor warned him that defeating Whitmer would be difficult, but that was the extent of his political advice. By the end of the conversation, they agreed Craig had to resign his city positions, which he did on June 1, 2021. At the press conference, he stopped short of discussing his political future — but everyone knew. Duggan thanked him for his service and told reporters he had “tried to convince him to change his mind.”
The charmed nascent period of Craig’s first dabble with politics may have deluded him into thinking the rest of the ride would be as seamless. Goodman connected Craig with the veteran Michigan Republican consultant John Yob, who fed Craig a steady stream of polling that showed the nomination as a virtual lock and Craig within striking distance of unseating Whitmer.
Things went south pretty quickly after that, though. On Sept. 14, 2021, the ex-chief headed to Belle Isle to announce his candidacy. As he approached his podium, he was swarmed by protesters from Detroit Will Breathe, an activist group that had spent the past year protesting police misconduct as part of the BLM
“CANDIDLY, IF I HAD STAYED IN IT, I WOULD HAVE BEEN NOMINATED. I WAS THE MOST LIKELY CANDIDATE TO TAKE ON WHITMER.” Months after being denied a spot on the primary ballot, Craig is confident he would have been the GOP candidate for governor.
movement. Craig got to his mic, but his voice was drowned out by increasingly rowdy and noisy demonstrators, so he decided to return to his car for his safety.
Once he was in the car, though, a campaign aide told him a furious Yob was on the phone “basically telling them to get me back there, despite the very obvious threat. I said, ‘Well, you tell him that I’m not going back. It’s against my better judgment. I got family here.’ This was not like a group of individuals who were protesting peacefully. That I could have dealt with. It was beginning to get violent. Thank God it didn’t because I left at the appropriate time.”
The campaign was caught flat-footed, relocating his announcement to another, private location in Detroit. But whereas Craig was steamed about the poor planning and would appear on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show that night to blame Whitmer for the security lapse, internally the moment showed Craig how politicos think. “Later, when we debriefed it, Yob was telling me, ‘This is good politics. This happening to you is good,’” Craig tells me. “I said, ‘So it would have been even better if the guy had made contact and punched me and I was assaulted? Would that have been?’ So it was that kind of dynamic.”
Indeed, the dynamic between Craig and his campaign handlers only got worse. Part of it was a fundamental difference in approach; the campaign wanted the former chief heading all over the state talking to GOP primary voters, but Craig was resistant to the constant travel. He also wanted to do events in places like Flint and Detroit to highlight his outreach to minority voters. Yob and other handlers wanted him in GOP strongholds where he could hustle for votes and raise money.
“I understood what they were saying, but from a place of principle, there’s no way I’m going to disappear for years, not have any interactions with some of these urban areas,” he says. “Then, once I got through the primaries, very quickly I’d be competing with Whitmer in those same areas. Detroit would have thought, ‘Wait a minute, where were you for the last year?’ And so I felt very strongly that I needed to spread the wealth evenly.”
He also learned what it meant to be a Black man running statewide without much assistance from other people of color. An early stump speech written for him had him calling Whitmer a “queen” for her many COVID-era fiats that closed the state and forced residents to lock down. Later, a female friend reached out to remind him that that particular term had loaded negative resonance for Black women coming in a pejorative way from a Black man. He told his campaign he wouldn’t use that word anymore. His handler, he says, “went on to explain why it
was important to say it. I said, ‘Well, it might be important to you, but it’s more important to me. I’m not saying it.’”
In late November, Yob quit the Craig campaign. In his resignation letter, which Yob shared with Hour Detroit, he wrote: “It is my hope that this will serve as a wake-up call and ultimately makes you a better candidate, albeit with new advisors. Hopefully you use this moment as an opportunity to refocus your time and energy on the hard work that you have ahead. Being a leading candidate
for governor is more than a full-time job; it is one of the most difficult endeavors in American life. It requires laser-like focus and around the clock, 12+ hours per day, 6 days per week workload. It also requires constant communication with your key supporters; to keep them inspired, engaged, and willing to allocate their capital — time, financial, and political — to you. I wish you the best and hope you find people who are able to assist you in running the campaign in a manner consistent with your preferences.”
Craig would go on to cycle through several other campaign managers as election year dawned. His reputation as a difficult candidate to manage became an impediment to retaining topshelf talent, says GOP strategist Jason Cabel Roe, who was involved in recruiting Craig to run while serving as state party executive director in 2021. That, he says now, was a mistake.
“He was too naive about how the system works, how to play the game,” Roe says. “One thing that I heard anecdotally was he’d been given talking points and written speeches and things like that and he felt like he was being programmed by somebody else, that it wasn’t a reflection of who he was. That’s certainly understandable, especially if you’ve been able to speak for yourself.”
That, of course, wasn’t what short-circuited the campaign. Craig says he repeatedly asked his staff whether they were on target to collect the required number of signatures to make the ballot and he was repeatedly reassured. Eventually, the campaign hired Vanguard Field Strategies, an arm of the campaign management firm Axiom Strategies, not realizing that Vanguard was subcontracting the work to yet another firm called In Field Strategies.
“I didn’t understand what that meant, that we’re going to subcontract some of the work on this, bring some other folks in,” Craig says. “It was also unbeknownst to me that these same circulators were working on other campaigns, too. The mistake I made is, I should have seen it.”
In early May, the race was radically upended when five of the 10 candidates — including Craig and businessman Perry Johnson, whose campaign Yob had bounced over to — were rejected for ballot access because thousands of signatures on their nominating petitions were fraudulent. Craig and Johnson were the poll leaders at that point; eventual nominee Dixon was polling in single digits. Both Craig and Johnson pursued various legal remedies and lawsuits, but it didn’t change the reality. Their campaigns were over.
Months later, Craig is still angry with Dixon because a political action committee supporting her filed one of the challenges to Craig’s signatures. It happened so soon after his campaign submitted his signatures, he says, that he wonders how Dixon’s folks could have known to do so. Also of note: It was around the same time that Dixon would receive the coveted endorsement of the powerful DeVos family.
“Now I’m thinking like a cop,” he says. “Who paid these dirty canvassers to forge all these signatures? Because how would a campaign know within a relatively short amount of time that there was evidence of forged signatures, all right? So I say, that doesn’t make sense to me.”
The Dixon campaign did not respond to requests for comment. In August, when Hour
Detroit broke news that Craig would not endorse his fellow Republican, in part because of these allegations, her spokeswoman replied via email with this response from the candidate: “My door will always be open for Chief Craig. I would welcome his input on Detroit, policing, and many other subjects. And, I would be glad to have his support if he changes his mind.”
/ WOULD CRAIG HAVE ACTUALLY won the nomination — and been competitive with Whitmer? He says yes. But he admits the party insiders who had urged him to run had moved on to the campaign of Perry Johnson, whose independent wealth made fundraising less important and buying up tons of TV time feasible.
Craig, of course, disagrees. And as he watches Dixon’s campaign get swallowed whole by her “no excuses” stance on abortion, he feels confident he could have done better against Whitmer. His criticism, however, may not be fair, because he was already out of the race by the time the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in late June and effectively turned the issue into a top campaign concern. He would likely have found himself stuck in a similar position, given that earlier in the year, he pledged to supporters in Marquette that he would do “whatever I can” to enforce the dormant 1931 law still on the books in Michigan that criminalizes abortion as manslaughter. (Months later, following the Supreme Court decision that struck down Roe, the Michigan Court of Claims iced the 1931 statute as unconstitutional.)
“Realistically, I had gone from 0 to — I guess the day they knocked me off, I was at 19 percent, whereas he’d gone from 43 down to 21 by that point,” Johnson tells me. “I did believe I was going to win the nomination.”
Others had their doubts, too. Mildred Gaddis, a longtime prominent Black radio voice in Detroit, told Hour last December she doubted the state GOP would nominate a Black man. She didn’t see him convincing white rural primary voters for whom city crime — the main issue Craig could speak on with authority — wasn’t as important as social issues and full-throated fealty to Trump’s lies about the 2020 election. His signature-fraud downfall, she tells me in September, probably saved him an embarrassment on Election Day.
“In this state, race matters,” she says. “There are some great pretenders who would have people think it doesn’t. But it does.”
On this August afternoon, though, the alternative history of the 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary is of little relevance. Craig, who lives alone because he’s estranged from his wife and his two children are adults, seems downbeat and a little aimless. He doesn’t foreclose another run for public office but can’t say what he might pursue. He says he has a few “irons in the fire” but nothing concrete to reveal. When a group of well-wishers stops by our table to chat him up about a security business they’re involved with, his mood improves and he hands out his cell number.
“We were with you,” one of the men says. “We really wanted to vote for you.”
Craig smiles wanly and stretches out his arm to shake hands.
“That would’ve been great,” he says. “Would’ve been great.”
“THIS WAS A WELLORCHESTRATED EFFORT ON THE PART OF BOTH REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS TO GET ME OFF THE BALLOT, SO GO AHEAD AND CALL IT WHAT IT IS.”by Chuck Bennett photography by Lians Jadan the BEST DRESSED 2022
WHETHER IT BE HEAD-TO-TOE DESIGNER WEAR, THRIFTED FINDS, OR SMOOTH BUT FUNCTIONAL SPORTS GEAR, WHEN IT’S ALL SAID AND DONE, YOUR LOOK SHOULD GENTLY — BUT MASTERFULLY — WHISPER YOUR NAME, LETTING ONLOOKERS KNOW IT IS SIMPLY, PERFECTLY YOU DOING YOU. AT HOUR DETROIT , OUR TEAM OF SKILLED FASHIONISTAS ANNUALLY POOLS OUR RESOURCES TO IDENTIFY AN ELITE GROUP OF METRO DETROITERS WHO CONSISTENTLY PRESENT THEMSELVES A CUT ABOVE THE NORM — TO THE POINT OF EARNING THE TITLE “BEST.”
shot on location at The Whitney hair/makeup Monica Jadan wardrobe director Jessica VanAssche digital tech/photo assistant Karl Moses second photo assistant Hailey Kasper talent coordinator Mary Ann ManganoJason P. DRUMHELLER
FASHION STYLE: Modern classic with a sporty edge. During a normal week, you’ll find me in a custom suit that I helped design with Ray Hines from Cicchini Custom Clothier in Birmingham. I’m a little more daring with my suit patterns and linings, but I will typically match that up with a solid shirt and tie.
Whenever I meet with clients, I feel it’s important to wear a tie, and I will pair that with some Ferragamo loafers and a matching belt, along with a pocket square. When I’m not in the office or a boardroom, you can usually find me on the golf course.
Golf fashion and accessories are something I always try to have fun with; I wear more aggressive colors and patterns from Greyson Clothiers, RLX, Peter Millar, and G/Fore.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL?
Fashion has always been a way to stand out and differentiate myself regardless of I am doing. It was also when I was younger that I fell in love with Air Jordans and have continued to amass a nice collection of them. I get the chance to wear them every once in a while.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. This is easily the custom tuxedo that I had made for my wedding. I worked with Ray Hines, and we designed the perfect navy blue tux with navy satin accents and a bow tie. I complemented the tuxedo with a pair of navy velvet Ferragamo loafers. Ray also added a custom monogram on my shirt cuff that read “J+R,” and he stitched “Jason and Rhonda” [Drumheller is married to WDIV Local 4’s Rhonda Walker] into the inside cuff of my pants. It’s an outfit and a day that I will always remember.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? I have always admired David Beckham’s fashion sense and style. What is unique about him is that he has a great ability to pull off all sorts of looks in all types of situations, whether he’s at a sporting event or an airport.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS? I work with stylist Ray Hines on all of my suits. I’m also a big fan of Ferragamo, Gucci, and Tom Ford.
FASHION ADVICE: When it comes to clothing, fit is everything. I would find a tailor that you trust and work well with. I always feel it’s difficult to look good in a piece of clothing that doesn’t fit well, regardless of how expensive it might be.
DEZI SANTIAGO
FASHION STYLE: Tomboy chic most of the time, but I always make time for glam.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? I played in my dad’s ties and belts as a child, and a petticoat was my favorite base piece. I could go from Cinderella to Punky Brewster with the twist of a tie or belt.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. I believe in “looks,” so whenever I’m dressing, I dress according to my vibe.
A recent look that stands out is an oversized silk Balenciaga wrap shirt dress that I reverse-tied on the side to create a super-high thigh reveal, accessorized with the clear acrylic Cult Gaia Eden geometric clutch and a pair of zebra-print Bottega Veneta Stretch Lounge Carpet Sandals.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. Not really crazy to me because I do it all the time, but I have a thing about wearing men’s clothes. I just
love the ruggedness and the oversized look. I paired some men’s patterned pajama pants with a brown button-up shirt; a cognac leather trench; a pair of royal blue Attico lace-up pumps; a blue Chanel box bag; and big, wild hair. Hair is indeed included in fashion, FYI.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Julia Lang, founder and creative director of @ItsVeert And I’m always ready for a Rihanna moment!
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
Right now, I am heavy on the Jacquemus slides. I’ve been on those since six seasons ago, and I can’t shake the obsession. Loewe has been amazing. I’m about quality pieces that will remain timeless. Locally, I’m always in Neiman Marcus playing dress-up with my favorite duo, David Crain and Suzie [Dehko]. My favorite place to shop is The Webster. In a pinch, Net-aPorter is a great online go-
to; you’re sure to find some great pieces, and depending on your location, they can come the same day or next, without fail.
FASHION ADVICE: Comfort can still be cute. Dressing at the expense of pain or discomfort is never the move. We should be wearing the clothing, not the clothing wearing us.
AUSTIN BRYANT
FASHION STYLE: I would categorize one side of my style as suave, while I would identify the other side as fresh and fun.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL?
It started in my childhood years, dating back to elementary school. Although I didn’t have a lot, I made sure that I always put myself together well, and a fresh pair of sneaks was mandatory.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. One that I wore recently started off with a khaki Burberry overshirt with the classic “TB” logo all over, from last season’s fall collection. For bottoms, I went with loose-fitting navy blue cargo pants. To bring it all together, I came with cream-colored midtop Ferragamo shoes. These added some flavor to the outfit because of the word “Ferragamo,” which is stitched in rainbow, spanning the width of each heel. I accessorized with a navy blue fitted ball cap with the trademark “D” in the signature Tigers orange with crystals to give it a little more flare. To stay true to this city, I also rocked a green-dial Shinola automatic as well as the blue-tint Cartier glasses.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
I wore this crazy multicolored textured sweater with relax-fit coral pants. I coupled it with the highly coveted off-white OG Air Jordan 1 [sneakers] fitted with neon green laces. I was at [NBA] All-Star Weekend, so I wanted to show off the shoe closet a little bit.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? I have a great appreciation for Steve Harvey’s wardrobe. I want to be the 25-year-old version of him. He has the perfect mix of suave and fun in his closet.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
I am a frequent visitor at Somerset Collection. I love Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus, of course, because they have a little bit of everything. I also shop a lot at Xhibition in downtown Detroit. My favorite labels at the moment are Todd Patrick and Off-White.
FASHION ADVICE: Don’t overthink it When you see the piece and you get that little fuzzy feeling, do it!
Yellen wears a Zimmermann dress, jewelry from Tapper’s, and No. 21 shoes.
FASHION STYLE: Comfortable maximalism. WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? Although I was always interested in dressing, I wasn’t interested in dressing well until my early 20s. I stopped trying to make trending ideas work and started doing my own thing. I love experimenting with bold patterns and beautiful colors. I am very keen on conservative silhouettes and practical shoes.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. A white crepe-silk, draped midi dress with white leather brogue oxfords by Manolo Blahnik. I love color blocking.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. There are a lot of these. The craziest look was a navy blue column dress and navy silk pumps, polished off with navy blue lipstick. Also not denying lavender tulle ball gowns or feathered shift dresses from time to time.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Author and blogger Leandra Medine WHERE DO YOU SHOP?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS? Saks Fifth Avenue. [My personal stylist] Mary [Cholagh] tracks down anything hard to find. I like the Real Real for past-season finds. I’m a longtime fan of Gap. Anything Carolina Herrera, Oscar de la Renta, or Chanel is so timeless. Hermès for investment leather shoes and bags. Also, Farfetch, Moda Operandi, and Matches Fashion online.
FASHION ADVICE: My personal mantra is this: If my husband, Brandon, doesn’t laugh when he sees me, then it’s not it. I love to make people smile with my clothes.
Sissy YELLEN
Interior decorator at Sissy Yellen Living and former professional chefFASHION STYLE: Modern chic. I enjoy combining timeless pieces with contemporary accents, creating a uniquely classic but edgy look.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? My mother would say I came out of the womb in my favorite black dress. I’ve played dress-up as long as I can remember and always enjoyed picking out clothes for my mother and grandmother.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. My black tweed and leather Chanel jacket can turn any outfit into a showstopper. I’ve had it for years, but it still works, making me feel confident and put-together whenever I wear it.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. Probably an outfit I wore during [Paris] Fashion Week. When I’m in another city or country, I feel I can play with various styles and experiment with different looks and combinations that inspire not only me but also my clients.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? There are so many — however, Princess Diana is iconic. She had an effortless ability to make every outfit chic and stylish.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS? Saks Fifth Avenue, of course! There are so many amazing designers, and their collections and aesthetics change from season to season. It’s hard to pick just one, but I can give you a long list if you have time.
FASHION ADVICE: As Coco Chanel once said, “Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.” Trust your stylist.
Elizabeth “BETSY” GOULD
Gilles wears a sport coat from Sartoriale, a Sand Copenhagen shirt, a Ron Cornell Lago di Como silk pocket square, Finitura Felice trousers, and Donald Pliner shoes, all from Dolce Moda in Birmingham.
RALPH GIL LES
FASHION STYLE: Fitted European, “car-designerblack” auto-themed tees
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? As an automotive designer, dressing well has always been important. However, in 2010, my travel to Turin for work increased, as did my awareness of style and what that represents.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. At this year’s Quail event during Monterey Car Week, I wore an outfit styled by Dolce Moda in Birmingham: a beautiful, plaid Italian-linen blazer in light blue with
creamy shades of brown; a textured light-blue shirt; a pair of satin-finished, cream, organic pima cotton slim trousers; and chocolatebrown suede loafers and a matching belt. As luck would have it, I perfectly matched the Maserati MC20 Cielo Spyder in Acquamarina that we launched at the event.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. Years ago, for a Detroit Science Center [now the Michigan Science Center] fundraiser featuring a Star Trek exhibit, my wife suggested we dress up as Captain Kirk (mustard yellow shirt and all) and Lt. Uhura.
Of course, we arrived late, were the only ones dressed in costume, and had to weave our way to our table at the front of the room while someone was speaking. We were quite the conversation piece all evening.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton. His style is edgy, bold, and unique. WHERE DO YOU SHOP?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS? Locally, I shop at Dolce Moda, where Jenny [Ouliguian] and Alyssa [Pauls] outfit me in Ted Baker and other European designers. I also enjoy
shopping at Zegna’s flagship store in Milan. For casual dress, I love our friend Sasha Koehn’s American-made clothing company, Buck Mason. I also enjoy shopping at the Detroit Shirt Co. and Blipshift; both are great for cool automotive T-shirts.
FASHION ADVICE: It’s important to update your closet every few years to ensure you have the right amount of classic pieces to balance with what’s on trend. And it allows you the opportunity to donate any items that no longer suit you, while also giving back.
GEORGE NIK OLLAJ
FASHION STYLE: Depends on the day, the event, and the mood. I would say that for the most part, I am drawn to classic, sophisticated styles with edge.
I love the idea that one person doesn’t have to conform to one look or one style.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL?
I think I have always had interest in fashion because of my career, but as my self-assurance developed with age, I was able to finetune my style and feel
comfortable in wearing what made me feel good. I am a creator of beautiful hair, so I care about how things are made and the creative process. Whether it is architecture, clothing, or a great cocktail, it is the process that intrigues me.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
I feel like my style is always evolving, so I don’t necessarily have a favorite. It’s like picking a favorite child: It’s impossible.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
I look back at the fashions in certain eras, and I definitely have my regrets. For now, I like to stick with the basics and go from there to achieve an outfit that reflects my mood. The worst style is one which is out of place.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Ralph Lauren because he is timeless, sophisticated, and classic. Tom Ford because his fashion is luxurious but low
key. Gianni Agnelli because he made such an impact on classic men’s fashion.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP/ WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
I have quite a few custom pieces made by Josh Gold. His work is extremely detailed, including customized lining, buttons, monogramming, and collars. I shop at Caruso Caruso for basics and casual looks. Nike is always collaborating with cool brands, and it is exciting for me to wait for new
collaborations. Burn Rubber is one of my favorites for exclusive sneaker drops.
FASHION ADVICE: Like it or not, we are a visual society, so I plan my personal presentation each and every day. I always say there are no prizes for dressing like a rodeo clown. Your clothes are your second skin, and you should treat them like that. Fashion fades; style is eternal.
FASHION STYLE: It depends on my mood and the occasion. [When I’m going out to an event] I always try to dress appropriately for the venue, guests, audience, and most
Lindsay SCALLEN
importantly, how I’m feeling that particular day or night. I will wear something more feminine one day and then go slightly masculine another day. My style usually has a mix of sporty, sexy, feminine,
and a little masculine, all at once. That is when I feel the most comfortable in my clothing — when it’s this very precise mix.
and where we were going. So I’d say I’ve always been slightly high maintenance with my outfits.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. I got married in August, and I’m going to go with my wedding dress. It was part of the Oscar de la Renta fall 2022 bridal collection. It was an embroidered silver cocktail dress, open in the back and certainly not your traditional wedding dress.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
In my high school days (in the 1990s), my best friends and I would wear full black suits from Ann Taylor with scarves tied around our necks. We looked like we were going to work, not high school. It was ridiculous.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU
ADMIRE? I honestly don’t follow specific people for fashion style. What works for one person — body shape, personality, etc. — won’t work for mine. Believe me, I’ve tried. My best friends in life all have very different and unique styles that fit each of them as an individual.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
My go-to places are Neiman Marcus (best overall customer service); for online shopping, I like Net-aPorter; Alo for all my sports and leisure wear; Jenni Kayne for my at-home cozy sweaters and sweats; Intermix for fun, beachy vacation clothes. I also love Girlie Girl and Tenue in Grosse Pointe Woods for casual everyday items. My favorite designers are Chanel, Gucci, and Brunello Cucinelli. If I’m looking for something specific and more feminine, I love Oscar de la Renta.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL?
When I was a little girl, I changed my outfits multiple times a day, depending on what my family was doing
FASHION ADVICE: Always, always, always wear what makes you feel confident. If someone tells you a dress or an outfit looks good on you and you hate it, but you wear it, I guarantee you’ll feel uncomfortable, fidget all night, concentrate too much on your outfit, and not feel like yourself. I honestly think confidence in your clothing choices is one of the sexiest things you can exude and the perfect way to express your authentic self.
Owner of Flyleaf, an upscale bookshop, bar, and bistro opening soon in Grosse Pointe Farms Scallen wears a blouse, jacket, and pants by Brunello Cucinelli along with Saint Laurent shoes, all from Neiman Marcus at Somerset Collection. A pair of Jennifer Fisher earring rounds out the look.Dr. Nadia F. YUSAF
FASHION STYLE: Somewhere between Detroit and Palm Beach. Being Brazilian, I can pull off anything, depending on the occasion; however, I tend to stick around business casual, chic, and athleisure.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? At the University of Michigan. I remember having my first full suit on for a meeting and falling in love with suits.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. A red, crepe suit jacket from Black Halo paired with the matching straight-leg pant. I love a matching set.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. A bold Carolina K flowerprint dress for a day in Palm Beach. I call that crazy.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Modern influencers like Camila Coelho, Mona Vand, and Negin Mirsalehi.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS? I had to look in my closet to answer this, because I never shop by designer but rather the piece itself. Saks Fifth Avenue, Revolve, Jaus, and Caruso Caruso. My favorites are Theory, A.L.C., L’Agence, Joah Brown, and Sandro.
FASHION ADVICE: You can never have enough suit jackets.
Ursula FROES MULLEN
LOREN HICKS
Fashion designer and founder of Michigan Fashion Week
FASHION STYLE: Modest and sophisticated with an edge. I like to be unique, and I love statement pieces for certain occasions. As a Muslim woman, my dressing style is more modest but still fashion forward. I hope to serve as a source of inspiration for other working moms, female physicians, and Muslim women to be creative and not limit their fabulous sense of expression.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? When I started medical school, I made a decision to put forth more conscious effort into how I dressed. I knew that my appearance and how I presented myself would be the first impression I make on my patients.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. I have a red, tulle tiered gown that is dramatically voluminous and makes me feel like royalty.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. To celebrate my birthday, I wore a customized fulllength, long-sleeve pastel paillette sequin dress. I love that it is so unique. Kids stopped me, thinking I was a Disney princess.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Kate Middleton’s style has always been inspiring. She has an effortless elegance no matter what she wears — even her maternity style was on point.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
My favorite places to shop are Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Net-a-Porter, and Intermix. My favorite brands are Zimmermann, Self-Portrait, Needle & Thread, Olivia Rubin, Loeffler Randall, and Chanel.
FASHION ADVICE: Fashion should be a reflection of you; it is your calling card to the world. Wear what makes you happy. As a mother, I want to instill in my children the confidence to be who they are and to always present the best version of themselves, from the inside out.
FASHION STYLE: Classic glamour WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL? My entire life I’ve loved to dress well. I won “Best Dressed” in high school. Clothing has always been a passion of mine.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. Where do I start? I would definitely say my wedding dress was the baddest thing I have ever worn. It was a
backless, mermaid-style lace dress embellished all over with cubic zirconia. Talk about bling! The train of the dress was about 5 feet long. I was sharp!
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
I am not a crazy dresser. All of my stuff is well puttogether — LOL. However, I have done a color-blocked suit with about eight different colors. I guess you can call that crazy and outof-the-box for my style.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? I am definitely a fan of Khloé Kardashian’s style and of Gabrielle Union’s style.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
I shop all kinds of places, from thrift stores to Saks Fifth Avenue, from local boutiques to making my own stuff. There are no limits on where I get my clothing from. I literally don’t have a favorite
designer; I admire a lot of work from many different designers.
FASHION ADVICE: Take time to learn your style and what looks good on your body. From there, begin to build a wardrobe so that, wherever you go and whoever you meet, you will be well dressed. Don’t be afraid to explore all types of stores and retailers. And my goodness, iron your clothes before you leave the house!
Jackson sports a velvet shorts suit, turtleneck, and boots, all by Gucci.
FASHION STYLE: I wear a lot of head-to-toe Gucci. My look is overall artsy, chic, and avant-garde. Never conservative — always on the edge.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN DRESSING WELL?
My father was a master tailor at [the former] Serman’s Clothes Shop in downtown Detroit. As a kid, my mom would send me down to Serman’s on a regular basis, to pick out outfits for church and special occasions. I’d pick out clothes, and my father would tell me no. He taught me to look for clothes with good style and great quality. It is in my DNA.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR SHARPEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME. Elton John wore a sequined Gucci tuxedo to an award show once. I had to have it, but I found out they made it especially for him. So, I contacted Gucci, and they made one for me. I wore it to a gala in LA.
DESCRIBE ONE OF YOUR CRAZIEST OUTFITS OF ALL TIME.
A leopard-print Versace T-shirt, leopard-print Versace jeans, and leopardprint Versace scarf.
WHOSE FASHION STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE? Oscar de la Renta. In terms of class, style, elegance — Oscar wins hands-down. Class act.
WHERE DO YOU SHOP? WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE DESIGNERS?
I shop at Versace, Saks Fifth Avenue, and obviously Gucci. I also work with a personal shopper out of New York. I loved Jean Paul Gaultier in the late 1980s, early 1990s. I like Tom Ford and Alexander McQueen. My No. 1, however, is Alessandro Michele from Gucci. Right now, he’s the best designer out there.
FASHION ADVICE: Dress as though you are an artist or composer creating a work of art. Do it with a secure, contemporary, au courant attitude.
President of Rayford Homes LLC and CEO of Cohorts Entertainment Rayford JACKSONThank you
SILVER SPONSORS
BRONZE SPONSORS
Autism Alliance of Michigan Cranbrook Educational Community Focus: HOPE Forgotten Harvest Judson Center Macomb Community College Foundation
Melissa Weisse, CFRE, ACFRE Schoolcraft College Foundation
Please visit www.afpdet.org for information about the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Detroit Chapter and the benefits of becoming a member.
Sharing Your Time. Making a Difference.
