Downtown
11 articles
VinBar Poured Only Michigan Wine at 111 West Liberty. Nothing Has Replaced It.
Three Leelanau Peninsula wineries ran one downtown room under three separate tasting-room licenses. Current Magazine reported the closing in March 2019.
VinBar spent about five years at 111 W Liberty pouring wine from three Leelanau wineries and nothing else. Current Magazine reported the closing in March 2019.
Sunda Detroit Is Built for Scale on Columbia Street
The 200-plus-seat restaurant combines sushi, dim sum, noodles, and group dining near Detroit's arena district.
Sunda New Asian's Detroit restaurant is a 200-plus-seat operation built for dinner, events, and a broad pan-Asian menu on Columbia Street.
Where to Eat Near the Michigan Theater
Pre-show and post-show dining on Liberty, State, and the blocks in between.
The Michigan Theater anchors one of the best dining corridors in Ann Arbor. Here's where to eat before and after the show on East Liberty and the surrounding blocks.
Bori Korean Kitchen & Bar Has Been Waiting for You to Notice
Chef James Park's restaurant on the second floor above Jolly Pumpkin is four months old and worth your attention
Four months in, Bori Korean Kitchen & Bar above Jolly Pumpkin on South Main is one of downtown Ann Arbor's best recent additions: dakgangjeong, japchae, and a noraebang in the back.
Sunda New Asian Opened on Columbia Street in Detroit
The 200-plus-seat restaurant opened March 10, 2026, near Comerica Park.
Sunda New Asian opened March 10, 2026, at 33 W Columbia St in downtown Detroit.
Bar Lupulus Is the Best Beer Bar in Ann Arbor. You Might Not Know It Exists.
On the ground floor at 311 South Main, a sour beer cocktail program and the deepest Jolly Pumpkin tap list in the state operate under a name most people walk past.
Bar Lupulus at 311 South Main is technically the bar at Jolly Pumpkin's Ann Arbor taproom. In practice, it is its own animal: sour beer cocktails, a deep tap list, and one of the better micheladas in Michigan.
The Last Word Earns Its Name
On West Huron, a cocktail bar built around the speakeasy conceit actually delivers on the promise. The bartenders know their history, and the drinks prove it.
The Last Word on West Huron Street is a cocktail bar named after one of the great classic drinks. The bar program is organized around eras of American cocktail making, and the execution is the best in Washtenaw County.
Sweetwaters Started in Ann Arbor in 1993
Wei and Lisa Bee opened the first cafe at 123 West Washington Street.
Wei and Lisa Bee founded Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea in Ann Arbor in 1993. The original cafe is at 123 W Washington St.
RoosRoast Liberty Is the Downtown Outpost That Earns Its Block
At 117 E Liberty St, the smaller, busier half of Ann Arbor's independent roaster.
RoosRoast's Liberty Street shop at 117 E Liberty St is the downtown cafe of Ann Arbor's independent roaster, smaller and busier than the Rosewood roastery, on a block that keeps getting better.
Pacific Rim Has Been Here the Whole Time
A pan-Asian restaurant on West Liberty that has outlasted nearly every trend in downtown Ann Arbor.
Pacific Rim at 114 W Liberty St has served pan-Asian food in downtown Ann Arbor for years. The pad thai is reliable, the sushi is competent, and the longevity tells its own story.
Argus Farm Stop Is Not a Grocery Store
At 325 W Liberty St, a retail model that puts local farms directly in front of local eaters.
Argus Farm Stop at 325 W Liberty St in Ann Arbor works with hundreds of local farms and producers to sell produce, meat, dairy, eggs, baked goods, and coffee under one roof. It is a distribution system disguised as a storefront.