The November Hit List: Kamper’s, Cibo, Paradise Street Eats, and More

Another month, another rooftop lounge opens downtown. We’re here for all of them. Named for the architect of the historic Book Tower building it rests atop, Kamper’s is a Spanish-inspired rooftop restaurant operated by the Philadelphia-based Method Co., the group charged with running all seven of the restored building’s food concepts.

The second concept to debut following Le Suprême, Kamper’s instead trades in Spanish bar snacks and beverages that complement the venue’s soaring skyline view. The tight food menu features aged Catalan goat cheese, Iberico ham croquettes, and pan con tomate, while the more extensive beverage side covers everything from gin & tonics to sangrias to sherry by the bottle.

It’s a similar story a few blocks over at the Monarch Club, which preceded the latest string of rooftop lounge openings by a few years. The moody interior, all dark polished wood and Art Deco touches, gives way to a multi-level open-air rooftop lounge where guests can tuck into classic cocktail riffs and snazzy bar snacks while huddling around glowing fire pits. The twinkling lights of the downtown skyline are just a bonus when you’ve got brisket sliders and rosemary truffle fries to keep you busy.

Blame the pandemic for slowing the momentum of this unique Indian fusion restaurant, which opened in a highly trafficked Dearborn plaza in late 2019. Thanks to a downtown food-truck spinoff that debuted this summer, and food influencer Alina Alam’s persistent “high chai” marketing campaign, Paradise Street Eats is finally getting the attention it deserves.

Chef Ali Wazne, who is of Lebanese descent, now runs the kitchen as the chef, and partner of Indian-born proprietor Srinath “Ziggy” Kalmadi, who previously drove to Chicago to find a taste of home. In part playing to the large Arab population in Dearborn reflective of his own heritage, Wazne injects some Lebanese flavors into an otherwise extensive menu of traditional south Indian street food, Indo-Chinese fusion, curries, and Hyderabadi biryani. Paradise Street Eats might be the only place you’ll ever find a za’atar and cheese dosa — a culinary mashup you didn’t know you needed. (But trust us, you did.)

Making its debut this month, Cibo promises “modern Mediterranean fusion” as the flagship restaurant of the newly constructed Cambria Hotel. Chef James Sumpter, who formerly ran the kitchen at Ann Arbor’s Vinology, oversees a menu that hops across the region it’s inspired by.

Cibo’s socials have been teasing dishes that cross many borders: from pizza to shawarma to a Greek “wedge” salad with whipped eggplant and feta. Soon to follow Cibo’s debut is Cielo, which — as you may have guessed by our running theme — is a new rooftop bar headed by former Mutiny Bar impresario Chris Vanderginst.

Former Sylvan Table executive sous chef Scott Martinelli is settling into his role atop the kitchen brigade at the newly opened Ash—Bar, located in the second-floor space vacated earlier this year by Kate William’s diner Karl’s. Martinelli oversees three square meals a day at The Siren Hotel’s new flagship restaurant, plus weekend brunch and a daily 3-6 p.m. “aperitivo” happy hour where the shot and beer special focuses on amaro. If there’s a unifying theme at Ash—Bar, it’s classic Americana (steak tartare, shrimp cocktail & cheeseburgers) meets Euro-style sprezzatura (ricotta agnolotti and mussels doused in Fernet and guanciale) … a winning combo, if ever there was one.

It’s hard to overstate the impact Michael Symon’s Roast had on Detroit’s nascent dining scene when it opened on the ground floor of the Westin Book Cadillac in 2008. And though it shuttered last year amid a shakeup with the hotel’s ownership, the steakhouse spirit of the space lives on at Sullivan’s, the first Michigan outpost of a growing national chain.

Dry-aged steaks are still the centerpiece here, though Sullivan’s brings more seafood to the fore than its predecessor, particularly on the starters menu. Steakhouse classics like lump crab cakes and oysters Rockefeller share space with Asian-inflected apps such as tempura lobster, Shanghai calamari and spicy shrimp egg rolls. For a real showstopper before the main course, spring for the chilled seafood showcase, a tower of lobster, crab, shrimp, tuna, and sauces.

Reservations can be made on the Sullivan’s website.

In addition to incubating some of Detroit’s brightest culinary and beverage talent, Roast also boasted a legendary happy hour. With Roast no longer in the game and many of the area’s best happy hours rendered less “happy” since the pandemic, Ima chef-owner Mike Ransom saw an opening for the flagship full-service location of his popular noodle bar.

Today, it’s hard to find a better food deal than Ima’s happy hour, running weekdays from 3 to 6 p,m, with an extensive menu of $5 offerings. Whet your appetite with a carafe of house sake or a sturdy Refined Martini, made with agricole rum and blanc vermouth. Then tuck into skewers of dry-aged ribeye and mini Kurabuta pork sausages from the robata grill. Mix and match with sushi handrolls of spicy tuna and salmon avocado, and fill in with a couple of small plates typified by the karaage chicken bites and blistered shishito peppers. At $5 a pop in these inflationary times, there’s no wrong order at Ima Izakaya, Detroit’s new reigning happy hour champ.

Call 313-306-9485 for reservations.

It wasn’t just because Alpino took up residence in a building that previously housed a number of beloved Detroit restaurants. Early skepticism bubbled up because it was unclear whether Detroit diners would “get” the restaurant’s focus on food inspired by the countries that touch the Alps — especially in the middle of summer, when it debuted. Apprehension was so strong, a recent Detroit Free Press review even mentioned it in its opening.

Spoiler: Detroiters not only get it, but early returns all seem to signify that they really appreciate it, too. (Free Press critic Lyndsay Green likened the restaurant to “a breath of fresh air” for the local dining scene.) The warm welcome might be due to bartender Andre Syke’s balanced herbal cocktails, or chef Colin Campbell’s next-level gurkensalat with marigold and smoked char roe and salmon and potato pancake rosti, or proprietor David Richter’s warm hospitality drawn from decades of New York hospitality experience. Whatever it is, Alpino seems to have the formula figured out.

Call 313-524-0888 for reservations.

Right next door to the Dearborn outpost of Paradise Street Eats, you’ll find another example of fusion done right (if we’re even still calling it these days). Known for its bustling brunch, the all-day cafe recently introduced an entirely new Thursday through Sunday dinner menu overseen by chef Hossayn Saddy.

Here, the pull-apart brioche comes with salted walnut date butter and za’atar olive oil, 14-ounce ribeyes are complemented by a side of spicy batata harra, sesame-crusted salmon bursts with flavor from tahini and Aleppo vinaigrette, and musakhan — a Palestinian chicken dish marinated in sumac — makes an unlikely appearance outside of a Middle Eastern home kitchen. Don’t let the name fool you; there’s nothing common about this place.

While the “neighborhood restaurant” tag is thrown around so often these days it’s become almost meaningless, it can still be useful for those rare places that hit a true sweet spot. The food should be prepared with a level of care that exceeds its respective price tag — affordable on multiple weekly visits by the surrounding demographic. Service should be friendly and inviting. (Bonus points if they remember your name and what you ordered last time). And the space should be simple but stylish, open most days of the week, and favoring locals over destination diners by saving a good deal of seats for walk-ins.

On all fronts, Beppé hits the bullseye. The killer double-patty burger and scallops seared to perfection, the tight and to-the-point beverage program, and the stylish heated patio that stays active through November all help to drive the point. And though downtown Royal Oak has lost much of its offbeat neighborhood charm amid the last two decades of mixed-use development, Beppé proves there’s still room for good taste there.