340. Josef’s European Pastry Shop – June 23, 2018 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Everyone who regularly reads this blog knows that I adore visiting new-to-me places. But man, do I also love when the experience of trying a new place arrives spontaneously, as it did with my visit to Josef’s European Pastry Shop!

The impulsive jaunt came to fruition one Saturday several weeks ago while a friend and I were en route to Saint Clair Shores with the intention of checking out a couple of breweries (which I’ll be covering in subsequent posts, because they are NEW PLACES!). She’s from Clarkston and currently lives in Waterford, so the East Side is pretty much the other side of the world for her, and we thought it would be fun to take a trip to these breweries she’d never been to, as she enjoys craft beer and rarely gets over to that southeast corner of the Metro D.

While we were driving, my friend mentioned that when she was a kid, her maternal grandmother lived in one of the Grosse Pointes and would often take her to this bakery where she would get these little pink-frosted butter cookies that she loved. She couldn’t recall the bakery’s name and texted her mom for it. I pondered the odds of whether this place she’d likely last visited in the ’90s still existed.

Almost instantly, my friend’s mom texted her back that the name of the bakery was Josef’s European Pastry Shop. A quick Google search confirmed that – lo and behold! – the shop still existed, was currently open, and was about a mile away from where we were at the moment. How’s that for synchronicity?

With everything aligning as it was, you know we had to visit that bakery! Once we reached the familiar-to-me section of Mack Avenue in Grosse Pointe Woods where it’s located, I realized I’d passed it regularly but had somehow never been there. New-place time!!!

According to its website, Josef’s European Pastry Shop opened in 1971, making it 47 years old as of this writing – an impressive legacy for a small business in this day and age.

Walking up to the shop, it was easy to see its appeal. Its red-brick, awning-clad exterior flanked by vibrant flower arrangements was classic and well-kept.

Inside, true to the European-bakery theme, were arranged little round tables intended for sitting and savoring treats. And, of course, there was the pièce de résistance: the large cases displaying said treats.

What goodies were nestled there! There were pastries and pies and cakes and croissants and brownies and cookies – SOOOO many cookies! There were shelves laid with loaves of bread and buns and pizzas. There were so many delectable choices that it was dizzying to decide.

Inevitably, my number was called, and decide I did. I settled on a black-and-white cookie with its half-chocolate, half-vanilla icing and a frosted chocolate brownie with walnuts.

I immediately gobbled up a chunk of that black-and-white cookie, relishing its shortbread and sweet icing. I enjoyed the chewy, walnut-studded brownie a day or so later.

When it came to my friend’s order, she was thrilled to discover that the pink-frosted mini butter cookies of her youth were still being sold by Josef’s. She ordered a boxful and said they tasted exactly as she’d remembered. How exhilarating when, decades later, we stumble upon some relic from our childhood, and it’s exactly how we recall it to be!

21150 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.josefspastryshop.com

324. Burrito Mundo – May 3, 2018 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Mexican food is high up there on my List of Things that Bring me Joy (right there with baseball games at Comerica Park and that BOMB ice cream sandwich I enjoyed a few weeks ago at Holy Moly Donut Shop – yep, still thinking about that). So when I learned that Burrito Mundo in Grosse Pointe Woods was a fast-casual Mexican joint where I could build my own burrito, of course I was psyched to visit it! I love me some autonomy when crafting my Mexican meals.

BTW, if you’re wondering why there’s what looks like an unsupervised child in the above-shown photo of Burrito Mundo, worry not: that kid is the baby of a friend who accompanied me to the restaurant. This was his first foray out with us, and we wanted to photo-document it. We’re introducing him to the joys of restaurant-exploration while he’s young (if Auntie Jackie has anything to do with it, this kid is gonna know every hot brunch spot in the D by the time he’s three! 🙂 ).

Back to Burrito Mundo and the crafting of the Mexican meals: this place is like a mecca for burrito building, my friends. While the restaurant’s menu is populated with a variety of intriguing signature burritos (plus tacos, quesadillas, and entrée salads), I knew I had to try my hand at creating my own. The dizzying array of filling choices made it too fun a prospect to ignore.

To start, Burrito Mundo allows you to choose from various meat (and meat-substitute) fillings for your burrito base: ground beef, steak, chicken, pulled pork, shrimp, mahi mahi, tofu, and vegetables.

