2F - Tuesday, September 8, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandail cm
2F - Tuesday, September 8, 2009 The Michiaan Daily - michiaandailv.com
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SPTIHTO:ANG L
Angelo's Restaurant, located
on the corner of Glen Avenue and
Catherine Street, has been an Ann
Arbor staple since 1956. Angelo
Vangelatos and his wife Patricia
Verames opened the business a few
years after Angelo arrived from
Greece, and the restaurant has
been bustling ever since. Angelo
and Patricia's son Steve and his
wife Jennifer run the eatery these
days, and they are determined to
keep the restaurant running the
way it was originally run.
Angelo's breakfast is so great
it inspired a famous song by Dick
Siegel. The song is played when
restaurant's website loads, and
patrons can purchase the album
itself at the restaurant's cash register.
"Eggs over easy, hash browns
and toast" is what Dick chose
to order, but you'll find plenty of
other tummy-pleasing options
there as well.
The restaurant offers classics
from French toast and scrambled
eggs to more elaborate dishes
like Crabby Benedict and pump-
kin pancakes. The wide variety
of food ensures that everybody
will find something to his or her
liking. The assortment is a big
reason Angelo's has won Best
Breakfast in Ann Arbor not only
this year, but several times in the
past. And with its devoted follow-
ing that spans generations, it's
obvious Angelo's is a mainstay in
Ann Arbor.
And what if you're on the run?
Desperately need caffeine and a
quick breakfast? Stop into Ange-
lo's on the Side, a small coffee
house/carry outbuilding attached
to the restaurant. Grab a cappuc-
cino, a pastry or your favorite
meal in a convenient doggie bag.
Angelo's on the Side is also a great
place to pick up Angelo's famous
homemade raisin bread.
Be reminded, however, that if
you're planning to visit Angelo's
foratasty andtraditionalsit-down
breakfast, pack your patience.
The place is often packed by Ann
Arborites and the line to get into
the popular eatery is often out the
door and around the corner.
-CHELSEA LANDRY
CHANEL VON HABSBURGLOTHRINGEN/Daily
SPOTLIGHT ON: ASH LEY'S
I don't really have to tell you this,
because in your heart you already
knowit:Ashley'siswhatabarissup-
posed tobe. At Ashley's, patrons can
find the finest of drinks, the closest
of friends and - the deal-breaker
- the most perfect of atmospheres.
The heavenly joint's honey-brown
and milk-chocolaty hues, weath-
ered brick walling and hazy lights
all blanket guests in a fuzzy, wel-
coming warmth, mercifully provid-
ing short respite from a seemingly
otherwise unforgiving, cold world
outside. This is your place.
Somewhere, lost in the threads
of our progressively deteriorat-
ing American culture, drinking
has been reduced to an oft-repeat-
ed machismo parade of pushing
through packed houses filled with
blaring music in order to knock back
a shot. Silly freshmen, drinking'snot
for kids. Beers need to be nursed,
loved and cradled, and for god's
sake, there should be some bloody
conversation while you're sipping
your brew. This, after all, is the sport
of pub drinking, and within this
sport, Ashley's is Wrigley Field.
Ashley's tabletops, graced with
the carved signatures of patrons
who have come before you, now
serve as a resting place for your best
friends'elbows.With your friends in
close proximity, conversation - that
lovely thing that goes hand-in-hand
with alcoholic beverages - natural-
ly happens. Maybe this is the reason
Ashley's, Ann Arbor's bar of bars, is
considered sacred ground.
Ashley's, though, is not endeared
by Ann Arborites and University
students alike solely because of its
homey environment. At Ashley's,
beers flow magically from seem-
ingly infinite taps. Aside from the
70 draughtbeers normally available
(including rare beers that can't be
found anywhere else in Michigan,
like Schneider Aventinus, a wheat
ale from Kelheim, Germany), there's
a rotating tap that brings limited
specialty brews to the lips of those
residing in Ann Arbor. Simply put,
Ashley's'selection is unparalleled.
The formula, the one that has
made it so renowned, is simple:
provide people with a good place
to drink good beers. While other
establishments might have lostsight
what makes a bar truly a bar, Ash-
ley's embraces these essential bare-
bones principles. And that's why we
embrace Ashley's.
-DAVID REAP
SPTIHTO:ST C H'
If you struggle with indeci-
sion, stay away from Stucchi's. An
Ann Arbor original, Stucchi's has
almost too many incredibly deli-
cious flavors. Ranging from the
sinful White Russian Fudge to the
quirky PB Truffle Shuffle (along
with ever-pleasing classics like
Strawberry and French Vanilla),
there is always a flavor to suit any
mood.