These 29 volunteer opportunities offer something for every interest
BY LAUREN WETHINGTONANIMAL WELFARE
Bees in the D: Even volunteers with no beekeeping experience can sign up to be honey harvesting coordinators at this Detroit-based pollinatorpromoting organization. Duties include picking up equipment, organizing honey batches, and cleaning up after harvest. Other volunteer opportunities include newsletter writing, festival organization, and content creation. beesinthed.com/volunteer
Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit: From its newly updated animal adoption and education center in Dearborn, this organization works to match cats and dogs in need with loving adoptive families. Volunteers work in the shelter feeding animals and keeping facilities clean or outside the shelter as temporary foster caretakers. metrodetroitanimals.org/get-involved/volunteer
Michigan Humane: With adoption centers in Detroit, Westland, and Sterling Heights, Michigan Humane is always in need of animal-loving volun teers. Available opportunities include fundraising, event planning, fostering, and shelter maintenance. michiganhumane.org/get-involved
ARTS AND CUL TURE
Cranbrook Institute of Science: Educate visitors in the dinosaur-themed Explore Lab as a Paleo Guide, or bring new life to the institute’s rotating exhibits as a Gallery Guide. Volunteers can also sign up to help with special events and programs. science.cranbrook.edu/support/volunteer
Inside Out Literary Arts Project: Volunteers assist with an array of writing-intensive programs for youth and young adults in Detroit, including in-school Writer-in-Residence programs, a youth poetry festival, and at-home creative writing lessons. insideoutdetroit.org/get-involved
Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit: Every year, this youth theater program offers hundreds of metro Detroit students the chance to take center stage as actors, singers, or set designers in a variety of creative programs. Volunteers are needed to mentor the theater’s aspiring young artists. mosaicdetroit.org/volunteer
CIVIL RIGHTS
ACLU of Michigan: Volunteers in communities across metro Detroit are eligible to join one of the American Civil Liberties Union’s local units, which work to address civil rights issues in individual neighborhoods via activism, public education, and engagement activities. action.aclu.org/mi-volunteer
Fair Housing Center of Metropolitan Detroit: Volunteers at this Detroit-based housing equity organization help with community outreach events and workshops. They also act as testers, or people who pose as prospective homebuyers in order to detect discriminatory real estate practices. fairhousingdetroit.org/fair-housing-support
Freedom House Detroit: Freedom House provides temporary shelter to asylum-seeking immigrants, along with support in finding permanent housing, jobs, and educational opportunities. Volunteer interpreters are needed to facilitate communication between staff and clients. freedomhousedetroit.org/careers-and-service
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Franklin Wright Settlements: Volunteers assist with food distribution, academic tutoring, senior outreach, child care, grounds maintenance, and more at Franklin Wright’s three Detroit locations. franklinwright.org/get-involved
Habitat for Humanity: With outposts in Detroit, Mount Clemens, Canton, and Brighton, this nonprofit offers both short- and long-term volunteer opportunities on its home construction sites. Volunteers can apply individually or in groups. habitatdetroit.org/volunteer
Services to Enhance Potential: This organization provides support to Dearborn-area residents with mental or physical disabilities. Volunteers are needed to help with employment training, transportation, community events, and more. stepcentral.org/volunteers
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUC ATION
The Children’s Center: Volunteers provide tutoring and homework help at this Midtown center for children with mental and behavioral challenges. The center also seeks volunteers to sort donations and help with on-site beautification projects. thechildrenscenter.com/take-action/volunteeringopportunities
United Way for Southeastern Michigan: Volunteers are needed to assemble DIY Learning at Home Kits for families without access to crucial early education resources. Volunteers then deliver assembled kits to local nonprofit organizations. unitedwaysem.org/get-involved/volunteer
ENVIRONMENT
Clinton River Watershed Council: Volunteers collect garbage on land and in the river during weekly organized cleanups in Rochester Hills and Chesterfield Township. Opportunities in invasive species removal, water quality testing, and aquatic insect identification are also available. crwc.org/join-us/volunteer
Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge: The visitor center at this Trenton wildlife refuge seeks volunteers to greet and guide guests, answer phones, stock brochures, and respond to questions and queries related to the National Wildlife Refuge System. fws.gov/refuge/detroit-river/get-involved
Motor City Makeover 365: Volunteers with this citywide cleanup effort tidy parks, blighted neighborhoods, alleys, and playgrounds within the city. The city of Detroit provides cleanup supplies and trash removal. detroitmi.gov/departments/departmentneighborhoods/motor-city-make-over
FOOD
Focus: Hope — Food for Seniors: This program provides food delivery service to more than 40,000 seniors in and around Detroit. Two-hour food delivery shifts are available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Volunteers must use their own vehicles and attend at least one orientation shift. focushope.galaxydigital.com/need
Forgotten Harvest and Alternatives for Girls: Volunteers are needed to load food boxes into distribution vehicles at Alternatives for Girls two Thursdays per month. Alternatives for Girls provides emergency shelter and crisis support for at-risk women and girls. liveunitedsem.galaxydigital.com/need/ detail/?need_id=635764
Make Food Not Waste: Every Friday from 9 a.m. to noon, volunteers prep, pack, and distribute food to individuals and families in need at the organization’s Upcycling Kitchen, located inside Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian Church. makefoodnotwaste.org/donate/volunteer
Friendship Circle: One of the many volunteer activities at this Best of Detroit-winning organization is for teens after school and on Sundays. Each volunteer is paired with an individual with a disability; together they participate in the center’s many weekly activities. Opportunities for college students and adult volunteers are also available.
friendshipcircle.org/get-involved/volunteers
Team GUTS: This Clawson-based nonprofit provides specialized fitness classes to people with disabilities. Volunteers are needed to lead the studio’s Cardio Dance Fusion class, which blends jazz and hip-hop styles of dance and Zumba. liveunitedsem.galaxydigital.com
The Trevor Project: This national organization provides mental health resources for LGBTQ youth. Volunteers commit to one three-hour shift per week, during which they provide counseling services via phone call, virtual chat, or text message.
thetrevorproject.org/volunteer
MENTORING
Boys and Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan: Volunteers provide academic support, art instruction, sports coaching, and general mentorship at this Highland Park facility for kids ages 6 through 18.
bgcsm.org/ways-to-give
INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS ABILITIES
Easterseals Michigan: Easterseals is in search of volunteers to support its Miracle League — an adaptive baseball field designed for children and adults with behavioral and physical disabilities. The program requires 20 daily volunteers. easterseals.com/michigan/ways-to-give/volunteer
MENTAL HEALTH
Judson Center: From its nine metro Detroit locations, this agency provides treatment and support for children and families impacted by mental and emotional illness. Volunteers should have prior experience working with children and must complete a background check. judsoncenter.org/volunteers
Mothers Against Drunk Driving: Volunteers with counseling experience are wanted to lead weekly virtual emotional support groups for people who have been impacted by drunk driving. Groups meet every other week for 60- or 90-minute sessions. madd.org/volunteer
Winning Futures: Career mentors are needed to guide local high school students through activities designed to develop job readiness skills and professional goals. Mentors receive training before every hourlong session.
winningfutures.org/get-involved
Women of Tomorrow: Mentors with Women of Tomorrow commit to one monthly hourlong session for one full school year, during which they pair with a co-mentor to work with up to 30 students at a time. Women of Tomorrow provides a curriculum centered on goal-setting, planning for the future, and developing academic and professional skills.
womenoftomorrow.org/get-involved
Helping Neighborhoods Shine
BY LAUREN WETHINGTON | PHOTOS BY SAL RODRIGUEZON A HOT, blazingly sunny afternoon, a cheerfully decorated home in Detroit’s Morningside neighborhood bursts with activity. A bounce house bustles with giggling kids while a boom box blasts catchy dance tunes. Smiling, sun-kissed faces queue up for neon blue snow cones as grown-ups work fastidiously to erect shade tents and set out snacks. The joy is palpable.
The home is one of 12 in the city operated by Brilliant Detroit, a nonprofit organization with a unique model that brings crucial resources for children and families directly to the neighborhoods that need them.
“What we do is we take a vacant house and we repurpose it into a community hub,” explains Brilliant Detroit co-founder and CEO Cindy Eggleton. “In that hub, we have programming for kids, families, and adults in the areas of education, health, and family support.”
On this particular afternoon, Brilliant’s Morningside hub hosts a back-to-school party, outfitting kids not just with snow cones and smiles but also with backpacks and school supplies. Since its opening in August 2021, the hub also provides tutoring, literacy training, exercise and cooking classes, internet access, arts and crafts workshops, and resources for parents, including lactation support for new mothers.
‘WITH, FOR, AND BY’ THE COMMUNITY
The house itself, along with the programs it offers, was chosen by residents of the Morningside neighborhood as part of what Eggleton describes as Brilliant’s “with, for, and by” approach.
“A neighborhood is selected because the neighborhood invites us in. We involve the families and community, and this is theirs,” Eggleton says. “We hire from our community, and we hire former participants. In our work on the ground, over 35 percent of our staff are either former participants or from the neighborhood.”
For moms like Zsadaja Drewery, who attended the event with her 4-year-old daughter, Za’niya, and her 2-year-old son, Za’kobi, the program is valuable not only because of the resources it provides but for the sense of community it creates for them and their kids.
“[Brilliant Detroit] is just such a blessing, because I’m a mother with two toddlers and, you know, they need to stay busy,”
Drewery says. “Here, they always get to interact with other kids and have fun learning. They learn through play, and by them playing and interacting with other children, they’re easily catching on.”
Drewery says Brilliant’s programs provided crucial social support for her and her children during the isolating COVID-19 pandemic. Now, like many of the parents involved with Brilliant Detroit, she gives back by leading story time at the Morningside hub.
“Once you come across an opportunity and a bond and a connection like this, it’s somewhere that you’re just going to stay,” Drewery says of the hub. “Because you can feel the love.”
‘ELEVATED IN MY COMMUNITY’
A shining example of Brilliant’s community-driven approach, Morningside resident and mother Rakisha Odom first came to the organization as a volunteer at its Brightmoor location in 2018. Today, she serves as the Morningside hub’s outreach manager after successfully campaigning to bring a Brilliant site to the neighborhood.
“I visited a few sites, and I was totally hooked as soon as I walked through the door,” Odom says. “And I was like, ‘I have to help create these opportunities in my own neighborhood.’”
But Odom says the road to opening the Morningside hub wasn’t without challenges. After identifying a house they felt would be a perfect fit for the program, the community faced a year and a half of delays in securing the property, which was owned by the city’s land bank. Once the house finally landed in Brilliant’s hands, the real work started.
“When we first came to this house, it was horrible, horrible, horrible,” Odom reminisces. “We could not see the front of the house at all because it was covered with bushes.”
Today, it has many original features including floors, stairs, and moldings and some family-friendly updates. The bright, airy space is now outfitted with two full kitchens, an arts and crafts studio, play spaces, and cozy nooks where kids can read and study. In the media room, tablets offer high-speed Wi-Fi, connecting kids and parents to virtual tutoring sessions and educational software. The freshly painted walls are adorned with colorful drawings, and outside, a community garden grows fresh
vegetables and fruit. In the basement, a supply of diapers, formula, food, and other necessities awaits those in need.
“I’m very proud to be in this position because I feel like I’ve turned into a community leader,” Odom says. “People are constantly reaching out to me asking questions, or for food, or for me to point them in the right direction, and that just feels so good. I feel so elevated in my community.”
‘POPULATION-LEVEL CHANGE’
Brilliant Detroit serves an estimated 13,000 people out of its 12 hubs, Eggleton says — but the organization isn’t stopping there. It aims to operate 24 hubs by 2024.
“When we hit 24 locations, we will be able to produce a population-level change,” Eggleton explains. She references improving reading scores specifically. Data from the 2022 Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress shows that only 9 percent of Detroit third graders are at or above grade-level proficiency in reading. “We can fundamentally change that,” she says. Indeed, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “reading regularly with young children stimulates
optimal patterns of brain development at a critical time in child development, which, in turn, builds language, literacy, and social-emotional skills that last a lifetime.”
That change won’t be possible without a healthy force of volunteers. From home repairs to cleaning to organizing events, Brilliant relies heavily on volunteers to keep its 12 hubs running smoothly.
But it is mentors — individuals who sign up to provide consistent weekly reading and tutoring sessions with kids — the organization needs most.
“During this period after COVID, kids are more behind,” Eggleton points out. “They need afterschool tutoring. So together with partners, that is fueled by volunteers. We need more desperately.”
Mentors with Brilliant Detroit do not necessarily have to be local. During the COVID-19 pandemic, reading and tutoring sessions moved to Zoom — a model that continues to work for the organization, even after most pandemic precautions have been lifted. Volunteers who wish to mentor remotely with Brilliant Detroit need only commit to weekly 30-to-45-minute reading sessions.
“Except for spending time with my granddaughter, it’s the highlight of my week,” says
volunteer Joanna Gardiner, or “Miss Joanna,” as she’s known to the kids. “Every time I come here, there’s laughter and good feelings and hugs.”
Perhaps the coolest thing about the Morningside hub is that those good feelings aren’t confined to the home itself. They’ve taken over the block — evident in the new day care center opening on the corner, the newly occupied houses next door, and the recently constructed speed bump at the end of the street.
“Creating support around education for families, and getting families things they needed, turned into something totally beautiful and way more in-depth,” Odom says as the party begins to wind down. “We’re breathing new life into a community.”
Literacy tutors are needed for 30-to-45-minute reading sessions with students under 8 years old. Not sure
it’s the right fit? Brilliant Detroit offers “friendraisers” during the year in which a group of 10-15 peo-
ple can tour one of the organization’s community hubs, meet the organization’s founder and CEO,
Cindy Eggleton — as well as other potential volunteers and learn about ways to get involved.
For more information, go to brilliantdetroit.org.
The Morningside hub was furnished by Humble Designs, a nonprofit organization that distributes new and gently used furniture to individuals transitioning out of homelessness. When Brilliant Detroit first saw this house, the future Morningside hub — “it was horrible, horrible, horrible,” Odom says.Enriching Detroit
National Philanthropy Day Awards celebrate love of humankind
BY CORTNEY WOODY | ILLUSTRATIONS BY BROWN BIRD DESIGNA SPECIAL DAY set aside during the month of November, National Philanthropy Day (NPD) recognizes the great contributions of the philanthropic community to the enrichment of the world. Originally organized by Douglas Freeman, the first NPD events were held in 1986 after President Ronald Reagan signed the official NPD proclamation. The day continues to provide an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of giving. This year, the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Detroit Chapter honors southeastern Michigan’s most dedicated volunteers, philanthropists, and fundraising professionals with its annual awards on Nov. 3. Hour Detroit is pleased to partner with the chapter to introduce 2022’s slate of champions, who have gone above and beyond in driving a unified force of giving across Greater Detroit.
Ben Maibach
EVERYONE WHO KNOWS BEN Maibach, chief community officer of Bar ton Malow, understands his commitment to improving lives. A volunteer of more than 50 years, Maibach and his wife, Barb, have raised hundreds of millions of dollars to fund socioeconomically chal lenged young people across more than four decades.
“In every fundraising initiative, large or small, Ben leads by example; he gives generously, then reaches into his sphere of influence to rally support for the chil dren and families served by the YMCA,” says Susan Walters-Klenke, fund develop ment director at the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit. “Fellow board members consider him to be a north star and a significant part of YMCA’s growth.”
Beyond the YMCA, Maibach has been involved with Beaumont Hospital for many years — both as a donor and as a volunteer. Maibach and his wife have invested in education and training through their support in the construction of the Frances and Dominic Moceri Learning Center, created as a resource for physicians, nurses, and Oakland University medical students.
In 2017, the duo joined Beaumont’s efforts to address Alzheimer’s disease by supporting a promising research initiative still ongoing today. They then hon ored one of the physicians leading the research by supporting the creation of the Michael E. Maddens, M.D., Distinguished Chair of Internal Medicine.
Additionally, Maibach has served Michigan State University on numerous committees, including the Spartan Fund Advisory Committee, Empower Ex traordinary President’s Campaign Cabinet, and Southeast Michigan Regional Campaign Committee. He also helped launch the Spartan Executive group.
“Ben met Barb as undergraduates at MSU,” Walters-Klenke says. “His love for Barb grew from there, and fortunately, so did his love for MSU.”
The Maibachs have contributed generously to MSU since 1972, including support of the career services center in the College of Engineering and a cam puswide scholarship program. In 2017, Ben and Barb invested in Alzheimer’s research in the MSU College of Human Medicine and established the Mai bach Smiley Alzheimer’s Research Professorship.
“As someone who knows the importance of state-of-the-art facilities, Ben has been instrumental and leads by example in supporting many campus projects: Cowles House renovation, Broad Art Museum, Breslin Center, Spartan Stadium North End Zone, and the Munn Arena renovation,” WaltersKlenke says. “Ben and Barb are true MSU champions who tirelessly drive for excellence in all areas across the university. His kind demeanor and his widely respected personal integrity serve as an inspiration to all of us.”
George W. Romney Award for Lifetime Achievement in Volunteerism Nominated by YMCA of Metropolitan DetroitOutstanding Foundation Award The Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation
Nominated by Empowerment PlanTHE VERA AND JOSEPH Dresner Foundation made its first six-figure grant to Empowerment Plan in 2018, but only after taking the time to see its mission in action, ask questions to truly understand the work’s depth, and offer guidance as not just a funder but a true partner.
“Driven by personal experience, the generos ity of the foundation serves thousands of individuals through its work supporting nonprofits that address health access, basic needs, youth and family, and animal welfare,” says Erika George, chief development officer at Empow erment Plan, an organization that provides employment (they produce durable coats that transform into sleeping bags for those in need) and training for individuals experiencing home lessness. The employment opportunities at Empowerment Plan ensure each hired person earns a stable income, finds secure housing, and regains independence.
The Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation, led by Virginia Romano, continues to play an active role in creating a lasting philanthropic imprint on the Greater Detroit area. Romano and her team have continued to support Empowerment Plan’s mission each year following, contributing more than $750,000 over the last four years.
“During the height of the COVID-19 pandem ic, the Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation was one of the first to release restrictions on project grants, trusting the nonprofits to do as much good as possible during a trying time for our community,” George says. “Since then, the foun dation has continued to provide flexibility and distribute funds in a way that truly supports the needs of the organizations in its portfolio.”
In the last two years alone, contributions from the foundation have supported Empower ment Plan in impacting more than 850 lives in Detroit through the distribution of sleeping bag coats and its innovative workforce devel opment model.
“The Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation encourages communication and collaboration and serves as a true thought leader for not only our mission but the mission of so many across metro Detroit,” George says. “Our community is lucky to have them.”
Dr. John S. Lore Award for Outstanding Fundraising Executive David Ripple Nominated by Trinity Health Michigan, Southeast RegionACCORDING TO DAVID RIPPLE, vice president of philanthropy for Trinity Health Michigan, Southeast Region, a focus on people is what makes a fundraising program successful.
“In the nearly 30 years I’ve been in this field, I’ve never thought of it as an occupation — rather, I really think it was my vocation,” Ripple says. “It is something I was called to do.”
Ripple began his career in 1993 with Angela Hospice and went on to lead some of the largest fundraising shops and campaigns in southeast Michigan. He continues to work with donors, leaders, and fundraisers in his current role with Trinity Health, where he oversees the philanthropy team in major and planned gift work, communications, advancement services, and donor experience for five hospitals in the region.
“His breadth and diversity of fundraising experience allows him to understand all the nuts and bolts of an advancement team and how these pieces work together to meet the donor’s and the organization’s needs,” says Jana McNair, director of major gifts at Trinity Health Michigan, Southeast Region. “Dave’s entrepreneurial drive combined with his nearly 30 years of experience make him a successful, progressive, and experienced fundraiser and leader.”
McNair also notes Ripple led the way with an investment in the front-line fundraising team, demonstrating his understanding of why it’s important to put people at the forefront both donors and fundraisers. Ripple has held a series of senior positions, always rising to the challenge at hand, and sometimes in the face of difficult circumstances.
“To facilitate philanthropy — either as a practitioner, a colleague, or a leader — from those who have hopes and dreams, and connect them to organizations that can make those dreams come true, is inspiring and fulfilling,” Ripple says. “While the fundraising profession often talks about goals, dollars raised, and contacts made, it is truly the impact of that generosity and the outcomes it delivers that is at the heart of this noble profession.”
In his role as vice president of development and alumni affairs, and president of the Wayne State University Foundation, Ripple was a member of the president’s cabinet and worked closely with local governments and community leaders as a trusted adviser, linking the needs of the university with available external resources.
“Dave is leading his team through new ways of working with donors from direct fundraising to donor experience, all while navigating unprecedented pressures in the fundraising and health care industry,” McNair says. In 2020 and 2021, St. Joseph Mercy Health System led Trinity Health as the top fundraising ministry in the country, raising money for front-line workers and emergency COVID-19 relief with a record number of new donors.
Outside of his professional roles, Ripple is a lifelong volunteer and community advocate. He is a longtime resident in the Plymouth/Canton community and currently serves as chairman of the board of directors for the Educational Excellence Foundation and was a member of the Lutheran Social Services of Michigan board.
Edmund T. Ahee Jewel Award for Outsta nding Volunteer Fundraiser John Carter
Nominated by Forgotten HarvestENDING HUNGER begins with communities that work together, a concept John Carter understands to his core. Carter supported Forgotten Harvest in becoming a leader in the human services sector, ultimately providing for metro Detroit’s most vulnerable neighbors in need of nutritious food.
“I’ve always focused my philanthropy and community service primarily on organizations that impact the lives of families and children,” Carter says. “Forgotten Harvest does God’s work, in my opinion, helping families and children when that assistance is needed most.”
He served as co-chair of the successful $17 million “Solutions That Nourish” campaign, which recently met its goal to help construct a new food distribution and volunteer center and Forgotten Harvest campus.
“John was very active in helping to cultivate and solicit major gifts, which were critical to the campaign’s success,” says Tim Hudson, Forgotten Harvest’s chief development officer. “He was a great cheerleader and kept the committee actively engaged in reaching the goal, even through the pandemic.”
Carter served as board chair during the COVID-19 pandemic and helped Forgotten Harvest increase capacity and remain active while the organization served as a critical front-line emergency responder.
“It’s hard to form words to explain the impact Forgotten Harvest has when needed food is delivered from one of our trucks to a pantry or shelter, or simply to a family in need,” Carter says. “I think the team at Forgotten Harvest is totally committed to addressing food insecurity. I marvel at their passion and commitment, and I am honored to help in any way I can.”
Prior to his recent retirement, Carter was the JPMorgan Chase Michigan president, during which time he served on a dozen community and nonprofit boards, including as board chair for the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit and Judson Center.
Hudson says, “He is very engaged in providing financial support, board leadership, and recruiting others to get involved and help our community.”
Max M. Fisher Award for Outstanding Philanthropist Carla Walker-Miller
Nominated by Autism Alliance of MichiganIN 1999 , Carla Walker-Miller envisioned the energy market as an independent distributor. After months of talking with clients and potential supplier partners, she developed a far-reaching strategy to address the traditional needs of energy suppliers.
Walker-Miller Energy Services opened its doors in Detroit in July of 2000 as a full-line distributor for ABB Power T&D Co. Today, her firm is a 22-year-old values-driven, B Corporation-certified company that changes lives through energy.
The team’s efforts decrease energy burdens on local families and busi nesses, create sustainable jobs, diversify local energy workforces, and position small-business owners to become sustainable suppliers in the clean energy economy.
Walker-Miller’s team is the first Black-owned company in Michigan to obtain a B Corporation certification, making it part of a fairly exclusive global network of about 6,000 in more than 70 countries — leaders in the global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy.
“Carla is a visionary who leads with both empathy and tenacity,” says Colleen Allen, president and CEO of the Autism Alliance of Michigan. “From team member benefits and charitable giving to procurement practices, the B Corporation certification is the embodiment of Carla’s leadership, asserting, ‘We are not just an employer; we are stewards of our diverse team.’”
In 2018, Walker-Miller made transformational decisions in the life of the company: instituting a $15 an hour minimum wage — and recently increasing it to $17 an hour with a commitment to continue raising it until it reaches $20 an hour — and adopting second-chance policies that give previously incarcerated citizens fair opportunities for employment.
“A fierce advocate for inclusion of Black people and people of color, women, and historically marginalized communities, Walker-Miller op erates Walker-Miller Energy Services through an equity lens to drive benefits of clean energy to all,” Allen says. “With one of the most diverse teams in the industry, Walker-Miller designs programs, sources prod ucts, trains diverse workforces, researches and develops innovations that drive broad adoption of clean energy practices and behaviors.”
Allen noted that, driven by a giving spirit, Walker-Miller founded the Water Access Volunteer Effort Fund in 2003 while serving as a commis sioner for the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department. The nonprofit has distributed more than $2 million to help nearly 10,000 vulnerable Detroit families maintain access to safe water and sewer services.
She is also very involved in several community efforts, including the Detroit Means Business Coalition; Building Performance Association; the mayor of Detroit’s Workforce Development Board; The Henry Ford; the Hudson-Webber Foundation; the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan; BasBlue; the Neighborhood Defender Service national board; the AKA Foundation board; the Autism Alliance of Michigan; the Michi gan Energy Innovation Business Council; and the Michigan Chapter of the American Association of Blacks in Energy.
Spirit of Philanthropy Award
Dennis Archer
Nominated by Community Foundation for Southeast MichiganTHIS SPRING MARKED a major milestone for former Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer. Since 2001, his scholarship fund has provided nearly $2 million in scholarships for minority students at Wayne State University and Western Michigan University. Over the past 20 years, more than 400 Archer Scholar awards have been granted.
“Archer established the fund because he wanted to help students who were experiencing the same challenges he faced during his college years,” says Sherrie Arb, vice president of marketing and communications for the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan. “Dennis knew it was difficult to bal ance classes along with work and family. He wanted his Archer Scholar fund to serve as a vital link to assuring academic success by helping to ease the burden on students who might otherwise be forced to drop out of college.”
The Archer Scholarship supports students who may not have an above-average grade point. “They are solid students with potential,” Arb adds.
In 2001, Archer asked the Community Foundation president at the time, Mariam Noland, to assist in distributing funds re maining from his election “war chest.” With the help of the Community Foundation, Archer provided $1.2 million to 50 arts and cultural and nonprofit organizations in Detroit. He also created the Dennis Archer Community Development Fund, building a permanent legacy for his lifelong commitment to improve neigh borhoods and the lives of Detroit residents.
Since 2003, the community development fund has provided more than $1.3 million to local organizations. One grant that stands out to Arb was made to Detroit Food Commons, a grocery store and food business incubator in Detroit’s North End that will support a Black-led, community-owned grocery coopera tive. Slated to open in the summer of 2023, the co-op will provide health food options and food education to Detroit residents.
“Such an act of generosity is consistent with how Dennis lives his life,” Arb says. “The scholarship fund and community develop ment fund are important examples of how Dennis continues to lead and give back to the communities that mean so much to him.”
Archer’s contributions have included teaching disabled students, serving on the Michigan Supreme Court, and serving two terms as mayor of Detroit. He also is a former president of the American Bar Association, National Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan, and Wolverine Bar Association.
Neal Shine Award for Media Commitment Chuck Stokes
Nominated by Non-Profit Personnel NetworkAS THE EDITORIAL and public affairs director for WXYZ-TV/ Channel 7 in Detroit, Chuck Stokes’ interviews have included a host of prominent politicians, entertainers, and religious and business leaders. Additionally, he serves as moderator and producer of Spotlight on the News, Michigan’s longest-running weekly news and public affairs show, created in 1965.
He later traveled to South Africa to produce a prime-time documen tary and a 10-part news series examining South Africa’s apartheid system. Stokes also served as the co-executive producer of two 60-minute national town meetings featuring then-Democratic candidate and for mer President Bill Clinton.
“Before he became Channel 7’s editorial and public affairs direc tor, Stokes worked as the station’s executive producer of special projects in news,” says Gary Dembs, founder of the Non-Profit Per sonnel Network. “Under his direction, the department earned numerous awards and citations.”
Over the years, Stokes has accumulated a long list of personal awards and achievements, including 12 Emmys for editorial report ing and two Emmys for documentary reporting. In 2001, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Detroit Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He is a past president of both the Association of Opinion Journalists (formerly called the National Conference of Editorial Writers) and its foundation. In 2011, Stokes was inducted into the Michigan Association of Broadcasters’ Hall of Fame, and in 2012, he received the Life Membership Award from the Association of Opinion Journalists.
Additionally, Stokes is an award winner and member of the National Association of Black Journalists; past president of the Michigan Asso ciation of Broadcasters Foundation; and board member of the Historical Society of Michigan. He also sits on the boards of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan and the Center for Journalism Eth ics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communications.
Stokes has also frequently supported and worked with local nonprofit organizations during his career in Detroit, including the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan; Historical Society of Michigan; Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Journalism School; Midnight Golf Program; Michigan Association of Broadcasters Foundation; National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ); Detroit Chapter of NABJ; Winning Futures Mentorship Pro gram; Kappa Alpha Psi Detroit Foundation; Association of Opinion Journalists; Reading Works; National Museum of African American History; Motown Museum; Williams-Franklin Foundation; and the for mer Detroit Public Schools Student Motivational Program.
Sparky Anderson Award for Youth in Philanthropy Jeremiah Steen
Nominated by Detroit Area Agency on AgingTHOUGH STILL A COLLEGE STUDENT , Jeremiah Steen becomes a “man for others” in every space he enters. At 21, he’s gearing up to earn a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Detroit Mercy, but Steen also spends his time as the executive director of the Steen Foundation. His organization positively impacts the socialization of youth, promotes strong inquisitive thinking, and helps teens advance their view of community through a creative perspective.
“I started the Steen Foundation after I finished my Roots and Shoots Fund II National Fellowship,” Steen says. “This opportunity gave me the chance to work with Jane Goodall and learn the power of philanthropy, community development, and service learning.” Jane Goodall is a highly recognized primatologist and anthropologist best known for her 60-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees.
“I used the funding from this opportunity to start Steen Foundation to help Detroit Public Schools Community District, which was impacted by underinvestment, and to help increase youth career pipelines,” Steen says.
Anquenetta Jones, senior business analyst for the Detroit Area Agency on Aging, says Steen sets an example for others. Steen volunteered for the agency’s Meals on Wheels program, packing meals for homebound seniors.
“He likes to be intimately involved with the planning and problem-solving process,” she says.
Steen learned problem-solving and leadership in his youth, playing multiple sports through Eagle Sports Club. Over time, he began volunteering as head soccer coach for teams ages 8-10 and 11-14.
“He is the only coach that has committed to two teams each season for the last nine years,” Jones says. “Subsequently, his two teams have remained undefeated since he began. He consistently demonstrates enthusiasm and commitment to the program.”
Steen continues to volunteer weekly, supporting game days as a soccer coach and as a coach volunteer when his teams are not on the field. Jones says he consistently demonstrates all the qualities the club promotes and holds in high regard: excellent sportsmanship, a strong moral compass, generosity, discipline, and selflessness.
“When solving problems, he sees below the surface, and his solutions usually address root causes, not symptoms,” Jones says. “Jeremiah has a high energy level that is contagious, and he is always alert for new opportunities to improve.
“He tends to be willing to accept any new challenges,” she continues. “Because of his persuasive abilities, he is excellent at promoting organizational goals and objectives. Because of his efforts, Jeremiah has earned the respect and gratitude of those whom he serves, his church family, his neighborhood residents, and his peers.”
In addition to leading his foundation and sports teams, Steen also serves on the boards of directors for TrashMob.eco, EEqual, and the Steering Committee for Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy.
Special Lifetime Achievement Award for L eadership in Philanthropy Peter Remington
Nominated by The Development GroupFOR 50 YEARS , Peter Remington has had a uniquely intricate influence in the philanthropic community. He has been a major donor; a community advocate; a mentor to dozens of nonprofit professionals; a chief development officer to some of Detroit’s largest nonprofits; and a consultant who has helped raise billions in philanthropy.
“I am on both sides — I’m part of those who give and those who help folks get,” Remington says.
Those who know Remington say his impact as a fundraising profes sional has, perhaps, been unprecedented.
“No local consultant has influenced as many fundraising programs and campaigns, across all nonprofit sectors,” says Steve Ragan, prin cipal and consultant for The Development Group. “He has often been engaged at critical times, helping nonprofits through their most chal lenging times.”
Remington has regularly been one of the largest sponsors of National Philanthropy Day — and during the pandemic, he secured some of the day’s largest sponsors.
Early in his career, Remington led some of Detroit’s largest fundrais ing programs, such as those at United Way for Southeast Michigan, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Detroit.
Twenty-six years ago, Remington launched The Remington Group (TRG), a nonprofit consulting firm that quickly grew into southeast Michigan’s largest fundraising counsel. Since 1995, TRG has helped regional and national nonprofits raise more than $4 billion for causes that effect real change in the world. Over the years, the firm has worked with a wide variety of regional and Detroit-based clients across human services, health, arts and culture, and education.
Ragan says Remington has also been influential to many national nonprofits, like Project Lead the Way, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memo rial, and Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation.
“But Peter’s commitment to philanthropy is not merely as a fundraiser or consultant,” Ragan says. “He is a major donor as well. He is one of the few fundraising consultants who considers it a requirement of his work to also give generously. You will see Peter and his wife, Peggy Daitch, listed as major donors to dozens of causes throughout southeast Michigan and beyond.”
Ragan notes Remington strongly believes in community engagement. Over the past 50 years, he has sat on more than 40 boards and commis sions. Today, Remington serves on the boards of the Detroit Promise Zone Authority; Empowerment Plan; Michigan Trails Fund; Michigan Education Excellence Foundation; Bing Youth Institute; and Develop ment Committee of the Detroit Zoo. He’s also the past and present cochair of the Yeshiva Beth Yehudah annual dinner.
“Peter has provided critical support to the Association of Fundrais ing Professionals Greater Detroit Chapter,” Ragan says. “He has funded memberships through his company over the years, including his son, Justin, who serves on the chapter board. Peter is also a frequent media resource about philanthropy in Detroit, often serving as the face and voice of our sector.”
17TH ANNUAL NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE
Thursday, November 3, 2022 9 a .m. – 3 p.m. Oakland University 318 Meadow Brook Rd., Rochester, MI 48309 cca.troychamber.com/EvtListing.aspx?c lass=E&dbid2=mitroy&&evtid=15566797
The Troy Chamber of Commerce and its Non-Profit Network (NPN) will host the 17th Annual Nonprofit Management Conference on Thursday, November 3 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. The event will be taking place in-person this year and will be hosted at Oakland University.
The annual conference marks seventeen years of revenue sharing given to nonprofit Troy Chamber organizations made possible by the conference’s sponsorship and ticket sales. The conference is designed for nonprofit professionals, board members, and volunteers. Attendees have the opportunity to participate in a variety of seminars to help them improve their operations in seven core areas specifically geared toward nonprofit organizations: Marketing, Performance Metrics, Strategic Planning, Technology for NonProfits, Grant Writing, Content Creation, Fundraising, and Operations.
Keynote Speaker: Caroline Altman Smith, Deputy Director, The Kresge Foundation Education Program.
Caroline’s keynote presentation will paint the picture of where philanthropy is today and focus on ways local organizations can partner with foundations to increase their impact.
GET YOUR MITTS ON THIS! AN ONLINE SILENT AUCTION SUPPORTING MITTENS FOR DETROIT
Saturday, November 12, 2022, 12 p.m. to Sunday, November 20, 5 p.m. Virtual Event; bit.ly/GetYourMittsOnThis22
For the second consecutive year, Mittens for Detroit is proud to present its online silent auction – Get Your Mitts on This! You’ll have a chance to stock up for the holidays as you purchase with a purpose. Proceeds from this event support the purchase of new, warm, durable mittens and gloves for children, teens, and adults in need in Detroit, Highland Park, Hamtramck, Dearborn, and Pontiac. You’ll find items from sporting events and memorablia, theatre experiences, handmade clothing, fine dining and more!
Please join us in this fun way to support your community while you buy just the right present for just the right person… maybe even yourself!
