Guide
37 articles
Michigan Strawberry Season Is Short. This Is How to Use It.
Southeast Michigan's strawberry window opens in late June and closes fast. Here's what to do before it does.
Michigan strawberries peak in late June and run through mid-July in southeast Michigan. They bear no resemblance to the California berries in the grocery store. This is where to find them and what to do with them.
Ethiopian Food in Southeast Michigan: Where to Start
The cuisine closest to no coverage in this archive. A first guide to injera, wat, and the restaurants serving both within reach of Ann Arbor.
Plate & Press has covered Korean, Indian, Thai, and Mexican food in depth. Ethiopian has been missing. Here is the guide we should have written sooner.
The Best Indian Food in Metro Detroit
From a Bengali corridor in Hamtramck to chaat houses in Canton, the region's South Asian food scene covers more ground than the city gets credit for.
Metro Detroit's Indian and South Asian food scene stretches across three counties: Hamtramck's Bangladeshi corridor, Troy's biryani specialists, Canton's vegetarian street food, and an Indian gastropub in Eastern Market that made the Detroit Free Press's top 10 list.
Depot Town, Ypsilanti: A Neighborhood Dining Guide
The waterfront strip where Bellflower, Sidetrack, and the Bomber have built something worth the drive from Ann Arbor.
Depot Town is Ypsilanti's most walkable food corridor: an 1850s building with a burger GQ noticed, a James Beard semifinalist on Pearl Street, Southern comfort food in a Civil War barracks, and a roaster worth the drive alone.
The Best Vietnamese Food in Ann Arbor
Pho on South Main, shaking beef on East Liberty, and a banh mi shop that sold 1,700 sandwiches its opening weekend.
Ann Arbor's Vietnamese scene is smaller than it should be, but the restaurants here are the real thing. Dalat for traditional pho, Saigon Social House for a full dinner, Paris Banh Mi for the sandwich.
Detroit's Best Patios Are Finally Open
Where to eat outside in the city, from rooftops and beer gardens to sidewalk seats that are actually worth the wait.
Detroit has more serious outdoor dining than most people outside the city realize. These are the patios and beer gardens worth planning around when the weather cooperates.
Ann Arbor Farmers Market: What to Buy This Spring and Summer
Strawberries arrive in June. Asparagus is finishing. Here's what to look for now.
A practical guide to the Ann Arbor Farmers Market in May and June: what's in season, which vendors to know, and how to use a Saturday morning well.
Summer Dining in Ann Arbor
Patios, cold dishes, new openings, and the farmers market at its peak. A guide to eating well in the city this summer.
Ann Arbor eats differently in summer. The campus crowd thins out, the patios open, and the farmers market peaks. A guide to where to sit, what to order, and which new openings are worth your attention.
Where to Eat in Ann Arbor Over Memorial Day Weekend
The students have left. The patios are open. The restaurants are not booked solid for once. A short guide to making the most of it.
Memorial Day weekend 2026 lands on May 23-25. Ann Arbor empties out when the semester ends, which means empty bar stools, open patios, and reservations you can actually get. Here's where to go.
The Best Sandwiches in Ann Arbor
By bread type: rye, baguette, pita, hoagie roll, and the soft bun. What makes each one worth eating.
The best sandwiches in Ann Arbor, organized by bread: the Reuben on Bakehouse rye at Zingerman's, bánh mì at Paris Banh Mi, falafel pita at Jerusalem Garden, Italian subs at Sottini's, and more.
The Best Wine Bars in Detroit
A craft beer and cocktail city has been quietly building a wine scene. Here is where to find it.
Detroit earned its reputation as a cocktail and craft beer city. But a cohort of wine-forward restaurants has been building a different kind of scene. This guide maps where to find serious wine in Detroit, from an Alpine Corktown room with northern Italian bottles to a Midtown anchor with a James Beard pedigree.
Where to Eat in Birmingham, Michigan
The most upscale suburb in metro Detroit has a concentrated Main Street dining scene. A practical guide to what's worth the drive.
