[Real Detroit] Younger's Irish Tavern

This post written by EID Co-Conspirator Stefanie Cobb.

Irish potato wedges. Photo by Stefanie Cobb.

In the quaint little village of Romeo resides a not-always-quaint and not-so-little Irish pub. Brothers Glenn and Bill Wilhelm were inspired to open Younger's Irish Tavern with the hope of carrying on the "Younger" name – originating from their great, great Grandfather's brewery in Ireland. The Wilhelm brothers chose to open their tavern in Romeo because they admire the village for its small town feel and historic homes.

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[Real Detroit] Old Shillelagh

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

The Old Shillelagh in Greektown is known as a lot of things to a lot of people. Or maybe it is simply known as one thing to a lot of people: a really big party spot. A rooftop bar and patio, a tent in the parking lot for special events like St. Patrick's Day (when they get over 10,000 people through their doors in a single day) and Opening Day (this Friday!) and a clientele that is wholly focused on their liquid assets. As one of Detroit's most popular watering holes, the Old Shillelagh isn't really known first for its food.

And that makes head chef, kitchen and bar manager Sarge sad. Because Sarge loves his Fucking Awesome Burger. (The "FAB." That's really its name.) And he wants you to love it too. As well as the other items on their menu that are all made from scratch in-house.

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[Real Detroit Weekly] Where's the (Corned) Beef?

Corned beef dinner at Dick O'Dow's. Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

"Irish cuisine" might sound like a bit of an oxymoron – they basically just boil everything for eight hours and then pile it all together on a plate. But, you know, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Take corned beef, for instance: brined then boiled for several hours until it turns the angry pink of a third-degree burn* but tender and juicy when properly sliced or chopped up and thrown into a hash, corned beef is the cornerstone of Irish cuisine. And, because metro Detroit is multi-cultural and we are lucky to have such diversity, the many Jewish delis in the area also slice up a mean kosher nosh of corned beef with their knishes. While some say the brines differ slightly between the two cultures, Irish pubs and Jewish delis alike will go through thousands of pounds of this stuff this week alone. But enough kibitzing; cead mile failte!

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*Note: Probably would have been funnier if I had said, "...the angry pink of a drunken Irishman." Oh, hindsight.

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[Real Detroit Weekly] Dick O'Dow's

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

It can be hard to find a place in Biiiiiiiiiiiiirmingham where you feel comfortable enough to kick back and enjoy a few pints in your jeans and tennies without feeling out of place. Dick O'Dow's offers exactly that kind of laid-back, casual atmosphere, a dark corner pub (though not really on the corner) in the midst of all the bright lights, big city bars and restaurants and lounges of B-ham.

Open since 1996, Dick O'Dow's has been one of Birmingham's best watering holes for many years, and while they most certainly served food during this time, it wasn't until after the smoking ban went into effect in May 2010 that customers started seeing them less as a bar that serves food and more as a restaurant with a great bar.

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[Real Detroit Weekly] Pat O'Brien's

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

Pat O'Brien's in St. Clair Shores is known for its friendly, comfortable atmosphere, great service and its extensive whiskey selection – in fact, the bar was named "Best Whiskey Selection" in Real Detroit Weekly's Best Of issue for 2013 – Pat O'Brien's is pretty much everything you could want in an Irish neighborhood bar.

Their selection of Irish whiskeys is indeed huge. They've got them all – your mandatory Jameson in multiple different flavors ("flavors" being the 12-year-aged special reserve and 18-year-aged limited reserve, because whiskey does not come in flavors beyond "less whiskey face" and "more whiskey face"), Knappogue Castle, Michael Collins, Paddy, Tullamore Dew ("Tullie"), Feckin and more. Haven't heard of it? Just shut up and drink it: that is the Irish way.

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[Real Detroit Weekly] O'Connor's Public House

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

When Whitney Houston said "Crack is whack," she wasn't talking about the craic ("crack") at O'Connor's. (P.S., "craic" is Celtic for super-fun party times.) O'Connor's is where the craic is! 

O'Connor's Public House in Rochester is the kind of place you wish all Irish pubs would be: warm, inviting, comfortable, friendly, full of outstanding food and beer: in other words, bloody brilliant. 

There's a reason O'Connor's feels so much like an authentic Irish pub, even if you've never been to Ireland to make the comparison. Everything in the bar was built or salvaged in the U.K. then shipped over; the pub itself is a faithful recreation of an actual Irish pub. When people talk about whether or not a place is "authentic," just know that this place is the real deal.

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[Real Detroit Weekly] Rosie O'Grady's (Sterling Heights)

Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

You can tell immediately upon walking inside the door that Rosie O'Grady's in Sterling Heights is the kind of neighborhood bar that people go to because they feel welcomed. Owner Rick Mickhail personally greets customers by name, asks about their families and swaps stories about parenthood. The staff has a clear camaraderie and there's a friendly vibe throughout that sets this place apart from your typical bar.

"This is dad's legacy," Mickhail says by way of explaining their commitment to quality service and making their customers feel welcome.

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[HOT LIST] The Best of Waterford

"Covert" camera phone shooting inside Calabrese's Pizzeria

Waterford. It is the Macomb County of Oakland County, the bastard child of Pontiac and White Lake, the butt of all local hillbilly, redneck and white trash jokes. And yes, Waterford isn't all hoighty-toighty like Birmingham, and the people are decidedly blue collar (however, there is also a lot of money out there on the western and northern borders of White Lake and Clarkston, FTR). The watering holes are exactly that, and the dining scene is pretty humble. But Waterford is also full of natural beauty, with 34 lakes surrounded by forests, several state and county parks, and protected wildlife habitats. The roads all wind around the lakes and the drive is serene; seeing geese, deer, rabbits and all forms of lake and forest wildlife is very common. And despite their simplicity, there are some fantastic restaurants out here (if you can break out of the white tablecloth mindset). From classic American coney islands to Lebanese cuisine, Waterford has a little of everything.

