Cheap Eats III
For meals that please your doctor and yourself, it’s nearly always cheaper and healthier to make meals at home, and in our family, my husband depends on me to keep us bright-eyed and happy. Sometimes, though, I’m not...
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Happy Hours
My continuing search for bargain eats has brought me to the sad realization that my husband and I, tethered to jobs with unconventional hours, have spent years missing out on the cheapskate’s best source for budget food:...
Read MoreBrunch at Sava’s and Lena
Bridging strong morning coffee to the treat of a midday meal out, weekend brunch stays deliciously in style: your house can stay cluttered and you can stay calm while still enjoying a leisurely meal with family or friends. As...
Read MoreBrillig Dry Bar
Low lights, a jazz trio, tables packed with people socializing, and a line waiting out the door to get in. All that’s missing is the booze.That’s the point at the Brillig Dry Bar, Nic Sims’ twice-a-month pop-up...
Read MoreSalads UP 2015
Walking by the big window of the new Salads UP on Liberty this winter, I wondered why it’s so often so crowded. Wasn’t this the warm soup, roasts, and potatoes time of year?After a couple of early February visits, I...
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Detroit Vegan Soul
With so many restaurants in Ann Arbor, you don’t have to leave town for good meals of most varieties. But if you seek a change of urban scenery as days get longer, there’s an unusual new option near Detroit’s...
Read MoreCentsible Eats
Whoa! Once I toted up the numbers, I realized the holidays had seriously thrown our household food budget out of whack. The new year demanded financial restraint. Polling acquaintances brought me a boatload of cheap eats...
Read MoreArgus Farm Stop
A visit to the Argus Farm Stop can feel like you’ve stepped onto the set of the TV show Portlandia, but if you overhear conversations about “nice” cheeses and “lovely” tomatoes, have faith: the aura...
Read MoreTwo Slider Shops
Drive past Blimpy Burger’s new location on Ashley next to the Fleetwood Diner, and you might see a line of people snaking outside the front door, as it was almost every day of the frigid Thanksgiving break. It’s a...
Read MoreDinner and a Movie
Dinner and a movie: the classic night out. But what to do with the remains of that Knight’s cowboy steak if you want to walk across the street and see a movie at the Michigan Theater? For reasons ranging from sanitary to...
Read MoreRoger Monk’s
For endurance, not many area restaurants can beat the Dixboro spot currently known as Roger Monk’s. Opened in 1928 as the Country Cupboard, when Plymouth Rd. was a major thoroughfare, it served family-style meals to...
Read MoreEl Harissa
Harissa is a dried chili paste originating in Tunisia but used throughout North Africa as a table condiment and a flavor component in stews and salads and rubbed on meats and vegetables. As with most recipes of this type,...
Read MoreOld Carolina Barbecue Company
Greater Ann Arbor has happily emerged from decades of near-drought on the barbecue front. The latest of a half-dozen recent arrivals, Ohio-based Old Carolina Barbecue Company, splashed into town in spring with mobile stands (at...
Read MoreTriple Delight
When faced with a restaurant that facilitates hands-on cooking and saucing at the table, some folks will grumble about paying good money to eat out then having to do the work themselves. But serious preparation and craft are...
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