NATIONAL PHILANTHROPY DAY DINNER GALA
Thursday, November 3, 2022 5 p.m. – 9 p.m.
npddet.org
The Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Detroit Chapter is delighted to welcome you back to National Philanthropy Day on Thursday, November 3 at MotorCity Casino Hotel!
Our gathering of National Philanthropy Day will celebrate philanthropists, fundraisers and the impact both make on Metro Detroit. Visit in-person with colleagues, enjoy dinner served by MotorCity Casino Hotel, and honor all those who work tirelessly to improve our world, near and far. Funds raised through this event support the programming, outreach, professional development, and educational efforts of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Detroit Chapter.
10TH ANNUAL FALL GALA FOR HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF OAKLAND COUNTY
Saturday, November 5, 2022 6:30 p.m. – 11 p.m. M1 Concourse, 1 Motorsports Drive Pontiac, MI 48341
eventbrite.com/e/habitat-for-humanityfall-gala-fundraiser-tickets-376496881307
Our 10th Annual Fall Gala will be held on Saturday, November 5th at M1 Concourses NEW event center! Through the help of generoussupporters like you this event has raised over $750,000 to further Habitat for Humanity of Oakland County’s mission to build strength, stability and self-reliance through affordable homeownership. Please choose to join with us to make this year’s event a huge success.
With your help, we can continue to make the dream of affordable housing a reality for all of our neighbors in Oakland County.
NEWAY WORKS ANNUAL LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE CHARITY GALA
Thursday, November 17, 2022 6 p.m. – 10 p.m. Villa Penna Banquet Hall 43985 Hayes Road Sterling Heights, MI 48313 eventbrite.com/e/neway-works-annuallet-your-light-shine-charity-galatickets-397125411797
Over 200 professionals, community a nd business leaders, philanthropists, elected officials, and influencers from Southeastern Michigan that have a heart for community and at-risk children will be in attendance.
You are the key to our and local communities’ success, and we would be grateful for your support!
The problem, some advocates say, is not that more than half of all American children who live in poverty have the wrong mindset, the problem is that more than half of all American children live in poverty.
With your help, we will be the light to make a positive social impact in the community we live, work, and serve!
57TH ANNUAL GUILD GALA
S aturday, December 10, 2022 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Westin Southfield, 1500 Town Center Southfield MI 48075 deturbanleague.org
The Urban League of Detroit & Southeastern Michigan is celebrating the 57th Annual Guild Gala, which will be held Saturday, December 10, 2022 beginning at 11:30 a.m. at the Westin Southfield located at 1500 Town Center, Southfield MI 48075. During the Gala, we’ll celebrate area youth who demonstrate positive attributes with our “Do the Right Thing” recognition while also honoring outstanding community servants with our Community Service Award. Proceeds from the event support our College Club/Project Ready and Workforce Career Development Center programs.
DOGSTRAVAGANZA
Thursday, N ovember 10, 2022 6:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
The Palazzo Grande 54660 Van Dyke Ave. Shelby Township, MI 48316 humanesocietyofmacomb.org/ dogstravaganza/
Dogstravaganza is the Humane S ociety o f Macomb’s largest fundraising event of the year. Join us November 10 at the Palazzo Grande for an amazing evening with live entertainment, great food, animals, auction, raffles and more!
With your help, we can continue to be an independent, high-save shelter. We rely solely on the generosity of our community to help those who cannot speak for themselves.
THE ARTICHOKE GARLIC FOUNDATION
RED TIE HOUR, PRESENTED BY THE TONI A. WISNE FOUNDATION
Friday, November 18, 2022 5 p.m. – 6 p.m. WOMC Radio beaumont.org/giving/foundation-events/ red-tie-hour
Get ready to tune in to the Red Tie Hour, a special one-hour event during the annual 104.3 WOMC Turn Up the Miracles Radiothon that supports Beaumont Children’s on Friday, Nov. 18. From 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., funds will be raised through community and corporate donations in support of Beaumont’s Center for Exceptional Families, Dearborn. CEF is a medical/ rehabilitative facility that treats developmental diagnoses, disabilities, and disorders, including autism, for patient families. Listeners will have fun with the on-air talent and special guests, learn more about CEF, as well as enjoy many participation incentives. To make a contribution, call 877-335-KIDS (5437), turn on 104.3 FM, or visit beaumont.org/redtiehour.
HOB NOBBLE GOBBLE
Friday, November 18, 2022 6:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
Ford Field
2000 Brush St. Detroit, MI United States theparade.org/hob-nobble-gobble/
As the most magical fundraiser for T he Parade Company, Hob Nobble Gobble® presented by Ford Motor Company, will be held Friday, Nov. 18, from 6:30–10:30 p.m. at Ford Field.
Produced by The Parade Company, guests will enjoy an evening featuring a special guest entertainer, a fabulous carnival midway; delicious cuisine; and live entertainment from end zone to end zone for kids and adults alike. Hob Nobble Gobble presented by Ford Motor Company, helps to raise important funds for The Parade Company to produce America’s Thanksgiving Parade® presented by Gardner White, recognized as one of America’s best parades. Tickets to the black-tie evening are limited. To reserve your tickets or tables, please contact CarolAnn at cbarbb@theparade.org or (313) 432-7831.
To give is truly the ultimate gift. It’s been said that there’s no greater feeling of joy than providing joy for others, no greater feeling of satisfaction than providing satisfaction for others, and no greater feeling of purpose than bringing a sense of purpose to others.
As you flip through these pages of Hour Media’s annual Give Detroit Nonprofit Directory, you’ll read about amazing people, organizations, and foundations that do this every day, without the need of compensation or even acknowledgement. They’re heroes in every sense of the word.
These people and groups represent everything that’s still good in the world. While headlines and social media like to highlight and focus on the negative and evil in people and society, those types of people comprise a small fraction compared to those who make a difference in our neighborhoods and communities. It’s the good people and groups that protect the vulnerable, care for the sick and injured, provide necessities for children and their families, support those who need a helping hand, help guide the vulnerable, cheer for the crestfallen, comfort the desolate, and remember and empower those whom society has forgotten.
Just take a look at a group such as Forgotten Harvest — an organization that has been on the front lines in our community for three decades delivering not just food, but hope. They’ve created a blueprint where one problem (waste) is a solution to another problem (hunger). Their food helps bridge the income gap for tens of thousands of people, allowing them to secure some basic life necessities for themselves and their families.
While Forgotten Harvest has been helping feed our neighbors, the Coalition on Temporary Shelter has been providing emergency shelter, transitional housing, and comprehensive support services for individuals in our community who are experiencing homelessness. COTS assists families in reaching their housing, economic, health, education, and career goals as they overcome homelessness and break the cycle of poverty for themselves, the next generation, and beyond.
Life Directions is another organization that offers important programs for at-risk young adults (ages 13-35). In 1973, one young adult was dying every 12 hours in Detroit. The founders of Life Directions intuitively knew that it was necessary to “get to the cause of the violence.” With its mission of “Peers Inspiring Peers,” Life Directions offers transformational programs and mentorship opportunities that encourage youth and young adults to seek a purposeful life direction. It’s not only about the present, but creating a better future today, for tomorrow.
These are just a few examples in this year’s GIVE section of organizations that save lives on a daily basis and give our neighbors a fighting chance to live, survive, and thrive. Take the time to read — and even help support — these people and groups that are providing the ultimate gift.
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
— Winston Churchill
Affirmations LGBTQ+ Community Center
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Affirmations LGBTQ+ community center has been the hub for southeast Michigan LGBTQ+ communities and it’s allies for the last 30 years. We provide a welcoming space where people of all sexual orientations, gender identities & expressions, and cultures can learn, grow, socialize and access the vital support they need! Our goal then was to fight for acceptance and basic human rights for our LGBTQ+ community. We proudly celebrate Ferndale Michigan as one of the most LGBTQ+ friendly cities in the United States.
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
• Advocacy and Public Policy Education
• Arts, Entertainment and Special Events
• Behavioral Health
• Care Coordination
• COVID-19 Vaccine access and education
• Discussion and Social Groups
• Emergency financial assistance
• Food and basic needs support
• Health and Wellness
• HIV/STI testing and counseling
• Individual and Group Mental Health Therapy
• Internship Program
• LGBTQ+ Specialized Trainings for companies and organizations
• Name and Gender Marker Change support
• Senior Programming
• Social and Cultural
• Support and Recovery Groups
• Tobacco cessation and prevention information/education and referrals
• Volunteer Program
• Youth Drop-Ins and Discord
• Youth Leadership Development Program
• Youth Programming
LEADERSHIP
Dave Garcia Executive Director
Redmon
of Programs
Merklinger
of Finance
Douglass
of Operations
Martin
of Development
Human Resources
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Detroit
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Our youth are excited to participate, friendly, driven to succeed, open to new things, motivated to improve, ready to excel, and looking for someone to be in their corner. Youth need to have supportive adults in their lives to be connected and nurtured. When youth feel connected they develop a sense of belonging which is critical as shown in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Youth become more motivated as their needs are met. This leads to greater success. This is also true for those who mentor. Mentoring builds bridges between people who may never have come into contact with each other.
It will be today’s youth who will be charged with making Metropolitan Detroit a vibrant, illustrious, and flourishing area. We are compelled to look beyond what is, to what
ought to be, so all youth can achieve success in life. Mentoring does that and more. We all need to belong in some way and if we don’t, the cost to society is staggering. Studies show that disconnected youth cost society $93 billion annually in lost wages, taxes, and social services. We are supporting the next generation of emerging leaders.
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
• Bowl for Kids Sake Fundraiser
• Donate through your company campaign
• Volunteer as a Big (Mentor)
• Conduct Facebook Fundraisers for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Detroit
• Become a Matchmaker with a recurring gift
• Enroll your child as a Little (mentee)
LEADERSHIP
Nicole McKinney President and CEOCollingwood St. Suite 318 Detroit, Michigan 48206 | 313-408-2511
CNS Healthcare
Mission
CNS Healthcare (CNS) is a non-profit, Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) with seven clinics and two clubhouses in Southeastern Michigan. CNS employs approximately 400 employees, paraprofessionals, and support staff, delivering services to more than 7,000 people annually.
CNS provides comprehensive integrated health services in partnership with several community organizations, and uses a patientcentered approach to identify, support, and promote the overall health of children, adolescents, adults, and older adults.
Services
Management
Health Services
Services
Rehabilitation (Clubhouse)
Services
COTS
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
COTS is committed to serving the most vulnerable Detroiters by providing emergency shelter, affordable housing, and more. It creates opportunities for families overcoming poverty to collaborate, thrive, and succeed in building strong and stable households, neighborhoods, and communities.
The Homeless Action Network of Detroit’s State of Homelessness report indicates that 1,077 adults in families and 1,577 children in families experienced homelessness in 2020. COTS’ Peggy’s Place emergency shelter for families supported 171 adults and 319 children in 2020; the same year, COTS provided affordable housing and supportive housing to 177 adults and 238 children.
Programs offered by the organization include a family-only emergency shelter; an emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence; long-term supportive housing with assistance for addiction, disability, or illness; and child development services for homeless families with infants and toddlers.
COTS has served multiple generations of families within its shelter and housing programs. Shelter and housing were the agency’s strengths, but these
supports alone could not end homelessness for families. Leadership began to notice that adults who were once children served by COTS, alongside their parents, were returning a generation later with their own children.
With the realization of poverty as the driver of homelessness and the need to address it came COTS’ theory of change for disrupting generational poverty. After making the necessary organizational changes to put theory to practice, the organization’s focus is now exclusively on encouraging families to develop economic self-sufficiency and stabilized environments, creating a multigenerational impact and ultimately breaking the cycle of poverty.
This innovative approach is called Passport to Self-Sufficiency™. Passport to Self-Sufficiency, COTS’s poverty-reduction framework, is used across all programs in the organization. Using a two-generation, whole-family approach, it partners with families who are currently or are at risk of experiencing homelessness, to provide long-term services that are person-centered, strengths-based, and trauma-informed.
LEADERSHIP
Cheryl P. Johnson Chief Executive Officer Andrew Gilroy Chief Financial Officer Aisha Morrell-Ferguson Chief Development Officer Delphia Simmons Chief Impact & Learning Officer Linda M. Koos Board President26 Peterboro St., Ste. 100 Detroit, MI 48201 | 313-498-5733
cotsdetroit.org
Forgotten Harvest
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Forgotten Harvest was formed in 1990 to fight two problems: hunger and waste. As metro Detroit’s largest food rescue organization, Forgotten Harvest has rescued an average of 46 million pounds of food during each of the last 10 years.
This is done by collecting surplus prepared and perishable food from over 580 locations, including grocery stores, fruit and vegetable markets, restaurants, caterers, dairies, farmers, wholesale food distributors, and other Health Department-approved sources. This donated food, which would otherwise go to waste, is delivered free of charge to over 200 emergency food providers in the metro Detroit area. Learn more about Forgotten Harvest and how to help drive hunger from our community at www.forgottenharvest.org
LEADERSHIP
TODAY
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Event information: forgottenharvest.org/category/events/
Volunteer Opportunities: forgottenharvest.org/volunteer-3/
How to get involved and learn more: forgottenharvest.org/
All donations will help Forgotten Harvest feed hungry metro Detroiters. Every $10.00 donated will provide $70.00 worth of groceries or 40 meals to your neighbors.
15000 West Eight Mile Oak Park, MI 48237 | 248-967-1500 forgottenharvest.org
Kirk Mayes, Chief Executive Officer
Mike Spicer, Chief Operations Officer
Tim Hudson, Chief Development Officer
Anne Ginn, Chief Public Policy Officer
Michael Butman, Chief Information Officer
Durkin, Chief Financial Officer
Franklin Wright Settlements, Inc.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Early Start Child Development Center: Serves youth from six weeks old to six years old with language and literacy exploration, social development, fine and gross motor skills. Parenting support programs include daily drop-in, before- and after-care.
After-School Enrichment Programs: Youth 6-17 years of age receive tutorial and homework assistance, cultural arts and recreation programs, nutritious snacks or meals, anger management and life skills instruction, and individual and group sessions. Additional programs include gardening and cooking, mentoring, employability skills, community activism, organized recreation, college preparation, cultural awareness programming, an annual college tour, and transportation.
Senior Outreach Services: Seniors can take part in Food and Friendship (socialization), community outreach, kinship care, enhanced fitness, and Zumba classes, and personal action toward health programming.
Family Growth and Development: Programs focused on families include family reunification, parent/
child interaction, crisis intervention, family counseling, food and shelter assistance, energy assistance, and education.
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Giving Tuesday November 29th
Spirit of Giving Gala MGM Grand Detroit December 9, 2022
DONATE TODAY
LEADERSHIP
Monique Marks, LMSW
President & CEO
Ahmad Nassar
Vice President of Strategy and Development
Erika Murray
Vice President of Educational Programs
Colleen Lauless
Director of Operations
Deon Mullen
Director of Senior Outreach Services
Bert Marks, II
Director of Community Outreach and Engagement
Veikko Kohler
Director of Finance
Natasha Dorsey Director of Human Resources and Compliance
Franklin Wright is rooted in a geographical neighborhood district. Its goal is to know and understand the neighborhood and to help develop its potential by providing aid in obtaining the services people need.
3360 Charlevoix St. Detroit, MI 48207 | 313-579-1000 franklinwright.org
Habitat for Humanity of Oakland County
Mission
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Habitat Oakland is part of a worldwide movement that provides safe, decent, and affordable housing which in turn paves the path for individuals and families to safety, security and self-reliance.
Although Oakland is one of the wealthiest counties in the country, one out of four families experience housing insecurity. For low/moderate income residents, the effects of COVID coupled with current economic conditions have made it near impossible to achieve the dream of homeownership or to reside in a safe home.
Through individualized approaches, we work with clients to help them secure or maintain a home or improve their financial situation. We have six programs which are
the focus of our work: homeownership, community development, neighborhood revitalization, critical home repair, financial coaching and our Habitat ReStores. Over our 27-year history we have helped over 1200 families and individuals achieve the dream of safe and affordable housing.
UPCOMING EVENTS
• Annual Fall Gala
November 5
• Comics for Habitat Winter 2023
• Women Build Welcome Home Luncheon April 2023
• Rock the Block Neighborhood Revitalization Days Spring and Fall 2023
• WB Home in One Golf Outing July 2023
LEADERSHIP
Tim Ruggles, CEO / Executive Director
Scott Milliken, Chief Operating Officer
Ann Duke, Chief Development Officer
Micah Jordan, Director of Partner & Community Programs
Sheri Trout, Director of Finance
Frank Kessler, Director of ReStores
Dena Pryde, Deputy Director of Philanthropy
150 Osmun St.
MI 48342
248-338-1843
Henry Ford Health
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Henry Ford Health provides a full continuum of services to people across Michigan and beyond, encompassing primary and specialty care, health insurance, home health and virtual care, pharmacy, eye care, and more. With more than 33,000 team members, Henry Ford Health is among Michigan’s largest employers, including nearly 6,000 physicians and researchers from the Henry Ford Medical Group and physician networks.
Donors power Henry Ford’s mission by supporting superior, patient-centered care; research and innovation; unparalleled education; and community health equity. Giving also advances Henry Ford’s leading specialty services, such as cardiology, neurology, behavioral health, sports medicine, transplant medicine, cancer treatment, and more.
Led by CEO Bob Riney, a board of trustees, and volunteer-led advisory boards, Henry Ford remains a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to delivering good.
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Game On Cancer: Henry Ford Cancer’s signature fundraiser: An engaging peer-to-peer campaign in partnership with the Detroit Lions and Detroit Pistons culminating in Field Day at Ford Field on December 16. Learn more at gameoncancer.com.
Henry Ford SandCastles: A grief support program helping children and families cope with the death of a loved one, at no cost to them. Learn more at aboutsandcastles.org.
Henry Ford Macomb Hospital Upgrade: The new North Tower and campus renovation will create the county’s first all-private room facility. This is the largest healthcare expansion project in Macomb County history. Learn more at henryford.com/macombtransformation.
Women-Inspired Neighborhood (WIN) Network Detroit: Empowers mothers and support partners to help babies thrive beyond their first birthdays. The WIN Network connects new and expecting mothers to resources to reduce infant mortalities and health disparities. Learn more at winnetworkdetroit.org.
Global Health Initiative: Our focus is on improving the health of vulnerable and marginalized populations in our own community and globally. Learn more at henryford.com/other/global-health-initiative.
You can also make a difference by including Henry Ford in your will or trust. To speak to someone about arranging an estate gift, contact Joe Impellizzeri at jimpell1@hfhs.org or (313) 874-6038.
LEADERSHIP
Robert G. Riney
President & CEO, Henry Ford Health
Adnan Munkarah, M.D.
Executive Vice President & Chief Clinical Officer
Steven N. Kalkanis, M.D.
CEO, Henry Ford Medical Group, Senior Vice President & Chief Academic Officer
Robin Damschroder
Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Heather Geisler
Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing, Communication & Experience Officer
Mary Jane Vogt
Executive Vice President & Chief Development Officer
1 Ford Place, Ste. 5A, Detroit, MI 48202 | 313-876-1031
henryford.com/development
Judson Center
Mission // To provide expert, comprehensive services that strengthen children, adults and families impacted by abuse and neglect, autism, developmental, behavioral and physical health challenges so they can achieve whole health, well-being and maximum potential.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
For 98 years, Judson Center has been a leader in human services. With our affiliate, Child Safe Michigan, we have locations in five counties, while serving nearly 12,000 children, adults and families annually throughout the state.
Our core services include:
Autism Connections – Providing Applied Behavioral Analysis Therapy in addition to other supports.
Behavioral Health Services – As a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic we provide mental health and substance use disorder services.
Child and Family Services –Providing foster care, adoption, mentoring and family support services.
Disability Services – Providing vocational and supported employment services and respite care.
Family Health – Specializing in helping individuals achieve optimal physical health and offering medication assisted treatment.
LEADERSHIP
Top Executives
Lenora Hardy-Foster, President & CEO
Susan Salhaney, Chief Operating Officer
Khadija Walker-Fobbs, Chief Strategy Officer
Scott Trudell, Chief Development Officer
Gary Mallia, Chief Information Officer
Cynthia Sikina, Interim Chief Financial Officer
Kenya Martin, Senior Director of Human Resources
Board of Directors
Steven F. Ebben, Chair, Board of Trustees
Kevin Johns, Vice Chair, Board of Trustees
Linda Marshall, Treasurer, Board of Trustees
Curtis H. Mistele, Secretary, Board of Trustees
A gift today will provide essential services to help children and their families live healthy, stable and positive lives, right here in our own backyard. Judson Center is more than hope, it’s help. Together, we will help those in need succeed!
30301 Northwestern Highway Suite 100 Farmington Hills, MI 48334 | 248-549-4339
judsoncenter.org
Life Directions
Mission
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Life Directions is one of Detroit’s best kept secrets - what we do works!
Validated studies show that our programs promote peacebuilding that reduces addictions, violence, and high school dropout, while empowering young people to thrive in school and embrace values and goals that lead to success.
Peer Motivation brings young people on a positive path together with struggling students. Peers inspire peers to take charge of their lives and make a difference.
Neighborhood Enrichment connects adults from local and business communities to mentor, organize service-learning projects and lead young adults and teens toward college and quality careers.
Peer Mentor trains achieving Peer Motivation students to lead at-risk 8th graders to make high school work for them. Life Directions serves Western International High School and Amelia Earhart Middle School.
LEADERSHIP
Luke Jacobi, Chair
Jim Schmid, Vice Chair
Frank W. Jackson, III, Secretary
Terrence B. Larkin, Corporate Treasurer
Hon. Thomas M.J. Hathaway, Founding Board Member
Mark Aiello
Charles Bullock
Henry B. Cooney
Donald J. Gasiorek
Juanita Hernandez
Shaelese King
Patrick MacDonald
Eric Madison
Beth McKenney
Timothy O’Brien
John Ozdych
Patrick A. Rugiero
Robert Santavicca
Michael Scamardella
Bruce Wojciechowski
Scott Wrobel
Rev. John Phelps, C.Ss.R., President/CEO
Life Directions needs your support to reach more than 3,500 young adults each year, most of whom live in underserved communities. Your financial support can make all the difference right now and in the future of a young adult.
5716 Michigan Avenue, Suite 2200 Detroit, Michigan 48210 | 313-516-0864 lifedirections.org
Orchards Children’s Services
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
• Orchards has facilitated thousands of adoptions since 1986. This year, Orchards completed 96 adoptions.
• Family Preservation provides in-home services based on mutual respect and communication, with the goal of keeping the family unit intact.
• Orchards provides a temporary haven for children entering the foster care system ensuring they are safe during a traumatic time.
• Utilizing our team of experienced mental health professionals, Orchards believes in the right to access mental health treatment and ensures financial barriers do not prevent access to TRU services.
• Children between the ages of 16 months – 2 years in Orchards ParentChild+ Program receive services focusing on developing and enhancing interactions through learning and play to promote later school success.
HOW TO HELP
• Make a tax deductible gift at orchards.org
• Attend the Gerald L. Levin ‘Champions for Children’ Event
• Donate to our Holiday Season of Giving
• Support Orchards Promise Scholarship
• Support and learn about Orchards initiatives by visiting orchards.org
LEADERSHIP
Michael E. Williams, President & CEO
Shannon Laskey, Chief Operating Officer
LaToya Harvey, Chief Advancement Officer
Kulick, Chief Financial Officer
K. Adkins, Board Chairperson Drew Besonson, Board Vice Chairperson
DONATE TODAY
Strengthening the community through quality services to children and families. Our thoughtful planning, innovative approaches and committed leadership all speak to an organization that cares.
24901 Northwestern Hwy., Suite 500 Southfield, MI 48075 | 248-258-0440 orchards.org
Pime Missionaries
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
The PIME Missionaries commit themselves to lifelong witness of Christ’s mercy to the most forgotten, impoverished, or isolated people in the world. Since 1947, PIME (Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions) called Detroit their home in the United States. Over those 75 years, PIME Missionaries have teamed with supporters in the U.S. to feed, house, and educate the most vulnerable through the PIME Sponsorships at a Distance Program; and provide sustainable aid to communities through the PIME Mission Development Program. Together, we can change lives - for good.
LEADERSHIP
MI
Quincy St.,
| 313-342-4066
Fr. Ken Mazur
US Superior
Daniele Criscione
Mission Center Director
Fabbri
Cole
Haller
Ruth Ellis Center
Named in honor of a resilient Detroit icon, Ruth Ellis Center works to create a supportive environment and community with LGBTQ+ young people. Founded in 1999, Ruth Ellis Center (REC) has established a national reputation for quality and innovation in providing traumainformed services for lesbian, gay, bi-attractional, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) youth, and young adults, with an emphasis on young people of color, experiencing homelessness, involved in the child welfare system, and/or experiencing barriers to health and wellbeing.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Drop-In Center: Food pantry, shower & laundry facilities, hygiene kits, clothing closet, computer lab, peer support groups, education, and employment support.
Health & Wellness Center: Integrated primary and behavioral health care for young people ages 13-30.
Family Support Program: Support for families and caretakers of LGBTQ+ children and youth, in partnership with the Family Acceptance Project.
Center for Lesbian & Queer Women and Girls: Social support, intimate partner violence prevention, sexual health, advocacy, and case management.
Permanent Supportive Housing: 43 apartments co-located with supportive services in Detroit’s Piety Hill neighborhood.
Rapid Re-housing: Supports LGBTQ+ young people to quickly stabilize their housing with 3-12 months of rental support.
Kelly Stough Project: Provides 6-24 months of rental assistance for LGBTQ+ survivors of human trafficking.
Ruth Ellis Institute: LGBTQ+ training and consulting for youth serving professionals working in child welfare, behavioral health, juvenile justice, and housing systems of care.
LEADERSHIP
Mark B. Erwin, Interim Co-Executive Director
Dr. Staci Hirsch, Interim Co-Executive Director
Sharron Fincher, Board Chair
Corinne Rockoff, Board Co-Chair
Jay Long, Board Treasurer
Barb Biess, Board Secretary
Administrative Office 95 Victor St. Highland Park, MI 48203 | 313-252-1950
RuthEllisCenter.org
Services To Enhance Potential
Mission // To support individuals in the pursuit of their chosen goals and the achievement of personal satisfaction in their lives.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Services To Enhance Potential (STEP) is a non-profit organization which provides support and services to nearly 1,300 persons with disabilities and other mental health needs in Wayne and Macomb Counties. Services To Enhance Potential offers support services including support coordination, employment and self-employment services, job development, training, and skill-building.
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
‘What’s Cooking in Westland’ and ‘What’s Cooking in the D’ programs: This program educates participants on a variety of healthy lifestyle topics, including proper eating habits, food prep and clean up. Individuals participate in the program daily to learn culinary skills and healthy eating habits.
Progressive Art Studio Collective (PASC): In January 2022, STEP launched Progressive Art Studio Collective (PASC), an art and design studio and exhibitions program for artists with developmental disabilities and/or mental health concerns. PASC is dedicated to supporting disabled artists to advance independent artistic practices and build individual career paths in the art and design fields. PASC creates opportunities for hard and soft skill development, income, and employment and is staffed by professional artists and curators.
STEP Thrift Store and Donation Centers: Beginning in June 2007, this community-based business enterprise began as an opportunity to train and employ individuals with developmental and mental disabilities. Our Thrift Store and Donation Centers are located in Dearborn Heights, Southgate and City of Wayne.
LEADERSHIP
Carla Dean-Ogene
Director of Employment and Training Services
Cherie Stangis
Director of Clinical Services and Performance Improvement
Jeff Bachynski Director of Operations
Terey DeLisle Director of Programs
Michele Garrett-Finley Chief Financial Officer
S. Gulley Road
MI 48124 | 313-278-3040
Top Left: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Services To Enhance Potential. Bottom Left: What’s Cooking in Westland? Above: PASC Artist showing off his work at the Southgate gallery.The Nature Conservancy
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Founded in 1951, The Nature Conservancy works in more than 70 countries and all 50 states. We create innovative, pragmatic, on-the-ground solutions to the world’s toughest challenges, so nature and people can thrive together. To achieve a sustainable future, TNC collaborates with local communities, governments, and the private sector to address the most pressing issues of our time: climate change and the loss of biodiversity. In Michigan, these global priorities drive us to focus locally. We work with agriculture in the Saginaw Valley to help farmers use conservation on their farms, helping water quality and their bottom line. We work with conservation partners to restore and revitalize our native fisheries. We work with landowners in Michigan’s forests to make those forests as healthy and climate resilient as possible. And, we work with local communities in Detroit, helping provide resources for green stormwater infrastructure, all for the benefit of both people and nature.
When you make a tax-deductible donation to The Nature Conservancy, you’re supporting the most effective solutions to the environment’s most pressing challenges.
As the largest environmental nonprofit, The Nature Conservancy is working to advance conservation in all 50 states and U.S. territories and in 70 countries around the world. That’s why your contribution is so much more than charity; it’s an investment in the future of our planet.
101 E. Cesar E. Chavez Ave., Lansing, MI 48906 | 517-316-2287
nature.org/michigan
YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
The Y is an inclusive organization of men, women and children joined together by a shared commitment in nurturing the potential of kids, promoting healthy living and fostering social responsibility from cradle to career through the retirement years. The YMCA provides health and wellness activities, inclusive of indoor exercise facilities, group exercise classes, personal training, swim lessons and more. The Y operates an early childhood education center, before and after school learning centers, food distribution, arts education and host of youth development programs from sports to post secondary education attainment support.
Summer day camps serving over 2500 children at over 20 sites engaging children activities that marry fun and learning
The YMCA sends teams into local neighborhoods to provide equipment and instruction and structure to provide children with constructive opportunities to play in local communities throughout metropolitan Detroit.
EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
• Healthy Kids Day April 30, 2023
• Spring Girls on the Run and Stride 5K May 7, 2023
• Legacy Golf Classic September 18, 2023
• Halloween at the YMCA (HAY) October 28, 2023
• Fall Girls on the Run Stride 5k November 12, 2023
• Annual Campaign Jan 1 2023 - Dec 31, 2023
LEADERSHIP
Helene Weir, CEO/President
Michelle Kotas, CFO
Darcie West, CHRO
Kyle Anderson, VP Operations - Membership
Lynette Simmons, VP Operations - Community Initiatives
Lorie Uranga, SVP Facilities
Latitia McCree-Thomas, SVP Marketing and Communications
YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit 1401 Broadway, Suite 3A Detroit, MI 48226 | 313-223-2499 ymcadetroit.org
Each Spring and each Fall the YMCA hosts a 5k race as the culminating activity for the Girls on the Run and STRIDE programs.American Indian Health & Family Services of Southeastern Michigan
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Clinic Services: Family Practice Medical Clinic, Well Child Checks, STD/STI and HIV Testing, Cancer Screenings, Immunizations (Children and Adults), Insurance/Benefits Enrollment.
Cultural Services: Sweat Lodges, Traditional Teachings, Workshops.
Behavioral Health Services: Psychiatric Evaluation & Medication Management, Mental Health Counseling, Addictions Counseling, Recovery Support Group, Women’s & Men’s Groups, Suicide Prevention, Auricular Acupuncture.
Community Wellness Services: Nutrition & Physical Activities, Gardening, Community/Cultural Events, Healthy Start Family Spirit (Pregnant Women/Those with Children Under 5), Youth Groups (Ages 5-24), Education & Career Support (Ages 14-24).
LEADERSHIP
Chasity Dial, Chief Executive Officer
Glenn Wilson, Chief Operating Officer
Waneta Assaf, Director of Finance
Casey Brant, Director of Community Wellness
David Garcia, Behavioral Health Director
Jesse Klebba, Medical Director
4880 Lawndale St. Detroit, MI 48210 | 313-846-3718
aihfs.org
Junior Achievement of Southeastern Michigan
Mission // Junior Achievement’s mission is to inspire and prepare young people
We
world
people have the skillset and mindset to build thriving communities.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
In partnership with educators, community-based organizations, corporations, and entrepreneurs, we provide curriculum for school age youth, K-12, and young adults, 18-25 in financial literacy, work and career readiness, and entrepreneurship. Our programming is supported by community volunteers who not only deliver our lessons but share their experiences. Volunteers serve as role models helping to positively impact young people’s perceptions about the importance of education, as well as critical life skills. We provide materials for in-person and virtual settings to serve students in Genesee, Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, Shiawassee, St. Clair, Washtenaw, and Wayne Counties.