In case caloric morals inter-
fere, Stucchi's also offers frozen
yogurts of which the variety is
just as expansive (Swiss Choco-
late Almond, anyone?), so sacri-
ficing taste is never a concern.
Milkshakes, smoothies, sorbet and
soft-serve ice cream are also avail-
able, catering to cravings of every
dessert domain. Just to top it all
off, Stucchi's now offers Insomnia
Cookies, making the menu so irre-
sistible and arousing it's almost
unsafe to read when young chil-
dren are nearby.
True dessert connoisseurs
will never run out of selections,
which is probably for the best
since choosing a favorite flavor or
combination is nearly impossible.
Luckily, you can always try plenty
of free samples to decipher your
own personal perfect combination.
Choosing a location isn't a concern,
either, since there are multiple
stores on campus. Stucchi's is that
best friend on gray days, or after
a break-up or when you've failed
an exam. Supplied with caramel,
chocolate, fresh fruit, nuts and
homemade chocolate-dipped waf-
fle cones, it's always there to ease
away any troubles.
Still not convinced? Then we'll
use this age-old argument: Buy
local.
-MAUREENSTYCH
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SPTIGT r:E PRES *Y L
Oh, Espresso Royale, truly
the most noble of coffee venues,
you continue to awe us. Situated
firmly at a locus central to our
travel on campus, your symbol is
a shining beacon of hope for the
downtrodden and numb, those
who seek only a caffeine injection
to propel them through one more
panic-ridden day of study.
Inside, your tables and chairs
offer comforting, welcoming sites
of study when the UGLi is full of
noisy freshmen. Your majestic
tones of brown and deep red exul-
tantly restore our energy, similar
to how your coffee restores us like
an IV full of saline. Yours, Espres-
so Royale, is a kingdom free of
meaningless distractions.
Among your competitors, who
could challenge you? Not Amer's!
And as for the rest, ha! What
"rest?" Starbucks, without pre-
tension toward independence?
Surely not Ambrosia or Rendez-
vous - what are they in the face
of your your innocuous accessi-
bility? Great king ofc
know the power of th
coffee handed out en
your subjects.
We return, Wedne
Wednesday for your $2
rest of the week is an
haze as we survey the s
power, the drip coffee,
ety calling out our nar
old friend. There is n
Espresso, no challen
throne is secure.
-BEN VANI
Good No Thai! customers are
astute when it conmes to the art of
purchasing No Thai! food. They
D MOCH/Daily scoff pretentiously at those they
overhear pondering what a restau-
rant called No Thai! would serve
coffee, you ("Why would a restaurant make a
e horde, of point of telling people what they
masse to don't serve?"). They smile to them-
selves when novice customers
sday after contemplate the meaning of the
lattes. The question mark following "medi-
apathetic um" on the menu's list of spice lev-
eat of your els. (Though to be fair, "medium?"
each vari- isn't the best assessment of the
nes like an spiciness it stands for.)
o usurper, The whimsicality of No Thai!'s
ger. Your misnomer, casual use of punctua-
tion and foreign cuisine make it
WAGONER the perfect place to grab a deli-
ciously filling meal while feeling
totally indifferent about how hip-
ster, indie, scene, urban or bohe-
mian you look (or whatever else
you youngsters are currently striv-
ing to be these days).
For those who claim they judge
restaurants based on food quality
and aren't concerned with their
image: You're not fooling anyone.
In all seriousness, though, two
remarkable qualities of No Thai!
cuisine keep customers satisfied
and ensure return visits.
First, No Thai!'s food smells
almost better than it tastes, and it
tastes great. If you're low on cash,
you can get roughly the same sat-
isfaction from standing outside
the restaurant and enjoyingexotic
scents as you can from actually
indulging in its flavorful dishes.
But No Thai's best achievement
lies is its ability to create meals that
survive collegiate conditions. Sur-
prisingly, the week-old No Thai!
leftovers lying in your refrigera-
tor will taste just as good after two
minutes in the microwave. Thank
goodness for large portions, take-
out boxes and those newfangled
radiation machines.
More hip than Jimmy John's,
but void of Bubble Island's pre-
dominately freshmen patronage
and mysterious food-like sub-
stances (what are those bubbles
made of anyway?), No Thai! isthe
best eatery on South University.
-CAROLYNKLARECKI
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