The August Hit List: Townhouse Detroit, Selden Standard, Mister Dips, and More

If Townhouse Detroit’s original brawny interior drew inspiration from Brooklyn or New York’s Lower East Side with its dark leather, Edison bulbs, and crimson highlights, the newly renovated space — reopening mid-August — now channels the modern townhomes of London and fashion houses of Paris to achieve its bright, airy, and chic new look. The move from stark black and red to a creamy palette of blushes and washed oak is echoed on the palate side of things, too. That means wine over whiskey, and caviar over comfort food. Elegant sophistication is now on the menu.

Chef Omar Mitchell is back in a big way following the demise of his short-lived but much-loved Table No. 2 restaurant on Detroit’s Avenue of Fashion. Now up the road a few miles in Royal Oak, Mitchell’s cranked the dial to 11 on his over-the-top brand of dinner as theatre with Imaginate, the first restaurant in the country to employ a proprietary augmented reality technology that turns the 10-seat chef’s table into a storytelling canvas featuring a miniature projected chef. A la carte diners also get a show with their dinner via Barton G.-style props that accompany Mitchell’s imaginative spins on steakhouse classics.

Call 248-633-8899 for reservations.

Delayed for more than a year by the pandemic, the first location outside of New York for chef Andrew Carmellini’s irreverent fast-casual burger concept opened on Parker’s Alley behind the Shinola Hotel in July. Mister Dips serves an abbreviated menu of inventive, high-quality riffs on classic burger stand offerings. Think: griddled cheeseburgers on potato buns, queso-loaded waffle fries, dipped soft serve cones, and boozy milkshakes, all developed by one of America’s leading chefs and his award-winning Noho Hospitality group.

Also at the Shinola Hotel complex, the group’s Detroit flagship San Morello joins the Brakeman beer hall, Penny Red’s Fried Chicken, and the Evening Bar. Here, chef de cuisine Cory Barberio and crew crank out Carmellini classics like lamb meatballs and Grandmother’s Ravioli alongside some of Detroit’s best pasta (see: breadcrumb-coated black shell puttanesca with ruby red shrimp and calamari). And the wood-fired pizzas — expertly charred, airy, and crisp — are among the best round pies in this square town.

Besa opening chef Kyle Schutte has taken his “progressive comfort” approach to cooking a few blocks up Woodward to perennial small plates hotspot Wright & Co. as Marc Djozlija’s chef de cuisine. Schutte’s touch is evident in plates like the thyme and lemon udon with braised duck and blueberry jus or seared scallops and bacon atop masa polenta, red curry, and white chocolate broth — a calling card dish.

The long-delayed second location of Detroit’s oldest microbrewery finally made its debut on the resurgent Avenue of Fashion in mid-July, bringing its storied Ghettoblaster Pale Ale and brick oven pizza to the restored Hunter’s Supper Club more than 25 years after owner John Linardos first introduced craft beer to the city. The Livernois location is more food-forward than its brewery-driven predecessor, boasting the addition of soups, salads, nachos, and a sandwich section that includes the “Motor City Double-Double” burger and a riff on banh mi.

Things have moved fast for one of Michigan’s few purveyors of fufu, a pounded yam dish popular in West Africa that’s used to sop up egusi and other stews. Born during the pandemic, the Nigerian food truck went viral thanks to TikTok’s “fufu challenge,” prompting a second truck in Ohio and a proper brick-and-mortar in Detroit.

While dine-in is still in the works at the forthcoming Midtown location, you can order traditional Nigerian dishes like jollof rice and goat pepper soup for carryout by calling 248-764-0155.

Though there is no bad season to visit Selden, August means the peak of summer’s bounty in Michigan, arguably the best time to experience Detroit’s farm-to-table standard bearer. Here, green bean salad is dressed with garlicky ajo blanco sauce and punched up with tart Michigan cherries. Roasted sweet onions occupy their own line item, hiding a swab of hummus among pops of black currant. Pillows of agnolotti stuffed with mushrooms and garlic scapes come showered in garlic breadcrumbs. And the fire-crisped trout is always the right order, no matter the set.

Though the adjoining soju bar and restaurant Jinji recently closed for reconcepting, Daebak remains one of metro Detroit’s most sought-after Korean barbecue destinations. Owner Sarah Yi strives to provide an authentic Korean experience, so in addition to the typical meat platters, banchan, and other side dishes, Daebak also offers a large selection of traditional Korean wines, beer, and spirits. After dinner, stop by the sister dessert bar Myomee for bingsu, a milky Korean shaved ice big enough to split.

Buenos Aires-born chef Javier “Barda” Bardauil, a one-time Francis Mallman protege, couldn’t have found a more fitting space to make his own than the former Magnet restaurant in Core City. Comprising only a wood-fired oven and wood-burning hearth, the kitchen at the newly rechristened Barda nevertheless offers just the tools needed for the Patagonian cooking techniques used to execute Bardauil’s confident approach to modern Argentinian cuisine. Don’t miss the elegant balsamic glazed beets, which come arranged like a rose dusted in dehydrated raspberry powder. Crispy grilled trout is crowned with a tangle of herbs and capers crisped in brown butter. Bardauil balances all the fire with a healthy dose of acid on the plate and a South American-heavy wine list.

Call 313-952-5182 for more info.