LEADERSHIP
577 E. Larned St Detroit, MI 48202 | 313-962-5658 jamichigan.org
Mission // To empower and enhance the physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental wellbeing of American Indian/Alaska Native individuals, families, and other underserved populations in SE MI through culturally grounded health and family services. Connecting care with a culture of comprehensive wellnessRose Hill Center
Mission // To provide highly effective and sustainable therapeutic programs for adults with mental illness which enable them to manage their symptoms and lead fulfilling lives.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
Rose Hill Center, a Joint Commission accredited mental health residential treatment and rehabilitation facility licensed by the state of Michigan opened in 1992 and has since provided treatment to over 2,000 individuals.
Service offerings include Residential Rehabilitation programs to help residents develop sustainable self-care management skills and practices; Extended Residential services for those who need on-going supervision and care; Transitional Living in on-campus townhouses where residents practice independence in a safe, secure environment; Co-Occurring Residential Services for people who need help managing multiple secondary diagnoses; and Community Support services for graduates living in nearby communities.
EVENTS
Rose Hill Annual Spring Flower Sale: May 13, 2023 Rose Hill Campus. Purchase flowers for all your spring plantings
John Kelly Memorial Golf Invitational: 2023 Date TBD Participate in Rose Hill’s 31st annual Golf Outing
5130 Rose Hill Blvd. Holly, MI 48442 | 248-634-5530
rosehillcenter.org
United Way for Southeastern Michigan
Mission // To mobilize the caring power of Detroit and Southeastern Michigan to improve communities and individual lives in measurable and lasting ways.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
United Way for Southeastern Michigan is working to advance equitable communities where all households are stable and every child can thrive. Whether an individual family is in need or we face a community-wide crisis, we are uniquely built to put resources where they’re needed most, combining strategic investments with advocacy, volunteerism and innovative programs to create real, systemic change.
For more than 100 years, United Way has been there to serve people in our community. Every day, we are working to build a Southeastern Michigan that works for all of us.
LEADERSHIP
Dr. Darienne Hudson, President and CEO
Tonya Adair, Chief People, Equity and Engagement Officer
Steven Schwartz, Chief Financial Officer
Brandon Lee, Executive Vice President- Strategy & Operations Eric Davis, Vice President- Community Impact
Sarah Grutza, Vice President- Corporate Relations
Kyle DuBuc, Executive Director- Advocacy, Communications & Marketing
Lara Keathley, Executive Director- People & Culture
Vista Maria
3011 W. Grand Blvd., Suite 500 Detroit, MI 48202 | 313-226-9200
UnitedWaySEM.org
Mission // We foster restorative relationships and deliver innovative care, treatment, and education so that vulnerable youth and families believe in their worth, heal and build the skills for success.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED
What began as a home for girls and women in need has evolved to encompass mental health services, foster care and adoption, independent living, and secure care for the survivors of human trafficking, plus education, after school care and advocacy for the welfare of children.
LEADERSHIP
Kathy Regan Chief Financial Officer
Meredith Reese Chief Integrated & Behavioral Health Officer Mary Vogt Chief Development Officer
Dearborn Heights, MI 48127 | 248-914-0742 vistamaria.org
United Way Volunteers support a varity of projects in our community.Explore the joy of the holidays with the Ohio Holiday Lights Trail. Featuring walkable and drivable seasonal displays, this Trail brings out the holiday spirit for everyone. Find beautifully lit public squares, extravagant drive-thru light displays you can see from the road, illuminated historic buildings, decked out downtowns, and so much more. The Ohio Holiday Lights Trail showcases the best and brightest light displays in Ohio.
You can find information about the following holiday light displays and more by visiting Ohio.org.
• Nature’s A-Glow, Beech Creek Botanical Garden, Alliance
• November 25-27, December 2-4, 9-11, 16-18, 23-25, 29
• Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad North Pole Adventure™, Cleveland
• November 11-22, 25-30, December 1 – 21
• The Legendary Lights of Historic Clifton Mill
• November 25-December 30
• Lights Before Christmas presented by KeyBank, Toledo Zoo & Aquarium
• November 18 – December 31
• Downtown Cleveland WinterLand Lights, Public Square
• November 26- February
• Steubenville Nutcracker Village
• November 22-January 7
• Akron Zoo Wild Lights presented by Akron Children’s Hospital
• November 25–27, December 2–4, 9–11, 16–23, 26–30
• Hensville Lights, Toledo
• November 19-January 8
BAVARIAN INN LODGE
Guest Information: 855-652-7200 | bavarianinn.com
One Covered Bridge Lane, Frankenmuth, MI 48734
Nestled on the banks of the beautiful Cass River, the Bavarian Inn Lodge is a world-class getaway destination for families and couples. Unique in its theme, you’ll experience a trip to “Little Bavaria” right in mid-Michigan!
Generations of families have been welcomed with the Bavarian Inn Lodge’s delightfully cozy beds, something fun for everyone, and warm Bavarian hospitality. The inn’s 360 European-themed guest rooms, including whirlpool and family suites, all include a minirefrigerator, flat-screen TV, iron and ironing board, and blow-dryer. Enjoy 7 acres of family fun at the Bavarian Inn Lodge — including four indoor pools, two water slides, and a massive gaming area. The lodge is conveniently located just steps away from Frankenmuth’s downtown shopping and attractions, and offers recreational options including nightly entertainment for all ages.
• Deck the Hall at Stan Hywet, Akron
• November 25-27, December 1-4, 8-23, 26-30
• Christmas at Kingwood, Mansfield
• November 26 – December 30 (closed Mondays)
• Coney Island’s Nights of Lights, Cincinnati
• November 11- January 2
• Holiday Lights at Easton, Columbus
• November 18 – January 2
Bavarian Inn Lodge
Fall Getaway Fall Getaway
Travel Destinations
TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM
Guest Information: 101 W. Grandview Parkway, Traverse City, MI 49684 231-947-1120 | 800-872-8377 | info@TraverseCity.com | traversecity.com
Strike a match and light the firewood. Wrap chilled fingers around a cup of steaming hot buttered rum. Experience the holiday season at its best.
Traverse City brings back childhood memories and sparks new family traditions. Walk through the snow-covered streets in search of gifts at shops aglow with holiday lights. Maybe even snuggle into a warm blanket and enjoy a horse-drawn sleigh ride.
Winter doesn’t require you to hide from the chill; instead, embrace it! Relax your pace. Savor every bite of a unique fine dining experience. Visit one of the more than 40 wineries that make up the Traverse Wine Coast and sip what just might become your new favorite vintage.
Take the time to check out one or more of Traverse City’s holiday events, like:
• Bell’s Iceman Commeth Challenge, Nov. 5
• Traverse City Beer Week, Nov. 11-18
• Holiday Trail Celebration, Crystal Mountain, Nov. 25
• Ladies’ Night, Downtown TC, Dec. 8
• Mens’ Night, Downtown TC, Dec. 15
• Downtown TC Light Parade, Santa arrival, Dec. 19
• CherryT Ball Drop, Dec. 31
Winter in Traverse City gives you even more of a reason to respect the natural beauty of the region, blanketed with shimmering snow. It’s time to connect with friends and family, and share a warmth that radiates from within. It invites you to celebrate the true meaning of the holiday season.
Traverse City is exactly where you should be. Find out more at traversecity.com
GRAND TRAVERSE RESORT AND SPA
Guest Information: 100 Grand Traverse Village Blvd., Acme, MI 49610 231-534-6000 | g randtraverseresort.com
Celebrate New Year’s Eve in the splendor of northern Michigan when you stay at Grand Traverse Resort and Spa. Beautiful blankets of crisp white snow and sparkling lights illuminate Traverse City and create a celebratory backdrop to ring in 2023.
Our New Year’s Eve Fire and Ice party starts with a four-course dinner in our recently renovated Michigan Ballroom. Enjoy half-shell oysters, beet salad, grilled bone-in filet with cherry almond compote, fire roasted carrots, purple potato puree, and chili oil. Finish your dinner with delicious red and blue velvet cake pops. Enjoy a jazz trio and cash bar. Then head down to the party in Governors’ Hall. Dance the night away with live music from the John Pomeroy Band! A cash bar is available and late-night snacks include buffalo chicken bites, baked jalapeno poppers, and more. When the clock strikes midnight, enjoy a dazzling fireworks display along the Spruce Run golf course.
For a more intimate setting, elevate to the scenic 16th floor of the Resort’s Tower for a New Year’s Eve dinner celebration in Aerie Restaurant & Lounge. Offering bold and exciting flavors, Aerie provides a specialty pre-fixe menu. As one of the most romantic places to be on New Year’s Eve, live music by Adam Dennis will fill the restaurant.
And do not forget about the kids! Our kid’s New Year’s Eve party in the health club is the perfect spot for them to celebrate. Kids can make a splash at our indoor pools and water playground. Games will be available on the indoor tennis courts. Plus, movies in the fitness studio, pizza, a sparkling juice toast,
and balloon drop at midnight! Whether you are looking to celebrate with a group or in an intimate setting, you can experience it all this New Year’s Eve at Grand Traverse Resort and Spa.
ALL-STAR PLANNERS
Using
DON’T-MISS EVENTS
See Bakpak Durden's 2020 oilon-wood painting The Refrigerator at Cranbrook.
VISUAL ARTS
Cranbrook Art Museum has been obsessed with connecting itself to the city of Detroit. With its latest round of exhibi tions, the bond only grows as three talented heavyweights in the city’s contemporary scene land in Cran brook’s galleries. Bakpak Durden is a homegrown talent whose eye for anatomy and hyper realism has set them apart, whether working on a mural or on can vas. Their debut solo museum exhibition, The Eye of Horus, will contin ue to build their nascent legacy. James Benjamin Franklin may be a West Coast transplant, but he’s adopted Detroit
Now is your time to be in the room where it happens; catch Hamilton at the Fisher Theatre.
Culture Calendar
BY RYAN PATRICK HOOPERsince studying at Cran brook and laying roots here. His exhibition Full Circle explores the inter section of found materials and abstract art framed in natural shapes and also marks a solo museum debut. I’ve saved the longest-stand ing and most distinguished Detroit artist of the bunch for last, and that’s Scott Hocking and his Detroit Stories retrospective at Cran brook, which will bring together his sculpture, installation, photogra phy, and video work into one place, including his surrealist installations created with found ob jects from obscure places. It’s a loaded fall exhibition calendar at Cranbrook that’ll provide a quick pulse check of what Detroit’s contem
porary arts scene looks like now
All the exhibitions mentioned from Bakpak Durden, James Benjamin Franklin, and Scott Hocking open on Nov. 5 at Cranbrook Art Museum and will be on display through spring 2023. More info is available at Cranbrook Art Museum’s official website, cranbrookartmuseum.org.
Nov. 2 • MUSIC
Tegan and Sara: Singers, songwriters, and multi-instrumentalist twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quin first achieved mainstream success with their 2004 single “Walking with a Ghost.” Now, with 11 studio albums and a Grammy Award nomination under their belts, the duo return to the road in support of their new album Crybaby. Catch them when they stop in Detroit, accompanied by folk artist Tomberlin. $42.50+. Majestic Theatre, Detroit; majesticdetroit.com
Nov. 4 • MUSIC
Chaka Khan: This 10-time Grammy Award-winning “Queen of Funk” has been dazzling listeners with her eclectic mix of R&B, soul, funk, disco, and pop music for more than 40 years. Expect to hear
Khan’s new single, “Woman Like Me,” along with a smattering of hits from her extensive back catalog. $60+. Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Detroit; musichall.org
Nov. 4 • FILM
Dirty Dancing in Concert: Lovers of the classic ’80s film can enjoy it in a whole new way when this immersive tour ing event comes to Detroit’s Fisher Theatre. View the digitally remastered movie on the big screen as a band performs the iconic soundtrack live on stage.
It’s 2022. You are yet again hearing about Hamilton, the Lin-Manu el Miranda masterpiece that opened back in 2015 and remains a jugger naut on theater stages from here to infinity. It’s making its second tour
of duty through the Fisher Theatre ahead of Thanksgiving and stick ing around into December. It’s the type of mustsee Broadway spectacle that will have tickets flying out of the box of fice and people lined up for their lottery chance to see it in the lobby of the Fisher Building. The warning here is that all good things come to an end, so if you’ve been putting off seeing Hamil ton because it feels like it will always be here and waiting for you you don’t want to throw away your shot. For tickets to Hamilton and other information about upcoming Broadway in Detroit shows at the Fisher Theatre, go to broadwayindetroit.com.
Stick around after the show for an encore partyhosted by the musicians. $60+. Fisher Theatre, Detroit; broadwayindetroit.com
Night Live and 30 Rock this Emmy Award-winning actor and comedian will stop at Detroit’s Music Hall for a night of stand-up comedy during his No Disrespect tour. Morgan was seen most recently in Jordan Peele’s TBS comedy
The Last O.G. in which he portrayed an ex-con searching for redemption. $45+. Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Detroit; musichall.org
Nov. 5 COMEDY
Nov. 6 MUSIC
Two Door Cinema Club: The Ireland-based indie rock-
BROADWAY Hamilton returns … and it’s still must-see Broadway
SAVE THE DATES FOR COMEDY SHOWS, FILM SCREENINGS, PERFORMANCES, AND MORE COMPILED BY LAUREN WETHINGTON
A trio of Detroit heavy hitters land at CranbrookTracy Morgan: Best known for his roles in hit NBC comedies like Saturday
Radiohead alums infuse alternative rock with elements of post-punk, progressive rock, and electronic music via side project The Smile.
CLASSICAL A Berlin debut in Ann Arbor
Like clockwork, the University Musical Society brings some of the most diverse music, dance, and theater programming in southeast Michigan. The arts arm of the University of Michigan is celebrating its 143rd year with violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman (Dec. 10), the bluegrass master Béla Fleck (Dec. 16), and the bizarre filmmeets-art installation The Plastic Bag Store, which I’ll be bringing to your attention in January. But for our November purposes, we’ll focus on the Berlin Philharmonic gracing the stage with the Ann Arbor debut of their new maestro, Mozart’s
First Violin Concerto, and lots more. As a bonus, the Berlin Philharmonic will be performing inside Hill Auditorium — one of the most acoustically sound venues in the United States, designed by architect Albert Kahn. A sophisticated and savory evening indeed.
The Berlin Philharmonic performs two programs across two nights on Friday, Nov. 18, and Saturday, Nov. 19, at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor as part of UMS’ latest season. More information and tickets are available at ums.org.
Ryan Patrick Hooper is the host of CultureShift on 101.9 WDET, Detroit’s NPR station (weekdays from noon to 2 p.m.).
On My Playlist
Radiohead alums make one of the best albums of the year If you’re looking to round out your concert calendar as we head into winter, add The Smile to your list. You don’t have to be a Radiohead fan to appreciate this side project, featuring Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood stepping out together with drummer Tom Skinner. Their debut album, A Light for Attracting Attention is fiercer, faster fare than you’ve come to expect from previous Radiohead albums, giving this threepiece an underlying punk energy that will translate well to the Masonic Cathedral stage when they perform on Nov. 28.
The Smile (featuring Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood) performs at the Masonic Cathedral Theatre on Monday, Nov. 28. Tickets are available via AXS.
ers of Two Door Cinema Club embark on an international tour this fall in support of their fifth studio album, Keep on Smiling which debuted in September. Hear new singles “Wonderful Life” and “Lucky” when the band brings its signature blend of pop, punk, and dance sounds to Detroit’s Majestic Theatre this month. Dream pop outfit Day Wave will open the show. $35+. Majestic Theatre, Detroit; majesticdetroit.com
Nov. 6 THEATER
Popovich Comedy Pet Theater: Ukrainian circus performer and comedian Gregory Popovich trained more than 25 rescued pets for this family-friendly production. See cats, dogs, birds, and even ponies perform jaw-dropping stunts live on stage, along with world-class juggling by Popovich himself. An alum of the renowned Moscow Circus, he began performing at just 6 years of age. $15+. Redford Theatre, Detroit; redfordtheatre.com
Nov. 9 MUSIC
Rodney Crowell: The prolific country singer-songwriter will perform some of his biggest hits, share stories, and read passages from his new book, Word for Word at this intimate event. Crowell’s 1988 album Diamonds & Dirt with its five
No. 1 singles on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, launched him to country music fame. The “After All This Time” singer boasts two Grammy Awards and two Academy of Country Music Awards. $45+. The Ark, Ann Arbor; theark.org
Nov. 10-12 • COMEDY
Ben Bailey: As the host of the Emmy Award-winning game show series Cash Cab this comedian offered unsuspecting NYC commuters a chance to win cash prizes by answering trivia questions from the back of
his taxi. He’ll return to his standup roots when he performs five shows at the Comedy Castle this month. $20+. Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle, Royal Oak; comedycastle.com
Nov. 12 • FILM
Planet 9 Film Festival: Fans of horror, science fiction, and all things strange will find lots to love at this annual film festival, which takes place at Hamtramck’s Ant Hall. Enjoy art house films by local, national, and international independent directors, along with live music, vendors, art collaborations, and costume contests. $10. Ant Hall, Hamtramck; facebook.com/ planet9film
Nov. 12 • MUSIC
Ty Segall: Singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Ty Segall is known for pumping out raucous California garage rock with his backing ensemble, the Freedom Band. He’ll leave the electric guitars at home for this stripped-down acoustic set as he supports his latest album, Hello, Hi, which he recorded solo in his home studio. $20. Muse um of Contemporary Art Detroit, Detroit; mocadetroit.org
Nov. 12-20 THEATER
Faust: Charles Gounod’s classic 1859 opera is restored to its original glory in this fresh production from esteemed New York City director Lileana Blain-Cruz, featuring newly recovered scenes and music. The audience will follow along with the show’s titular charac ter, an aging scholar, as he sells his soul to the devil in return for youth and love. Faust will be performed in French with Eng lish titles. $29+. Detroit Opera House, Detroit; detroitopera.org
Nov. 17-19 COMEDY
Dan Soder: Best known for his many appearances on the MTV2 reality comedy series Guy Code and his role as Mafee on the Showtime series Billions, this comedian, actor, and radio personality will perform five shows at the Comedy Castle this month. Catch his most recent comedy special, Son of a Gary, on HBO Max. $25. Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle, Royal Oak; comedycastle.com
Nov. 19 • COMEDY
Beth Stelling: This Ohioborn comedian and writer first entered the public eye with standout performances on late-night TV shows such as Jimmy Kimmel Live, Conan, and Last Call with Carson Daly. The comedian’s 2020 HBO standup special Girl Daddy features her sharp, irreverent takes on family, society, and the personal relationships that shaped her own life. $29.50. The Crofoot, Pontiac; thecrofoot.com
Nov. 20 MUSIC
Damien Escobar: This violinist and Juilliard School graduate, along with his Emmy Awardwinning ensemble Nuttin’ but Stringz, took third place in the 2008 season of America’s Got Talent After the duo disbanded in 2012, Escobar embarked on a solo career, creating his own unique sound with influ ences from classical, jazz, pop, and R&B musical styles. This month, he will give an intimate performance at Motor City Casino Hotel’s Sound Board theater. $39+. Sound Board at Motor City Casino Hotel, Detroit; 313presents.com
Nov. 22-23 • MUSIC
I Prevail: This Grammynominated Southfield band rose to national fame upon releasing a post-hardcore cover of Taylor Swift's “Blank Space” in 2014. This month, I Prevail will play back-to-back hometown shows at The Fillmore, where fans can expect to hear favorites like “Hurricane” and “Break ing Down.” $75+. The Fillmore Detroit, Detroit; livenation.com
WITCHES’ BREW
BY JENN MCKEEWHEN ROYAL OAK-BASED novelist Rebecca Mix had her first press interview, with a small local newspaper, the reporter told her that readers often get excited about buying books by area authors.
“I was like, ‘Well, I don’t know if the average older person in Royal Oak wants to read about a crazy teenage lesbian murdering people,’” Mix says. “But more power to them if they do!”
Mix’s young adult novel, The Ones We Burn, scheduled for a Nov. 1 release by Simon & Schuster, tells a fantastical story of a young witch’s mission to assassinate her betrothed: a gentle human prince. When the two uncover a witch-killing plague, they race to stop it, and Ranka also finds herself falling for the prince’s sister, Princess Aramis.
“The Ones We Burn is very much a story that I desperately wish I’d had when I was a teenager,” says Mix, who works by day in health care public relations. “It’s also a genuine love letter. Books saved my life.”
Initially, however, Mix had been a reluctant reader while growing up in Lake Orion — to the point where teachers sent home notes of concern — but when a fourth grade classmate told Mix she was stupid for not liking to read, she decided to take part in her school’s reading contest.
“You’d basically read a book and take a quiz, and then you would get points for that,” Mix says. “I went to the Paint Creek Elementary library and looked at the shelves and picked out the thickest book I could find. It was Redwall by Brian Jacques, and I did not understand it. I got five out of 20 points on the quiz. But I was like, ‘Good enough!’ And I started reading and reading and reading.”
Mix ventured into creative writing in sixth grade, when she got hooked on a virtual pet website called Neopets — specifically, a role-playing forum called Neoboards, where she’d create characters and coauthor stories with others.
One problem? Others on the site were often teens or college students.
“I’d get kicked out … because my writing was so bad,” Mix says, laughing. “When new writers ask me, ‘How do you face rejection?’ I’m like, ‘I got it beat out of me when I was 12.’”
This rings true, since years of rejection and criticism failed to ever faze Mix for long. During her senior year of high school, Mix — at the suggestion of an English teacher — did an independent study that resulted in the composition of her first novel.
“I sent it out to agents, and they all said no. I was like, ‘Damn. OK. I guess I’ll try again,’” Mix says.
The Ones We Burn, in fact, is the fourth novel Mix has written, and it was the first to land her both an agent and a book contract.
But even then, the way was anything but clear.
In November 2019, on the heels of a Simon & Schuster imprint buying Burn, then-24-year-old Mix returned from grocery shopping one day and, while getting out of the car, slipped on some ice. The fall resulted in a traumatic brain injury.
“I couldn’t read, I couldn’t write, and I genuinely thought my life was over,” Mix says. “I remember lying on the floor with tears streaming down my face because I was so dizzy from trying to revise. But I genuinely didn’t have anything else to hold on to.”
Perhaps inevitably, Mix’s struggles found their way into her fiction as she revised Burn.
“I redid some of Ranka’s magic to mirror [my situation] — similar to the invasive, chronic condition that I was going through,” Mix says. “Suddenly it felt like my body had betrayed me, because I couldn’t talk on the phone or do anything.
It was the one thing that allowed me to disappear for a while. I just had to worry about this poor girl who — I really put her through it. But at least they were problems that weren’t mine.”
Mix also has a middle grade novel, The Mossheart’s
Promise, scheduled for publication in 2023. That book tells the story of a girl who wakes up one day to find her mom full of mold — coming out of her eyes, her mouth, her ears.
The girl sets out to find a cure, only to discover that her world stands inside a rotting terrarium that her people were meant to leave a hundred years earlier, and she has to find a way out within five days.
Mix says Mossheart stems, in part, from being of a generation that was told, by many adults, that climate change wasn’t real.
“It’s about what it means to have this adult figure that you love and realizing they kind of failed you,” Mix says. “It’s deeply weird.”
But also very much in keeping with the darkly magical stories that sustained her as a young person.
And given the trials presented by her injury, Mix sees nothing but the good in her writing life these days.
“It is such a miracle to me that [Burn] is coming out at all. Everything else is a bonus,” Mix says. “There have been so many wonderful things that have happened, and people who have reached out who are clearly the kind of person I wrote this for, that I am just like, ‘Man, I am so lucky!’”
“I couldn’t read, I couldn’t wr ite, and I genuinely thought my life was over.”—REBECCA MIX
THE COUPLE WHO TRAVEL TOGETHER
…
launch an award-winning business together. Jordan Morgan and KT Maviglia-Morgan’s online travel platform aims to cut vacation planning from 10 hours to 10 minutes
BY ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKYSINCE GRADUATING from the University of Michigan in 2014, former Michigan basketball captain Jordan Morgan and former Miss Michigan KT Maviglia-Morgan have both lived in numerous countries throughout the world. Their mutual wanderlust laid the foundation for a business that helps less-practiced travelers plan their trips.
“We were keeping a list of all the places we went,” Morgan, 31, of Ann Arbor says of their journeys. “We got really good at finding great things to do. At a certain point, we said, ‘Let’s do something with this; let’s turn this into a business.’”
Morgan has played basketball overseas with nine different clubs since graduating, taking him to France, Greece, Slovenia, Turkey, Russia, and beyond. He says those experiences showed him how stressful travel planning could be — and how much time it can take up.
Maviglia-Morgan, who joined him in traveling for his work, agrees. The pair recently moved back to Michigan after living in Venice, Italy, for five months. Upon returning, they brainstormed a way to create personalized travel guides that would simplify vacation planning.
Explore Michigan This Winter
We asked Morgan and MavigliaMorgan to create an itinerary for winter activities statewide — here’s what they came up with:
FRANKENMUTH: Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland
Top of the list is the world’s
largest Christmas store. Go shopping for gifts, decorations, and anything else you need for the holiday season. If you go during the holidays, we suggest leaving metro Detroit at the crack of dawn to avoid lines. Smart shoppers wait until after New Year’s to shop in peace. Either way, don’t leave without a personalized ornament! bronners.com
Zehnder’s Snowfest This event has been taking place for more than 30 years at Zehnder’s of Frankenmuth. Enjoy live snow and ice sculpting as well as music, drinks, and shopping from Jan. 25 to 29. After a day of fun, stop in the restaurant for a family-style
Their concept: On Arrival, a recently launched travel platform that does just that. The couple pitched it in early 2021 to TechTown Detroit, a business incubator that provides funding for small businesses and technology platforms. In December, they won a $1,500 grant that would make their idea a reality.
To bring On Arrival to life, the couple interviewed 100 tourists about their biggest problems with traveling. They learned people were spending 10 hours or more simply creating their travel itineraries and that they wanted a solution to make the process easier.
Now, On Arrival aims to cut that time from 10 hours to 10 minutes or less. Users fill out a short questionnaire on their needs and interests, and the couple takes it from there, building folks a personalized trip complete with food, drinks, attractions, and anything else their clients might like.
On Arrival offers custom-made itineraries for nearly every major city in the nation and top international destinations. Morgan and MavigliaMorgan work with all types of travelers, from those embarking on solo trips to those taking familyfriendly vacations. Guides come in a standard size
fried chicken dinner. zehnders.com/snowfest
THOMPSONVILLE: Iron Fish Distillery This hidden gem 20 miles southeast of Frankfort took home three medals at this year’s prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition. It’s also the perfect base camp for woodfired pizza and cocktails. Stop by during your stay at Crystal Mountain ski resort, and if you have time, make the 30-minute drive to the famous frozen lighthouse Point Betsie.
ironfishdistillery.com
BOYNE FALLS: Boyne Mountain Resort Undoubtedly Michigan’s best skiing destination. Explore 60 trails and 415 skiable
acres. The annual Holiday Week at Boyne Mountain runs from Dec. 20 to Jan. 1 and is filled with Yuletide cheer and activities (perfect for children)! boynemountain.com
TRAVERSE CITY: CherryT Ball Drop Head to downtown Traverse City for the annual cherry ball drop. As many as 12,000 people attend this event each Dec. 31, and proceeds go to local charities. Be sure to stick around for the fireworks! cherrytballdrop.org
GRAND RAPIDS: World of Winter Festival Grand Rapids’ biggest holiday event runs from Jan. 6 to March 5. Check out the long list of free attractions,
of 10 recommendations for $20 or a deluxe size of 20 recommendations for $40.
“We’re not a full-service travel agency, but for people planning their own trips, On Arrival is ideal,” Maviglia-Morgan says. “We’re giving you all the places; you just have to make the reservations or book the tickets.” Links to do both are included in the itineraries.
The goal, Morgan says, is to scale up On Arrival even further. The two plan to build out the platform’s infrastructure so travelers can get an instant guide or travel itinerary by logging in to their website — even if they wait until they’re at the airport.
“Once you come to On Arrival, you know where you’re going,” Morgan says. “We give you everything you need to finalize your plans. You simply get your guide, and you go.”
which includes interactive outdoor art installations, light displays, and live performances. Stop by Lyon Street Café to enjoy a hot cocoa in a frame cabin before heading home! worldofwintergr.com
ST. JOSEPH: Light Up the Bluff For a top-notch light display, head to St. Joseph’s Lake Bluff Park during Light Up the Bluff. The show, which features more than 1 million holiday lights set up throughout the park, remains aglow through February. It’s a must-see! For dates, go to stjoetoday.com
MARQUETTE: Winter sports Calling all adventure seekers! Marquette offers
ample opportunities to get outside and get active, from skiing and fat-tire biking to snowshoeing and beyond. Check out scenic sites like the Black Rocks, Marquette Harbor Lighthouse, and the nearby Eben Ice Caves and Tahquamenon Falls. Did you know you can even see the Northern Lights in Marquette? Its particularly long, dark winter nights create perfect conditions for viewing the aurora borealis from the Lake Superior shoreline. travelmarquette.com
Stay tuned: Hour Detroit’s December issue will feature a full list of holiday activities in metro Detroit.
HAPPY DRINKSGIVING
BY MICKEY LYONS ILLUSTRATION BY HOLLY WALESFOR MANY, TURKEY DAY means a feast with all the trimmings, maybe a game (or five) of football — and plenty of time with family. Maybe you’re thrilled to reunite with your loved ones for a bacchanal of turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes, or maybe you’re utterly dreading Uncle Bob’s dining-table rants. Either way, you’ll need some liquid encouragement to get you through the festivities. That’s why the night before Thanksgiving is the busiest of the year for American bars.
On “Drinksgiving,” as it’s known to some in the business, there are plenty of reasons to head out on the town: Young adults have returned home, the national holiday means most folks don’t have to wake up early the next day, and no one has the desire or the kitchen space to cook dinner on Wednesday night.
The day before the big feast has been big business for bars. Thanksgiving Eve of 2019 saw
shots sales jump 173 percent compared with the Wednesday prior, according to restaurant management software company Upserve.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on the number of people packing watering holes, but it hasn’t stopped everyone from celebrating. Faustine Pierce has tended bar at Ye Olde Tap Room in Grosse Pointe Park for seven or eight years — it’s been long enough that she can’t quite remember. Before the pandemic, she says, the scene at the bar on Thanksgiving Eve “was shoulder to shoulder insane!” In the past two years, she says, “the crowds have thinned, but the bar is still filled with large groups, folks catching up, and freshly 21-year-olds home from college and getting their legal drink on.”
Whether you’re looking for a chill lounge in which to sip an espresso martini or a more turnedup shoutfest, these five metro Detroit bars have Drinksgiving down to a T.
Renshaw Lounge: CLAWSON
Just call it Renshaw’s — everyone does. A Clawson staple, Renshaw Lounge boasts plenty of seating for large parties, a full menu of pub grub, and a massive wall of televisions for cheering on your college and pro teams. Plus, with darts, pinball, pool, and shot specials, that unscheduled high school reunion will be far less stuffy than the one planned for a hotel ballroom. Renshaw’s underwent an extensive renovation a few years back but managed to retain the bar’s core feeling: low-key and friendly into the early evening hours, then bold and raucous as the night wears on.
210 14 Mile Road, Clawson; renshawlounge.com
Abick’s Bar: DETROIT
Southwest Detroit’s Abick’s has been a family-owned bar since 1907. Stepping in through the corner door feels like entering a time warp — the tin ceilings, terrazzo tile floor, and stained-glass lamps haven’t changed a bit since the days before World War I. Kit Lindamood has been serving cold beers, cocktails, and whiskey at this cash-only staple since 2008. “We welcome all comers,” Lindamood says. “The night before Thanksgiving is one of the happiest hump days of the year because everyone is relaxed and enjoying the time off before they have to be on their best behavior with family the next day.”
3500 Gilbert St., Detroit; facebook.com/abicks
Dunleavy’s Food & Spirits: ALLEN PARK
Brothers Tom and Brian Dunleavy have been welcoming friends, family, and newcomers to their Allen Park pub since the 1960s, and their warm hospitality is shared by the staff. The bar’s celebrated pub grub, which includes burgers and fish and chips, and its old-country cheer can turn any Wednesday into a celebration of community.
