Where to Eat in September: Tigerlily, Maru Sushi, Freya, and More

Ferndale restaurateur Brian Kramer and his Hometown Restaurant Group lured Momotaro sushi chef Christian Vasquez back home from Chicago to run the kitchen of this new sushi and robata bar in the former Antihero space. Kramer tapped Ron & Roman Architects to transform the short-lived izakaya into a brighter, less-cavernous room augmented by a cantilevered floor-to-ceiling mirror on one wall. (In addition to the Japanese-inspired concept, the futuristic Glenn Barr murals also remain.) The bluefin tuna here is of the sustainably farmed variety, so you can indulge in Vasquez’s inventive maki, sashimi, and nigiri without the added guilt.

Before Vasquez’s run at Momotaro in Chicago, he served as sushi chef at the Detroit outpost of Maru Sushi, Robert Song’s Michigan-based chain of upscale but unpretentious sushi joints. Though the business lunch bustle hasn’t quite returned to pre-pandemic levels downtown, happy hour at Maru remains a solid play, offering daily drink specials, $6 snacks (don’t miss the chicken gyoza), and discounts on signature rolls. Maru’s Detroit location has steadfastly filled in for downtown’s shocking lack of sushi options, but Song’s Korean background also shows up in the form of bulgogi, served as sliders with pickled shishito relish, and as a donburi bowl with vegetables and a fried egg.

Nearly a year into its run, this tasting menu restaurant from the team behind Chartreuse Kitchen & Cocktails is loosening its proverbial tie just a bit. To be sure, the atmosphere was never overly stuffy at proprietor Sandy Levine’s Nordic-inspired showpiece where guests choose the music from a list of vinyl records, even though chef-partner Doug Hewitt’s immaculate plates may have suggested otherwise. It’s the menu format that’s more casual now — perhaps to match the digs — allowing guests to choose from a limited variety of options for every course rather than locking into a predetermined menu driven by dietary type. Freya also recently began offering a quick-turn three-course dining option specifically designed for the theater crowd, just in time for a busy fall cultural calendar.

Call 313-351-5544 for reservations.

Speaking of beer and pizza and rooftop patios… Pastaio brought brick-oven pizzas and pastas to the former HopCat space on 5th Street in Royal Oak, debuting in early August after a lengthy delay. Expect shareable small plates, salads, and classic Italian entrees (veal marsala, chicken Milanese) alongside a long list of handmade pizzas and pastas at the heart of this concept. (Pastaio means “pasta maker” in Italian.) The sprawling, three-story space includes a planned nightclub on one of the floors, but nothing beats dinner and drinks on the vibey rooftop patio.

On its face, The Bricks looks like another wood-fired pizza and pasta joint anchoring a charming stretch of a charming little town just outside of Detroit. But dig deeper, and you’ll realize that The Bricks is also the Cotton family’s and chef Trenton Chamberlain’s showpiece of sustainability, where even the wood for the fire is harvested in a sustainably managed way. The restaurant’s own Fox Hollow Farm in Metamora provides eggs, produce, and honey for The Bricks’ menu, as well as organic grains, which are milled on-site to turn to flour. That flour then gets turned into naturally fermenting sourdough pizza topped with ingredients straight from the farm. Having conquered the Italian concept, Chamberlain and his team now turn to France with plans to open the neighboring Boulangerie Le Rouge any day now. The same commitment to ingredients remains, though the focus will be on coffee, croissants, and fresh-baked bread, one of Chamberlain’s specialties.

Just up the block from The Bricks, Sprout House, a stalwart natural market and health food store, recently changed hands. Its new stewards are public radio professionals Lisa Brancato and Ann Delisi. Before buying Sprout House in the spring, Brancato was the director of strategic partnerships at Detroit’s NPR affiliate, WDET-FM, where Delisi remains a beloved DJ and music show host. At the behest of the market’s devoted regulars, Brancato and Delisi have preserved the most popular lunchtime offerings of the four-decade-old institution, such as the Southwest avocado sandwich with cilantro puree and the Thai peanut soup. But changes are afoot, with new items in development and plans in the works to highlight more local purveyors and makers ahead of the holiday season.

No reservations.

Detroit isn’t the only city seeing an influx of new development. The Detroit Free Press recently profiled the downriver suburb of Wyandotte because of a flurry of residential and commercial activity. One of the biggest developments here is an old U.S. Postal Service facility on Oak Street, anchored by a new bar and restaurant whose name pretty much says it all. Yes, there are tacos — as well as chimichangas, enchiladas, fajitas, quesadillas, and other regional Mexican staples. And yes, there is Tequila — nearly 30 individual varieties to choose from or enjoy in a flight. The restaurant is the brainchild of brothers Juan Carlos and Octavio Morales, who hail from Ciudad Juarez, in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. The Wyandotte location is the brothers’ second outpost of a restaurant they first opened in Fulton, Missouri, which still operates today.

Though it may not be a true bodega sandwich because of sausage where bacon should be, the “Meat Friendly Early Riser” at Bodega decently approximates a traditional NYC BEC. The “Lox & Cheese” also boasts Big Apple roots, but some of the other snacks and sandwiches from this swanky neighborhood market-cafe-bar hint more toward the influences of the Detroit area’s large Middle Eastern population (think: hummus, grape leaves, and tabbouli wraps). What a decade ago was a destitute stretch of bombed-out Victorian mansions scattered amid overgrown vacant lots, Brush Park recently has been revived as an upscale urban neighborhood thanks to a swell of residential development. Like the area itself, Bodega can feel a little more Birmingham than Detroit, but the well-heeled new residents don’t seem to mind. Maybe it’s because you can drink — and drink pretty well — at this upmarket party store.

No reservations.

This new northwest Detroit coffee shop fills both a caffeine and community void in one of the city’s most popular neighborhoods. Co-founded by Charity Dean, founder of the Metro-Detroit Black Business Alliance, and Heather Zygmontowicz, who works for the City of Detroit’s housing department, Rosa is named for Dean’s grandmother. Before opening in June, the pair reportedly conducted extensive community outreach to gauge the needs of the neighborhood. Residents said they’d like breakfast and lunch options, as well as a space to host readings, book clubs, pop-ups, and other community-focused events.