Ann Delisi: Detroit Free Press reveals No. 1-5 best new restaurants
The Detroit Free Press unveiled the final five of their top ten best new restaurants in 2023.
The Whole Fish of the Day dish at EM - Employee Meal sits on a table with a handful of specialized drinks inside the restaurant in Birmingham on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2023.
We’re one day closer to learning the Detroit Free Press’ pick for their 2023 restaurant of the year, which will be announced Friday. Today we learn No. 1-5 of Freep’s best new restaurants and more list as I continue my conversation with dining critic Lyndsay C. Green.
The top five picks feature a couple of suburban surprises, including authentic Chinese food served in Westland, and a unique concept of Mexican cuisine in Birmingham.
Listen: Detroit Free Press reveals No. 1-5 of best new restaurants
“We’ve got KungFu Bros Dumplings and they are in Westland. This is kind of a surprising one because Westland doesn’t show up on on these lists very often,” Green says of the No. 2 entry. “It’s super authentic Chinese food from northern China. The mother of the owner (Ziye Wang), she’s the one who’s making the dumplings at the front of the restaurant. His uncle is hand pulling noodles in the back. Everything is made from scratch there and you can see it happening. They make their own chili oil in-house, which is really delicious.
“It’s a very unassuming place that you wouldn’t typically expect but what they’re doing there is really special.”
Making the top spot of the Detroit Free Press/Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers 10 Best New Restaurants and More is Bar Pigalle, a French-inspired destination located in Detroit’s Brush Park neighborhood.
“It really feels beautiful in there, but you can also go for a really great burger. I mean, their burger is the best in town. I will make that claim,” says Green. “But they’re also doing things like frog legs, they’ve got great oysters and they’ve got cocktails that are phenomenal. And they’ve got a wine program that is robust and really stand out, so just all in all, from service to atmosphere to food to drinks — they are the number one spot.”
Detroit Free Press/Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers 10 Best New Restaurants and More No. 1-5
5) Petty Cash
4) Basan
3) Employee Meal
2) KungFu Bros Dumplings
1) Bar Pigalle
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