6004 Allen Road, Allen Park; dunleavypub.com
Ye Olde Tap Room: GROSSE POINTE PARK
It’s nearly impossible if you grew up in one of the Grosse Pointes not to bump into about five of your high school classmates each time you enter Ye Olde Tap Room. Bordering the east side of Detroit, Ye Olde has dozens of beers from around the world, an open format that’s often standing room only, and peanuts in the shell to nosh on while you make awkward small talk with your high school fling.
14915 Charlevoix St., Grosse Pointe Park; facebook.com/YeOldeTapRoom
Kiesling: DETROIT
Tucked into a quiet corner of Milwaukee Junction, Kiesling’s effortless chic is the balm for the soonto-be frenetic activity of Thanksgiving. Kiesling’s freshly shaken, stirred, or on-draft drinks present sophisticated options, but don’t be afraid to go with the $5 beer and shot specials; after all, there’s plenty of time on Thanksgiving to impress family and friends with your worldly wit.
449 E. Milwaukee Ave., Detroit; kieslingdetroit.com
The Cook’s Shop’s rack of lamb entree is marinated in fresh garlic and rosemary and served with seasonal vegetables and mashed potatoes. After four decades in business, the eatery continues to prove itself worth a trip across the river.
RESTAURANT REVIEW
Just Like Nonna Used to Make
BY DOROTHY HERNANDEZ (Clockwise from above)
The fluffy-on-the-inside, crisp-on-the-outside housemade bread is a must: It’s based on Nonna’s recipe. Linguine and clams has been a restaurant staple since 1980. It’s served in garlic and white wine sauce or house tomato sauce. The intimate dining space has wellpositioned tables so you feel like you have your own private space.
THE COOK’S SHOP 6 83 O UELLETTE AVE., WINDSOR, ONTARIO; 519-254-3377; COOKSSHOPWINDSOR.COM ; DINNER TUES.-SUN.
the recipe of Dawson’s nonna, and it is not to be cast aside like the sad bread at lesser restaurants.
For the antipasti course, we tried the polpette and aforementioned escargots forestiere. The polpette were shaped into logs that looked more like kafta but were decidedly Italian, punctuated by Parmesan and served atop a bracing and balanced tomato sauce (perfect for dipping not only the polpette but also that divine bread). French jumbo snails are served out of the shell but paired with equally earthy mushrooms and served in a different kind of shell, one made out of phyllo pastry, the entire dish speckled with Parmesan.
AT THE COOK’S SHOP in Windsor, Ontario, which opened more than 40 years ago, some things haven’t changed. The cellar-level restaurant is still dimly lit, salad is complimentary with your meal, and dishes like escargots forestiere endure.
But some things have changed at the Italian trattoria, including new dishes inspired by the owner’s grandmother with a contemporary spin, a refreshed interior, and a new proprietor. Three years ago, Spencer Dawson took over from the original owner, Lino Catroppa, a Rome native who acquired the VMY Hotel in the late 1970s, renovated the 1908 building that was once one of the coveted addresses in town, and opened The Cook’s Shop in 1980.
Over the years, Catroppa built up The Cook’s Shop as a destination, especially for suitors looking to pop the question and for couples returning to celebrate their happy union. Thirty-nine years after opening, Catroppa started planning his retirement and began looking for someone to carry on his
legacy. Dawson, whose own parents got engaged at The Cook’s Shop in 1987, took over in July 2019.
The Cook’s Shop is still a short descent below ground, past the grapevine-covered facade. Walking into the intimate space, you leave behind Windsor’s main drag, Ouellette Avenue, and step into a world of Italian romance (but you don’t need to be coupled up to enjoy the ambience).
There may be black tablecloths, candlelight, and an air of fine dining, but there is something homey and comforting about The Cook’s Shop. The room is small, with fewer than 15 tables, but the way they are positioned (one time we were seated in a corner, and another time we were between the bar and the wine cellar) makes you feel like you have your own space.
Before you even get started with any antipasti, have the crusty-on-the-outside, soft-as-cloudson-the-inside bread. It’s accompanied by whipped garlic butter, and it’s easy to demolish a whole basket and ask for another, like we did. The bread is
The pastas were universally impressive and beautifully prepared. Most of the pastas, except for the linguine and spaghetti, are made in-house. The gnocchi Gorgonzola boasts potato dumplings cooked to the level of supple and sumptuous and bathed in a rich white wine-and-Gorgonzola cheese sauce. It’s dressed simply with fresh spinach and toasted walnuts, rounding out the well-composed dish that expertly brings together texture and flavor. The linguine and clams, a Cook’s Shop favorite since the beginning, comes with white wine sauce or the house tomato sauce. We opted for the former, and we suggest you do the same because the delicate sauce complements the brininess of the clams, making you feel like you’re feasting on pasta on the coast of Italy. Another dish inspired by Dawson’s nonna is the cavatelli Bolognese. The ricotta cavatelli are topped with a generous amount of hearty Bolognese sauce to coat each hand-rolled piece. The Bolognese left quite an impression — I ordered a similar dish elsewhere not too long afterward and wished I had Nonna’s Bolognese instead.
On the entree side, we tried a newer Cook’s Shop menu addition, the risotto ai frutti di mare.
(Clockwise from right) Escargots forestiere — seasoned French jumbo snails on a bed of mushrooms and served in a phyllo pastry bowl — has been on the menu for over 40 years; steamed PEI mussels; seafood risotto; and Atlantic salmon filet.
While it wasn’t as creamy as risottos should be, the abundance of shrimp, mussels, and scallops, all artfully plated and perfectly accentuated by white wine and lemon zest, made us forgive that the risotto was a little bit too al dente.
Risotto is one of the sides offered with the meat and fish dishes, and the pea and mushroom one we got with the salmon and Scaloppine Piccata was perfect. Those two entrees were well done, but the standout for us was the Australian Lamb Rack, which was marinated in rosemary and garlic and cooked medium — at the suggestion of our server and was on point.
Service was friendly and warm, if a bit spotty at times; for instance, our entrees came quickly after the pasta course, but then there was a long gap between that and dessert, and then another time I waited a while before I could order a glass of wine, and then we were left to our own devices to choose. We would have liked a bit more guidance through the wine list when we asked for suggestions (if you’re looking for rosé, unless you like white Zinfandel you’re out of luck, and the wines by the glass list is unfortunately brief) so we opted for a few cocktails, which were
refreshing, creative, and Italian-inspired, such as the Raspberry Teani, with Chambord, amaretto, and black tea.
For dessert, it’ll be tempting to go with the triedand-true tiramisu, and other than an aggressive amount of cocoa powder on top, it is a respectable iteration, with delicate ladyfinger cookies packing plenty of espresso flavor amid layers of mascarpone cheese. However, we were more impressed by the espresso creme brulee and poached pears, the latter a stunning image on the plate with two pear halves soaked in red wine standing tall and proud amid a dramatic swipe of garnet berry sauce and fresh mint leaves strewn about.
The Cook’s Shop motto is “Semper idem,” which translates to “Always the same,” or “Never change,” but since Dawson took over, he’s incorporated some new traditions in with the old, such as more modern dishes and a patio that offers an oasis in the middle of Ouellette. We briefly met him as he made the rounds during dinner service, and it’s clear his passion for food has brought new energy to this landmark restaurant in Windsor. We’re excited to see what he does next.
Sometimes, change is good.
What’s Cooking?
Metro Detroit food & beverage headlines
BY DOROTHY HERNANDEZOak & Reel’s cocktail bar debuts
Italian seafood hot spot
Oak & Reel in Detroit’s Milwaukee Junction neighborhood recently unveiled The Upright cocktail bar. Located below the restaurant, the underground bar is stylish and intimate. The cocktail menu includes classic drinks as well as unique Upright libations such as the Beach Derby, a refreshing drink featuring Elijah Craig bourbon, cinnamon orgeat, honey, grapefruit juice, Cappelletti Aperitivo, and lemon juice. There’s also a selection of Italian snacks and small plates by chef and owner Jared Gadbaw, such as Bolognese arancini and Cacio e Pepe Pasta Fritti, crispy pasta bites with Parmesan and pepper.
Mai Tiki bar offers a hidden tropical escape in Ferndale
Located inside sushi restaurant Tiger Lily, the speakeasy Mai Tiki recently debuted, featuring classic drinks like the rum runner. While it’s inside the Ferndale eatery, which has a stacked lineup of makimono sushi rolls, robatayaki cooked on a charcoal grill, noodles, and more, Mai Tiki also dishes up snacks that pair well with the drinks, such as salmon or hamachi tacos served with soy, avocado mousse, and cherry tomato. Tiger Lily took
over the former Antihero restaurant space, and it’s part of the Hometown Restaurant Group, which also owns One-Eyed Betty’s, Pop’s for Italian, and Public House.
Belly Up to Jojo’sShake Bar
The Illinois-based Jojo’s Shake Bar has branched out to the Motor City with a location in downtown Detroit, bringing with it plenty of nostalgic vibes for kids and the young at heart alike. In addition to its signature Biggie Shakes, like the over-the-top Wonder Years, a blueberry shake with marshmallow, gummy candy ribbon, and cotton candy (plus, all shakes can be made boozy), there’s a full menu boasting classic comfort food fare ranging from burgers to mac and cheese to lasagna. And since Jojo’s hails from the Windy City, there’s the Chicago Handshake featuring the classic combo of Old Style beer and a shot of Malört, the love-it-orhate-it bitter liqueur.
The Apparatus Room now openfor lunch
Downtown Detroit workers and dwellers now have a new lunch option.
The Detroit Foundation Hotel’s The Apparatus Room recently unveiled a new menu with dishes like Harissa BLT Deviled Eggs with smoked bacon, pickled shallot, and tomato; summer squash and saffron risotto with marigold butter, ricotta salata, pumpkin seed, and parsley; and bumpy cake with devil’s food cake, French buttercream, and Valrhona chocolate glaze.
Upright, Oak
Jared Gadbaw.
SHOP LOCAL THIS THANKSGIVING
BY DOROTHY HERNANDEZ | PHOTO BY REBECCA SIMONOVLOOKING TO ADD A TASTE of Michigan to your or your host’s holiday meal? While a bottle of Michigan wine is always a nice touch, here are some other products that can be appreciated on Thanksgiving Day, during the long football-focused weekend, or at any time of year. They can all be found at Meijer Rivertown Market on the east side of Detroit. The market boasts 150-200 local vendors offering some 2,000 items.
Store Director Marcus Reliford says, “Supporting local during the holidays really helps these businesses end the year strong. With the support of the community, some of these small businesses can really grow into other markets.”
Detroit Hives Honey:
Detroiters Timothy Paule and Nicole Lindsey became fascinated with the healing power of local raw honey, and in 2017, they bought a Detroit lot to start their first urban bee farm. Since then, they’ve expanded to other lots and sell their Deliciously Dope Detroit Honey made possible by honeybees that have flown 27,500 miles to visit a million flowers and extracted by local beekeepers. This handcrafted honey can be added to whipped butter, veggie sides, and more. $20 for 8 oz. detroithives.org
Sufi Saigon Cinnamon:
had a love of entertaining and would cater large family parties, so they decided to go all in on food. Bonus: The craft cocktail kits offered on the website would also make for a fabulous hostess gift. $6 for 1.4 oz. (Not available at Woodward Corner.) sufiproducts.com
Hattie Girl Sweet Potato
(or maybe as a few are still milling about), some chips and salsa should hit the spot. Try the salsa from this family-run, fourth-generation company. Better yet, stock up on all four of its salsa varieties for the Michigan vs. Ohio State game. $7 for 14.5 oz. detroitsalsa.com
Reel’s
The spice you don’t have when you need it most — your host will appreciate not having to make a quick run to the grocery store. This Farmington Hills-based company also has an inspiring backstory of following your passion: The two female co-founders have backgrounds in science (microbiology and pharmacy) but
Ice Cream: Double down on the sweet potato with a pint of ice cream from Detroit-based Hattie Girl Ice Cream and Foods, named after founder James Render’s mother, who learned to churn fresh ice cream from her grandmother. Tired of sweet potatoes? Try strawberry, pound cake, chocolate pound cake, or another delicious flavor. $5 for 16 oz. hgicecream.com
Detroit Salsa Co. Salsa:
After cooking all day, the last thing your host will want to do in the evening is make another meal — or eat more turkey. For that late-night snack after all the guests have left
Natalie’s Bakery French Macarons: Sometimes you want something other than pie. Enter these light and airy French macarons from a Madison Heightsbased bakery. These decadent French sandwich cookies are available in an array of flavors, from mocha to passion fruit to rose water. $13 for 6 cookies. nataliesbakery.net
All brands but Sufi Products are also available at Meijer Woodward Corner Market in Royal Oak. Online ordering is also available through most of the brands’ websites.
Restaurant Guide
Wayne
Al Ameer $$
LEBANESE • This Lebanese restaurant is a recipient of the prestigious James Beard America’s Classics Award. The Al Ameer platter is perfect for sharing: two grape leaves, two fried kibbeh, chicken shawarma, tawook, kabob, kafta,and falafel. 12710 W. Warren Ave., Dearborn; 313-582-8185. 27346 Ford Road, Dearborn Heights; 313-565-9600 L,D Mon.-Sun.
Amore da Roma $$
ITALIAN • Guy Pelino, Roma Café’s chef, took over the ownership reins of this restaurant on the edge of the Eastern Market. He retained the menu, adding a charcuterie board and updating the wine list, and didn’t change the character of the old-school restaurant, known for its steaks and pastas. 3401 Riopelle St., Detroit; 313-831-5940. L,D Tue.-Sat.
Andiamo $$
ITALIAN • Over the past three decades, Joe Vicari has established several Andiamo restaurants in metro Detroit, all inspired by the late master chef Aldo Ottaviani’s philosophy of seasonal, from-scratch cooking. The menus differ slightly at the different locations, but the constant is the fresh, housemade pastas — handcrafted by the trinity of “pasta ladies,” Anna, Tanya, and Angelina, who have carried on the tradition. The downtown Detroit location offers a breathtaking view of the Detroit River, while the Livonia location offers a comfortable and casual vibe. 400 Renaissance Center, Detroit; 313-567-6700. D Mon.-Fri., L,D Sat.-Sun. 38703 Seven Mile Road, Livonia; 734-953-3200. D Mon.-Sun.
Antonio’s Cucina Italiana $$
ITALIAN • The Rugieros have impressed restaurant guests for decades with authentic cuisine. Signature dishes include Gnocchi Rita and Chicken Antonio. There’s a full bar and a very extensive wine list. 2220 N. Canton Center Road, Canton; 734-981-9800. 26356 Ford Road, Dearborn Heights; 313-278-6000. 37646 W. 12 Mile Road, Farmington Hills; 248-994-4000. L,D daily.
Apparatus Room $$$$
NEW AMERICAN • The Foundation Hotel’s restaurant, the Apparatus Room, once housed the Detroit Fire Department headquarters. The cooking of chef Thom as Lents, who earned two Michelin stars while at Chicago’s Sixteen, is refined and highly skilled. 250 W. Larned St., Detroit; 313-800-5600. D Wed.-Sun.
Atwater in the Park $
GERMAN At this casual spot, traditional German-style beer is the beverage of choice. Chef Chris Franz’ notewor thy menu is compatible with such additions as a platter of local bratwurst and other sausages teamed with sauer kraut, plus Bavarian soft pretzels and pierogi. 1175 Lakepointe St., Grosse Pointe Park; 313-344-5104. L,D daily.
Avalon Café and Bakery $$
ORGANIC BAKERY • The bakery’s mini-empire includes a café on Woodward Avenue in Detroit. Its bread is also the basis for dishes such as avocado toast with tahini, thinly curled cucumbers, lime, and chili flakes. Vegetarian fare includes a grilled veggie sandwich with portobello mushrooms, zucchini, and goat cheese. Meatier highlights include a turkey and gouda sandwich, and BLTA with cider house bacon. 1049
ENTRÉE PRICES
COVID-19 UPDATE
Many establishments are following safety protocols.
Please call the numbers listed here to verify hours and space availability.
Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-285-8006. B,L daily.
Babo $
NEW AMERICAN • This café settled into the Midtown Park Shelton building in July 2019, serving elevated comfort food made from local, small-batch producers. The self-described gourmet diner offers espresso drinks and such dishes as avocado toast, kimchi patatas bravas, and the Babo Burger. 15 E. Kirby St., Ste. 115, Detroit; 313-974-6159. B,L,D Tue.-Sat. B,L Sun.
Baker’s Keyboard Lounge $$
SOUL FOOD • This iconic lounge serves soul food: beef short ribs with gravy, creamy mac and cheese, collard greens, and sweet cornbread muffins. 20510 Livernois Ave., Detroit; 313-345-6300. L, D Tue.-Fri.
Baobab Fare $$
AFRICAN • With his New Center restaurant, Mamba Hamissi urges diners to venture into culinary territories they’d otherwise evade, like the Mbuzi starring a goat shank that is slow-roasted until the meat is so tender that it slides off the bone with ease. 6568 Woodward Ave., Ste. 100, Detroit; 313-265-3093. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Barda $$$$
ARGENTINIAN • Barda brings a new cuisine to metro Detroit. True to Argentinian culture, the restaurant celebrates traditional meat dishes. For starters, Carne y Hueso, meaning Flesh and Bone, features a mold of finely chopped beef tartare topped with spicy horseradish alongside a dense bone filled to the brim with buttery marrow. Tira de Asado, a classic Argentinian short rib dish, arrives on a plate in a coriander-pepper crust. And Inch-thick slices of rare Bife, or strip loin steak, lie on a bed of melted butter infused with chimichurri. 4842 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313- 952-5182; bardadetroit.com. D Thurs.-Sun.
Bash Original Izakaya $$
JAPANESE • From the proprietor of Canton’s popular Izakaya Sanpei comes a Japanese pub located in Wood bridge. Occupying the former home of Katsu, Bash maintains much of that eatery’s Asian-inspired décor, such as hanging lanterns and bamboo shades. Bash’s drink menu focuses on Japanese craft beer, while the food menu of small plates and sashimi includes Gyoza, Tempura Udon, and fried octopus balls called Tako Yaki. 5069 Trumbull Ave., Detroit; 313-788-7208; L Wed.-Sat. D Tue.-Sun.
Besa $$$
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED • This modern fine-dining eatery takes its name from Albania — where the owners trace their heritage — and means “pledge of honor.” Choose from starters such as roasted olives, fried calamari, and double-cut lamb chops. 600 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-315-3000. D Mon.-Sat.
Bobcat Bonnie’s $ GASTROPUB • The menu is eclectic, featuring fried goat cheese, fish tacos, Buddha bowls, and a barbecue bacon meatloaf — plus, plenty of vegetarian and vegan options, The weekend brunch, complete with a Bloody Mary bar and all the classics, is a big hit. See bobcatbonnies.com for locations and hours.
Bohemia $$$
NEW AMERICAN • The former member’s only lounge in this restored Romanesque Revival in downtown Detroit is now a posh restaurant open to the public (the
downstairs bar is also open to the public). The stunning dining room reflects the club’s history while staying fresh and modern with local art on the walls and an Instagrammable seating area in the middle of the dining room with plush couches and trees lined with lights. The food is upscale but approachable such as the Nashville Fried Chicken and the lobster fettucini, which is worth every indulgent bite. 712 Cass Ave., Detroit, 313338-3222. D Wed.-Sat..
Brome Modern Eatery $$
BURGERS • This healthy spin on a classic serves neverfrozen, grass-fed, antibiotic-free, organic burgers. There’s beef, chicken, haddock, and vegetarian dishes but no pork, as the restaurant is halal. There’s also a cold-pressed juice bar. 22062 Michigan Ave., Dearborn; 313-996-5050. L,D Mon.-Sun.
Bronze Door $$$$
NEW AMERICAN • One of the newest restaurants under the Joe Vicari Restaurant Group brand (in partnership with Tony Soave of Soave Enterprises) revives the well-known name of a Grosse Pointe staple from the mid1900s. In the 1960s and 1970s, 123 Kercheval Ave. was home to the Bronze Door, which closed to make way for The Hill Seafood and Chop House. In 2021, it was born again as the Bronze Door, offering classic bistro fare like steak frites and house specialties such as Potato Pillows and Shrimp (butter fondue, sage, cracked pepper, pecorino Romano, and truffle). 123 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe Farms; 313-886-8101. D Mon.-Sat.
Bucharest Grill $
MEDITERRANEAN-AMERICAN
• This bustling casual sandwich shop, now with five locations, is a cult favorite with its fresh Mediterranean fare, nota bly the best chicken shawarma wrap sandwiches in town. We’re serious. See bucharestgrill.com for locations and hours.
Cadieux Café $$
BELGIAN • This institution was like a slice of home for early Belgian immigrants. They serve up four varieties of mussels, and a wide range of hearty dishes such as Belgian Rabbit, but there also are classic sandwiches. 4300 Cadieux Road, Detroit; 313-882-8560. D daily.
Café Nini $$$
ITALIAN • This intimate spot offers well-prepared food that includes eight appetizers, more than a dozen pasta dishes, and 16 main plates, notable among which are tournedos di vitello — medallions of veal filet in a fresh mushroom sauce. The wine list is impressive as well. 98 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe Farms; 313-308-3120. D Tue-Sat.
Cantoro Italian Market and Trattoria $$
ITALIAN A restaurant inside the market serves great traditional Italian food. Do not miss the Tagliatelle alla Bolognese: wide pasta with a meat sauce featuring ground veal, beef, sausage, and pancetta. It makes for a delicious Italian feast you can conveniently pick up on your way home. 15550 N. Haggerty Road, Plymouth; 734-420-1100. L,D Tues.-Sat., L Sun.
Capers $$
STEAKHOUSE • This is the type of place longtime Detroit natives describe like an old friend. On Gratiot Avenue between Seven and Eight Mile roads, this place has been packing them in for nearly 40 years. There’s a
massive a la carte menu, with items such as barbecue babyback ribs and potato skins, but the main draw is steak by the ounce, at market price. 14726 Gratiot Ave., Detroit; 313-527-2100. L,D Wed.-Sun.
Caucus Club $$$
TRADITIONAL AMERICAN • The reborn spot emphasizes service and a traditional steak and seafood theme, with such tasty signature dishes as wood-grilled ribs, seared scallops, and steaks.150 W. Congress, Detroit; 313-965-4970. D daily.
Central Kitchen & Bar $$
CREATIVE COMFORT • The space facing Campus Martius is done up in gray and white under industrial light fixtures. Crowd-pleasers include buttermilk fried chicken, filet and frites, burgers, and salads. 660 Woodward Ave., Ste. 4A, Detroit; 313-963-9000. D Thu.-Sat., BR Sat.-Sun.
Chartreuse Kitchen & Cocktails $$
NEW AMERICAN • While the menu rotates based on the season, its offerings always highlight the freshest local ingredients. Creatively prepared dishes range from cold starters to hearty entrees. But the Twice Cooked Egg is not to be missed. 15 E. Kirby St., Detroit; 313-818-3915. D Tue.-Sat.
Chili Mustard Onions $
VEGAN • This is Detroit’s only Coney Island with a vegan menu. Choose from traditional favorites includ ing the Coney Dog, Southwest Nachos, and chili fries, complete with owner Pete LaCombe’s secret vegan “cheeze” sauce. 3411 Brush St., Detroit; 313-462-4949. L Wed.-Sat.
City Kitchen $$
AMERICAN The emphasis is on fresh fish and seafood here, but also on the locals — especially lake perch. There are also such dishes as Cajun tenderloin tips and a few good angus burgers. 16844 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe; 313-882-6667. L Mon.-Fri., D nightly.
Cliff Bell’s $$
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED This restored Art Deco hotspot offers small plates such as oysters with cava granita and a salmon croquette. Large plates include sesame soy glazed shiitakes and summer stir fried vege tables with coconut rice. Jazz prevails on the bandstand. 2030 Park Ave., Detroit; 313-961-2543. D Wed.-Sun.
Common Pub $
GASTROPUB Fans of Atlas Global Bistro, which shuttered in 2013, should be happy to learn that some of the principals may be found at this spot in the Belcrest Apartments. The well-edited menu includes duck fried chicken and a burger. 5440 Cass Ave., Detroit; 313-2858849. L Tue.-Sat.
Coriander Kitchen and Farm $$
GASTROPUB • At this Jefferson Chalmers eatery, guests can rent fire pits and roast housemade marsh mallows to make s’mores, or sip mugs of Hot Buttered Rum. By day, grab a picnic table and dip hunks of grilled flatbread into creamy fish dip made with smoked white fish and lake trout and seasoned with herbs from the farm. 14601 Riverside Blvd., Detroit; 313-822-4434. D Thurs.-Sat. BR Sun.
Cork & Gabel $$$
Cuisine $$$
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED • Cuisine offers a romantic, white-linen experience with the level of food, service, and ambience one might describe as timeless rather than trendy. Examples of the expertly prepared fare include the Thai snapper as well as the sea Scallops, featuring corn risotto, creamed leeks, and citrus butter. 670 Lothrop Rd., Detroit; 313-872-5110. D Tue.-Sun. (Note: not wheelchair accessible.)
Dakota Inn Rathskeller $
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED • The sausages are the kind that snap when you cut them. The combo plate features one bratwurst and one knack-wurst, served with hot German potato salad and sauerkraut. And yes, sing along with the schnitzelbank song 17324 John R St., Detroit; 313-867-9722. D Thu.-Sat.
Detroit Shipping Company $
FUSION This bi-level destination, created out of shipping containers, offers a variety of food options ranging from the Caribbean-fusion dishes at Coop to Thai fare from Bangkok 96 and more. 474 Peterboro St., Detroit; 313-462-4973. L Sat.-Sun., D daily.
Detroit Soul $
SOUL FOOD A hidden gem on the city’s East Side. Detroit Soul serves its namesake with a healthy twist. Owners Sam Van Buren and Jerome Brown draw from the recipes of their grandparents, who relocated to Detroit from Alabama in the 1940s. The turkey and collard greens are savory standouts and yams are a sweet treat. This is the kind of place that every soul-food lover must visit. 2900 E. Eight Mile Road, Detroit; 313-3665600. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Detroit Vegan Soul $
VEGAN The popular spot offers your classic soul food favorites but with plant-based twists — mac and cheese, maple-glazed yams, collard greens, and interpretations of catfish and pepper steak. 19614 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313-766-5728. L,D Wed.-Sat.
Dime Store $
BREAKFAST/BRUNCH This popular breakfast and lunch spot adds just the right retro touch to a contemporary American menu typified by fresh, hearty omelets and Benedicts early in the day. 719 Griswold St., Ste. 180, Detroit; 313-962-9106. B,L Mon.-Sun.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2010 Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe $$$
GASTROPUB • A jazz club with top guest musicians and an American bistro menu in a traditional interior. Start ers include shrimp pico and pan-fried calamari. Main entries include a beef short rib. 97 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe Farms; 313-882-5299. L Tue.-Fri., D Tue.-Sat.
Eatori Market $$
SPECIALTY GROCERY • This stylish spot overlooks downtown’s Capitol Park. The menu has steamed mus sels with leeks, garlic, and toasted crostini. International flourishes abound with truffle aioli for the burger. 1215 Griswold St., Detroit; 313-395-3030. L,D daily.
El Asador Steakhouse $$
FEATUREDEvie’s Tamales
MEXICAN This Mexicantown restaurant makes some of the best tamales around. Pork or chicken is jacketed with sturdy masa, a dough of ground corn, and then wrapped in a corn husk and steamed. Eat in or order a dozen for later. 3454 Bagley St., Detroit; 313-8435056. B,L Mon.-Sat.
El Barzon $
MEXICAN-ITALIAN • Norberto Garita prepares Italian and Mexican cuisines alongside his wife, Silvia Rosario Garita. Authentic Mexican entrees include enchiladas with a homemade green sauce made with tomatillo, jalapeños, and roasted poblano pepper, while the Italian influence takes the form of spaghetti carbonara and zuppa di pesce (seafood soup). 3710 Junction Ave., Detroit; 313-894-2070. D Tue.-Sun.
Fishbone’s Rhythm Kitchen Café $$
NEW ORLEANIAN • Enjoy classic New Orleans dishes, such as jambalaya and fried catfish beignets. Come for breakfast, lunch, dinner, happy hour, or carry-out. 400 Monroe St., Detroit; 313-965-4600. 29244 Northwestern Hwy., Southfield; 248-351-2925. 23722 Jefferson Ave., St. Clair Shores; 586-498-3000. L,D (downtown), B, L,D Southfield and St Clair Shores.
Flowers of Vietnam $$
VIETNAMESE • Chef and owner George Azar transformed a former Coney Island into an industrial-cool destination, but the neighborhood joint vibe remains. The menu is shaped around Azar’s appreciation of Vietnamese food, with a very personal twist. 4440 Vernor Hwy., Detroit; 313-554-2085. D Thu.-Sun.
Folk $
NEW AMERICAN • A charming Corktown storefront dishing up an all-day brunch menu. It’s an offshoot of the Farmer’s Hand grocery and farmers market. The menu focuses on globally inspired dishes, like salads, quiche, and sandwiches — all beautifully plated and nutritious. Infused milks and frothy lattes are well sought after, too. 1701 Trumbull Ave., Detroit; 313-7422672. BR Wed-Mon.
Ford’s Garage $$
BURGERS • Henry Ford’s legacy is celebrated on Dearborn’s main thoroughfare. There are at least 12 variations on the classic American burger here. Try the Ford’s Signature, featuring a half-pound of grilled black angus beef, aged sharp cheddar, applewoodsmoked bacon, and bourbon barbecue sauce. Other appealing dishes include shrimp mac and cheese, and chicken wings. 21367 Michigan Ave., Dearborn; 313-752-3673. L,D daily.
Giovanni’s Ristorante $$$
ITALIAN • This old-school Italian restaurant offers housemade pastas, including an outstanding lasagna. Elaborate veal and seafood dishes and desserts like orange Creamsicle cheesecake round out the delicious menu. 330 Oakwood Blvd., Detroit; 313-841-0122. L,D Tue.-Fri., D Sat.
Grandma Bob’s $
PIZZA • If you’re wondering what that psychedelic building on Corktown’s Michigan Avenue is, it’s a pizzeria known as Grandma Bob’s. Chef Dan De Wall, previously of Wright and Co., offers a small, delicious menu of pies, including sausage and pistachio with ricotta cheese and thyme. Or try the Big Mack — the vegan pizza version of the popular burger. 2135 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-315-3177. L,D Fri.-Mon.
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED
• This Corktown eatery takes the form of a 4,450-square-foot renovated beer hall and is an ode to filling European staples. Try the chicken marsala, featuring a pan-seared 7-oz. chicken breast, sauteed wild mushroom blend, wild rice, seasonal grilled vegetables, cooked in a Lombardo Ambra Sweet Marsala wine sauce. Simply delicious! 2415 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-638-2261. D Thu-Sat. BR Sat. B,L Sun.
MEXICAN • A concentrated cuisine with little modern flairs that also stays faithful to traditional Mexican cooking. Don’t miss the Camarones en Salsa de Langosta: breaded shrimp stuffed with cheese, fried to a golden dark brown, and topped with a lobster cream sauce. It’s a delicious dinner spot you don’t want to miss and an unassuming Latin-American find in Detroit’s Springwells Village. 1312 Springwells St., Detroit; 313-297-2360. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Grand Trunk Pub $ NEW AMERICAN • Breads from Avalon Bakery and meats from Eastern Market anchor the hearty fare, which pairs well with a selection of Michigan beers. Staples include a reuben with Poet Stout Kraut and the Ghettoblaster beer-battered fish and chips. 612 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-961-3043.; BR, L, D, Thu.-Sun.
The Greek $
GREEK • Plaka Café was a presence on Monroe Avenue for years, and now its space is in the hands of the founders’ children. Notable dishes include spinach pie,
lamb chops, and New York strip steak. 535 Monroe Ave., Detroit; 313-209-6667. L,D daily.
Green Dot Stables $
NEW AMERICAN • The menu of sliders — with 20-plus eclectic bun toppings, including Cuban, Kore an, and “mystery meat” — packs in fans. Local beers are spotlighted along with Chicken Paprikas soup, a nod to the neighborhood’s Hungarian origins. 2200 W. Lafayette Blvd., Detroit; 313-962-5588. L,D daily.