Birmingham sits about 50-55 minutes from Ann Arbor and runs on old money, luxury retail, and a dining scene that punches above its demographic. A guide to what's actually worth ordering.
Where to Find Dim Sum Near Ann Arbor
The closest dedicated dim sum is a 30-45 minute drive. Here's where to go, what to order, and what to know before you leave home.
Ann Arbor has no dedicated dim sum restaurant. The nearest options are in Ypsilanti, Detroit, and the Novi/Troy corridor. A practical guide to where dim sum actually exists in southeast Michigan.
Where to Eat in Royal Oak and Ferndale
The inner-ring suburbs north of Detroit worth a day trip from Ann Arbor.
Royal Oak and Ferndale sit about 55 minutes east of Ann Arbor and form the most coherent dining corridor in metro Detroit's inner suburbs. A guide to what's there, what to order, and whether the drive is worth it.
The Best Happy Hour in Detroit
Where to drink well for less after work. The Woodward corridor, Corktown, and Midtown each have their answer.
Detroit's happy hour scene runs from a 147-year-old railway pub on Woodward to a serious cocktail bar in the back of Corktown. A guide to the deals worth building your afternoon around.
The Best Patios in Ypsilanti
Where to eat and drink outside when the weather finally cooperates. Ypsilanti has better outdoor dining than most people know.
From Sidetrack's riverfront beer garden to Bellflower's covered courtyard on Pearl Street, Ypsilanti has outdoor dining worth planning your summer around. A focused guide to the city's best patios.
The Best Wine Bars in Ann Arbor
Spencer set the standard. Here's the full picture of what the city's wine scene actually looks like.
Ann Arbor's wine bar scene is smaller than you might expect, but what's here is genuinely good. Spencer is the benchmark. Beyond it, a Spanish sherry list, a vinyl listening room, and a wine shop that carries bottles you can't find anywhere else in the county.
The Best Japanese Food in Ann Arbor
Ramen and sushi are just the entry points. Here is where the Japanese dining scene actually holds up.
Ann Arbor's Japanese food scene is small but real. Slurping Turtle's izakaya format, Tabe Fusion's omakase counter, Azalea's Nikkei approach, and the long-running restaurants that don't get enough credit. All of it, honestly assessed.
Hamtramck Is Worth the Drive
Two square miles, more countries of origin than most cities, and some of the most interesting food in Michigan.
Hamtramck packs Bengali, Yemeni, Polish, Bosnian, and Bangladeshi kitchens into two square miles. A guide to what's there and why readers in Ann Arbor should make the trip.
The Best Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurants in Detroit
Seven spots where plant-based eating is the point, not an apology.
Detroit's vegetarian and vegan options have grown well past the token veggie burger. These are the restaurants where plant-based cooking is treated with the same conviction as anything else on the menu.
The Best Lunch Spots in Ann Arbor
Counter service and sit-down, quick bites and long tables, under $10 and over $20. The midday meal, covered.
The best places to eat lunch in Ann Arbor, organized by what you're actually in the mood for: fast counter service, proper sit-down, international options, and spots worth the walk.
Gluten-Free Dining in Ann Arbor
A practical guide to restaurants that actually do it well, not just restaurants that happen to have one GF option.
From Korean rice bowls to Palestinian mezze, Ann Arbor has more genuinely gluten-free-friendly restaurants than most people realize. This guide separates the solid options from the token gestures.
Where to Eat in Dearborn
A practical guide to the best Arabic food in Michigan, forty minutes from Ann Arbor.
Dearborn has the largest Arab American community in North America and the Arabic food scene to match. A guide for Ann Arbor readers making the drive east.
Ypsilanti Has a Food Scene. You Just Have to Know Where to Look.
The restaurants on Michigan Avenue and beyond that make Ypsi worth crossing the river for.
Ypsilanti's dining scene punches well above its size. From Haab's centennial dining room to Bona Sera's wood-fired patio, here's where to eat in Ypsi.
