4B - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 21, 2006

the b-sidel


Go out to \aut\ bar: Brunch makes everything OK

By Kimberly Chou and
Donn M. Fresard
Daily Arts Editors
Donn M. Fresard: So we decid-
ed to go to \aut\ bar because I read
an article on Slate a few weeks ago
and got really into the idea of eat-
ing brunch every Sunday morning.
Apparently brunch is almost man-
datory these days for East Coast 20-
somethings, so I figured it was only
a matter of time before the trend fil-
tered out to Ann Arbor. After a so-so
first outing at Frank's, the \aut\ bar
seemed likea better fit.
Kimberly Chou: Better known
as a Kerrytown gay bar with an
ever-courteous staff and ridiculously
.good martinis, \aut\ bar is tucked
into Braun Court next to a sushi joint
and a Thai restaurant. If you've ever
wondered what enterprise had the
year-round, white Christmas tree
lights decorating their patio area,that
would be \aut\ bar.
DMF: The Sunday brunch here
is sort of a poorly kept secret among
students who are even mildly famil-
iar with Ann Arbor beyond campus.
KC: Despite how much the Deuce

\aut\ bar
Restaurant and Bar
claims to be a "liberal college town,"
most of us are a little squeamish
about gay bars. Especially those of
us in DKE.
DMF: We definitely boosted
our liberal cred by being seen here.
It's not exactly underground - the
parking lot is packed during brunch
hours - but among the brunchgo-
ers there's still an air of being in the
know. Still, the atmosphere is casual
and friendly, not as self-consciously
"cultured" - not as Kerrytown, we'll
say - as you'd expect.
KC: \aut\ bar isn't pretentious the
way Zingerman's is, although it's
arguable whether their decor trumps
that of the Zagat-praised delicates-
sen. It's chic with wood accents,
warm colors and wide windows: not
ostentatious by any means. And you
can get anything on \aut\ bar's exten-
sive omelette menu for about the
price of a bagel with cream cheese

Cheap Moderate Pr sy
Specialties:
Brunch
Located at:
313 Braun Ct.
in Kerrytown
and a house coffee at Zingerman's.
DMF: I'm incredibly boring when
it comes to breakfast - the Mexican
breakfast is supposed to be great
here, but I'd never go near it - so the
peach cobbler French toast was sort
of a risk. (Challah bread? I've never
even been to a bar mitzvah.) It was
worth it, though - fresh, high-qual-
ity ingredients, reasonable price.
KC: If you ever eat out anywhere
with me, the first thing you'll notice
is my incredible indecisiveness. I'm
really fucking choosy. After waffling
(hah!) between a vegetarian omelette
and their strawberry pancakes, I
ended up ordering one of the Sun-
day specials: a sausage frittata with
smoked gouda, spinach, tomatoes
and peppers - hold the sausage,
extra mushrooms. It came with a side
of seasoned home fries, which tasted
mysteriously like sweet potatoes.
They weren't, unfortunately, but the

whole deal was around $7. There
was so much food I had to take half
of the frittata to the office.
DMF: Besides, the music is great.
For me, the defining moment was
when Kim mentioned something
about whatever live jazz cover they
were playing, and the bartender
started talking about how it was a
great version because the singer for-
gets the lyrics and ad-libs a verse. If I
knew anything about jazz, I could've
had a great conversation with him.
KC: Obviously, here I should say
something pretentious about jazz.
DMF: And I'll respond with
something dismissive.
KC: Whatever.
DMF: My only complaint isn't
really the bar's fault, but a beef with
state laws: You can't order alcohol
before noon on Sundays. Brunch
loses a little bit of its bleary-eyed,
hair-of-the-dog charm when you
can't order Bloody Marys.
KC: Let's drink!
DMF: Um, OK.
\aut\ bar is located at 315 Braun
Ct., near Fourth Street and Catherine
Street. Brunch is served Sundays
from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Diners at \aut\ bar in Kerrytown.

Missing out: 'U' students skip
poetry bus to own detriment

By Andrew Sargus Klein
Associate Arts Editor
For shame.
Last night, there were at least 60
or so empty seats at East Quad's
Residential College Auditorium.
For shame.
If you comprised part of the
approximately 0.1% of the stu-
dent population present at the
Wave Books Poetry Bus reading,
then you're fine. But for the rest of
you, there's barely any chance for
redemption. Barely.
The fact that RC Prof. Ken
Mikolowski read some of his most
memorable poems (The entirety
of his "Homage to Frank O'Hara /
Why I am not a New York Poet" is
as follows: "Detroit.") can even be

sidestepped - at least you might
have a chance to hear him read
again. But for the touring poets
who were present on that humble
stage, reciting through that even-
more-humble PA system, that's
where you might have screwed
yourself.
Simply put, you missed some
damn good poetry.
Joshua Edwards led off the night
with an appropriate selection of
travel-related poems. As mentioned
Tuesday, the Poetry Bus Tour is hit-
ting 50 cities in 50 days. There has
to be some good stories to tell. Hell,
you can even read some of them on
the tour's blog, www.poetrybus.com.
And whether Lisa Fishman and
her organic imagery (ignore the fact
that she's an MSU alum) or Matthew

Zapruder and his Frank O'Hara-
influenced poems appealed - or,
more appropriately, would appeal
- to you, the fact remains that this
poetry tour is stocked to the brim
with fresh talent.
And most of you missed it.
But as I said, there is a chance
for redemption. You could check
out that website I spoon-fed you
and maybe even click on an author's
name and maybe even check one
of their books. But sauntering over
to the bookstore is easy. You know
how good that Bukowski is going
to look next to your Maxim and/
or bong and/or bone-dry bottle of
Popov.
No, what Iam suggesting is show
a little appreciation for poets and
their readings - they're all around

A

RC Prof. Ken Mikolowski reads poems at the Poetry Bus performance Tuesday.

you, especially in Ann Arbor. For
you activists, you might want to
check out some of these readings
- there are many poets out there
attempting to make some political
sense of this world. For sociologists,
you're missing an integral part or

our cultural fabric. And for those and the excuses are few and thin.
of you majoring in English, creative Self-advancement takes many guis-
writing, art history or studio art, es. I pray for my fellow students
you don't need me to voice what who will end up 40 years from now
your conscience should be yelling completely bereft of any cultural
in your ear. experience, unable to absorb the
There's something for everyone, ever-present fruits of our culture.

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