Grey Ghost $$
NEW AMERICAN • The cuisine at this Brush Park hotspot isn’t easily defined, but the results are original and well-prepared — for example, the duck breast with cheese grits and fried shallots and pork tenderloin with gruyere spaetzle and dill pickle mojo. 47 Watson St., Detroit; 313-262-6534. D daily.
Highlands $$$
STEAKHOUSE/NEW AMERICAN • Occupying the top two floors of the Renaissance Center, Highlands comprises three separate concepts. A steakhouse of the same name provides a high-end dining experience, while the more casual Hearth 71 serves locally sourced dishes cooked over an open fire. The third concept within the space is the appropriately named High Bar, where guests can choose from a vast collection of spirits and decadent desserts. 400 Renaissance Center, Floors 71 and 72, Detroit; 313-877-9090; D Tue.-Sat.
The Hudson Cafe $
BREAKFAST/BRUNCH • The fresh, well-prepared fare from the kitchen of this breakfast/lunch spot has creative takes on the eggs Benedict theme, red velvet pancakes, and apple-walnut stuffed French toast, as well as lunchtime sandwiches and salads. 1241 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-237-1000. B,L daily.
Hungarian Rhapsody $$
HUNGARIAN • This Downriver restaurant offers authentic Hungarian dishes, such as chicken and veal paprikas, beef goulash, and palacsinta (crêpes). 14315 Northline Road, Southgate; 734-283-9622. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Ima $
FEATUREDMario’s
ITALIAN
This Midtown Detroit classic dates to 1948.
vors. 9215 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit; 313-332-0607; L Fri.-Sun., D Wed.-Sun.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2012
Joe Muer Seafood $$$$ SEAFOOD • This reborn Detroit legend is stellar for a romantic evening or a quiet business lunch or dinner. Located on the main floor of the GMRenCen, it has sweeping views of the Detroit River and a menu that walks the line between old-time favorites and hipper Asian-influenced seafood, sushi and raw bar. There’s also a Bloomfield Hills location. There are reminders of the past as well: white-bean stew, smoked fish spread, creamed spinach, and stewed tomatoes. A true Detroit classic. 400 Renaissance Center, Ste. 1404, Detroit; 313-567-6837. 39475 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills; 248-792-9609. L,D daily.
Johnny Noodle King $
JAPANESE-INSPIRED • This noodle shop offers bowls topped with pork belly, confit chicken, and tofu as well as seaweed salad and gyoza. There are several fusion bowls as well like the Southwest topped with shredded chicken and housemade crema. 2601 W. Fort St., Detroit; 313-309-7946. L,D daily.
Jolly Pumpkin $$ BREWERY • Jolly Pumpkin’s brews rule the offerings, along with other Northern United Brewing Co. beverages, such as North Peak and Jolly Pumpkin artisan ales. Pizzas with creative toppings abound. 441 W. Canfield St., Detroit; 313-262-6115. 419 S. Main St., Ste. 9, Royal Oak; 248-544-6250. D daily.
Alla Bolognese. 1224 Griswold St., Detroit; 313-9628821. L,D Tue.-Sun.
London Chop House $$
STEAKHOUSE • The kitchen turns out classics like oysters Rockefeller, French onion soup, and sautéed perch. This is the place to come when you need to sat isfy a craving for steak in elegant surroundings with hospitable service. 155 W. Congress St., Detroit; 313962-0277. D Mon.-Sat.
Leila $$$
LEBANESE • The restaurant from the proprietors of Birmingham’s Phoenicia is named after the owner’s mother — just one facet of the establishment that pays homage to family traditions and heritage. The menu includes various Lebanese dishes, from falafel to Leila’s Mixed Grill that offers a little bit of every thing with shish kebab, tawook, and kafta. Other menu items include Kibbeh Niyee — fresh lamb, cracked wheat, and spice — and tabbouleh made of parsley, cracked wheat, and spices. The beer and wine lists offer plenty of options to accompany any meal. 1245 Griswold St., Detroit; 313-816-8100; D Sun., L&D Mon.-Sat.
Lovers Only $
BURGERS • The star at Lovers Only, located in downtown Detroit’s Capitol Park, is pasture-raised beef from Ferndale’s Farm Field Table, used to make its standout burgers. Other key ingredients, including baked goods, are local as well. There’s also craft cock tails and beer. 34 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313-9861174. L,D daily.
Lucy & the Wolf $$
JAPANESE-INSPIRED
• Japanese-inspired fare with a Midwest emphasis. Ima tacos trade the traditional shell for a slice of jicama-stuffed spicy shrimp, roasted tofu, or garlic chicken. Appetizers include edamame, dump lings, and clams. 2015 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-5025959. L,D Wed.-Mon. 4870 Cass Ave., Detroit; 313-8839788. 32203 John R Road, Madison Heights; 248-7810131. L,D daily.
Ima Izakaya $$
JAPANESE-INSPIRED • Chef Michael Ransom has slowly and steadily built up his local chain of noodle shops over the past few years, and his latest one takes it up a notch with the izakaya concept, the Japanese equivalent to a pub. In addition to the staple noodles and soups that put Ransom on the map, the menu also includes grilled skewers from the robata grill such as Kawahagi Trigger Fish Jerky and Mini Kurobuta Pork Sausages. There’s also a tantalizing selection of cock tails and mocktails, sake, beer, and wine to make it a true izakaya experience. 2100 Michigan Ave., Detroit, 313-306-9485. L and D Wed.-Mon.
Ivy Kitchen and Cocktails $$$
NEW AMERICAN This Black-owned restaurant was founded by Nya Marshall to bring fine dining to the East Jefferson Corridor where she grew up. The spot serves New American fare with international influenc es in a modern, elevated space bathed in neutral tones. The Mezcal Wings with pickled jalapeño and cilantro bring a Mexican kick, while dishes like the Shrimp Linguine Pomodoro contribute European fla
Linen-covered tables, framed paintings on woodpaneled walls, expert waiters clad in black tie, and tableside preparation survive here.
Italian dinners always begin with an antipasto tray and continue through soup, salad, pasta, and entree.
4222 Second Ave., Detroit; 313-8321616. L,D daily.
Karl’s $$ AMERICAN • The luncheonette is part two of the Siren Hotel’s partnership with chef Kate Williams. Inspired by the East Side bakery of the same name that Williams’ great-great grandparents once owned, the menu features diner staples. 1509 Broadway St., Detroit; 313-855-2757. B,L,D Wed.-Sun.
Karl’s Cabin $$ AMERICAN • Dishes from their currently rotating drive-through menu such as pan-seared walleye and beef tenderloin tips with Cajun spice and gravy surpass typical roadhouse food. 6005 Gotfredson Road, Plymouth; 734-455-8450. L,D daily.
The Kitchen by Cooking with Que $$ VEGAN • This eatery created by Detroit-based cooking blogger Quiana Broden serves lunches of smoothies, salads, and sandwiches. Broden also often offers live cooking demonstrations. 6529 Woodward Ave., Ste. A, Detroit; 313-462-4184. B,L,D, Wed.-Sat.
Kuzzo’s Chicken and Waffles $
SOUTHERN COMFORT • Several recipes, including a signature thin waffle, are family-owned at ex-NFL player Ron Bartell’s spot. Think comfort food kicked up a notch: fried catfish, salmon croquettes, shrimp and grits, and biscuits. Drink the Kool-Aid, too. 19345 Livernois Ave., Detroit; 313-861-0229. B,L,D Tue.-Sat., B,L Sun.
La Dolce Vita $$$
ITALIAN • Traditional Italian cuisine is key at this Palmer Park hideaway. Recommended is the lake perch in white wine sauce, the veal scaloppine with artichokes, and the lasagna. 17546 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313865-0331. D Tue.-Sun., BR Sun.
La Lanterna $$
ITALIAN • The founder of Da Edoardo, the first Edoardo Barbieri, started it all in 1956 with a restaurant called La Lanterna. Now his grandchildren have revived it. Although the white and red pizzas — like Margherita, Liguria, and Da Edorado — dominate, there’s more, including a number of elegant pastas like the Lasagna
SPANISH • This Anglo-sounding restaurant offers very good Spanish-inspired tapas dining. Standouts include a fire-roasted jalapeño cheese spread, shrimp tacos, and a grilled flank steak in chimichurri sauce. 102 E. Main St., Northville; 248-308-3057. L,D Tue.-Sat.
Lumen Detroit $$
NEW AMERICAN • A contemporary American menu and a Victor Saroki setting make the restaurant overlooking downtown’s Beacon Park one of the best of recent entrants onto the scene. Appetizers such as freshly made pretzels prelude main courses such as salmon with chimichurri herb sauce. 1903 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313-626-5005. L Fri.-Sun., D. Wed.-Sun.
Marrow $$
NEW AMERICAN • This West Village restaurant and butcher shop hybrid is an ode to meat, especially unusu al cuts. Diners must walk through the butcher shop, bypassing cases of pastrami and sausage, before enter ing the restaurant. Offerings from a sample tasting menu include Roasted Bone Marrow and Lamb Kefta. 8044 Kercheval Ave., Detroit; 313-652-0200. L,D Thu.-Sun.
Maty’s African Cuisine $$
WEST AFRICAN • A small storefront in the Detroit Old Redford neighborhood is decidedly Senegalese. Fataya, a deep-fried pastry with savory fillings, are reminiscent of an empanada. The star of the show is the whole chicken with yassa. 21611 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313472-5885. L,D daily.
M Cantina $
MEXICAN • Nuevo Latino street food is the premise at this surprising spot where everything from the torti lla chips to the salsas are made in-house in the open kitchen. Juices are freshly squeezed and the menu of tortas, tacos, tapas, and salads from the kitchen of Heidi and Junior Merino from Hawaii and Mexico is distinctive. 13214 Michigan Ave., Dearborn; 313-3999117. L,D Tue.-Sun.
RESTAURANT LISTINGS 11.22
Mercury Burger & Bar $
BURGERS • This Corktown joint seats 70 around the zinc-covered bar set with Mercury (Liberty) dimes. The burger is available in a variety of iterations, such as Southwest Detroit with a chorizo slider, jalapeno, Müenster cheese, tortilla strips, and avocado. 2163 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-964-5000. L,D daily.
Metropolitan Bar and Kitchen $$
LATIN • The business brings a bodega-style market along with a neighborhood restaurant and bar to West Village. The menu highlights local and seasonal ingre dients in dishes like the Buffalo Chicken salad with local greens and housemade blue cheese dressing and the Eggplant Sliders. 8047 Agnes St., Detroit; 313-4475418. L Wed.-Sat. D Fri.-Sat.
Mi Lindo San Blas $$$
MEXICAN • Heaping platters of seafood such as shrimp, octopus, and scallops, tell the story at this spot that brings a corner of Mexico’s seaside Nayarit region to southwest Detroit. On weekends when live music is added, the tables are often pushed back to create a dance floor. 1807 Livernois Ave., Detroit; 313-789-5100. L,D daily.
Monarch Club $$$
NEW AMERICAN • At the 14th floor of the revamped Element Detroit Hotel located at the Metropolitan is the Monarch Club. It’s one of the most recent rooftop bars to open in metro Detroit and serves a variety of delicious small plates along with classic cocktails. 33 John R St., Detroit; 313-306-2380. L Sun. D Wed.-Sat.
Mootz Pizzeria & Bar $$
ITALIAN-AMERICAN • Bruno DiFabio, a six-time World Pizza Games champ, rejects the label New York-style for his fare. “It’s authentic New York pizza,” he says. In a hurry? Grab a slice from Side Hustle, Mootz’s by-theslice counter next door. 1230 Library St., Detroit; 313243-1230. L Fri.-Sun., D Mon-Thu.
Motor City Brewing Works $
BREWERY • Just 15 mostly nontraditional pizzas on excellent, chewy crust, and the option to build your own pie with various toppings. Plus, salads from locally grown greens to accompany the house-brewed beers. 470 W. Canfield St., Detroit; 19350 Livernois Ave., Detroit; 313-832-2700. L,D daily.
Mudgie’s Deli $
DELI • Seats are often filled in search of the House Smoked Pastrami Reuben or the Brooklyn (beef brisket, bacon, and beer cheese). The dinner menu features meat and cheese boards as well as build-your-own sandwich options. It’s a delicious place for a meal any time. 1413 Brooklyn St., Detroit; 313-961-2000. B Tue.Sat. L Mon.-Sat.
Nico & Vali $$
ITALIAN • This eatery offers favorites with unexpected twists. The artichokes and chilies appetizer boasts battered and fried artichokes with Fresno and jalapeno peppers, tossed with fresh basil in white wine. Popular choices include the Whitefish Filet. It’s a classic Italian spot with an update that’s worth a visit. 744 Wing St., Plymouth; 734-207-7880. L Thu.-Sat., D Tue.-Sun.
Norma G’s $
CARIBBEAN • Lester Gouvia, the Trinidadian chef who brought us the famed food truck, opened a fullservice restaurant under the same name. Stop in for a plate of Chicken Pelau: a tasty blend of rice, diced chicken, squash, peppers, and golden-brown baked chicken. 14628 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit; 313-2902938. D Tue.-Sat.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2022
Oak & Reel $$
SEAFOOD • Despite a global pandemic threatening to derail his longtime dream, chef Jared Gadbaw brought his vision of a seafood-focused Italian restaurant to life in Detroit’s Milwaukee Junction neighborhood in fall 2020. Oak & Reel’s resilience in the face of extreme adversity and its commitment to the vision of bringing diners impeccable dishes showcasing the freshest seafood, all presented with welcoming and knowledge able service, is the reason we’re naming Oak & Reel Hour Detroit’s Restaurant of the Year. The menu is sea sonal and changes frequently. But in general, the crudos are pristine, the pastas are impeccable, and the seafood dishes are all well balanced and expertly pre pared to accentuate the freshness and quality of the fish and shellfish. 2921 E. Grand Blvd., Detroit; 313-2709600. D Thu.-Mon.
Olin
MEDITERRANEAN • A taste of the Mediterranean in Michigan. Starters like the potatoes and artichokes “bravas” with harissa and black garlic aioli and paellas are inspired by Spain but showcase Olin’s unique spin on these iconic dishes. 25 E. Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313-774-1190. D Tues.-Sat. BR Sun.
Ottava Via $$
ITALIAN • Chef Ariel Millan sends out great thin-crusted pizzas as well as interesting small plates typified by bruschetta, calamari, roasted garlic, and whipped goat cheese to be spread on paper-thin crostini. 1400 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-962-5500. L,D daily.
Pao Detroit $$$
FUSION • Visit this upscale Pan-Asian fusion restaurant for Asian-themed cocktails and dishes, such as creamy rock shrimp, charred octopus, filet mignon, and orange sesame salmon. Based in the former Michigan Oriental Theater, the interior combines new and old. 114 W. Adams Ave., Ste. 200, Detroit; 313-816-0000. L Sun., D Tue.-Sun.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2018 Parc $$$
NEW AMERICAN • Excellent food, exceptional service, and a crisp and formal but distinctly unstuffy atmosphere set this Campus Martius gem apart. Appetizer highlights include a bright and fresh tuna tartare and wood-roasted oysters. Creamy roasted garlic butter and lemon add a zippy touch to the roasted oysters. Main courses are exceptional, including an interesting blend of Italian food, woodgrilled whole fish, and organic Scottish salmon. There’s also a large selection of dry-aged gourmet steaks, wood-grilled and served tableside. The wine selection is impressive and caters to a diverse set of price ranges and wine drinkers, so you won’t be disappointed with any bottle here. 800 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-922-7272. L,D daily. BR Sat.-Sun.
Park Grill $$
MEDITERRANEAN • Mediterranean fare gets a Balkan spin. The menu offers tasting plates, pita-wrapped sandwiches, and salads, as well as entrees including chicken and beef shawarma, beef and pork kafta, lem on-pepper pork tenderloin, and lamb chops. Service is friendly and informal. 15102 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe Park; 313-264-1997. L,D daily.
Pegasus Taverna $$
GREEK • The cry of “opa!” resounds in St. Clair Shores at the second edition of the longstanding Greektown restaurant. The resturant boasts an exten sive menu, from moussaka and spinach pie to gyros and roast lamb. 24935 Jefferson Ave., St. Clair Shores; 586-772-3200. 558 Monroe St., Detroit; 313-9646800. L,D Tue-Sun.
FEATURED
Michigan & Trumbull
ITALIAN AMERICAN After a successful four-month run at Fort Street Galley, Michigan & Trumbull became one of the latest in a long line of Detroit-style pizza joints to open in the area. Not your traditional carryout joint, Michigan & Trumbull is housed in a sleek, refurbished carrepair garage. The menu features square, deep-dish pies with Detroitinspired names, such as Packard Pepperoni and Woodward White. 1441 W. Elizabeth St., Detroit; 313-637-4992. L,D Wed-Sat.
The Peterboro $$
ASIAN-FUSION A contemporary take on AmericanChinese fare gives new life to the cuisine with robustly spiced dishes, including an “absurdly delicious” cheeseburger spring roll and a take on almond boneless chicken. 420 Peterboro St., Detroit; 313-833-1111. D Mon.-Sat.
Pho Lucky $
VIETNAMESE This charming Midtown Vietnamese spot serves authentic fare emphasizing pho. Bowls of spicy broth with noodles, round steak, and meatballs come in several variations. Other noteworthy dishes here include summer rolls and crisp spring rolls. Look for Asian beers and robust Vietnamese coffee. 3111 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-338-3895. L,D Wed.-Mon.
PizzaPlex $
ITALIAN • This pizza isn’t just authentic, it’s certified. PizzaPlex earned the title of Vera Pizza Napoletana, or real Neapolitan pizza, from Associazione Verace Pizza Napole tana in Naples. Try the Margherita. Topped with mozzarella, basil, and EVOO, there’s nothing like a classic. 4458 Vernor Highway, Detroit; 313-757-4992. D Thu.-Sun.
Polish Village Café $
POLISH • The “Polish plate” includes stuffed cabbage, pierogi, kielbasa, sauerkraut, and mashed potatoes and gravy. The dill pickle soup and city chicken are standouts, too. A Polish staple in Detroit, where there aren’t too many. 2990 Yemans St., Hamtramck; 313-874-5726. L,D daily. Not wheelchair accessible.
Portofino $
ITALIAN • This big waterfront spot in Wyandotte is both a local hangout and a restaurant with a menu that’s surprisingly ambitious. It offers a number of fish and seafood dishes, from lake perch to coconut shrimp and fried calamari, as well as steaks. Nearly every table in the restaurant has a river view. 3455 Biddle Ave., Wyandotte; 734-281-6700. L,D Tues.-Sun.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2019
Prime + Proper $$$$
STEAKHOUSE Downtown Detroit dining gets a major shot of glamour with this over-the-top steak and seafood emporium on the corner of Griswold and State streets. Although red meat, from prime dry-aged Tomahawk ribeye to Wagyu strip, is the focus — and yes, there’s a burger made with a dry-aged butcher’s blend — oysters, king crab, and caviar aren’t far behind. An elegant white and gold setting back grounds it all. 1145 Griswold St., Detroit; 313-636-3100. D Mon.-Sun., BR Sat.-Sun.
Prism $$$
NEW AMERICAN • Greektown Casino-Hotel’s renamed eatery is located off the main casino. The menu features local ingredients, steaks, and fresh seafood. 555 E. Lafayette St., Detroit; 313-309-2499. D Wed.-Sun.
Rattlesnake Club $$$$
NEW AMERICAN This restaurant on the river remains one of the most appealing spots in town. The casually elegant space offers a range of appetizers, entrees, and desserts. Dishes that typify its style include seared diver sea scallops, an 8-ounce filet, and a 16-ounce porterhouse. 300 River Place, Detroit; 313567-4400. L,D Tue.-Sat.
Red Dunn Kitchen $$
NEW AMERICAN • The Trumbull and Porter hotel’s spiffy restaurant is an ambitious undertaking, offering three meals a day. It is best experienced at dinner, with a la carte offerings such as foie gras-stuffed quail, smoked and mari nated salmon collars, braised lamb leg, and bacon-wrapped duck breast with polenta. 1331 Trumbull Ave., Detroit; 313887-9477. B,L,D daily except on Fri., which is B,L.
RESTAURANT LISTINGS 11.22
Red Smoke Barbeque $$
BARBEQUE At Red Smoke, hickory and applewoodsmoked ribs, pulled pork, apple-smoked, all-natural chicken, and an array of classic sides are served out of one of the most attractive two-story buildings that are still standing on Monroe Street. 573 Monroe St., Detroit; 313-962-2100. L,D daily.
Rocky’s of Northville $$
NEW AMERICAN • Menu includes shrimp cocktail, salmon pate, and broiled Great Lakes whitefish. Also look for chipotle honey-glazed salmon. 41122 W. Seven Mile Road, Northville; 248-349-4434. L Tue.-Sat. D Sun.
Roman Village $
ITALIAN • The Rugiero family has been serving authentic Italian cuisine since 1964. They’ve launched three additional Antonio’s Cucina Italiana locations. Roman Village is the original and features their signa ture gnocchi Rita. 9924 Dix Ave., Dearborn; 313-8422100. L,D daily.
Rose’s Fine Food $
BREAKFAST/BRUNCH The menu is straightforward, based mainly on fresh ingredients and from-scratch preparation. Breakfast eaters can choose from a variety of egg dishes, such as the Eggs and Cheese (soft scrambled eggs, herbs, and aioli). For lunch, there’s a selection of creative sandwiches. 10551 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit; 313-822-2729. B,L,D Mon-Sat. B,L. Sun.
San Morello $$$
ITALIAN • This Italian gem serves pizzas, pastas, and wood-fired dishes that draw inspiration from the coastal towns of Southern Italy and Sicily out of the Shinola Hotel. Think Tartufi Pizza with fontina and black truffle, handcrafted by James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Carmellini. 1400 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313209-4700. D daily.
The Sardine Room $$$
SEAFOOD A seafood restaurant and raw bar, The Sardine Room is fresh, fun, and energetic, with a clean-line décor and a menu full of surprises. For starters, there is a Seafood Louie featuring jumbo lump crab, shrimp, egg, avocado, tomato, and bibb lettuce. Worthwhile is a grouper sandwich that’s available seared, pan-fried, or blackened. 340 S. Main St., Plymouth; 734-416-0261. D daily, BR Sun.
Savannah Blue $$
SOUL FOOD • Highlights at this upscale soul food joint include the twice-dredged fried chicken and the shrimp and grits. Shareables include perch fritters, okra fries, and a Georgian Hummus that substitutes black-eyed peas for chickpeas. There’s also a great bar. 1431 Times Square, Detroit; 313-926-0783. D Tue.-Sat.
Savant $$$
FRENCH • In a cozy-yet-upscale interior with leather couches and an open kitchen, Jordan Whitmore and Rebecca Wurster, formerly of Apparatus Room, serve up rotating European-inspired menu items, including Champagne Chicken, an Apple and Arugu la Heirloom Salad, Calamari, and — for vegan diners Ratatouille Confit. 51 W. Forest Ave., Detroit; 248766-8071. D Fri.-Sat.
Scotty Simpson’s Fish & Chips $
SEAFOOD • Head to this Brightmoor spot for perfectly prepared fish and chips. The key to Scotty’s longevity is the batter that coats the cod, perch, shrimp, chicken, onion rings, and frog legs. 22200 Fenkell St., Detroit; 313-533-0950. L,D Tue.-Sat.
Second Best $
RETRO AMERICAN • The talents behind nearby Grey Ghost have unveiled a second, more casual spot with a
FEATURED
Takoi
THAI Thai-Laotian fare might seem out of place in Corktown, but virtually everything on the menu has distinction. There’s a depth, concentration, and balance between heat and coolness, the range of spices, the delight of moving from one superb bite to the next.
2520 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-855-2864. D Tue.-Sat.
retro spin in Brush Park. The menu of lighter dishes includes the Yogi Gyro with roasted root vegetable and coconut tzatziki, and fried chicken sandwiches that accompany drinks that were popular more than a few years back. 42 Watson St., Detroit; 313-315-3077. L Sat.Sun., D nightly.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2016 Selden Standard $$$
NEW AMERICAN • What sets Selden Standard apart is that it is moving Detroit into a new era in which upperend dining with starched linen and tuxedoed waiters doesn’t hold much interest anymore. Chef Andy Holly day, a multiple James Beard semifinalist, does farm-totable scratch cooking with ideas borrowed from around the world. A key to his cooking is the wood-fired grill. This spot has garnered national attention. 3921 Second Ave., Detroit; 313-438-5055. D Wed.-Sun.
Seva Detroit $$
VEGETARIAN • Seva offers such dishes as black bean and sweet potato quesadillas, gluten-free options, and colorful stir-fries — some vegan as well as vegetarian. There’s also a full bar as well as a juice bar. 2541 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor; 734-662-1111. 66 E. Forest Ave., Detroit; 313-974-6661. L,D Mon.-Sat.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2020
SheWolf Pastificio & Bar $$$
ITALIAN • Chef Anthony Lombardo takes fresh and housemade to a new level with this Midtown restaurant that serves only dinner from a menu inspired by Italian cooking specific to Rome. Milling all of his own flour for his pastas, breads, and polenta in house, Lombardo, well known as the former executive chef at Bacco, serves a selection of simple but elegant regional Italian dishes. 438 Selden St., Detroit; 313-315-3992. D Tue.-Sun
Slows Bar BQ $$
BARBEQUE The brick-and-wood original in Corktown gained a following for its pulled pork, ribs, and chicken. They expanded with a “to go” spot in Midtown, as well. This is a true Detroit classic in every sense of the term. Corktown location: 2138 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-9629828. L,D daily. Slows To Go in Midtown: 4107 Cass Ave., Detroit; 313-309-7560. L,D Wed.-Sun.
Smith & Co. $$$
NEW AMERICAN • This Cass Corridor bar and restaurant is housed in the old Smith Welding Supply & Equipment Company building — hence cement ceilings and exposed brick that evoke an industrial vibe. The menu features small plates, sandwiches, and entrees such as mushroom toast; braised lamb shank; the fried chicken bowl with sweet sesame sauce and kimchi; and the Smith Burger, soy-ginger marinated and topped with a fried egg. Beverage options include craft beer, wine, and fresh takes on classic cocktails. 644 Selden St, Detroit; 313-6381695. D Wed.-Sun.
Standby $$
NEW AMERICAN • The libation menu — categorized by spirit — is longer than the food menu, but both food and drinks are equally emphasized. The fare ranges from small plates of marinated olives and tamari eggs to entrees such as grilled lamb kebabs and the house cheeseburger. 225 Gratiot Ave., Detroit; 313-241-5719. D Wed.-Sun. Not wheelchair accessible.
The Statler $$$$
FRENCH A taste of Paris in downtown Detroit. This French-American bistro from the Joe Vicari Restaurant Group takes its name from the former historic Statler Hotel, which is now home to not only the bistro but also City Club Apartments. Classic French fare (with some
modern twists) such as potted foie gras mousse; Henri Maire escargots (wild Burgundy snails, garlic butter fondue, parsley, Pernod, and profiteroles); and bouillabaisse provence (seafood stew with shrimp, scallops, lobster, mussels, saffron broth, croustade, and rouille) typify the menu. The large, year-round open-air outdoor patio offers stunning panoramic views of the Detroit skyline and Grand Circus Park. There’s also a neighborhood market where customers can grab groceries and gourmet packaged meals on the go. 313 Park Ave., Detroit; 313-463-7111. D Mon.-Sat., BR Sun.
Supino Pizzeria $$
ITALIAN • Relax with one of the town’s best thin-crust pizzas — they come in more than a dozen variations, with or without red sauce. A few dishes from the La Rondinella menu made the list as well, such as paninis, salads, and small plates such as polpette and three delicious salads. Beer, wine, and cocktails add to the appeal. 2457 Russell St., Detroit; 313-567-7879. L,D Wed.-Sun.; 6519 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-314-7400. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Sweet Soul Bistro $
SOUL FOOD The large menu includes homages to Detroit musicians, from Stevie Wonder Wonderful Wings to Aretha Franklin Catfish Bites. Also notable are the crab cakes. In the evening, the bistro transforms into a club. 13741 W. McNichols Road, Detroit; 313- 862-7685. L,D daily.
Tap at MGM Grand $
SPORTS BAR • More than 40 HD flatscreen TVs for sports fans, plus sports memorabilia. The menu features comfort food and pub classics: burgers, wings, and house nachos. Pizza and more upscale entrees are also available, as are more than 50 beers. Bring your family and friends for a very entertaining night on the town. 1777 Third St., Detroit; 313-465-1234. D daily.
Townhouse $$$
NEW AMERICAN • This downtown Detroit hot spot recently underwent a refresh with a remodeled interior that replaced the industrial aesthetic with a softer, lighter look and updated menu of its signature elevated comfort food. Staples like the dry-aged burger with aged white cheddar, bourbon onions, and hand-cut fries remain but additions like caviar and A5 wagyu up the luxury factor. 500 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-7231000. L, D Mon.-Sun.
Trattoria Serventi $$
ITALIAN • The brick pizza oven turns out an array of thin-crust pizzas and there’s an interesting daytime menu that offers a real bargain. In the evening, such dishes as scallopini style veal, and gnocchi alla palmina, recalling chef Aldo Ottaviani — who was instrumental in setting up the original Andiamo menu — typify the style. 20930 Mack Ave., Grosse Pointe Woods; 313-886-9933. D Wed.-Mon.
Urban Ramen $$
JAPANESE-INSPIRED • Urban Ramen serves bowls of steaming broth filled with house-made, springy ramen noodles topped with fixings like bamboo, egg, pork chashu, and sesame seeds. The menu also includes poke, salads, and sides such as garlic edamame and Japanese fried chicken. 4206 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-285-9869. L,D Mon.-Sun.
Vertical Detroit $$$
WINE BAR • This wine-centric restaurant puts the focus on pairing Chef Alex Knezevic’s innovative cuisine with owners James and Rémy Lutfy’s nationally recognized wine program. The menu emphasizes locally sourced protein, seafood, and produce. A must-try for any wine enthusiast. 1538 Centre St., Detroit; 313-7329463. D Wed.-Sat. Not wheelchair accessible.
MISS KIM’S
JEON
PHOTO BY KAILEY HOWELLIngredients:
¼ cup Master Jeon Batter, recipe follows
3 large eggs
½ teaspoon saewoojut*
1 tablespoon finely chopped scallions
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
2 pints zucchini or squash, sliced into ¼-inch pieces
2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil (e.g. canola)
Master Jeon Batter
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup rice flour**
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
*Korean salted fermented baby shrimp; can substitute with fish sauce or soy sauce
**Substitute cornstarch or potato starch; do not use mochiko or sweet rice flour
Directions:
Mix the eggs, saewoojut, scallions, and black pepper in a mixing bowl and whisk well to combine.
Put the Master Jeon Batter on a plate or cookie sheet. Dip the sliced zucchini into the batter to cover, then dust off any excess with a brush. Dip the dusted zucchini into the egg mix.
Place a nonstick pan over medium heat and add oil. When the pan is hot, place the egg mix-dipped zucchini onto the oiled and heated pan. You should hear a subtle sizzle. When the edges of the egg mix are set, flip the zucchini. Cook until golden brown on both sides.
Place the zucchini/squash jeon onto a cooling rack or cookie sheet covered with paper towel to drain excess cooking oil. Serve while still hot and enjoy!
Vicente’s Cuban Cuisine $$
CUBAN • An evening at this lively spot is more than just Cuban and Spanish dining. Appetizers and tapas include the outstanding Tapa de la Casa, pork leg marinated in mojo; a Spanish chorizo and fresh mushrooms concoction with garlic lemon sauce; and empanadas, a Cuban turnover filled with ground beef or chicken. 1250 Library St., Detroit; 313-962-8800. L,D daily.
Vivio’s Food & Spirits $
SANDWICH/DELI • This Eastern Market classic has been run by the Vivio family for more than 40 years. Sandwiches and burgers are mainstays, but diners also appreciate the steamed mussels. 3601 Twelve Mile Road, Warren; 586-576-0495. L,D daily.
