Dinner and lunch recommendation in downtown detroit?

[Diallo]

My first trip to Detroit. Only time for 1 dinner and 1 lunch. Both need to be downtown, close to either US court house at W. Lafayette Blvd. and Washington Blvd., or the Hilton at Gratiot Ave. and Brush St. Looking for good, casual food, not too expensive. Thanks!

[SaraPA]

I'm a big fan of the Detroit Beer Company, which is on Broadway and quite close to your hotel. Good, casual bar food and microbrewed beer. Angelina's is a nice Italian place next door. A little more $$, but I've had a nice dinner of appetisers. Same for Small Plates, one of my favorites. It is not a CH favorite in general, though, b/c some of the dishes are pricey for what you get.

[Elyssa]

Slow's BBQ is a must---for either lunch or dinner.

I second the recommendation for Roast which is also great.

[Diallo]

Thanks so much to everyone for the suggestions. I head to Detroit next week. (By the way, Diallo is a common last name in West Africa and was my last name when I was a peace corps volunteer there.)

[Jim M]

With the name Diallo, you might be from Miami, and if you are I would withdraw this recommendation. But Vicente's Cuban on Library St. is steps from the Hilton and is really pretty good; live entertaiment some Fridays.

http://www.vicente.us/

[vtombrown]

My well-traveled Puerto Rican friend (granted, not Cuban) loves Vicente's food. I've been meaning to try it for a while. Thanks for the reminder!

[JanPrimus]

I still am a sucker for Mudgie's Deli.

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Mudgie's
1300 Porter St, Detroit, MI 48226

[vtombrown]

I'm no micro-neighborhood expert on the city of Detroit, but I know most of the above places and for a person limited by transportation and expense account, I second (or third) these suggestions. Please report back on your experiences. :-)

[Rosedale]

You can walk to the Caucus Club in the Penobscot from the Courthouse. Great salads and sandwiches. I haven't been there in five years, but it's real old school Detroit.

Hop on the People Mover and check out Greektown. My favorie is New Parthenon Restaurant, 547 Monroe Street. Then check out one of the bakeries for some baklava. Pegasus is good too.

Don't be tempted to follow all the people into Fishbone's. You can find much better Cajun food other places, but it's a fun place for a drink.

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Monroe Street Cafe
561 Monroe St, Detroit, MI 48226

[JanPrimus]

Oh and I agree 100% on avoiding Fishbone's....

[boagman]

As do I. I simply *do not understand* how that place gets business these days. Perhaps it was a decent place to go a long time ago...but it's pretty wretched these days, in my experience.

[RedTop]

Lunch: Dart across W. Lafayette and get a dog each at Lafayette, and then American Coney Island.

[boagman]

Well, to try out Roast at an affordable price (it'll allow you to get a feel for the atmosphere of the place, as well as to get a taste for their fare and kitchen's ability), go there for Cocktail Hour from 3-6PM on weekdays, and get yourself one of their stuffed pepper plates, one of their burgers, and maybe a Beast of the Day taco plate. Each of those, when ordered at the bar during Cocktail Hour, will set you back all of $3, and they'll be plenty good, especially the first two. You can also try their fried chicken livers with polenta for the same price, which I'm told is outstanding, but I didn't care for. No matter: for $3, it was worth giving it a shot.

That's one idea, there.