Sandwich bar — What makes us favor the weekend Bloody Mary Brunch at the Bronx? The build-your-own Bloody Mary bar, the quirky but gritty charm, the pool-shooters, beer-drinkers and windjammers who drop by when afternoon sun shines in? All of the above, but then there are those sandwiches. They're well above par for any bar, made with fresh, locally baked bread that's brushed of butter and grilled, which can make even a tuna sandwich taste satisfyingly rich. Try their relatively new innovation, the Portobello sandwich. At 4476 Second Ave., Detroit; 313-832-8464.
Slow readers — Royal Oak's Vinotecca will host a meeting of the Slow Food Detroit Book Club on Nov. 8. This month's selection is Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Don't have it? Buy it at the Barnes and Noble bookstore across the street. Open to the public. Starts at 7 p.m. At 417 S. Main St., Royal Oak; vinotecca.com.
Game on — Just because you want a taste of game, you don't have to sally forth with loaded gun. Try the top-shelf "game feast" dreamed up by chef Eric Ward at Bingham Farms' Shiraz. The menu includes smoked wild trout, grilled quail, bison carpaccio, seared duck and venison, with wine pairings that offer "deep, warm, delicious flavors." Friday, Nov. 16, at 30100 Telegraph Rd., Bingham Farms, 248-645-5289.
EAT THE PAGE
For decades, chefs have amused themselves by discussing their "last supper" — the final meal they would consume if they were aware of their impending demise. Photographer and author Melanie Dunea, in My Last Supper: 50 Great Chefs and Their Final Meals (Bloomsbury USA, $39.95), reveals the choices of Mario Batali, Daniel Boulud, Jacques Pepin, Nobu and 46 others. Laurent Tourondel would have a tuna sandwich with bacon, a Krispy Kreme doughnut and a Corona, but other's ultimate plates would have caviar, foie gras or truffles.
A TASTY BEVERAGE
The state of Michigan is the third-biggest apple-producing state in the union. We long for more of them squished and fermented into drinks like JK Scrumpy's Orchard Gate Gold. It's an organic hard cider that's dry, but whispering with the sweetness of the autumn orchard, and redolent of spice and soft, ripe apples. The JK stands for Jim Koan, whose apples grow on land his family has farmed for the past 150 years. Though Orchard Gate Gold is sparkling and not proper "English west country" scrumpy, the farmhouse ideal it's modeled after is true enough.
IT WORKS
The Grand Opening banner is hung at Restaurant Equippers, located at 27041 Greenfield Rd., Southfield (1-866-532-9936). It's a veritable toy store for cooks, chefs, gift-givers or anyone interested in food preparation. It is an invaluable source of everything from soup kettles to nutcrackers, all at wholesale prices usually unavailable to the public. If you want to serve fajitas on a sizzling platter with restaurant flair, they've got it. You want to make a pizza? How about a black pan, the kind that makes the deep-dish variety so crisp, or a pizza oven to cook it in? It's all there. At equippers.com.
Know of any new restaurants, special dinners or food-related events? Let us know. Send materials two weeks in advance to Food Stuff, Metro Times, 733 St. Antoine, Detroit, MI 48226 or e-mail [email protected].