Then you get to your filling side-kicks. You see all the ingredients you’d expect: tomato, avocado, onion, rice, sour cream, cilantro, beans, guacamole, tortilla strips, jalapeños (both roasted and pickled varieties), cheese, etc. – plus two that are a bit more surprising: potatoes and zucchini/squash. And there are seven kinds of salsa to choose from at varying heat levels, from mild to wild.

To finish, you can opt to have your burrito doused in queso fundido cheese sauce or its tortilla grilled to crispy perfection – or to nix the tortilla entirely, à la Burrito Mundo’s “Ghost” style. The first two options are an upcharge, as is any ingredient that isn’t your standard meat-filling base (steak, shrimp, and mahi are $1.99 extra, but everything else is standard in that category) or tomatoes, cilantro, sour cream, rice, romaine, or salsa. It’s .79 cents to add a cheese, avocado, or guacamole to your burrito, while the remaining ingredients are .29 cents each. In other words, these build-your-own burritos with their base price of $5.29 can get pricey if you aren’t intentional.

But let’s face it, these burritos aren’t Lamborghini-pricey; they’re a reasonable splurge. My pulled pork burrito with its rice, tomato, cilantro, pinto beans, onion, roasted jalapeños, tortilla strips, queso fundido, and roasted tomatillo chipotle salsa was around $8.00.

And eight dollars turned out to be a reasonable price for the massive burrito I was given, which could easily be made into two meals. It was delicious, with tender pulled pork and fresh, flavorful ingredients.

The only thing I would change for my next round of Burrito Mundo burrito-making would be to ask for more salsa and queso fundido on the side, because once they were mixed in with all of the other ingredients in the large-and-in-charge burrito, they didn’t cover much ground (and I like a LOT of sauce, to boot). I’d also add guacamole, because guacamole is LIFE and well-worth the additional .79-cent upcharge.

I’m going to consider this first run to Burrito Mundo a dress rehearsal. As I’m always looking for an excuse to nosh on Mexican food, I’ll consider the burrito-refining process my rationale for a revisit.

19459 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.burritomundo.com

302. Garrido’s – January 14, 2018 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Today’s post feels especially appropriate for me given that I’ve just returned from a 10-day vacation in South America (Ecuador, specifically): the lovely Garrido’s of Grosse Pointe Woods is being represented on the blog!

The bistro’s menu packed with popular Venezuelan dishes reminds me of fare I consumed while in Ecuador. The Venezuelan Pabellón that I tried during my visit to Garrido’s was healthful deliciousness with its tender shredded beef, rice, black beans, and the kicker: tajadas (ripe plantains).

Man, were those tajadas AMAZING! How can something as simple as a plantain be so mouthwateringly packed with flavor? Caramelized, flavorful, sweet, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness constituted those tajadas. I gobbled them with relish, as I did the rest of the  Venezuelan Pabellón dish.

I felt so good about eating this healthful dinner that I figured there was room for dessert, so I capped off the meal with Garrido’s Deep-Fried Cheesecake with Berry Party. The New York-style cheesecake wrapped in fried dough and served with a berry compote was yes, as glorious as it sounds.

What’s on Garrido’s menu besides the Venezuelan Pabellón and the bomb fried cheesecake? There are various appetizers, including fried plaintain chips with pico de gallo and guasacaca (a Venezuelan avocado sauce similar to guacamole) and Venezuelan Tequeños (cheese wrapped in dough and deep-fried). There are arepas (corn-flatbread sandwiches) stuffed to the gills with goodies such as shrimp, black beans, and avocado-bacon-and-cheese-slathered burgers. There are a variety of seafood dishes, including paella, pastas, and a stew loaded with scallops, shrimp, squid, and octopus.

Other traditional Latin fare plus entrée salads and a more eclectic assortment of dishes (spaghetti with lamb meatballs; ahi tuna steak; beef stroganoff) round out the food menu, which is capped by desserts including that fried cheesecake, plus a molten chocolate cake and churros.

While the bistro doesn’t serve booze, it has an in-depth non-alcoholic drink menu – one loaded with various teas, smoothies, and coffee drinks. I NEED to go back and try its extreme hot-chocolate concoction: check out the drink section on Garrido’s menu to see what I mean! This sucker is STACKED (literally) with more than just the typical steamed chocolate milk; it’s a veritable tower of goodies.

It’s obvious that I’m not the only one in the area who is feeling Garrido’s, as the intimate little place quickly became packed during the Sunday evening that I visited it. With good food and a cozy, inviting vibe, it’s an obvious choice if you’re looking to dine within the Grosse Pointes.

