Detroit’s Slows is anything but Slow!

On a cold winter day when the big snow finally fell in Michigan one of the gems of its culinary scene was the place to be. Slows in Corktown Detroit is a rare find. If you haven’t heard of it you’re in luck. If you have but haven’t been there yet, get hip. Slows is a barbeque joint in one of the oldest business sections of this city that has just recently started to see new light. Due to renovation efforts spearheaded by Slows owner, Phillip Cooley, the landscape of dilapidated buildings and decrepit neighborhoods is ripe with new potential.

As I looked out onto the stark main street of Corktown I wondered, “What’s the big deal”? But when I stepped into Slows I began to change my mind. It was also my fortune to be privy to a private tour of one of Cooley’s newest developments, a mixed use space in Corktown where I saw, through this insider’s experience, the making of a new Detroit. Cooley has taken abandoned buildings and made them useful as well as accessible to entrepreneurs, artists, non-profit change agents and film makers. Slows was one of his first experiments and a living testament of the old adage, “if you build it they will come.” They have been coming from everywhere. This destination restaurant, as unpretentious as a neighborhood bar, has become a beacon to those who gave up on Detroit long ago.

The menu at Slows is pure barbeque and the quality is exquisite. Pure juicy slabs of meat – pork, beef, chicken - that have been lovingly rubbed with unique spices and slathered with a sauce to keep it moist and buttery throughout the cooking process – yes…low and slow.  My fellow travelers who had just had lunch at another restaurant ordered up full plates of smoked pork, hot and juicy – melt in your mouth goodness – which they just couldn’t pass up. The stair stepper and treadmill were meant for another day. Today we would seize the moment in bbq heaven a.k.a. Slows. Full meat plates of pulled pork, brisket, ribs and pork sandwiches are paired with waffle fries, mac-n-cheese and corn bread. Bottles of a variety of hot, sweet, mild and spicy barbeque sauces line the bar.

Appetizers include split pea and okra fritters, brisket enchiladas and fried catfish as well as spicy bbq wings all for $6.99. There are 9 great sounding sandwiches such as the The Triple Threat Pork, The Old Man, and The Yardbird all for $8.49. There are plenty of sides: baked beans, black eyed peas, waffle fries with cheddar, corn bread, potato salad and more. But the kings of Slows are the entrees, the melt-in-your-mouth Carolina Style pulled pork – a bone-in pork butt, rubbed with a sweet and spicy blend and slowly smoked until falling apart, then pulled and dressed with sauce; or the Texas Style Beef Brisket – Certified Angus Beef brisket, dry rubbed, heavily smoked and sliced thin. If that doesn’t set your taste buds a-watering then think about the St. Louis Spareribs or Baby Back Ribs with the own unique dry rubs, slow roasted, and dunked in wet sauces.

All entrees come with a choice of two sides so you can get the corn bread and creamy potato salad to boot. There are even great choices for vegetarians and pescetarians with Slows Mac-n-Cheese, The Hoppin Jack - black beans over white rice with cheddar cheese, tomatoes and scallions or Wild caught Alaskan Sockeye cooked to your preference and finished with an apple bbq sauce. Entrees range in price from $9.95 to $24.95 with ½ portions available with some entrees.

The atmosphere at Slows could be described as earthy and colorful, meaning colorful people. They offer a wide selection of International beers and Michigan brews from Founders, Shorts, and Bells, and a changing array of decent by-the-glass wines and cocktails. There’s plenty of room at the wrap around bar and seating at booths and high tops. Everything looked and tasted oh-so-good at Slows.

Beware – sometimes there’s a line around the corner to get in, so come during the day or on a quieter evening if you don’t want to wait.

Remember though, it’s Slows, so don’t be in so much of a rush!