The Whitney $$$$
NEW AMERICAN • The historic 1890s mansion is still going strong. The menu is typified by classic beef Wel lington, wrapped in spinach, prosciutto, and pastry; and pan-roasted Scottish salmon. Tableside cooking, by reservation only, is an optional feature. Don’t forget The Katherine McGregor Dessert Parlor for a sweet treat.4421 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-832-5700. D Wed.-Sun and high tea Sat.-Sun.
Wine Dotte Bistro $$
WINE BAR • This interesting wine bar and restaurant offers a view of the Detroit River. The menu includes coconut shrimp, lobster tails, tenderloin medallions, and lamb chops. The wine is displayed in a cabinet across one wall and it’s the main focus. 2910 Van Alstyne St., Wyandotte; 734-556-3195. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Wright & Co. $$
NEW AMERICAN • The collaboration between chef Marc Djozlija and Dave Kwiatkowski of the popular Corktown craft cocktail bar Sugar House gives new life to the second-floor space in the Wright Kay building. Small plates such as tuna tartare with pickled pears, and pork belly sliders with tomato jam and sriracha aioli are the focus. 1500 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313962-7711. D Tue.-Sun.
Yum Village $
AFRO-CARIBBEAN
• The former food truck opened a full-service restaurant in the North End in 2019. The space is bright and fun with wooden tables, mis matched chairs, and a colorful, geometric paint job. And the food is just as bold. The restaurant serves up piquant dishes like Lemon Pepper Jerk Chicken. 6500 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-334-6099. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Oakland
168 Crab & Karaoke $$
PAN-ASIAN • Don’t judge by 168 Crab & Karaoke’s unassuming strip mall location. It’s a unique experience that meshes food, karaoke, and pop party culture into a one-stop destination. As the name suggests, seafood is the main attraction here, specifically the seafood boils, which come with your choice of seafood (crab, clams, lobster, etc.), with sauce and corn and potatoes. 32415 John R Road, Madison Heights; 248-616-0168. D daily.
220 Merrill $$$
NEW AMERICAN
• The menu includes apps and small plates as well as Wagyu beef carpaccio, ahi tuna tartare, and classic roasted oysters. There are heartier entrees as well, like the braised beef short ribs. 220 Merrill St., Birmingham; 248-646-2220. L,D Mon.-Sat. BR Sun.
Andiamo $$
• Over the past three decades, Joe Vicari has established several Andiamo restaurants in metro Detroit, all inspired by the late master chef Aldo Otta-
ITALIAN
viani’s philosophy of seasonal, from-scratch cooking. The menus differ slightly at the different locations, but the constant is the fresh, housemade pastas — handcrafted by the trinity of “pasta ladies,” Anna, Tanya, and Angelina, who have carried on the tradition. 6676 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield; 248-865-9300. L,D Mon.Fri., D Sat.-Sun.
Anita’s Kitchen $
LEBANESE • With pita pizzas and lamb chops, the Lebanese food here is some of the best around. And there’s vegetarian and gluten-free fare, too. Healthy, nutritious, and delicious. See website for locations; anitaskitchen.com
Assaggi Bistro $$$
ITALIAN • Seasonal offers encompassing rustic Italian, country French, and authentic Lebanese are all created in the open kitchen. Standouts include Moroccan duck legs, porcini-dusted day boat sea scallops, and cioppino (seafood stew). 330 W. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale; 248584-3499 D Wed.-Sat.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2005
Bacco Restaurante $$$
ITALIAN • Chef-owner Luciano Del Signore’s pastas are like pure art. Try the Strozzapreti Norcina: Italian sausage, truffles, tomato, and white wine, tossed in hand-rolled pasta. From local grass-fed beef to sustainably farm-raised sea bass to a fresh caprese, the ingredients are top-end. Based in the heart of Southfield, Bacco is a true Italian gem in the suburbs. And the desserts, are not to be missed. 29410 Northwestern Hwy., Southfield; 248-356-6600. L Tue.-Fri. D Tue.-Sat.
Bar Verona $$
ITALIAN • Modernized, made-from-scratch Italian favorites curated by Chef Salvatore Borgia as well as fresh craft cocktails fill the menu at this stylish eatery. Homemade pastas, such as Giuseppe’s and Spaghetti al Basilico, and specialty pizzas, including The Verona and the Truffle Mushroom, as well as a selection of steaks and seafood dishes typify the contemporary approach to fresh and uncomplicated Italian cuisine. 500 Loop Road, Commerce Charter Township; 248-3875400. D daily.
Bella Piatti $$
ITALIAN • The location right across from the Townsend Hotel has inspired a number of visiting celebrities, professional athletes, and film crews who stay there to check out the Italian fare at this restaurant. The menu of such dishes as Gemelli pasta with fresh tomato sauce, salmon baked with spinach, kalamata olives, white wine, and tomatoes, and tagliatelle Bolognese stands on its own. It’s one of our true favorites in the area in terms of Italian restaurants. 167 Townsend St., Birmingham; 248-494-7110. D Tue.-Sat.
Beverly Hills Grill $$$
NEW AMERICAN • This Beverly Hills institution has built a loyal following over the years with its California vibe and dawn-to-dark schedule. These days they’re serving only dinner but still features the fresh and innovative fare that put it on the map. 31471 Southfield Road, Beverly Hills; 248-642-2355. D Mon.-Sat.
Bi Bim Bab $$
KOREAN • Though sushi and a small selection of Japanese entrees share the bill here, it’s Korean food at center stage — on barbecue grills, on which meat and seafood are grilled to order. Or come for the res taurant’s namesake. 43155 Main St., Novi; 248-3486800. L,D daily.
Bigalora: Wood Fired Cucina $$
ITALIAN The pizza concept from chef Luciano Del
Signore, a four-time James Beard Award nominee, features small plates, fresh pastas, wood-roasted meats, and a range of distinctive Neopolitan pizzas. See website for locations; bigalora.com
Birmingham Pub $$$ GASTROPUB • This stylish yet casual gastropub from the Joe Vicari Restaurant Group took over the former Tri ple Nickel space. True to its name, the restaurant’s bill of fare features pub classics taken up a notch, such as Alas kan cod butter roasted with everything-bagel crust and filet mignon with Parmesan truffle fries and zip sauce. There are also TVs at the bar so you won’t miss a minute of the game. 555 S. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248-885-8108. L,D Tue.-Fri., D Sat.-Sun.
Bistro Joe’s $$$
GLOBAL • Part of Papa Joe’s Gourmet Market, Bistro Joe’s is in a mezzanine overlooking the open kitchen and market. There is an eclectic list of dishes like spicy tuna “tacushi,” steamed mussels, and tasty flatbread pizzas. 34244 Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248-5940984. L,D Tue.-Sun.
menu for — among other things — chef Zack Sklar’s square, deep-dish, Detroit-style pizza that’s leavened from a sourdough starter as opposed to commercial yeast. 22812 Woodward Ave., Unit 100., Ferndale; 248-677-4439. L,D daily.
Cornbread Restaurant & Bar $$
SOUL • In 1997, Patrick Coleman melded his experience in fine dining with his grandma’s southern roots to create Beans & Cornbread Soulful Bistro. It racked up accolades and fans over the years, including Stevie Wonder and Thomas (Hitman) Hearns. Cornbread is the sequel to Beans and Cornbread, continuing the tradition of soul food with an upscale twist. Classics like catfish and a gravy-smothered pork chop endure. 29852 Northwestern Hwy., Southfield; 248-208-1680. L,D Thu.-Tue.
Crispelli’s Bakery Pizzeria $
ITALIAN-INSPIRED This hybrid offers artisanal pizzas from a brick oven, salads, paninis, and soups. A bakery offers crusty breads, desserts, and meals to go. Two patios add to the appeal. See website for loca tions; crispellis.com
FEATURED Adachi
JAPANESEINSPIRED Heading the kitchen is Lloyd Roberts, who has trained in the kitchens of celebrity chefs such as JeanGeorges Vongerichten and Nobu Matsuhisa. At Adachi, soy truffle broth is ladled over pork dumplings reminiscent of coin purses, and miniature tacos are filled with lobster, tuna, or vegetable pickings.
325 S. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248540-900. L,D daily.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2003 Café Cortina $$$
ITALIAN • Selections include prosciutto di Parma stuffed with greens and mozzarella; squid sautéed with fresh pomodori; gnocchi with porcini mushrooms; and meaty prawns finished with lemon, white wine, and herbs. For dessert, try the crepes 30715 W. 10 Mile Road, Farmington Hills; 248-474-3033. L Sun., D Tue.-Sun.
Café ML $$
NEW AMERICAN • Café ML is contemporary in décor and its “globally inspired food.” Such dishes as short rib steamed buns, Chinese chicken salad, Singapore street noodles, and Korean fried chicken share the menu with burgers, steak frites, and fresh seafood. Garage door-style windows open onto the patio on warm days. 3607 W. Maple Road, Bloomfield Town ship; 248-642-4000. D daily.
Capital Grille $$$
STEAKHOUSE • Hand-cut, dry-aged steaks and fresh seafood dishes are the stars at Capital Grille. The restaurant’s outstanding wine list features over 350 labels. The setting is appropriate for both busi ness lunches and social events and includes wellappointed private dining rooms. 2800 W. Big Beaver Road, Troy; 248-649-5300. L,D daily.
Casa Pernoi $$$$
ITALIAN • Three months after its grand opening, what once was a multi-hyphenate concept, blending French, Asian, and Italian cuisine, soon defaulted sim ply to a cuisine most familiar to chef Luciano DelSignore: Italian. Housemade pastas rolled by hand, chicken parmesan, and a meaty branzino typify the menu. A cannoli cake layers sweet ricotta atop a spongy cake and a base of dark chocolate reminis cent of a Nestle Crunch Bar. 310 E. Maple Road, Birmingham; 248-940-0000. D Tue.-Sat.
Churchill’s Bistro & Cigar Bar $$$
TRADITIONAL • You can buy your cigar and smoke it too. Plus, enjoy dry-aged steaks, pan-roasted sea bass, seasonal East Coast oysters, and lamb chops, among other options. A full bar boasts a large selection of whiskey, scotch, and bourbon — and plenty of wine. 116 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham; 248-647-4555. L,D daily.
Como’s $$ NEW AMERICAN • This Ferndale favorite reopened in May 2019 under the ownership of Peas & Carrots Hospitality with a trendier, fresher look. The warm, homey feel is still intact, but it’s ditched the old
Culantro $$
PERUVIAN Native Peruvian Betty Shuell brings a taste of her home to Ferndale. The casual, homey, seat-yourself establishment is named after an herb that is often used in traditional Peruvian cooking. An especially notable dish is the Pollo a la Brasa, marinat ed chicken served with French fries, rice, and a variety of dipping sauces. 22939 Woodward Ave., Ferndale; 248-632-1055. L,D daily.
Diamond’s Steak & Seafood $$$
STEAKHOUSE • This Howell restaurant is the perfect location for ribeye, fresh gulf shrimp, or a classic cheeseburger. Plus, weekends boast a buffet-style brunch. 101 W. Grand River Ave., Howell; 517-5485500. D Tue.-Sat.
Eddie’s Gourmet $$
NEW AMERICAN • Chef Eddie Hanna’s gourmet diner is a simple concept that works to perfection. The menu offers standard selection of breakfast items, burgers, sandwiches, and lunch specials, but the real draw is the counter-side gourmet and pasta specials. Offerings include Veal Marsala and Chicken Milano. 25920 Greenfield Road, Oak Park; 248-968-4060. L,D Mon-Sat.
Elie’s Mediterranean Grill/Bar $$
LEBANESE • The lamb and chicken shawarma, shish kafta, kibbee nyeh, and other Lebanese dishes are emphasized by the décor, including photomurals of old Beirut and strings of blue beads cascading from the ceiling. A fun place to frequent for a quick lunch or a night out with friends. 263 Pierce St., Birmingham; 248-647-2420. L,D Mon.-Sat.
The Fed $$ GASTROPUB An attractive restaurant with great food and a delightfully refreshing atmosphere. The menu crosses boundaries, from shareables, like Span ish Octopus and Wild Mushroom Crostini, to heartier fare, like Braised Lamb Pappardelle and Steak and Frites. Plus, the bright and airy bohemian-chic interior is highly Instagrammable. 15 S. Main St., Clarkston; 248-297-5833. D Wed.-Sat., B,L,D Sun
The Fly Trap $ ECLECTIC AMERICAN • This “finer diner” typifies trendy Ferndale with its tin ceiling, red-topped tables, and counter with swivel stools. It offers sandwiches, salads, pastas, and omelets. 22950 Woodward Ave., Ferndale; 248-399-5150. B,L Tue.-Sat.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2009 Forest $$$
EUROPEAN-INSPIRED • The menu is brief but designed to let the kitchen assemble sharp flavors from various farm and market ingredients. Try the delightful pastas, like the Bolognese and the agnolotti, as well as the understated Farm Egg. 735 Forest Ave., Birmingham; 248-258-9400. D Tue.-Sat.
Garage Grill & Fuel Bar $$
NEW AMERICAN • The car-themed rooms of a former 1940s gas station are as fresh and appealing as the dishes themselves. The kitchen serves up a vari ety of seafood starters and “full-size sedan” entrees, as well as pizzas. 202 W. Main St., Northville, 248-9243367. D Wed.-Sun., BR Sat.-Sun.
Gran Castor $$
LATIN STREET From the duo behind hit spots like Vinsetta Garage and Union Woodshop comes this vibrant Latin-American café and restaurant.Diners can choose to sit behind one of the two bars, a cozy café, or in the 245-seat dining room all decked in col orful textiles. At Gran Castor, the dining room is equally as decadent as the food and drinks served. Grab a $5 margarita between 4 p.m.-6 p.m. daily. 2950 Roch ester Road, Troy; 248-278-7777. D Wed.-Mon.
Hazel’s $$
SEAFOOD • What was once multiple concepts under one roof named after the three neighborhoods that converged right where the restaurant stands (Hazel, Ravine and Downtown) is now simply Hazel’s. The casual and comfortable restaurant specializes in authentic dishes, drinks, and vibes from some of the country’s top seafood destinations. Here you’ll find dishes like Maine-caught lobster, Maryland Blue Crab, and more. 1 Peabody St., Birmingham; 248-671-1714. D Tue.-Sun., B,L Sat.-Sun.
Honcho $
LATIN FUSION • From the owners of Vinsetta Garage and Union Woodshop, this restaurant can be described as “Latin food that speaks with an Asian accent.” Menu items include a chicken burrito fried and tossed in a soy fish sauce and Korean pork tacos, featuring Woodshop pulled pork tossed in Korean BBQ sauce and topped with toasted sesame seeds and Malay radish slaw. 3 E. Church St., Clarkston; 248707-3793. L,D daily.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2002 Hong Hua $
CHINESE • One of the best area restaurants dedicated to Asian food offers some rare delicacies — shark’s fin and bird’s nest soups, fresh abalone — as well as more customary items. One signature dish is stir-fried yellow grouper fillet with vegetables. 27925 Orchard Lake Road, Farmington Hills; 248-489-2280. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse $$$$
STEAKHOUSE • This plush modern steakhouse offers dry-aged prime and Kobe-style wagyu beef in a fun, clubby setting. An extensive wine list accompa nies the restaurant menu that also features platters of chilled fresh seafood. 201 S. Old Woodward Ave., Bir mingham; 248-594-4369. D daily. 17107 Haggerty Road, Northville Twp.; 248-679-0007. D Tue.-Sat.
Imperial $
MEXICAN-INSPIRED • The menu offers Californiastyle tacos on soft tortillas, including lime-grilled chicken, carnitas, and marinated pork, as well as slowroasted pork tortas, and guacamole. 22828 Wood ward Ave., Ferndale, 248-850-8060. L,D daily, BR Sun.
J-Bird Smoked Meats $$
BARBEQUE Offering wood-smoked meats served with the traditional sides of cornbread, buttermilk slaw, and mac and cheese, popular dishes include the Three Meat Sampler and JBird Gumbo, as well as St. Louis Ribs and old-fashioned JBurgers. If you love meat, this is your place. 1978 Cass Lake Road, Keego Harbor; 248-681-2124. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Joe Muer $$$$
SEAFOOD • The Bloomfield Hills location of the iconic restaurant continues the tradition of excellent food, service, and ambiance. The menu emphasizes classic fresh fish and “Muer Traditions” such as Dover sole and Great Lakes Yellow Belly Perch. There’s also a raw and sushi bar as well as premium steaks. And make sure to save room for dessert, because the coconut cake is not to be missed. A piano bar adds to the ambience. 39475 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills; 248-792-9609. D daily.
Kaizen Ramen $
JAPANESE • A downtown Royal Oak space with exposed ductwork, orange booths, and a lively, floor-to-ceiling, black-and-white robot mural may not seem like the obvious choice for authentic Asian noodles. But this casual spot offers a variety of vegan and meat-based ramen dishes, as well as gyoza, poke, spring rolls, and karaage — Japanese-style fried chicken. Don’t skip out on desserts like mochi ice cream and cheesecake tempura. 411 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak; 248-677-1236. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Lao Pot $$$
CHINESE • In 2019, the owners of Madison Heights’ international market 168 Asian Mart opened Lao Pot, which specializes in Chinese Hot Pot cuisine. Hot Pot is a traditional method of cooking, using a pot of simmering broth, which sits in the center of the dining table. Lao Pot allows diners to customize and cook their meals right at their tables, combining great food and a memora ble experience. 32707 John R. Road, Madison Heights; 248-689-9888. L,D daily.
La Strada Dolci e Caffé $
ITALIAN • A slice of European elegance offers an impeccable little menu of Italian dishes and rich coffees and espresso. Paninis, delicious fresh green salads, hearty minestrone soup, pastas, pizzas, and decadent and artistically crafted pastries are prettily served and very tasty. 243 E. Merrill St., Birmingham; 248-480-0492. D Tue.-Sat.
Loccino Italian Grill $$
ITALIAN Loccino is a “family-friendly” yet upscale Italian restaurant. Choose from fresh seafood, steak, chicken, and veal dishes, plus traditional pastas, pizzas, salads, and more. They also offer happy hour specials from 3-7 p.m. weekdays. A great special occassion place or delicious workday lunch spot for whevener you need a break from the office. 5600 Crooks Road, Troy; 248-813-0700. L Mon.-Fri., D daily.
Lockhart’s BBQ $$
BARBEQUE • The heart of this joint’s authentic barbecue is the dry-rubbed meat smoker, which can smoke up to 800 pounds of meat at a time. Choices such as pork ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, burnt ends, and chicken are served atop butcher paper on metal trays for the true experience. 202 E. Third St., Royal Oak; 248-584-4227. L,D daily. BR Sun.
Loui’s Pizza $
ITALIAN • Sure, you can now get a Michigan craft beer, but not much else has changed. And that’s a good thing. Parties dine on square pizzas with crisp crust,
FEATUREDLelli’s Inn
ITALIAN Dinners begin with an antipasto tray, creamy minestrone, salad, side dish of spaghetti, and then nine times out of 10 — a filet mignon with zip sauce. 885 N. Opdyke Road, Auburn Hills; 248-373-4440. L Mon.-Fri. D daily.
faintly charred around the edges. Hailed by food critics and Detroiters alike as one of the city’s most classic Detroit style pizzas, it’s well worth a trip. 23141 Dequindre Road, Hazel Park; 248-547-1711. L,D Thu.-Sun.
Luxe Bar & Grill $$
NEW AMERICAN • The simple menu at this Grosse Pointe Farms joint offers burgers on brioche buns and interesting salads and sides, as well as entrees typi fied by wild-caught salmon, prime filet, and Greekstyle lamb chops. 525 N. Old Woodward Ave., Birming ham; 248-792-6051. 115 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe Farms; 313-924-5459. L,D daily.
Mabel Gray $$$
NEW AMERICAN • Chef James Rigato produces some masterful dishes on this tiny menu, which does not miss a beat. The menu includes a multi-course tasting option, as well as a daily listing of changing items that never disappoint. It’s a fine dining experi ence that is certainly worth a visit. 23825 John R Road, Hazel Park; 248-398-4300. D Tue.-Sat.
Mad Hatter Bistro, Bar & Tea Room $$
ECLECTIC AMERICAN • The whimsical setting inspired by Alice in Wonderland welcomes far more than the tea-sipping set with burgers and sandwich es, rabbit Porchetta, truffle risotto bites, and baked brie with pistachio, honey, and pomegranate. There are also pastries, of course. 185 N. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248-540-0000. B,L Thu.-Sun., D Fri.-Sat. Tea by reservation. Lower level not wheel chair accessible.
Mare Mediterranean $$$$ SEAFOOD • Inspired by restaurants in Sicily where the catch of the day is the basis of dinner, this sophis ticated restaurant from Nino Cutraro and his partner offers the freshest seafood flown in from the Mediter ranean several times a week. You select the type of fish you want from the market in front of the open kitchen and how you want it prepared (acqua pazza, salt baked, grilled, or pan fried). It’s then served table side in glorious fashion. Not to be missed are the Mare Tower and moussaka. It’s a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. 115 Willits St., Birmingham; 248-9405525. D Tue.-Sat.
Market North End $$
AMERICAN • Joe and Kristin Bongiovanni opened this eatery just across the street from the family’s existing restaurants, Salvatore Scallopini and Luxe Bar & Grill. It represents a younger, more casual alter native to the cult-favorite classics, with a serious kitchen that offers traditional American dishes as well as hints of global influences. 474 N. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248-712-4953. L,D daily.
The Meeting House $$
ECLECTIC AMERICAN • This eclectic American menu includes Gulf Shrimp Gratin, steak frites remarkably close to those at Paris bistros, and a housemade soft pretzel with roasted jalapeno-goat cheese dip. Or, try the beef short rib with shawarma spices, pistachio basmati, and pickled vegetables. 301 S. Main St., Rochester; 248-759-4825. D daily, BR Sat.-Sun.
Mesa Tacos And Tequila $
MEXICAN-AMERICAN • The two-story setting includes balcony seating in a big, open room where the bar gets equal time with the kitchen. The pop-Mexican menu — which includes guacamole, nachos, and the titular tacos — is backed up with an array of tequilas. 312 S. Main St., Royal Oak; 248-545-1940. L & D daily.
RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2008
The Morrie $$
NEW AMERICAN • Music and munchies can be a great combination when served in the right propor tions. Such offerings as the smoked chicken wings, smoked apple burnt ends and Detroit style pizza, as well as the requisite burger and steak, appeal to a wide demographic. The rock’n’roll-themed eatery also brought its much-loved American dishes and cocktails to Birmingham in 2019. 511 S. Main St., Royal Oak; 248-216-1112. D daily. 260 N. Old Wood ward Ave., Birmingham; 248-940-3260. L,D Mon.Fri., B,L,D Sat.-Sun. BR Sat.-Sun.
Oak City Grille $
NEW AMERICAN • This downtown Royal Oak spot bridges the gap between bar food and upscale dining. Order a dressed-up sandwich or burger, or elevate your dining experience with an 8-ounce filet mignon or lamb chops. The friendly price range makes any thing possible. 212 W. Sixth St., Royal Oak; 248-5560947. D daily.
Ocean Prime $$$$
SEAFOOD • An upper-end steak-and-fish place and a popular business lunch site. The menu features naturally harvested fresh fish and prime aged beef. Don’t miss the chocolate peanut butter pie or the carrot cake. A tried-and-true metro Detroit spot. 2915 Coolidge Hwy., Troy; 248-458-0500. L Mon.-Fri., D daily.
One-Eyed Betty’s $$
ECLECTIC AMERICAN • Picnic-style tables and blackboards lettered with scores of brew choices add a beer-hall sensibility to this popular spot. The kitchen delivers New Orleans-themed dishes such as Chicken Tchoupitoulas with tasso ham and bear naise sauce, as well as a mouth-watering bacon burger. Weekend brunch features delicious house made doughnuts. 175 W. Troy St., Ferndale; 248808-6633. D daily, BR Sat.-Sun.
O.W.L. $
MEXICAN-AMERICAN • This Royal Oak spot offers sustenance for the early birds to the night owls. Step up to the counter and order from the letter board menu before grabbing a stool at the counter or along the window ledge. Dishes here include such diner musts as eggs, sausage and potato hash, burgers, and chicken wings as well as tacos and nachos served from the open kitchen. 27302 Woodward Ave., Royal Oak; 248-808-6244. B, L,D daily.
Otus Supply $
NEW AMERICAN • This Ferndale stunner has delightful food, superb service, and one wild look. The menu offers main courses and shared plates, as well as pizza and sandwiches. There’s also a con cert venue called The Parliament Room. 345 E. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale; 248-291-6160. D Tue.-Sat.
Phoenicia $$$
LEBANESE • This long-standing upscale Lebanese eatery has clean, contemporary lines that comple ment the French door-style windows. Don’t miss the morel mushrooms or roasted garlic cloves with tomato and basil as an appetizer. The menu expands to unexpected items such as baby back ribs and single-serving-sized local whitefish. 588 S. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham; 248-644-3122. L Mon.-Fri., D daily., BR Sun.
Pinky’s Rooftop $$
ECLECTIC AMERICAN • With its second-floor view of downtown Royal Oak, Pinky’s Rooftop is a go-to spot for a night on the town. The name hearkens back
FEATURED Mon Jin Lau
ASIAN FUSION Explore such dishes as Singapore noodles, combining chicken, shrimp, chilies, and curry with angel-hair pasta; Mongolian beef; or seared scallops with lemongrassbasil Thai curry sauce. The patio opens up and the dining room transforms into a dance floor for weekly events. 1515 E. Maple Road, Troy; 248-689-2332. L Mon.-Fri., D daily.
to a Detroit restaurant and speakeasy on the east side that was called Pinky’s Boulevard Club (and the fact that everything is pink). The playful and eclectic menu offers a taste of a little bit of everything, from Kasseri Saganaki to Red Chile Beef Taco. It’s part of the Adam Merkel Restaurants group, which includes Howell hot spots The Silver Pig, Cello Italian, and Dia mond’s Steak & Seafood. 100 S. Main St. Rear, Royal Oak, 248-268-2885. D Tues.-Sun. Br. Sat.-Sun.
Pop’s For Italian $$
ITALIAN • It doesn’t sound fancy, but this Ferndale restaurant serves well-prepared, Italian dishes paired with an ambitious wine program. The fairly brief menu starts with a list of Neapolitan pizzas, then moves to pastas, but has all the classics to hit the spot. There are charcuterie boards and Italian des serts, too. 280 W. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale; 248-2684806. D Tue.-Sun.
Prime29 Steakhouse $$$$
STEAKHOUSE • The 29-day aged prime beef, including the 24-ounce tomahawk bone-in rib-eye, still stars here. There’s also Chilean sea bass, Loch Duart salm on, and lamb chops with lobster fried rice. The service is notable, as is the Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator. 6545 Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield; 248-737-7463. D Tue.-Sun.
Public House $$
NEW AMERICAN/VEGAN This Ferndale spot reopened under new ownership and with a refreshed look in late 2021. Standout selections include its burg ers, sharable plates like barbecued carrots, and craft cocktails and mocktails. It also features a special veg an menu and carries plenty of gluten-free options. 241 W. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale; 248-733-4905. D daily., BR Sat.-Sun.
Quán Ngon Vietnamese Bistro $ VIETNAMESE • This gem of a bistro in a hand-some space adds to the local Vietnamese offerings. Dish es such as cha gio (elegant little eggrolls), bun bo nuong sa (grilled steak atop angel-hair rice noo dles), and banh mi made with fresh ingredients. 30701 Dequindre Road, Madison Heights; 248-2684310. L,D Fri.-Wed
Redcoat Tavern $
BURGERS • The half-pound choice beef hamburger is always atop the list of local favorites. But a low-fat, high-flavor Piedmontese beef one is tastier than the original. This is the place for your burger craving. 31542 Woodward Ave., Royal Oak; 248-549-0300. 6745 Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield Township; 248-865-0500. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Rochester Chop House $$
NEW AMERICAN • Two restaurants in one; Kabin Kruser’s and the Chop House. There’s a throwback roadhouse-style feeling about the Chop House, which has a menu divided between red meat and fresh fish and seafood. Signature dishes include calamari, Maryland jumbo lump crabcakes, and a large selec tion of aged steaks, rack of lamb, and steak/seafood combinations. 306 S. Main St., Rochester; 248-6512266. L Mon.-Fri., D daily
Ronin $$
JAPANESE • The sushi menu, ranging from spicy tuna rolls to yellowtail and salmon eggs and well beyond, is augmented by a concise menu of cooked fare. Front windows open onto the sidewalk, making the cocktail lounge open-air during the warm months. 326 W. Fourth St., Royal Oak; 248-546-0888. D daily.
Silver Spoon $$
ITALIAN • This quintessential slice of Italy features
excellent food, knowledgeable staff, and friendly service. Try the bucatini made with pancetta, onion, red wine, and fresh tomato sauce. Also worth trying: saltimbocca alla Romana, or veal scaloppini sautéed in white wine. A truly delicious place for any kind of outing. 543 N. Main St., Rochester; 248652-4500. D Mon.-Sat.
Social Kitchen & Bar $$$
NEW AMERICAN • The energetic Birmingham spot allows guests a view of the kitchen action. It has a creative and varied menu typified by falafel lettuce wraps, fried chicken sandwiches, crispy Brussels sprouts, and salmon with braised lentils, crispy kale, and a mustard vinaigrette. 225 E. Maple Road, Bir mingham; 248-594-4200. L Mon.-Fri., D daily, BR Sat.-Sun.
Sozai
JAPANESE To truly experience Sozai, you have to reserve a seat at the custom-built sushi bar where chef Hajime Sato will curate a unique sustainable sushi dining experience called omakase. There’s also a menu offering crowd pleasures like chicken karaage and rolls featuring familiar ingredients with tuna, jala peno and avocado. 449 W. 14 Mile Road, Clawson; 248677-3232. D Tues.-Sat.
Streetside Seafood $$
SEAFOOD • Small and cozy yet sophisticated, the restaurant has a pared-down menu of fresh fish and seafood on a seasonal menu. There are always two soups: a bisque and a chowder. Favorites include the oysters and bouillabaisse. A delicious restaurant for all palates to enjoy and feel comfortable in. 273 Pierce St.Birmingham; 248-645-9123. L Mon.-Fri., D daily.
Sylvan Table $$$
NEW AMERICAN • With a working farm on the 5-acre property, Sylvan Table isn’t just talking the farm-to-table talk. The restored 300-year-old barn feels grand and vast when you step into the stunning space, but it is homey, welcoming, and inviting. The menu changes often to reflect what’s growing but some of the staples include the trout — seasoned with herb oil, salt, and pepper, cooked over a woodfired grill, and served whole — and Chicken Under a Brick, which is cooked to charred perfection. 1819 Inverness St., Sylvan Lake, 248-369-3360. D Mon.Sun. Br. Sat.-Sun.
Take Sushi $$
JAPANESE • Crisp salads, miso soup garnished with the tiniest dice of tofu, sashimi and sushi, oversize bowls of soba or udon noodles, and all the familiar — and some not-so-familiar — entrees, combine togeth er to make this spot special. 1366 Walton Blvd., Rochester Hills; 248-652-7800. L,D daily.
Tallulah Wine Bar & Bistro $$
WINE BAR • Understated décor and a pared-down menu of seasonal dishes make this spot a Birming ham classic. The kitchen turns out dishes like Lamb Belly Ragu with housemade pasta; and whole branzi no with charred zucchini and romesco. Wine is served by the glass, the pitcher, or bottle. 155 S. Bates St., Bir mingham; 248-731-7066. D Mon.-Sat.
Three Cats Restaurant $
BREAKFAST/BRUNCH Formerly a small café serving customers of the boutique Leon & Lulu, Three Cats is now a full-fledged restaurant and bar. Located in the former Clawson movie theater next door to the shop, the spot serves small, sim ple plates, including vegetarian and vegan options for brunch, lunch, and dinner. The beverage menu features local selections, such as vodka from
Ferndale’s Valentine’s Distilling Co. and wines from grapes grown on the Leelanau Peninsula. Patrons can even take home the colorful, quirky chairs or tables they’re dining at, as most of the furniture at Three Cats Restaurant is available for purchase. 116 W. 14 Mile Road, Clawson; 248-2884858. L,D Mon.-Fri., B,L,D Sat.-Sun.
