Tom Perkins

Island Creek oysters at Mabel Gray.

We're getting hungry just thinking about these memorable dishes.

Aunt Dotty Oysters, served at Mabel Gray, Otus Supply, and other fine metro Detroit restaurants

See our feature, "In search of Detroit's best oysters"

The complex Aunt Dotty oysters from Massachusetts' Island Creek Oyster company hold meaty little nuggets that start off briny, then throw a mineral punch that concludes with a somewhat bitter note. It's a fascinating progression. The Dotty is among the many fine oysters that the city's bivalve purveyors are sourcing from Island Creek in Duxbury Bay, which some call the Napa Valley of the oyster trade. —Tom Perkins