metro >> out to eat Artisan Pizza In Royal Oak Blaze Pizza will soon open a location in the heart of downtown Royal Oak on the first floor of 112 S. Main St. The build-your- own artisan pizza restaurant is scheduled to open in mid- October. The Royal Oak restaurant is part of a plan to build 10 Blaze Pizzas in Metro Detroit and throughout Michigan. Blaze Pizza uses an assembly line format to create artisan pizzas for only $6.95. Guests watch as they travel down an assembly line to create a signature pizza or design one of their own choosing from more than 40 toppings. Visit www.blazepizza.com or www.facebook.com/blazepizza for more information. New Places In The D Chickpea in the D, a new smoothie and juice bar at 2 John R. St. in Detroit is now open from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Also, Detroit Vegan Soul (D.V.S) announced that it is opening in the West Village on Saturday, Sept. 28, at 8029 Agnes St. Detroit Vegan Soul Royal Oak Speakeasy Lock and Key — a prohibition-style speakeasy with classic cocktails, five absinthe drinks and six Kuhnhenn Brewing Co. beers on tap — has opened at the rear of the Oxford Inn at 1214 Lock and Key Speakeasy S. Main in Royal Oak. Guests use a separate entrance at the back of the building to visit the new bar. Owner Bob Higgins says the speakeasy is designed to appeal to an audience that enjoys fine handcrafted drinks in an atmospheric setting. Hours are 7 p.m.-2 a.m. Thursday-Saturday. (248-543- 5619). Eastern Market Tour There is a new free walking tour series at Eastern Market: YallaEat!, which celebrates the history of Arab merchants in the historic market district. The docent-guided walking tours run approximately two hours and 30 minutes. Opportunities to shop are offered at most stops. Tours begin and end at Germack Coffee Roasting Company, Roastery & Espresso Bar, 2517 Russell St., Detroit. Tour registration is free, but an online RSVP is required at www.arabamericanmuseum.org/yallaeat . RSVPs will be accepted until each tour date's 15 slots are filled or until noon the day prior to each tour. Scheduled tours are 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28; 1 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1; 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5; and 1 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8. Dine Drink Detroit The first-ever #DineDrinkDetroit will be held Oct. 10-16. #DineDrinkDetroit brings together 13 slightly-less-than fine dining establishments offering a combination of food and drink for $15 — no reservations, just a special offering available at each of these locally and independently owned establishments. More details will be forthcoming on the event's Facebook page, www.facebook.com/DineDrinkDetroit. Local group of burger mavens names the best burgers in town. Jackie Headapohl Managing Editor L ooking for the best burgers around? There's a group of guys who know best. Calling them- selves the Burgermeister Club, since 2009, these seven retired and semi-retired friends have traveled to nearly 50 local restaurants in their search for the per- fect burger. The group, all of whom belong to Temple Beth El, was started by Bob Tell, a retired hospital administra- tor and aspiring mystery novelist from Bloomfield Hills, who first read about a group of young New Yorkers who had started a similar club. "I thought it would be fun," he says. Once a month, a member of the group chooses a res- taurant for the guys to try with the stipulation it be 30 minutes or less from that person's house. Consequently, the club gets around the Detroit Metro area. "Burgers are rated on a scale of 1-10," Tell says. "We judge the quality of the burger, the taste, freshness of the meat, if it was cooked as ordered, the bun and the presentation — the overall sensory impression of the burger:' The guys got a lesson from the son of Burgermeister Dr. Myron LaBan, who is a restaurant critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer. LaBan, of Bloomfield Hills, is a semi-retired doctor specializing in physical medicine at Beaumont Hospital. "He really told us how to take a burger apart starting at the bun:' he says. "We've gotten rather serious in our eval- uations, and some of us get rather critical — along with the BS that goes along with hanging out with the guys:' The perfect burger is an art form, LaBan says, but the perfect burger is also different for each member of the club. Some like it rare, some well done. "To me, the perfect burger is fresh, grilled so that it's charred on the outside and rare on the inside says Phil Fischer, a semi-retired attorney from Bloomfield Township, whose known most of the members of the club for 20 years. The big draw, however, for club members is the companionship. "We enjoy each other's company as much as the burgers:' says Burgermeister Jerry Kline, a semi-retired vice president of a design firm in Troy. Kline, whose wife, Margo, is a vegetarian, doesn't get a lot of meat at home, so he looks forward to the monthly burger with the boys. "I enjoy a hearty beef flavor, not over-seasoned:' he says. According to member Earl Remer, a retired attorney Best Burgers These rated 9 or above on the Burger Scale. Café Via, Birmingham Red Coat Tavern, West Bloomfield Great Burgers These rated between 8 and 9. J. Alexander's, West Bloomfield from West Bloomfield, "Besides hamburgers, we bring to the table varied backgrounds and spirited conversa- tions about current news, politics, jokes, sports and our affiliation with Temple Beth El, as well as discussions about the health and happiness of our families:' Adds Fischer: "The conversations get heated some- times, but they always remain polite:' It's also fun to get out of the house and try different places, says member Arthur Steuer, who retired from Ford Motor Coss real estate department about 18 years ago. He lives in Bloomfield Township. "I enjoy trying new restaurants, even when the burg- ers don't make the grade says Steuer, who prefers his burgers medium-rare and juicy with not too thick a bun. It's not too often the guys end up at a subpar restau- rant, however, as members usually take their spouses on a trial run to the restaurant before they choose it as The Burgermesiter Club at Bistro Joe's in Birmingham (Scores are not in yet): Back row, Phil Fischer, Jerry Kline, Earl Remer, George Stern and Arthur Steuer. Front row: Myron LaBan and Robert Tell. a monthly destination for the club, according to Tell, who adds that "I'll never get sick of burgers:' Neither will Remer, who says biting into the perfect burger "carries me back to when I was a youngster and my parents would take the family to dinner at Boesky's on 12th Street in Detroit. I would always order a ham- burger with a large slice of white onion and French fries. It was the ultimate treat:' Member George Stern, a retired railroad executive and current treasurer of JVS, is opposed to onions, but does like his burgers "charred on the outside, medium rare on the inside and juicy, with lettuce, tomato and cheese — and sometimes mushrooms:' What he enjoys most, though, is the camaraderie. "We've all known each other a long time and get together socially with our wives:' says Stern, who lives in Birmingham. "But our monthly burgers present an occasion for just us men to get together. I always look forward to that:' ❑ Bastone Brewery, Royal Oak Beverly Hills Grill, Beverly Hills Big Rock Chophouse, Birmingham The Emory, Ferndale Fox Grill, Bloomfield Hills Roadside B&G, Bloomfield Hills Granite City Food & Brewery, Troy Harbor Steak House, Keego Harbor Heroes Bar-bq & Grill, Waterford Township O'Mara's Irish Restaurant, Berkley Page's Food/Spirits, Farmington Phoenicia, Birmingham Poole's Tavern, Northville Red Coat Tavern, Royal Oak Sweet Lorraine's, Southfield Toasted Oak Grill, Novi Town Tavern, Royal Oak September 26 • 2013 33