One World Market Has the Best Sushi in Michigan. Novi Is the Reason That Makes Sense.
The Japanese market on Grand River has been quietly serving the best to-go sushi in the state. A new mixed-use Asian district opening next door is not a coincidence.
One World Market in Novi is a Japanese grocery store and sushi counter at 42705 Grand River Avenue. The shrimp tempura roll and cali futamaki are the best versions of those rolls available in southeast Michigan. The market behind the sushi counter is worth browsing every time.
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.
Best Steakhouses in Ann Arbor and Detroit
A guide to the steaks worth driving for, from South Main Street to the metro.
Ann Arbor has two dedicated steakhouses that have nothing in common except good beef. Detroit's steakhouse scene is thinner than its broader dining reputation. Here's where to eat.
Where to Eat for Ann Arbor Graduation 2026
Reservations are gone if you wait another week. Here is what to book, what to walk into, and how to feed a table of ten without a plan.
University of Michigan commencement weekend fills every reservation in Ann Arbor by late April. A practical guide to the celebratory dinner, the family lunch, the drinks after, and what to do if you waited too long.
The Best Bars in Ypsilanti
From a crooked building on Cross Street to a bourbon lounge inside a Civil War barracks. Where to drink in Ypsi.
Sidetrack has the GQ burger and a patio that earns the hype. 734 Brewing pours the area code. Mash has the bourbon and the live music. A focused guide to the best places to drink in Ypsilanti.
Morel Season Opens. Here's What to Do With It.
Michigan is one of the best morel states in the country. The window is short. This is how to use it.
Michigan morels peak in late April and early May, usually right after the ramp season ends. This is what they are, where to find them, and what the best local kitchens do when they show up.
Best Brunch in Ypsilanti: Where to Eat on Weekend Mornings
From a Civil War barracks to a James Beard kitchen, Ypsilanti's brunch scene is better than Ann Arbor wants to admit.
The best brunch in Ypsilanti: Bellflower's Sunday brunch changes weekly, Thompson & Co. does bananas foster French toast in a restored Civil War barracks, and The Bomber has been frying Cap'N Crunch French toast since 1936. A practical guide.
Greektown Is Still Detroit's Most Reliable Dinner Neighborhood
Pegasus Taverna, Astoria Pastry Shop, and a block that has been feeding the city for generations.
Greektown on Monroe Street has been Detroit's most consistent dining neighborhood for decades. The saganaki still arrives on fire. Astoria has been making baklava in the same spot since 1971.
The Best BBQ in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County
Ann Arbor is not a BBQ town. But between Chelsea, South State Street, and Packard, there's more smoked meat worth knowing about than most people realize.
Best BBQ in Ann Arbor: from Smokehouse 52 in Chelsea to Zingerman's Roadhouse pit ribs to Biercamp's smoked meats and Ricewood's brisket bowls, Washtenaw County has a BBQ scene worth navigating.
The Best Seafood in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor is a long way from any coast. Here is where to find fish worth eating anyway.
A landlocked college town is not where you expect to find serious seafood. Ann Arbor has a few places doing it right anyway, from Japanese sushi and Nikkei ceviches to halibut, fish tacos, and miso-glazed fish.
Ramp Season Is Here. It Won't Last.
Wild leeks have a two-week window in Michigan. Here's what to do with them while you can.
Michigan ramps peak in mid-April and disappear by May. This is what they are, where to find them, and which local restaurants are actually doing something interesting with them.
The Detroit Restaurants That Could Actually Win a Michelin Star
Inspectors are already in the city. Here is where the stars might land.
With Michelin inspectors already visiting Detroit restaurants, here are the candidates most likely to earn stars when the Great Lakes edition debuts in 2027.
The Best Happy Hours in Ann Arbor
Where to drink well for less on a Wednesday afternoon. A guide to the deals worth building your schedule around.
Ann Arbor's happy hour scene ranges from hotel bars with serious cocktail programs to neighborhood pubs with $3 drafts. A guide to the ones worth building your week around.