Best Restaurants in Detroit, Michigan

I took a work trip to Detroit, Michigan this past March and while I didn’t have as much time to enjoy the city as I would have liked, I still made certain that I at least ate well. Out of all the places I tried in my week in Detroit, there were 5 restaurants that stood out the most.

Here are 5 of my favorite restaurants in Detroit: 

1. Buddy’s Pizza

Yes, there is such a thing as Detroit-style pizza and it is delicious! We asked around to see where to get the best Detroit pizza and we were told to go to Buddy’s. They certainly did not disappoint. We ordered The Detroiter pizza and loved every bite! I never cared much for deep dish pizza before eating here, but Matt and I both agree that we have been converted; no more thin-sliced pizza for us! There are multiple Buddy’s locations around the area of Detroit, so there is bound to be one near where you are staying.

2. Green Dot Stables

This restaurant is known for its sliders. They offer a range of regular sliders to their own unique creations. I ordered the Korean, Chicken, and Tofu Banh Mi sliders and loved them all! The tofu banh mi was my favorite, but I heard their menu changes every so often. I’m sad that I may never taste its deliciousness again. With all of the different slider options, this is a great place to go to satisfy both the safe and adventurous eaters.

3. Vivio’s Food & Spirits

Located right outside of where the Saturday Easter Market takes place, this bar is a great lunch or dinner spot after visiting the market. If you choose to eat here, recommend the mussels. They have about 7 different mussel dishes that all looked amazing! I ordered Jamaican Jerk Mussels and was surprised at the amount I got for the price. They were also the best mussels I have ever had; the seasoning was fantastic! Vivio’s is also known for its unique Bloody Marys. While I don’t like Bloody Marys, Matt does and he really enjoyed his.

4. Ima

This is a great Japanese restaurant that has three locations in the Detroit area. Each location has a slightly different menu, so I recommended looking at the menu online to see which location you want to eat at. We ordered the spicy udon and spicy ramen, which were both great! One of the best parts about Ima is that you can also order sake with your meal!

5. Warda Pâtisserie

While this isn’t a restaurant, I had to include it on the list. I have a serious sweet tooth and this bakery lived up to my expectations. This was the last place we visited in Detroit and I convinced my boyfriend to stop as we were about to start our road trip back home. I am so thankful we arrived right as it opened because there was already a line forming at the door. By the time I left, there was a line out the door and down the street. To be fair, the people were socially distancing, but I was not expecting a line that long. I ordered multiple items from the menu that I treated myself to throughout the long car ride back to Pennsylvania. I would recommend the Russian Honey cake and the financiers. While my sweet tooth is large, I am uncultured in French pastries so I had to Google what a financier even was; it’s a small French cake. I ordered the matcha/strawberry fin, and the sweetness of the strawberry middle balanced perfectly with the surrounding matcha cake. One thing to keep in mind is that this bakery is just as expensive as it sounds, but I think the money was worth every bite. There are small items on the menu for people on a tighter budget.

Since this was a work trip, we were only able to eat out on a Saturday and in the evenings for dinner. There were so many more restaurants we wanted to try, so do some of your own digging when trying to plan where to eat in Detroit. If you have eaten at any of these restaurants, let me know what you thought about them in the comments.