Ann Arbor @ Curbside (April)

 

Vestergaard Farms (4408 S. Wagner, Ann  Arbor)  This little retail outlet is a fantastic conglomeration of a good bakers dozen of food sources. They raise beef, pork and chicken organically and have all variations of cuts, mostly frozen. In addition, they have Maddy J's bread, barbeque sauce from both Firehouse 52 and Hotel Hickman, olive oil from  Stamatopolos and probably serveral other local food vendors. Plus, they have a new highly recommended addition of frozen quiches from The Bakewell Company. Take a look at the Bakewell website for a truly mouth-watering dozen offerings. Vestergaard's is the only local outlet for these tasty pies.  *We doubled down on Vestergaard Farms with another quiche, this time the Carmelized Onion, Potato and Smoked Gouda - just Yum!

El Harissa Market (1516 N. Maple Rd., Ann Arbor) No indoor dining but all the favorites and a few additions to the wide range of "flavors of North Africa" menu. The gelato is also available, as well as a wide range of condiments and staples for cooking at home. The menu is heavily but not completely vegetarian. The feta cheese dip is wonderful with their bag of pita bread.

Juicy Kitchen (1506 Maple Rd., Ann Arbor) Just a few doors down from El Harissa is Juicy Kitchen. Currently 9 am - 2 pm; online, phone or outdoor ordering with staff on the sidewalk. The Juicy menu is extensive, with both a breakfast and lunch menus. Some items vary day to day, like our favorite quiches, but you can call ahead for the flavor combination of the day. Juicy Kitchen items are also offered at Argus Farm Stop and White Lotus Farms.

Everest Sherpa (2803 Oak Valley Dr., Ann Arbor)  Another repeat, though it has been awhile, too long to be away from the Himalayan delights at Everest Sherpa. Their ordering and curbside pickup works efficiently. I went with a medium spice chicken curry, unlike other venues the mild, medium, hot levels here are accurate. The dishes are fairly priced and the Nan is cheap.

TMaz (2529 Dexter Ave., Ann Arbor) We tried the location closer to us and discovered really tasty Gorditas with a wide range of filling choices. The chorizo and or green chili pork are my choices, but there are at least six or eight other options. The guacamole side order is generous for five bucks.

4/28/2021: Taking a break from curbside write-ups, while one of us ventures South to Florida, back to Ann Arbor foodie reviews this summer.

Ann Arbor @ Curbside (February)

 

A short cold month, needs more hot food . . .

Knight's (2324 Dexter Ave., Ann Arbor) Well, we made it to one of the Knight's restaurants. Even though Michigan is back to limited indoor dining, we are not. Curbside pickup for a blackened, moist, thick slab of salmon dinner with super rich vegetable ravioli. Second meal - a stick-to-the-ribs meatloaf dinner, mashed potatoes and mixed steamed veggies. You can call Knight's half-an-hour before pickup, lunch and dinner menus available.

Tmaz Taqueria (3182 Packard, Ann Arbor) While we happened to be around and about the Southeast part of town, we remembered a previous visit to Tmaz. Standard Mexican-American faire at decent prices. To-go, curbside or delivery. Being in the neighborhood we stopped by, if you do visit be sure to peruse the most interesting sweet treats on the shelves while waiting. Strange what sweet tooths will consume to satisfy the urge. The enchiladas and tacos we ordered were well above average, both the black beans or refried and rice were excellent. A top notch variety of sauces are available.

DJ's Bakery (3031 Packard, Ann Arbor) Same road trip as the Tmaz review above. DJ's is often mentioned in reviews of best bakeries in the area. They are known for stuff pretzels, unstuffed pretzels, dozens of other sweet tasty treats and apple fritters. Everyone makes apple fritters, which means I cannot explain why they are better at DJ's, but they are.

Satchel's BBQ (3035 Washtenaw Ave. Ann Arbor) A Super Bowl feast. The smoked salmon was excellent as were the BBQ sausages. The sides were well above average with particular kudos to the cole slaw and the mac&cheese. Good quantities on all items with plenty left over for a Monday lunch.

Domino's (many locations) Hey, I had a coupon. Besides I like double cheese, pepperoni with lite sauce. Plus, the Pacific Veggie pie has a ton of veggies.

Star's Cafe (2575 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor) Big props to this new find. Well, new to us but from the crowd around dinner time, the word is already out. Star's is middle-eastern with a great selection and large portions. We tried the Chicken Shawerma and the Cauliflower Plate, both were excellent with enough food for a second meal; same goes for the large salad. Our only complaint is the website which is just a photograph of the menu with no way to enlarge it. Fix the website but don't change the food. Oh, and did I mention good prices too.

website

February 21-26 was Ann Arbor Restaurant Week. We sampled a few after several hours of menu perusal and mouth-watering debate. 

Zingerman's Roadhouse (2501 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor) Most of the participants in Restaurant Week have special menu items for dining in. This year many of the eateries also tweaked their take-out/curbside offerings. We had the Harvest Pasta and the Herbed Whitefish entrees. Both came with a Ricotta Bruschetta appetizer and a biscuit blueberry bread pudding dessert.

Palio (347 S. Main St., Ann Arbor) We went for the Date Night Dinner for Two. Nice salad followed by Capellini Di Gamberi Scampi and Salmon Piccati, we like salmon a lot. Dessert was Tiramisu, a large portion. I must say the curbside was fast and efficient even if the other curbside drivers were lacking in certain parking etiquette. Oh and the dinner included a bottle of wine, white or red.

We've been asked - "Why are all the reviews positive?" We made a decision early on to simply not review disappointing meals. This is not Yelp!

January 2021 reviews

December reviews

November reviews

October reviews

September reviews

August reviews

July 2020 reviews