We had just moved back home from Denver as the momentum was building around Detroit 2.0.
I remember coming back to visit while we were gone and seeing the city slowly changing. Street lights were being turned back on. New, interesting restaurants were popping up. Entrepreneurs from the coasts were coming to Detroit for the cheap startup costs and the chance to follow their artistic dreams. The surge of street art and culinary art was very apparent, and it was extremely exciting to witness.
Corktown always felt like where things really started. I think of Slows Barbecue as one of the first new and interesting restaurants to take a chance on Detroit when, for a lot of people, there still wasn’t much reason to come downtown unless you were going to a game. Then came places like Selden Standard, Two James, Grey Ghost and Takoi. It started to feel like a real culinary scene.
We’re quite a ways removed from that now. The city has changed enormously, and there are more and more incredible places to eat and drink than I can keep up with.
I’ve always been quick to give out tips to friends, clients and neighbors asking where to go on a date, where to hang out before a game, where to go late at night, or where to find something new and interesting. I’ve taken people from out of town to places that completely changed the way they thought about Detroit.
That’s really why I made this app and this is my give-back to the city, if you will. A digital love letter and a guide to the places I think are pretty cool and certainly worth your time and money.
I hope this gives you the confidence to explore more and enjoy what this unique and beautiful disaster-of-a-city has to offer.
Take a chance. Be adventurous. Go on a date. Walk around town. Try someplace new. I think you'll love it. I sure do.