2138 Michigan Ave. Detroit  48216-1305, (313) 962-9828

Open Mon. – Sat. 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.  Sun. 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.  Kitchen Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Diamonds in the Sleeping Bear Dunes

This summer we planned a week getaway to spend time at Chimney Corners Resort along the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan above Frankfort on Crystal Lake. During the trip one of our favorite past times was eating. There were a number of great restaurant choices and for seven nights we had dinners featuring fresh fish - whitefish, walleye, and perch prepared in a variety of ways. Perch were savored in garlic butter and lemon, walleye was topped with crab, whitefish was bathed in pesto and sun dried tomatoes. On our last evening, we planned a short excursion to beautiful Glen Lake and the tiny town of Burdickville in Leelanau County. We had learned that there are two wonderful restaurants in Burdickville within a block of one another. The first is Trattoria Funistrada, a lovely small Italian restaurant with a fabulous menu including light pastas, entrees like Veal Piccata, Lemon Artichoke Veal, Veal Saltimbocca, and a Charbroiled Veal Rib Chop in lemon caper sauce. We pried ourselves away from this delectable place promising to return later in the season.

On this particular evening we had reservations at the second restaurant, the acclaimed French restaurant La Becasse, a few yards away.

Wandering into La Becasse is like discovering a mysterious foreign enclave amidst the casual summer fish places that dot all of Northern Michigan. They have a thick red curtain at the door and as you part it to enter, you’re suddenly within a candle lit country French restaurant with a feeling of “old world”. The hostess immediately greeted and seated us. We ordered 2 glasses of French wine, a red for my husband and a white for me. There are plenty of French wines to choose from on the menu, as you might expect. I can’t recall the exact wines, but they were good. The food we were about to enjoy was much more memorable.

We decided to share an appetizer and salad and then order separate entrees. For our appetizer the waiter suggested the French gravlax served with a shot of Aquavit. My imagination could not fathom how wonderful this pairing could be. It was fresh and clean. The Aquavit transformed the fresh fish into a flavor all it’s own – something very hard to describe. Aquavit, like vodka is distilled from either grain or potatoes. After distillation, it is flavored with herbs, spices, or fruit oil. Commonly seen flavors are caraway, cardamom, cumin, anise, fennel and lemon or orange peel. Dill and “grains of paradise” are also used, but caraway is usually the predominant flavor of this liquor. The fish was enhanced by the unusual herby flavor of the liquor and the experience was truly sublime.

The second course was a simple mixed salad topped with goat cheese, caramelized pecans and dried cherries with a balsamic vinaigrette. It was not overwhelmingly unique, but was so very fresh and simple that it was the perfect second course on a warm summer evening.

For an entree I ordered Rabbit with Dijon mustard sauce, one of the specials. My husband had the whitefish with a pistachio Parmesan crust and Remoulade sauce. Both were good, but I enjoyed my husband’s fish a bit more.

For dessert we devoured a warm chocolate cake – two individual cakes with a molten center served in crispy phyllo dough and topped with Belgian bittersweet chocolate sauce and a scoop of locally made vanilla ice cream.

Both La Becasse and Trattoria Funistrada are destination restaurants if you’re traveling along the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Both are diamonds in the dunes and worthy of discovery. 

The Reserve

I was delighted to entertain my friend, writer and reviewer of Midwest restaurants Jane Ammeson at The Reserve, which opened in Grand Rapids Michigan during fall 2010. Jane knows how to peruse and taste selections off a menu as a veteran food writer. We started with the pork fat fries, which Jane was excited about, as well as the mouthwatering cheese and charcuterie platter, five selections for $26. The quality cheeses and meats are served with tastefully selected breads and condiments to compliment each item. The cheese, charcuterie and wine are what The Reserve is best known for. Two of the charcuterie items, the Chicken Liver & Foie Gras Pate and Pork and Garlic Rillette, are handmade in the Reserve’s Kitchen and most of the cheeses are from farms in the US. Three of the cheeses on the current cheese menu come from Evergreen Lane Farm in Fennville, Michigan.

However, there’s so much more to try here and the other items such as the Spinach and Poached Egg Risotto and Duck Leg Confit creatively prepared by chef Mark Millar are exceptional. Fine meats, artisan cheeses and small plates are designed to share. The Reserve features over 100 wines by the glass.

