Fressing With Fishman
Uncorked!
5
ophisticated but laid back.
Upscale, yet casual. That's the
dynamic contrast uncorked
at BOTTLZ in Novi (31260 Wakefield
Drive), which opened earlier this year
to acclaimed reviews, spotlighting not
only an impressive menu, but also an
awe-inspiring selection of wines and craft
beers.
The aptly named restaurant
in the former clubhouse of the
Maples of Novi golf course fea-
tures more than 100 wines and
more than 40 choices of beer,
many of them Michigan-made.
While their grill menu
focuses on comfort — think
garlic fries, sriracha-soaked
Ryan
wings and daily-featured tacos
Fishman
— their dinner menu features
some truly elegant appetizers and entrees.
Start with the duck arancini or braised
beef tips before you sink your teeth into
filet, Ahi tuna, or one of their weekly chef's
specials or daily chef's pastas.
Owner Rick Jaster drew my attention to
two of their most popular and mouthwa-
tering dishes. Their barramundi is caught
off the coast of Australia and flown in fresh
daily, then served pan-seared with a fonti-
na cheese herb risotto and braised greens.
The slow-braised lamb shank falls off
the bone and is complemented by scal-
lopped potatoes, fennel and a mint creme
fraiche.
Gluten-free? Or at least think you should
be? Two-thirds of the menu is gluten-free,
and there are a number of vegetarian
options available. Chef Tom Batayeh says
if you've got allergies his team is happy to
create something just for you.
Don't miss EVENTZ nights each
Wednesday at BOTTLZ, which feature
themed wine tastings, beer tastings,
spirit tastings and chef's classes helmed by
Batayeh who also pairs the night's featured
drink with entrees to match.
NEW MENUS
Worth revisiting are the redeveloped
menus at Ale Mary's & Tom's Oyster
Bar in Royal Oak, where executive chef
Norman Fenton is making big moves
after coming on board this summer.
Some of the highlights include Ale Mary's
new homemade duck sausage served
with French lentils and the new foie gras
steamed clams served with an onion bru-
46 November 5 • 2015
lee and prosciutto at Tom's. Fair warning
— I don't think either is kosher.
PLANS FOR SOUTH CORKTOWN
Plans for Detroit's SoCo District were
made public last week and feature mixed-
use commercial and retail spaces, includ-
ing a design studio, residential lofts and
new restaurant concepts as the old
Fire Department Ladder House
No. 12 and adjacent buildings are
redeveloped in South Corktown.
Slow's co-owner Phil Cooley is
one of the partners on the project
that features a space developed for
use by pop-up restaurants. A for-
mer commercial building will also
be developed into a new restaurant
with Cooley at the helm, with
plans to open by next summer.
GREEK HISTORY
There's more to Greek culture than the
food, and if you're a history buff you'll
want to check out the new exhibit at the
Hellenic Museum of Michigan (67 E.
Kirby in Detroit), which features the sto-
ries of Greek Jews in World War II and
explores the role Greece played in the
fight against Hitler.
MAZEL TOV TO ...
Josh Kaplan and Tarrah Evans on their
engagement.
Justin Friedman and Dani Deveson on
their engagement.
Jeff Friedman and Samantha Kellman
on their wedding and Samantha's early
success on the new Jillian Michael's
show Sweat Inc. on Spike TV, which airs
Tuesdays at 10 p.m.
Jonathan H. Schwartz of Seyburn
Kahn PC, named to the Michigan
Lawyers Weekly Up & Coming Lawyers
Class of 2015.
Brenda Rosenberg, who will be hon-
ored at the AJC Community Leadership
Award Dinner on Nov. 11 at the
Townsend Hotel. Tickets are available at
ajcdetroit.org.
Brittany Turner on passing the New
York bar exam.
And happy birthday to Kyle Zwiren,
Steve Migliore, Mari Barnett, Rabbi Levi
Shemtov and Kari Alterman. *
Got a tip for Ryan? Email him at
ryan@thefishmangroup.com .
Harry's Detroit Bar
BEST PLACE TO WATCH LIONS
According to Thrillist.com , Harry's
Detroit Bar (2482 Clifford St.) is the
best place to watch a Lions' game in the
city. "Not only does Harry's host plenty
of pregaming fans before they hop on a
free shuttle to nearby Lions, Red Wing,
or Tigers games, it's also the home bar
for the Detroit City Football Club:'
according to Thillist.
"Any bar that accommodates around
300-500 obsessed minor league soccer
fans before games is a bar for hardcore
sports fans. Most of America doesn't
even know we have major league soccer!
The food and drink also help keep peo-
ple loyal: cocktails are made with fresh
juice and herbs, the fried pickles are
beloved and the burger meat is ground
in-house (get the Baconater with two
Angus steak burgers)."
3IGALORA POP-UP
Bigalora will launch a pop-up in
Shinola in Midtown Detroit this week,
offering six wrapped-and-ready cold
sandwiches in a display case at the
store's sales terminals. Bigalora, head-
ed by Bacco's Luciano DelSignore, will
follow that up with a Bigalora pizza
and grab-and-go inside the Detroit
Medical Center in December or
January. Meanwhile, Bigalora's expan-
sion to the McNamara Terminal at
Detroit Metropolitan Airport is slated
to debut by Thanksgiving.
DETROIT POLICE & FIRE
CHILI COOKOFF
On Nov. 7, teams from Detroit fire and
police departments will enter their best
chili recipe, and participants will have
the opportunity to sample and vote for
Detroit's Best First-Responder Chili
Champion 2015.
The event starts at noon at Casey's
Pub at 1830 Michigan Ave. The entrance
fee is a $10 donation per person at
the door. All proceeds from the event
go to support the Detroit Firemen's
Benevolent Fund and the Detroit Police
Benefit and Protective Association.
.:AT CAFE
The Ferndale Cat Shelter will open a
new feline-friendly Internet cafe at 821
Livernois Ave. in November. Dubbed
the Catfe Lounge, it will double as an
adoption center, "providing feline lov-
ers with a spot to become attached to
a potential pet while sipping coffee or
enjoying a sandwich:' reports Eater
Detroit.
NEW PIZZA DELIVERY
Domino's is launching a new delivery
vehicle, the DXP (Delivery Expert), a
specially designed and built pizza deliv-
ery vehicle (including oven). The DXP
is the brainchild of former GM R&D
executive Kenneth R. Baker, Michigan-
based Roush Enterprises and Domino's.
"The Domino's DXP is the first pur-
pose-built vehicle aimed at revolution-
izing pizza delivery:' said Russell Weiner,
president of Domino's USA.
"This innovation allows drivers to do
their jobs with greater ease and efficiency,
and demonstrates that Domino's is abso-
lutely fanatical about making perfect
Domino's DXP
deliveries:'
The vehicles will soon be seen in the
Detroit area.