We're pumped about downtown Detroit dining choices that seen to expand by the week -- honest, we really are!
And we find it more amusing than annoying to see some dub themselves a "gastropub," which sounded like a nasty intestinal ailment at first.
So it's important to say that no specific new spot makes us see now as an apt time to share an inspired satire posted last summer by Hillary Dixler of New York at the national Eater site, where she's a senior editor.
We spotted an image of her "Simple Guide to Opening a Trendy Restaurant" in a Reddit thread Monday about the just-opened Central Kitchen + Bar, which does have an exposed ceiling (guideline No. 4). But this isn't aimed at the First National Building newcomer co-owned by Dennis Archer Jr. -- honest, it really isn't!
It's also not a shot at chef Sarah Welch's popular Republic Tavern, a hotspot that says it "aims to deliver the whole experience of an old world tavern," has an "emphasis on nose to tail eating" and serves "humble ingredients prepared in innovative and interesting ways."
And while we're at it, these relatively fresh downtown destinations also are not why Dixler's sharp-edged post from June 2014 seems relevant here now: Parks & Rec, Gold Cash Gold, Bobcat Bonnie's, Townhouse, Wright & Co., Punch Bowl Social.
We simply enjoy her 14-item list in an abstract, free-floating way. Yeah, that's the ticket.
These are among Eater's tips for how to "open your very own trendy restaurant:"
- Serve all your drinks in jars for absolutely no reason at all.
- You need a bearded barman.
- Make sure none of your furniture matches.
- You need to sell at least 419 different variations of coffee.
- Overprice everything. Call it artisan, or organic, or something.
Remember now: If a certain spot or spots come to mind, that's not our intent.
Likewise with this July 2014 post by Greg Morabito of Eater, which clearly was on a trendy restaurant tear last summer:
