Pie! Who doesn’t love a delicious piece of pie? It’s cozy and comforting, especially on a chilly winter’s day, accompanied by a hot cup of coffee or tea. Yum!
After my visit to Parker Street Market yesterday, I headed across the street to Sister Pie in search of a slice of its fabled wares. This pie shop/bakery looms large in my mind, literally. I was introduced to it by a large billboard that once ran along I-94 that I passed (creeped along in a cluster of rush-hour traffic is more like it) daily on my way to my then-job in Dearborn. The billboard was touting it as the winner of a local entrepreneurial grant competition (Hatch Detroit). I was intrigued, not only because I love local small businesses and supporting them, but also because I appreciate a well-constructed baked good (it’s a legitimate art form in my book!). Sister Pie was added to my list of places to visit.
Apparently, this bakery was on a lot of other Metro-Detroiters’ lists, too. The bright little shop’s tables were crammed with people on my visit there yesterday afternoon. Fortunately there was a space open for me, at a high-top table with no chairs, where I stood and enjoyed the custardy, silky-sweet, salty goodness of a slice of salted maple. Two other pies were also being featured yesterday: a chocolate one called Red Hot Chocolate and a lemon meringue. Wanting some take-home treats, I also purchased an assortment of cookies – a triple chocolate one, a peanut butter-and-paprika, and a snickerdoodle-fennel seed – as well as a slice of pear- and chocolate-studded coffee cake. All were delicious in their own right, but the coffee cake and the snickerdoodle-and-fennel-seed cookie were especially memorable. I love when bakers and chefs aren’t afraid to experiment with flavors. Fennel seeds in a cookie, for instance, might sound odd, but they were the perfect complement to the cinnamony sweetness of the snickerdoodle.
So Sister Pie gets a major gold star in my book for deliciousness and inventiveness of its wares (and offering a pie with a crisp, non-soggy crust!). Just as important, it also gets major props for ambiance. There was a convivial air to the place yesterday, a sense of connection. The staff members who helped me were friendly and obviously enjoyed being there, joking with each other as they worked; the woman who rang me up came over to me later to see how I liked the pie. When I’d explained to her in my excitement as I approached the counter that I was new to the place, a sixty-something guy who was obviously a regular overheard me and exclaimed, “You’re gonna love it!” I have a major soft spot for places full of friendliness, enthusiasm, welcomeness – maybe because the field that I work in in my day job doesn’t evoke those feelings in me nearly enough. I think we are all seeking to inhabit such inviting havens in our lives – ideally as places we work and hang out in on the regular, but at the very least, where we can stop in once in a while and savor a slice of pie.
8066 Kercheval St.
Detroit, MI 48214
Love is . . . taking yourself on a drive to Corktown on a brisk, sunny Valentine’s Day morning and gorging yourself with the most delicious bagel sandwich you’ve ever had in your life. Seriously – go. to. Detroit. Institute. of. Bagels. Tomorrow morning. Get the mind-blowing #9 (the Turkey, Bacon & Avocado sandwich with gouda and spicy mayo) on a toasted whole-wheat Everything bagel, or try one of the other amazing-sounding bagel sandwiches. Soak up the rustic hipster ambiance and the cheery vibes from the happy, friendly staff. And fall in love with this charming bagel shop!
Oak City Grille is a solid establishment with a menu catering to the classier crowd that frequents Royal Oak (think steaks, lamb chops, lobster raviolis). A raised stage behind the bar featured a talented singer-guitarist strumming acoustic versions of popular tunes on the Saturday night I was there – and according to the restaurant’s website, musical entertainment is presented every night Tuesday through Saturday from around 8:3o or 9 until closing time. Good to know!
Tiny doesn’t begin to describe the Birmingham location of Luxe Bar and Grill. On the Friday night that I was there, waiting 40 minutes for a table in the cramped confines of the dollhouse-sized lobby/bar area took a special kind of endurance (there is NO way I could be a server there. Seriously, they must all be wonderful souls with monk-like patience, because there is no way I could push myself through packed throngs of people waiting everywhere on a regular basis without going insane). Fortunately, the food was amazing and made it well worth the wait in that purgatory of a floor plan. I came for Luxe’s specialty, the burger, and I was not let down. The barbecue bacon one I had was awesome – and massive! I washed it down with a side of chili-cheese fries and a delicious craft cocktail and TGIF!-fueled sentiments hummed happily through my veins.
Do brunch at Bosco’s on a frigid Sunday morn and savor the cream-cheese-stuffed berry French toast and an Irish coffee. Your stomach will smile and radiate warm and fuzzy feelings toward you. Seriously, the French toast is amazing, and the drink pours are substantial here (my friend’s mimosa was practically as big as her face!). Love the wood-paneled, rustic-chic look going on, too.
100 Places in the D 