Toast, A Breakfast & Lunch Joint $
BREAKFAST/BRUNCH
• It’s fun, it’s breezy, and the food at Toast, A Breakfast & Lunch Joint is very, very good. The house specialty smothered burrito has plenty of fans, as does huevos rancheros: fried eggs upon corn tortillas, pintos, and cheese. Toast, a Neighborhood Joint, the spinoff of the Ferndale original has a more elaborate setting pairing ’50s retro with sleek contemporary in a pair of rooms. The new menu features twists to comfort food. 23144 Woodward Ave., Ferndale; 248-398-0444. 203 Pierce St., Birmingham; 248-258-6278. B,L daily.
Toasted Oak $$$
BRASSERIE • The menu revolves around the charcuterie sold in the market next door and a list of hot grill items, such as grilled steaks with béarnaise sauce. In 2019, the restaurant earned a Wine Spec tator magazine award for its outstanding wine program. Plus, just across the lot is Twelve Oaks Mall, should you fancy an evening of shopping and dinner. 27790 Novi Road, Novi; 248-277-6000. B Mon.-Fri., L,D Tue.-Sat.
Townhouse $$$
NEW AMERICAN • This popular Birmingham spot for comforting New American dishes has several exception al offerings on its menu, such as the specialty 10 ounces of 28-day dry-aged beef hamburger on brioche. 180 Pierce St., Birmingham; 248-792-5241. L,D daily, BR Sat.Sun. 500 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-723-1000. D daily.
Union Woodshop $$
BARBEQUE
• Part of the ever-growing Union Joints restaurant group, this is a self-described wood-fired joint, where pulled pork, ribs, chicken, and beef brisket come from the smoker, and Neapolitan-style crispcrusted pizzas from the wood-burning oven. And defi nitely check out the mac and cheese. There’s also a delicious kid’s menu for any youngsters in your party. 18 S. Main St., Clarkston; 248-625-5660. D Tue.-Sun.
Vinsetta Garage $$
NEW AMERICAN • This restaurant, which is housed in a vintage car-repair shop, offers well-prepared com fort-food classics such as burgers served on pretzel buns, macaroni and cheese, the Chef Bowl with spa ghetti and tomato basil sauce, pizzas, and brown sugar-glazed salmon. A restaurant that pays true homage to the city of Detroit. 27799 Woodward Ave., Berkley; 248-548-7711. L,D daily.
Voyager $$
SEAFOOD • Fresh seafood with emphasis on oysters is the premise in this hard-to-find location. The space entails convivially close quarters for such dishes as peel-n’-eat shrimp, chili crab spaghetti and grilled swordfish. The premium bar offers short but notable lists of beer and wine as well as craft cocktails. 600 Vester St., Ferndale; 248-658-4999. D Tue.-Sat.
Macomb
Andiamo $$
ITALIAN • Over the past three decades, Joe Vicari has established several Andiamo restaurants in metro Detroit, all inspired by the late master chef Aldo Otta viani’s philosophy of seasonal, from-scratch cooking.
AND BONES COCKTAIL
RESTAURANT LISTINGS 11.22
Menus differ slightly between locations, but the constant is fresh, housemade pastas — handcrafted by the trinity of “pasta ladies,” Anna, Tanya, and Angelina, who have carried on the tradition. The Warren location is the flagship that started it all. 7096 14 Mile Road, Warren; 586-268-3200. L,D Mon.-Fri., D Sat.-Sun.
Barleycorn’s Public House $$
GASTROPUB • This casual spot offers a wide-ranging cocktail menu, craft beers, and elevated pub fare (try the Southerner, a buttermilk-soaked fried chicken, or the fish and chips). Located near Emagine theater, it’s an ideal spot to grab a burger and drinks before or after a movie. 50985 Hayes Road, Shelby Township; 586-271-8700. L,D Tue.-Fri., D Sat.-Sun.
Bar Verona $$
ITALIAN • Scratch-made Italian favorites as well as fresh craft cocktails fill the menu at this stylish eatery. Homemade pastas, such as Giuseppe’s and Spaghetti al Basilico, and specialty pizzas, including The Verona and the Truffle Mushroom, as well as a selection of steaks and seafood dishes typify the modernized approach to fresh and uncomplicated Italian cuisine. 59145 Van Dyke Ave., Washington; 586-473-0700. D daily.
Butter Run Saloon $
GASTROPUB • Solid American fare that’s beyond bar food (although their burgers are certainly notewor thy). There’s escargot, perch, steaks, and a huge whiskey selection — 900 at last count. 27626 Harper Ave., St. Clair Shores; 586-675-2115. L,D daily.
Da Francesco’s Ristorante & Bar $$
ITALIAN Da Francesco’s has been around for more than 15 years, but its massive new facility is packing in the crowds by offering traditional Italian dining with an upbeat modern twist. 49521 Van Dyke Ave., Shelby Township; 586-731-7544. L,D Tue.-Fri., D Sat., L,D Sun.
Detroit Fish House $$
SEAFOOD • This restaurant feels like a true coastal eatery, thanks to an extensive menu of fresh fish and seafood that ranges from salmon to Lake Superior whitefish — all served in a well-designed setting. 51195 Schoenherr Road, Shelby Charter Township; 586-739-5400. L Mon.-Fri., D daily.
Gaudino’s $$
ITALIAN • The trending market-restaurant combo has a good example at this spot. It offers imported pastas and sauces, plus a butcher counter with sausages and a wine assortment. The menu offers pasta and pizza, salads, and entrees, including a Chicken Milanese. 27919 Harper Ave., St. Clair Shores; 586-879-6764. L,D Tue.-Sat
Isla $$
FILIPINO • Dishes at this Filipino restaurant, formerly sheltered at Fort Street Galley, are reflective of the culinary traditions of the founders’ Iloilo City home town. Annatto is used to punch up the color of Chicken Adobo, the unofficial dish of the Philippines, and juicy mangoes complement sweet and savory dishes. 2496 Metro Pkwy, Sterling Heights; 586-883-7526. D Tue.-Sat., BR Sun.
J. Baldwin’s Restaurant $$$
NEW AMERICAN • The menu showcases talented chef Jeff Baldwin’s contemporary American food: cedarplanked salmon, chicken fettuccini alfredo with pesto, and herb-crusted chicken, with housemade breads. The desserts include chocolate bumpy cake, spiced carrot cake, apple cobbler, chocolate mousse layer cake, and banana foster bread pudding. 16981 18 Mile Road, Clin ton Township; 586-416-3500. L,D Tue.-Sun., BR Sun.
Mr. Paul’s Chophouse $$$
STEAKHOUSE • This bastion of red meat as well as classic dishes is still going strong. Try old-school tableside presentations such as Chateaubriand and Caesar salad. There’s a solid selection of fresh sea food and pasta, too. The founding family still runs the place and emphasizes great hospitality and a heckuva good time. 29850 Groesbeck Hwy., Roseville; 586-7777770. L,D Mon.-Fri., D Sat.
Sherwood Brewing Co. $ GASTROPUB • Quality local ingredients raise Sherwood’s fare to well above “elevated pub grub.” Some notable choices include the hearty House Beer Chili, savory Better Made-crusted fish and chips, and spicy Buffalo Mac. Homemade extends to des sert, including Cashew Outside Cookies. This isn’t just bar food, it’s elevated bar food. 45689 Hayes Road, Shelby Township; 586-532-9669. L,D Tue.-Sat.
Steakhouse 22 $$
STEAKHOUSE • The late Nick Andreopoulos once spent time as a “broiler man” at London Chop House. His family stays true to those roots at this American steakhouse with a casual, neighborhood feel. They offer an array of well-prepared angus steaks, plus sea food and pasta dishes. With the sizable lunch and portions offered at Steakhouse 22, good luck saving room for dessert! 48900 Van Dyke Ave., Shelby Town ship; 586-731-3900. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Twisted Rooster $$
SPORTS BAR • This “Michigan-centric” chain (Chesterfield Township, Grand Rapids, and Belleville) has takes on classics, with mac & cheese variations and steaks with “zip” sauce. 45225 Marketplace Blvd., Chesterfield; 586-949-1470. L,D daily.
Vast Kitchen and Bar $$
NEW AMERICAN • Chef Nicole Justman heads the kitchen at this fresh spot that brings a touch of Birmingham to Shelby Township. A contemporary menu at Vast Kitchen and Bar includes pan-seared salmon and sous vide pork shank. 52969 Van Dyke Ave., Shelby Township; 586-991-6104. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Waves $$
SEAFOOD • Seafood covers most of the menu at this Nautical Mile favorite. It’s a tough task choosing between such popular appetizers as coconut shrimp, crispy grouper nuggets, and plump steamed mus sels. Entrees include al dente pastas and several choices from “over the wave,” such as lamb chops and New York strip steak, plus lump crab cakes, and beer-battered cod. 24223 Jefferson Ave., St. Clair Shores; 586-773-3279. L,D daily.
Washtenaw
Bellflower $$$
NEW AMERICAN A restaurant housed in a former exchange of the Michigan Bell Telephone Company, Bellflower answers Ypsilanti’s call for fine dining with an adventurous flair. Boudin sausage with roasted okra, baked oysters, and ginger ale or CocaCola-roasted beets showed up on early menus as chef Dan Klenotic’s way of straddling the line of cre ole tradition and an imaginative style that is entirely his own. 209 Pearl St., Ypsilanti. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Black Pearl $$
SEAFOOD This seafood and martini bar is especially popular during patio season. But step inside for a host of craft cocktails, then stay for dinner. A seafood-dominated menu includes a notable roast ed scallop dish. Non-seafood options include the
FEATURED Testa Barra
ITALIAN
The newest spot from talented chef and restaurateur Jeffrey Baldwin and his wife, RoseMarie, offers modern Italian fare in a lively, upbeat setting. Pastas are made in-house. 48824 Romeo Plank Road, Macomb Township; 586-4340100. L Sun., D daily.
eponymous burger, roasted butternut squash salad, and filet mignon. And make sure to order dessert. 302 S. Main St., Ann Arbor; 734-222-0400. D daily.
Blue LLama Jazz Club $$
CREATIVE AMERICAN Come to this swanky jazz club for the music, which includes headliners such as the Grammy-nominated Ravi Coltrane Quartet, but stay for Chef Louis Goral’s delicious food. Try the crispy foie gras PB&J with Marcona almonds and strawberry jam. There is also a delicious Sun day brunch with decadent orange blossom beignets and strawberry pancakes. 314 S. Main St., Ann Arbor; 734-372-3200. D Tue.-Sat.
The Blue Nile $$
ETHIOPIAN • The real treat of the meal at this quaint Ferndale restaurant is that it’s scooped up with a spongy bread called injera, and all the lentils, often seasoned with an Ethiopian spice mixture known as Berber, and vegetables are equally deli cious. 221 E. Washington St., Ann Arbor; 734-9984746. D Tue.-Sun.545 W. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale; 248-547-6699. D Thu.-Sun.
Cardamom $$
INDIAN • Check out the Hyderabadi Biryani —chicken, goat, and vegetable dishes, in which the rice is first cooked then baked. All the Indian favorites are avail able at Cardamom, such as Chicken Tikka Masala, Lamb Rogan Josh, and warm, fluffy, made-fresh garlic naan. It’s the ideal spot for when you’re craving the classics. 1739 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor; 734-6622877. L Sun., D Tue.-Sun.
The Common Grill $$
SEAFOOD • Founded by Chef Craig Common, whose skilled work drew the attention of the now shuttered Gourmet magazine and the James Beard House, this mainstay was acquired in 2022 by Peas & Carrots Hospitality. Chefs Zack Sklar and Josh Humphrey most of the beloved restaurant’s menu, such as the expertly prepared oysters and seafood dishes as well as the coconut cream pie. 112 S. Main St., Chelsea; 734-475-0470. L,D Tue.-Sun., BR Sun.
KouZina Greek Steet Food $
GREEK • The Greek “street food” at this Ann Arbor spot comes in lamb and beef, and chicken. Try the len til soup for a delicious lunch or go for something more filling like falafel. Either way, you can’t go wrong with this excellent spot. 332 S. Main St., Ann Arbor; 734997-5155. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Mani Osteria & Bar $$
ITALIAN This popular casual restaurant infuses freshness with lower prices than most osterias in the area. It’s a well-rounded blend of modern, eclec tic Italian with classic standbys. The pizzas are hot, fresh and perfectly executed to suit your tastes. 341 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor; 734-769-6700. L Fri.-Sun., D Wed.-Sun.
Miss Kim $$
KOREAN • This spinoff from the Zingerman’s mini empire comes courtesy of chef Ji Hye Kim, a James Beard semifinalist. Kim meticulously researches Kore an culinary traditions and recipes to create her unique blend of modern Korean food highlighting Michigan vegetables, from housemade kimchi to the tteokbokki (rice cakes). Some of the restaurant’s standouts include a craveable Korean fried chicken and its plantbased counterpart the Korean fried tofu. 415 N. Fifth Ave., Ann Arbor, 734-275-0099. L and D Wed.-Mon.
Paesano $$
ITALIAN • With a friendly waitstaff and decked in vibrant colors, this lively restaurant is not to be
missed. The innovative menu changes seasonally. Must-tries have included the pasta carbonara, fea turing shrimp, duck bacon, and Italian greens, as well as beet and ricotta gnocchi with brown butter. 3411 Washtenaw Ave., Ann Arbor; 734-971-0484. L,D daily.
Seva Ann Arbor $$
VEGAN • Seva offers such dishes as black bean and sweet potato quesadillas, gluten-free options, and colorful stir-fries — some vegan as well as vegetarian. There’s also a full bar as well as a juice bar serving creamy smoothies and dense shakes, fresh-squeezed juices, and craft mocktails. Choose from one of the most extensive vegetarian menus in the Detroit area. 2541 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor; 734-662-1111. L,D Mon.-Sat.
Slurping Turtle $
JAPANESE • This fun, casual Ann Arbor restaurant, owned by celebrity chef Takashi Yagihashi, offers plenty of shareable dishes, such as hamachi tacos and duck-fat fried chicken. But the star at Slurping Turtle is the noodle (Yagihashi’s “soul food”), which is made in-house daily on a machine imported from Japan. 608 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor; 734-887-6868. L,D daily.
The Boro Dining Room and Bar $$$$
NEW AMERICAN • Much like the restaurant’s ambi ence, the cuisine at The Boro is both refined and relaxed. The Grilled Bone-In Pork Loin typifies the vibe. In flavor, the pork is reminiscent of a slab of
FEATURED
Shalimar
INDIAN Offering North Indian, Tandoori, and Mughlai dishes, Shalimar is suitable for carnivores and herbivores alike. Standouts include the Tandoori Lamb Chops marinated in creamy yogurt, spicy ginger, and fresh garlic, which is best eaten with the restaurant’s flavorful, chewy garlic naan served fresh and hot. 307 S. Main St., Ann Arbor; 734-663-1500. L,D daily.
tender brisket at a family barbecue. The loin is sweetened with a smattering of St. Louis-style bar becue glaze. In presentation and accoutrements, though, the dish is worthy of white-tablecloth sta tus. 5400 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor; 734-6693310. B,L,D daily.
Yotsuba Japanese Restaurant & Bar $$ JAPANESE • The semi-circular sushi bar is the center of this restaurant. Sushi chef Bobby Suzuki has a loyal following for his precise nigiri rolls. There are also tatami rooms and conventional seating. 7365 Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield Township; 248737-8282. 2222 Hogback Road, Ann Arbor; 734-9715168. L,D Tue.-Sun.
Zingerman’s Delicatessen $ SANDWICH/DELI • Zingerman’s Delicatessen is a household name for Michiganians, and a must-try sta ple in Ann Arbor. The temptations at Zingerman’s are endless: fresh breads and a menu of filling sandwich es, olive oils and housemade balsamic vinegars, chilies, and mustards. 422 Detroit St., Ann Arbor; 734663-3354. B,L,D daily.
Zingerman’s Roadhouse $$$ CLASSIC COMFORT • This eatery celebrates the food of various American cities, from fresh Maryland crab cakes to the delicacies of New Orleans. The buttermilk biscuits are beyond-this-world. 2501 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor; 734-663-3663. B,L,D daily.
Planning for the Final Chapters Begins Today
If you’re on the journey to find
living
asking the
a
What’s the community’s philosophy toward residents? Is it a personcentered approach? Are staff well-trained? Are there amenities and programs that inspire you?
At Anthology Senior Living communities, you’ll find first-class amenities, well-appointed common areas, spacious residences, and uplifting programs — along with uncompromising care. Each Anthology community has been designed to accommodate an aspirational lifestyle.
Wealth Managers
The question is as simple as the answer is complex — and someday, most of us will be asking the question and searching for a perfect answer: How do I find the right senior living community for myself or loved one?
From physical limitations and medical issues to cognitive changes and more, dealing with the realities of aging can be challenging, especially for a loved one who’s reluctant to change.
Usually when someone asks this question, the clock is ticking and time is not on their side. One of the best pieces of advice on the subject is this: Do your research and due diligence long before you start the clock.
STAR be named? Who will
Long before Kelsey Hastings and Reggie Hartsfield purchased their first two senior care facilities in Michigan and launched Advantage Living Centers, they worked as consultants throughout the United States providing education and regulatory consulting for nursing homes. They experienced firsthand what works and what doesn’t when it comes to taking care of people.
Since 2003, Advantage Living Centers has grown to include 10 skilled nursing and two assisted living centers in southeast Michigan. The company has grown based on important principles such as accountability, respect, integrity, and creating a compassionate and caring community for residents.
The team at Anthology Senior Living, with facilities in 12 states, including five
locations in the Detroit area, understands that they make a remarkable impact on the lives they touch. They’ve made it their mission to “provide a unique senior living experience that provides residents with the best in hospitality and care, so they can live their story in a beautiful, meaningful way.”
Before your search begins, write down these important factors that are usually part of any decision when it comes to senior living: cost, location, resources, and current and future needs.
Another major factor to consider is what level of independent living is required now and possibly in the future. Choices include independent living, assisted living, and memory care.
Don’t simply visit different facilities or communities; visit with employees and residents to learn as much as you can about the attention to detail provided. It’s about the level of care and compassion and making sure you or your loved one are happy. There’s no reason why an individual’s final chapters can’t be among their best chapters.
The good news is that Michigan has plenty of outstanding choices.
Remember, do your research and due diligence. And whether the clock has started ticking or not, Hour Detroit’s Senior Living Guide is a good place to start, by learning about some of the outstanding senior communities right here in Michigan.
The
Side of
EXPERT AD ICE√
Weall have questions, but the answers we get aren’t always accurate, factual, or honest. And what many people assume to be facts are not always facts — that’s something that’s been proven over and over, especially during the past couple of years.
Google, Alexa, Siri, and Facebook don’t always have the (right) answer. So, who can you believe? Who can you trust?
In this issue we’ve assembled not only knowledgeable and reliable sources, but local experts who are available for a “follow-up” question or consultation to
help you make not just a better decision, but the best decision.
Whether it’s trying to figure out the differences between Botox and minimally-invasive surgery, knowing what you should consider when looking for a senior living community for a loved one, or understanding the many
benefits Pilates has to offer, we have you covered with answers you can trust.
Finding reliable, informed, and upto-date information allows us to make better decisions when it comes to the important matters and challenges in our lives. The better informed we are, the better the decision.
A: Today’s older adults want to retire in a community where they can enjoy a carefree lifestyle and a diverse range of experiences. To meet that need, senior living communities have evolved over the past decade. Anthology Senior Living communities are thoughtfully designed and feature top-of-the-line amenities specifically created with seniors in mind. Their philosophy aligns with seniors’ desire for a more confident and comfortable future. Anthology celebrates
the individual, empowers connections, and offers uncompromising care and smart compassion.
In addition to their luxurious surroundings, Anthology Senior Living communities serve gourmet cuisine in a variety of venues, ranging from fine-dining experiences to bistro-style dining.
Studies have shown that retirement-age seniors express the most concern about what their health will be like as they age. Anthology Senior Living communities
help residents stay active, engaged, and healthy through a variety of group-led exercises, customized fitness plans, nutritional meals, specialized therapies, and educational seminars.
Residents appreciate the fact that team members are always at their service. The staff works together to foster a vibrant, safe, and connected environment — all sought-after features today’s seniors are demanding.
Learn more at anthologymichigan.com.
Anthology Senior Living Anthology has five locations to serve you:
Farmington Hills – 248-382-8766 Northville – 248-697-2975 Novi – 734-335-8439 Rochester Hills – 248-266-2959 Troy – 248-282-6009 anthologymichigan.com
A: A Botox “brow-lift” creates the illusion of a more arched or elevated brow. Properly placed Botox can relax and soften facial muscles that pull the brow and forehead down when you squeeze your eyes, frown, or make other muscle movements. Botox doesn’t lift muscles, but it stops the muscles from pulling too hard — thereby reversing, reducing, and preventing wrinkles and sagging.
Botox treatments last about three months. It’s a wonderful rejuvenating therapy, but if you have a low brow and low forehead, Botox won’t lift those areas as much as you may hope.
An endoscopic forehead-lift is a minimally invasive solution that offers many benefits. The outpatient procedure is done through small, unnoticeable incisions behind the hairline.
Q: Can Pilates help with pain management?
A: If you’re like most people, you probably move through your day with little to no awareness of how you’re moving. As a result, you end up putting pressure on the spine — which, inevitably, throws off the muscular strength in the front or back of your body. If you also have a weak core, you’re looking at the likelihood of muscular imbalances that can result in pain. Left unmanaged, the pain will continue
or even worsen.
Fortunately, there’s Pilates. “Many of the movements in Pilates require the use of a full body range of muscles, which helps to lengthen and strengthen the spine in the process,” says Ron Jegadeesh, Pilates instructor, physical therapist, and owner of Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center in Southfield. “Add to that the focus on core training, integrative exercise, and mind-
Using an endoscope and a fiber optic camera, the forehead and brow area are elevated to reduce horizontal forehead wrinkles, frown lines, and crow’s feet.
With the development of innovative techniques over the last 20 years, the endoscopic procedure is extremely effective and welltolerated; patients have a shorter recovery, less pain, and very longlasting, excellent results.
body connectivity, and Pilates is increasingly included as a part of pain management programs.”
Pilates not only helps build the deep abdominal muscles, but it’s a means to rehabilitate and re-train the abdominal, pelvic, and spinal stability muscles to correct muscle imbalances and prevent them from recurring. It seems that an ounce of prevention truly is worth a pound of cure!
Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery, PC Evan H. Black, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.A.A.C.S. 248-357-5100 eyelidpros.com
Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center
17418 W. 10 Mile Rd. Southfield, MI 48075 248-552-1012 pilatesfitnessevolution.com
Q: What’s the difference between a Botox brow-lift and a surgical forehead-lift?
Q: What are seniors today looking for in a senior living community?
Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery
The doctors at the prestigious Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery don’t begin an initial consultation by scheduling a date for surgery. They begin by listening to what the patient wants to accomplish, and then figuring out the best, most effective, and most affordable way to get there.
Their patients not only love the results, but appreciate the process.
“Not only did I know that I was in the very best medical hands, but I felt well cared for from beginning to end, and that makes all the difference,” says a patient from Livonia.
Adds a patient from Shelby Township: “Everyone was friendly, polite, and professional. Every step was explained, all my questions were answered completely, and I was made very comfortable. The facility was just the right size, and it was very clean and well-organized. Dr. Black is very personable and extremely skilled.”
The mission at Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery is simple: to deliver excellence in clinical care and customer service.
Highly respected physicians Dr. Frank A. Nesi, Dr. Geoffrey J. Gladstone, Dr. Evan H. Black, Dr. Francesca Nesi-Eloff, Dr. Dianne M. Schlachter, Dr. Robert A. Beaulieu, and physician assistant Lindsay El-Awadi practice throughout southeast Michigan and Flint, and hold affiliations with only the top accredited hospitals.
As experts in the field of eye plastic surgery, the doctors at Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic
Surgery take skill and training to a whole new level. Their unwavering dedication is evident in their multitude of professional affiliations, certifications, leadership and faculty appointments, strong association with accredited facilities, professorships, and the numerous textbooks they’ve authored.
Each physician has received awards and recognition for their deep commitment to continuously improving the field of ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgery. They’re frequent lecturers both nationally and internationally. Additionally, they’ve authored numerous articles on surgical techniques, as well as textbooks and textbook chapters that set the standard for their field.
Procedures and services offered by Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery include: Cosmetic Procedures: As time passes, our skin shows the natural, inevitable signs of aging — wrinkles and sagging. Cosmetic eyelid and forehead procedures will smooth lines and wrinkles, remove lower eyelid bags, tighten sagging skin, and lift drooping eyelids and brows so you can look as young and rejuvenated as you feel. These procedures include forehead lift/ brow lift; blepharoplasty, or upper eyelid surgery; and lower eyelid blepharoplasty.
Reconstructive Surgery: This is performed to improve the function or appearance of a face that’s abnormal because of congenital deformities (birth defects) or developmental deformities (i.e. damaged from injury, infection, disease, surgery, etc.). Reconstructive surgery options include droopy upper
eyelids (ptosis repair); thyroid eye disease (Grave’s ophthalmopathy); eyelid malposition, entropion and ectropion; eyelid reconstruction; eyelid lesions and skin cancer; orbital tumors and fractures; and blocked tear ducts.
Nonsurgical Rejuvenation: When you smile, laugh, frown, or look puzzled, you contract the muscles of your face. Over time, these contractions produce permanent furrows and deep wrinkles in the skin, especially around the eyes and mouth, between the eyebrows, and on the forehead. Options to fix these issues include skin tightening with fractional CO2 laser, Botox and fillers.
Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery has multiple locations around metro Detroit including Southfield, Livonia, Rochester Hills, Troy, Novi, and Southgate. They also have a location in Flint.
Consultants in Ophthalmic & Facial Plastic Surgery, PC 29201 Telegraph Rd., Ste. 324 Southfield, MI 48034 800-245-8075 EyelidPros.com
More Than Just Fitness
Regular exercise is a proven way to help increase muscle tone, build endurance, and lose weight. All of these achievements can add up to a serious boost in confidence and self-esteem. There’s also the positive social aspect that comes with exercise and physical activity, and exercise enthusiasts love to talk about their gyms, studios, or other “fitness communities.” That is, until they start experiencing injuries.
The truth is this: Not all fitness communities are created equal. In fact, the vast majority don’t address the issue of rehabilitation. Ron Jegadeesh knows this better than most. When he created Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center in Southfield, it was with the goal of helping people gain better control of movement in a functional and pain-free way that would allow them not to just get in shape, but to stay physically and functionally fit. Through Pilates and a specialized movement system known as Gyrotonic®, Jegadeesh and his staff provide quality treatment, education, and motivation by teaching movement and postural re-education. They utilize a holistic, selfempowered approach to rehabilitation and fitness, and are dedicated to helping clients understand and work with injuries using these unique methodologies on traditional equipment as well as the mat.
Jegadeesh’s credentials are unparalleled. As a physical therapist with more than 30 years of experience in the rehabilitation of numerous orthopedic and neurological diagnoses, he’s also a PMA Pilates certified teacher, a certified Polestar Pilates rehabilitation specialist, a Stott Pilates® fully certified instructor, and a certified Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis® instructor.
The Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center isn’t your average “fitness community.” While there’s an extensive schedule of classes in Pilates and Gyrotonic, the center goes above and beyond with manual/hands-on therapy, biomechanical evaluation and management, the treatment of musculoskeletal and neuromuscular problems, and the utilization of these modalities as methods for rehabilitation. Of these two exercise modalities, Gyrotonic is certainly the lesser known, but it’s no less effective in offering tremendous benefits that include increasing flexibility and building strength.
Generally speaking, Pilates focuses on alignment and the idea that all movement comes from the core. It’s a low-impact exercise that can be done at any age, and it incorporates mindful and precise movement to help students learn new patterns (and correct faulty ones) on the muscular, skeletal, and nervous system level. While Pilates strengthens and stabilizes the core body, or foundation, it teaches students to move efficiently while strengthening muscles and improving flexibility, posture, and mobility. Even though the core is often the main target of Pilates’ linear and two-dimensional movements, it works other parts of the body, as well.
Gyrotonic is an equally challenging yet rehabilitative workout. The circular movements of the Gyrotonic method are original and unique, and work to open energy pathways to improve strength, stimulate the nervous system, and increase range of motion. With Gyrotonic exercises, movements are fluid and connected, allowing the joints to move through a natural range of motion. The
sequences are artfully crafted to create balance, and to improve strength and flexibility, without any jarring or compression.
The highly-skilled trained instructors and therapists at Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center are well-versed in each of these modalities, and use a traditional approach to rehabilitation that focuses on functional training, movement reeducation, a holistic integration of mind and body, and a smooth progression from rehabilitation to fitness. This unique approach empowers patients to take charge of their own recovery and restore their overall fitness and well-being. What’s more, Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy Center accepts insurance, so all of these services are in reach for everyone.
It’s a new year, and there’s no time like the present to start implementing your wellness goals for 2022. There’s a unique fitness community whose goal is to help you succeed in your journey to lifelong well-being while striving to provide unprecedented high-quality care in a positive and encouraging environment. What better place to meet your goals for the new year and beyond?
Pilates Fitness & Physical Therapy
West 10 Mile
MI 48075
Rocky Bonds, Jay Fox
Michelle Bakalis, Sherene
Berry
Montana Tomlin, Ashley Hails,
Barney
Sahar Omrani,
Eid, Vassi Sova,
Chuck Bennett,
Woodson,
Mosteller,
Contreras
Rebecca L’Ecuyer,
Trombetta
Sand,
Imo Umana,
Merrill,
Nia Adams,
Shanelle Mansoor,
Yaldoo,
Miller,
Harney,
08.26.22
Benefit on the Bay
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHRISTINE M.J. HATHAWAYON AUG. 2 6, the 29th annual Benefit on the Bay event returned to the Macray Harbor in Harrison Charter Township. Guests enjoyed dinner, auctions, live music, and views of Lake St. Clair. Proceeds benefited the Capuchin Soup Kitchen.
LOOKING SOUTH from the corner of Joseph Campau and Caniff, this photo shows Hamtramck’s main business artery, Joseph Campau, a busy hub of retail shops, theaters, bakeries, and auto dealerships. One can see Cunningham’s Drugs (its green neon sign once a fixture in almost every metro Detroit neighborhood) on the left, as well as Fromm’s Hardware and, in the distance, Federal’s department store. In the foreground at right is the Martha Washington Theatre, which opened in 1924. The 1957 romantic comedy Love in the Afternoon, starring Audrey Hepburn and Gary Cooper, tops the marquee, followed by the sci-fi flick Not of This Earth, a Saturday matinee. Horror and science-fiction pictures were theater mainstays on Saturday afternoons in the ’50s, a time when TV sets were not in every household and programming options were slimmer. This writer has a distinct memory of the Martha Washington. Back in the late 1970s, a group of fellow opera lovers and I attended a film version of Borodin’s Russian opera Prince Igor at the theater one bone-chilling Sunday afternoon. Apparently the theater had been struggling, because the heat was scarcely on, and we watched the film in overcoats, scarves, and hats.
Hamtramck, a 2.1-square-mile town, is celebrating its 100th birthday as a city this year. It’s surrounded almost entirely by Detroit, save for a sliver of land that borders Highland Park. The city has an additional reason to be festive in 2022 with the renovation of Hamtramck Stadium, where, in the 1930s, Negro League teams such as the Detroit Stars and Detroit Wolves played. Hamtramck (originally Hamtramck Township) was once populated mainly by German farmers, before Polish immigrants moved in, especially after the opening of the Dodge Main plant in 1910. Today, the majority-Muslim town is occupied primarily by Bangladeshi and Yemeni residents. “We have such an incredibly dynamic city in Hamtramck, and I’m proud of our history as a city of immigrants,” Greg Kowalski told the Detroit Free Press earlier this year. Kowalski is the author of 11 books on his hometown and serves as the executive director of the Hamtramck Historical Museum. His feet — and heart — are planted firmly in Hamtown. “I am a lifelong Hamtramck resident,” he tells me in a recent email. “I will never leave here.” —George Bulanda Hour Detroit (USPS 016523) is published monthly by Hour Media, LLC, 5750 New King Dr., Suite 100, Troy, MI 48098. Periodical Postage Paid at Troy, MI and additional offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Hour Detroit 5750 New King Dr., Suite 100, Troy, MI 48098.
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