Here are the 10 hottest restaurants in Detroit right now

By Metro Times Staff on Fri, Mar 24, 2017 at 6:53 pm

Dining in Detroit has come a long way in the past few years. Where there were once only a couple of fine dining restaurants mixed in with an abundance of take-out places, there are now a slew of destination eateries. Some are fancy white tablecloth places while others are more casual joints, but all of them seem to be on the tip of every Detroit foodie's tongue.

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Parc
800 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-922-7272
Though prices are high — pasta $18-$38, reserve steaks running from $27 for petite to $112 for 40 ounces — in Parc's first weeks it was hard to get a reservation. Diners will find fresh flowers and heavy white linens, glowing candles in old-fashioned candlesticks, courtly if modern, ever-present service — teams of servers, mostly male — and a "unicorn list" of special wines ranging from $500 to $6,000 a bottle. Photo from Facebook.

Must try: The Salmon. MT file photo.

Chartreuse
15 E. Kirby St., Detroit; 313-818-3915
Reservations are highly recommended at this super-hip Sandy Levine-owned restaurant located in Midtown, just across the street from the Detroit Institute of Arts. The spot quickly earned local praise for its inventive and flavorful small plates, its stellar service, an intriguing interior, and complimentary bread and ramp butter baskets. You'll find a long list of cocktails as well as a handful of liqueurs made by Carthusian monks in France — a family of liqueurs that shares the restaurant's name. Photo from Facebook.

Must try: Beef tartar. Photo from Facebook.

El Asador
1312 Springwells St., Detroit; 313-297-2360
In 2014, owner and chef Luis Garza decided to bring sophisticated steak and seafood dishes, with fancy sauces, to Mexicantown. Diners can choose from rib-eyes, New York strips, and aged sirloin steaks, plus squid, scallops, and mussels, none of which is common in the neighborhood. Most suburban patrons just know this restaurant as the place that prepares guacamole tableside. In an effort to be even more inclusive and revolutionary, Garza recently made his entire menu — save pork chorizo, which will be prepared separately from all other dishes — halal. Photo from Facebook.

Must try: Steak fajitas. Photo from Facebook.

Grey Ghost
47 Watson St., Detroit; 313-262-6534
The place is stylish, with floor-length windows, but a big mural of the Grey Ghost, a legendary Prohibition-era rumrunner, seems out of place — he looks like Long John Silver. The vibe is casual but expensive, as every newcomer in this category is striving for these days. The menu is divided not into starters and mains but into cured (such as charcuterie), raw (oysters, tuna, steak tartare), not meat (one fish dish and one each of soup, salad, and pasta), meat (lamb sausage and quail as well as beef), and sides. MT file photo.

Must try: Bologna waffle.

Rock City Eatery
4216 Woodward Ave, Detroit; 313-265-3729
A recent move from Hamtramck to Midtown means Rock City Eatery's owner and chef, Nikita Sanches, has a larger kitchen to work with — and he's creating a menu unlike any other in Detroit. On top of classic comforts — like the robust and creamy mac 'n' cheese, deliciously charred and semi-spicy Brussels sprouts, and its homage to the venerable poutine — are a number of entrées that embody Sanches' persistent rebelliousness. Photo via Facebook.