#1 Calabrese's Pizzeria II (4668 Dixie Hwy.)
Is it possible that one of Detroit's best pizzas is way, waaaaaay up here, hidden in Waterford Township in this tiny little pizzeria with about 11 seats all decorated in retro kitsch? For over 40 years, Calabrese's has been one of Waterford's best-kept secrets. The pizza is excellent, without a doubt; but the piece de resistance is the mozzarella bread. "Can mozzarella bread ever really be that good?" you may wonder. It's really just dough, cheese, maybe some butter and garlic salt...surely nothing terribly different from one place to another, right? Words cannot accurately depict the superiority of this humble-looking bread. It starts with the dough - soft, tender, but baked crispy to the edges...just the slightest crunch, nothing dry, just enough. The dough itself is infused with garlic flavor - we know not how, nor do we ask. Surely garlic salt would be obvious but the flavor wouldn't be so infused, and garlic butter would make it greasy...but there it is, defying immediate explanation. Then, it is covered in mozzarella. The mozzarella doesn't bubble and brown: it liquifies, becoming a glassy coat of cheese covering the bread. The flavor: mozzarella-garlic-dough magic. This is not something that can be described. It must be experienced.

#2 Taqueria San Jose (4550 Elizabeth Lake Rd.)
There is no shortage of places in Waterford and Pontiac where you can stuff your face full of Mexi-Merican fare; it's really kind of the Southwest Detroit of the northern suburbs. But places where you can get more Mexican Mexican food are in much shorter supply. Taqueria San Jose is about as fancy as a mess hall, but the food is hands-down some of the best Mexican you will find in metro Detroit. Not Waterford; not Oakland County - metro Detroit, including the city. Tacos come in all the delicious flavors you'd expect from a proper Mexican joint, including tripe and tongue. Order the three taco entree with al pastor (marinated, slow-cooked pork), chorizo (Mexican sausage) and carne asada (grilled steak). They come on corn tortillas with diced onion and cilantro - wedges of limes and radishes are already at your table, as well as homemade tortilla chips and salsas which include a runny, spicy brownish-red salsa made from roasted chiles that is addictive. The entree also comes with Spanish rice and homemade refried beans; even the beans are outstanding. And all that for $6.75. The horchata (sweetened rice milk with ground almond and cinnamon) tastes like homemade rice pudding.

#3 Heroes Bar-B Q + Brew (998 W. Huron St.)
A no-frills family place by day and boisterous bar by night, Heroes serves up hearty Midwestern food like fall-off-the-bone ribs, juicy burgers and steaks, and planked whitefish. Locals love this place because of the consistently friendly staff who will make you feel right at home (they like to say that "you're only a stranger once"), the lively energy (the place is always busy), and the solid food. Nothing fancy, but a reliable stand-by.

#4 Irish Tavern (4703 Elizabeth Lake Rd.)
Nicole remembers when this place opened several years ago; it was the best bar in the area and also happened to be one of the closest to her apartment. She became a regular pretty quickly. The IT has changed quite a bit since it was one of Nicole's old haunts, but all for the better: they added a kitchen after their first couple of years in business, and a recent remodel has made it look more like an Irish bar and less like a Waterford bar. This is simply a great place to go drink, with a more polished feel than most other Waterford dives. (Not that we don't love a good dive, and Waterford's full of 'em.)

#5 Village Place (4710 Cooley Lake Rd.)
What Lafayette Coney Island is to Detroit, Village Place is to Waterford. It's not that the food here is really so outstanding - and people, you really need to start accepting the fact that Lafayette's isn't either - but it's open 24 hours a day and it is a Waterford rite of passage. Anyone who has ever partied semi-regularly in Waterford, White Lake, Union Lake, Commerce Twp. or West Bloomfield has been here at 3 a.m. at some point. It is also located directly next to the IT (don't let the street names confuse you; they practically share a parking lot), so if you're hanging out at our favorite bar you don't have to go far to sober up. Nicole knows this from experience.

Bubbling under Hot Pepper Thai Restaurant (4212 Pontiac Lake Rd.), Walt's Original Coney Island (3425 Highland Rd.), Custard Corner (3005 Pontiac Lake), La Marsa (4240 Pontiac Lake Rd.), Sweet Water Bar + Grill (7760 Cooley Lake Rd.), Grand Azteca IV (2505 Pontiac Lake Rd.)

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[Real Detroit Weekly] Danny's Irish Pub

Nicole Rupersburg     

For the latest edition of Real Detroit Weekly, I head out to Ferndale, where I learn that cool and trendy aren't necessarily the same thing -- Nicole

"25 years ago, Ferndale wasn't the charming community full of cute boutiques and cozy brunch spots with forward-thinking community organizations, arts programs and edgy theatre troupes that we know it to be now. 'People told me not to buy a bar here because it wasn't a good area, but I grew up here and I liked the area; I had high hopes for it. Now it's justified!'

'That's Dan Reedy. And this is his bar.

'Danny's Irish Pub opened 25 years ago and stands as a testament that a traditional friendly neighborhood pub never goes out of style. It looks pretty much the same as it always has – lots of Irish paraphernalia on the walls, long wood bar, wood paneling on the walls. Not much else. It looks like a bar, the kind of place you come to NOT crane your neck to see who's noticing you, but the kind of place you go to whet your whistle and flap your jaw with your fellow humans..."

Read the rest of the story here.

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