This is a must try restaurant in downtown Grand Rapids and a destination stop for many who will visit during a convention to Grand Rapid or a trip here to experience the city’s many fine events and attractions including ArtPrize, 5/3 River Bank Run, the Gerald R. Ford Museum, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, the GRAM (Grand Rapids Art Museum) or UICA (Urban Institute of Contemporary Art). The Reserve is next to the 4-diamond Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, an historic landmark hotel in the heart of downtown and adjacent to the ultra-modern JW Marriott Hotel situated along the Grand River.

Stand out Mussels & Fresh Salads, Flatbreads and Entrees at Six.One.Six

The next time you’re in downtown Grand Rapids, enjoy dinner at six.one.six, a unique restaurant at the JW Marriott hotel that features inspired, fresh local cuisine within a modern colorful setting. All of the food choices at six.one.six will leave you wanting more. Most recently I’ve tasted the dancing goat cheese and pickled rhubarb salad which includes a delicate blend of chicory, baby beets, candied walnuts, with a honey-dijon vinaigrette -  very light and fresh. I’ve also tried the wild morel flatbread with fontina, asparagus and smoked ham, quite rich and perfect to share. But the stand out on this menu, I think, are the Prince Edward Island Mussels. The plump mussels are loaded with flavor and the house made andouille sausage in a Riesling broth creates a very spicy, yet sweet, pairing. It’s flavor kick was intoxicating and I mopped up every last bit of the juice with chewy grilled bread that is served along side the dish.

Fulton Street Farmer’s Market is ripe with Berries

During a visit to the Fulton Street Farmer’s Market in Grand Rapids today it rained. There’s nothing like a warm summer rain and it didn’t detract from the shopping experience in the least. In fact it enhanced it as I eagerly searched for fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and different vegetables.

We had planned to go away for July 4th, but instead things changed and we’re staying home. This is going to be a weekend of relaxing, doing yoga, and playing in the kitchen. With the berries that I bought at the farmer’s market I plan to make the following easy dessert. Try it as it’s delicious! With some Palazzolo’s White Chocolate and Raspberry Gelato on top of this warm crisp, it should be divine. An added note: It’s red, white and blue.

Raspberry, Strawberry, Blueberry Crisp

Set oven at 350 degrees

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 Pints Strawberries

1 1/2 Pints Blueberries

1 Pint Raspberries

Crumb Topping:  1 1/2 cups oatmeal, 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup unbleached white flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preparation:

Rinse fruit and dry on paper towel. Carefully mix the fruit and place this in a buttered glass or ceramic deep dish pie plate (or oblong baking dish). For the Topping: Melt butter. Toss with brown sugar first, then add the oatmeal and white flour, salt and cinnamon. Add a bit more oatmeal if mixture is too wet. Put the Crumb Topping on top of the fruit covering the fruit completely. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in oven. When the crumb topping is light brown and slightly crusty and the fruit underneath is bubbling, it’s done.  Serve warm with gelato or ice cream. This is best made one to 2 hours prior to eating the dessert

Room with a Spectacular View

I always thought the term Staycation was a lame description for a vacation in your own city. But whatever you might call it, a getaway to someplace close, especially if it’s a unique top-notch hotel, is the perfect antidote for refreshing the spirit. For me it was the perfect luxury getaway without the hassle of a lot of planning, packing and preparation.

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I booked an overnight at the stunning JW Marriott in Downtown Grand Rapids. There are only 50 JW Marriott properties in the World. Twenty-two of them exist in North America. What makes a JW Marriott so special is that they are top quality one-of-a-kind properties beautifully designed by the best architects and designers in the world. They are also comfortable, with quality beds and bed linens, and custom appointments in all of the rooms. Each hotel has it’s own flair. No JW Marriott is like another. Each is a boutique hotel resort with local features and restaurants that reflect the culture. I’ve stayed at two JW Marriott’s so far, JW Marriott Grand Rapids and the JW Starr Pass Resort in Tucson, Arizona.  Both are lovely and we have returned more than once to both.