The October Hit List: Le Suprême, I/O, San Morello, and More

Detroit’s culinary lean into its old designation as the “Paris of the Midwest” continues with the recent debut of Le Suprême, perhaps the most true-to-the-genre French brasserie this city has seen yet. The flagship restaurant anchoring Bedrock’s painstaking renovation of the historic Book Tower building debuted in late summer, with an all-star culinary team led by chefs Mike Conrad, Logan Robb, and Ben Robison.

Le Suprême’s impressively constructed room transports diners to what feels like a lived-in Parisian restaurant, where the 100 grams of cheese used in each serving of French onion soup delivers Instagram-worthy pulls and an omelet paired alongside salad Lyonnaise is a perfectly fine dinner option. Don’t miss the elegant martini service, which includes an extra carafe of booze buried in chipped ice holding tournée-cut carrot and pickled onions as well as the requisite spear of olives.

It’s all about the panoramic city view at this just-debuted rooftop lounge atop the brand new Godfrey Hotel in Corktown. Former Bar Pigalle chef Nyle Flynn, who previously ran hotel food and beverage at the Hewing Hotel in Minneapolis, heads up the all-day menu of tony bar snacks at this 7th-floor property as part of his purview as the Godfrey’s executive chef.

Flynn’s chops will be more prominently displayed at Hamilton’s, the hotel’s soon-to-open  restaurant developed in partnership with local restaurateur Samy Eid. But for now, guests can find the young chef’s imprint on dishes like burrata with stone fruit and black truffle arancini alongside crowd-pleasing sandwiches and breakfast staples. Balanced cocktails are the lounge’s forte, like the tart and smoky Dancin’ in the Dark, made with mezcal, aloe, hibiscus, and pineapple.

Pro tip: The popular Black on Both Sides pop-up from star Detroit bartenders John Neely, Andre Sykes, and Lisa Carielle takes over the I/O bar every Monday, celebrating the city’s Black mixology scene in style.

Developer Zaid Elia and his Elia Group brought this showy, Las Vegas-style concept to life at the base of the futuristically redesigned 511 Woodward building in August with a red-carpet rollout that included fire dancers, DJs, and large format bottles of booze erupting with sparklers. Promoted as an immersive experience, Zuzu is a hopping clubstaurant that will be familiar to anyone who’s visited Tao at the Venetian. Bottle service and sake bombs lead a drinks menu studded with extra flourishes like gold leaf-stamped ice. Elia Group culinary director Jordan Hoffman, who spent years at Vegas institutions like L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, oversees a food menu featuring sushi and sashimi, charcoal-grilled skewers, and pan-Asian plates made from luxury ingredients. After dinner, head to the speakeasy upstairs.

Call 313-464-7777 for reservations.

Reportedly the first Black-owned food hall in Detroit, Whatcha Wanna Eat? made a surprise debut in September, just in time for a visit from Keith Lee, a popular TikToker who originally hails from Detroit. In a viral video viewed by millions, Lee sampled top items from each of the nine Black- and POC-owned vendors who make up the food hall’s offerings, giving top scores for Crazy Burger’s salmon burger and Delectabowl’s salmon bowl. Set up mostly for carryout service, the food hall’s vendors also include a BBQ joint, a hibachi grill, tacos, and a restaurant specializing in chicken and waffles.

No reservations.

The flagship of this beloved Detroit institution draws daily lunch crowds at an unlikely location, selling its creative sandwiches, wraps, and wings from a trailer parked next to a gas station in an industrial area west of downtown. For its second location, proprietors Mike & Ahmad Nassar took over the old Sears Auto Center at Oakland Mall, anchoring their popular brand in the heart of Oakland County while still being conveniently located off of I-75. Find them slinging their garlic cilantro fries, barbecue chicken egg rolls, and Detroit-style cheesesteaks Monday through Friday, and look for the growing brand’s presence at Comerica Park and as the official food truck of the PGA Tour’s Rocket Classic.

No reservations.

Drive a few miles west on 14 Mile and you’ll find plenty of activity in buzzy Clawson, including the return of Weiss Distilling Co.’s ever-popular Halloweiss experience. Now until its glorious swan song on Halloween, the immersive microdistillery’s speakeasy leans into the spookier side of the spirits world with themed cocktails like the Embalmbastic, made from vodka and oat milk, and the absinthe and coffee concoction, Witch of Delray. Known for its seasonal costume changes, Weiss is channeling all the ghouls and ghosts this month. Be sure to make a reservation, as seats at this boozy altar can be hard to come by.

The Clawson outpost of the expanding Korean fried chicken chain Noori recently added an adjacent sit-down gastropub to its corner space at 14 Mile & Main Street. “Pocha” refers to a Korean street food stall, the energy and food of which is funneled into a convivial dining room full of colored neon and Korean tchotchkes. You can order the shattering fried chicken, as well as a menu of deeper cuts that include Korean corn cheese, buldak, bibimbap, and Korean-style ramen. Noori Pocha also celebrates Korea’s vibrant drinking culture with a long list of soju, Korean beer, and Korean wines. Menus come with instructions on how to properly execute a soju bomb, and somek (soju & beer) towers are a common sight on tables.

No reservations.

Sustainable sushi pioneer Hajime Sato, a 2023 James Beard “Outstanding Chef” finalist, is settling into his adopted Clawson home four years after making the move from Seattle. Finally free from the worst of the pandemic, Sato’s Sozai restaurant is now operating closer to the level where the chef’s intense passion and dedication to excellence lie.

Dinner, especially the omakase served at the bar, will come with plenty of education about the sorry state of the world’s food system. But those at-times depressing salvos are soothed by the more ethical alternatives Sato serves from his counter. At the higher end, that could translate to American gooseneck barnacles steeped in cold dashi with Japanese eggplant, or a pile of Alaskan shrimp swimming like a bull’s-eye in a chilled kabocha squash soup, or as Boston uni crowning a steaming cup of chawanmushi. At the heart of every Sozai meal is the powerful reminder that, at least in a capitalist society like ours, every dollar we spend is a vote for the type of future we want to see. A vote for Sozai helps ensure sushi is even a part of our future at all.

Call 248-677-3232 for reservations.

With the Broadway in Detroit theater season ramping up in earnest at the adjacent Fisher Theatre, Cuisine chef-owner Paul Grosz and his team welcome their busiest months of the year. Save for the few pandemic years when the theater was closed, this has been the rhythm of the restaurant since it opened its doors in 2001, acting as a French cuisine flagbearer for the city (and for many years its only option). The menu changes seasonally and at the whims of the chef, but you can always count on a Lyonnaise salad and a perfectly prepared Dover sole or duck breast, as well as an extensive French wine list to help tide you over until the final curtain drop.

Opening San Morello chef de cuisine Corey Barberio recently ascended to the title of executive chef and managing partner of the Shinola Hotel, which houses this Southern Italian restaurant on its ground floor. Barberio put in 15 years with New York chef Andrew Carmellini, moving to Detroit to open San Morello in 2018. Though viewed with some skepticism in the early days because of the hospitality group’s outside status, San Morello has cemented itself as a downtown staple, serving a sort of Carmellini greatest hits menu of pastas, pizzas, and wood-fired entrees like chicken Rosalina with salsa verde and roasted peppers. (Breakfast and lunch are also offered seven days a week.) Yet to be determined: just how much influence Barberio’s new title will have on a menu that’s remained steadfast since day one.