19605 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.garridosbistro.com

299. Spa in the Woods – December 24, 2017 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Oh my goodness – happy 2018, guys! I took another one of my unexpected hiatuses from the blog – one of those black holes of writing inertia cropped up unexpectedly around the holidays for me, and I pretty much forced myself to get on and write this post to avoid extending the thing any longer. It’s crazy how quickly time flies and how a few days of putting off posting can turn into a month!

But hey, as much as we can all beat ourselves up about our lapses, the most important part to focus on is the fact that we started again, am I right? That’s the tack I’m choosing to take here. And I’m very excited to have a bunch of adventures built up over the last month to recount to you – including Visit Number 300!!!! [Cue multi-hued confetti!] But today, it’s all about my becoming acquainted with the very lovely Spa in the Woods in Grosse Pointe Woods – on Christmas Eve, of all days.

One of my dearest friends got me a gift certificate to Spa in the Woods for my birthday in October after I’d revealed to her that the last time I’d gotten a professional pedicure was when President Obama was still in the thick of his second term (Yeah . . . it had been a minute).

I originally scheduled the pedicure on the first Saturday in December, then cancelled the morning of when I realized that I’d neglected to plan my day around the fact that I would be unable to wear proper shoes for several hours after my visit (pairing my parka with flip flops in my planned subsequent jaunts about town wasn’t an especially appealing prospect). So I postponed the appointment until Christmas Eve – because even though it was a Sunday and Spa in the Woods is generally closed on Sundays, it was open on Christmas Eve for the employees who wanted to work. I figured that a relaxing a.m. pedicure would be perfect before the (potentially ungrounding) interactions with family members later that evening.

And it was! It was such a delight to sit there in the cozy, quiet salon (only one other appointment showed up while I was there) chit-chatting with Maria, the lovely purple-haired nail technician, while she whipped my feet and toenails into a civilized state.

I opted for the Signature Spa in the Woods Pedicure, which is the fancy spa-level pedicure (as opposed to the more standard Express Pedicure that is also offered): in addition to being the recipient of the requisite heel-scraping and nail clipping, I had an awesome-smelling coffee exfoliating scrub rubbed on my legs and feet, followed by a luxe lotion and hot towels. The nails on my toesies were painted immaculately in a berry hue, and I was relaxed and ready to go for the holiday shenanigans with the fam.

I can’t emphasize enough what a treat it was to get this pedicure. I have always loved salon pedicures and used to get them more frequently; this was a reminder to treat myself to them more. Granted, at $55 before tip, the Signature Spa in the Woods Pedicure may have to be more of an annual occurrence for me than a regular splurge within the parameters of my current budget. But if you feel moved to treat yourself to a spa experience, I would highly recommend trying out this place; my aforementioned friend has treated herself on her last couple of birthdays to its spa packages and has loved the included massage, facial, sauna steam shower, and nail treatment.

21023 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.spainthewoodsmi.com

276. Lyla’s Catering – September 16, 2017 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

On the jaunt from an Arts and Scraps donation run in Detroit to Saint Clair Shores, I decided lunch was in order and that this would be the perfect opportunity to visit Lyla’s Catering, a Lebanese catering and carry-out establishment I’d read about in Hour Detroit a few years ago. And with that Grosse Pointe Woods, a new-to-the-blog city, was represented!

Four of the five Grosse Pointe neighborhoods have now been repped on 100 Places in the D (Grosse Pointe Shores is left). But the most important thing about that day is that I got a scrumptious, flavorful, filling meal at Lyla’s.

I stepped into its sunny orange interior and ordered from the friendly owners the fatoush salad with grilled chicken, plus two spinach pies and two pieces of baklava. They were ready quickly, and I ate a portion of the huge fatoush salad while sitting at one of the two tables inside Lyla’s, savoring the freshness of the greens,  tomato chunks, cucumber slices, and crispy pita chips tossed in the garlic, lemon, and olive oil dressing and the slices of warm marinated chicken breast. What a perfect on-the-go meal: healthful and hearty and void of processed ingredients!

I had the rest of the salad for dinner that night, as well as one of the spinach pies and both pieces of the baklava. The triangular dough-encased mini pie with its vibrant spinach filling had this irresistible hint of nutmeg, and the baklava with its honey-drenched layers of phyllo dough was straight-up addictive.

Lyla’s has both its carry-out and catering menus on its website, so you can check out their offerings and order ahead should you decide to visit – which I highly recommend you do!

20083 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.lylascatering.com