clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Not-So-Secret Speakeasy Opens Tonight; Locavore Love

Lock & Key Speakeasy

ROYAL OAK — Tonight is the official grand opening for the revamped lounge space behind the Oxford Inn, and if you're willing to brave the Dream Cruise traffic, the Lock & Key bartenders are willing to serve you up a nice cup of booze. The new space seems a little too thrilled about the fact that they have absinthe-tinged drinks and a prohibition-era vibe, but the excitement around their appetizers seems to be genuinely warranted. It could be worth it to wait until the Cruise has shifted out of town, but if you need a cocktail right away, 7 p.m. tonight on S. Main in Royal Oak is the time and place for you. [Drink Michigan]

DETROIT — Blog surveys nationwide just love to report on Detroit's food scene, and the folks at the real estate search site Estately are no different. Their 'Six Best U.S. Cities for Locavores' — a.k.a. places where a body can consume most of their food from farms, fisheries and the like within a certain small distance from their home — places Detroit at number six. We're in there with more popularly-accepted local food cities like Portland, Ore., and San Francisco, while the listing for the Motor City hits long and hard on the whole "Detroit is poor and has to grow food, because, FOOD DESERT" vein. Unlike the other entries, however, Estately can't scrounge up a single farm-to-table restaurant in the entire city, which we find insulting. It's nice to be noticed, but it's even better to be noticed for the right things. [Estately]

MEXICANTOWN — After a successful debut effort last year, the Garage Cultural Center and Prince Valley Supermarket are bringing back the Festival of Diversity and Tradition this Saturday on Michigan Ave. The festival, which will include food and drink spreads from from La Hacienda Mexican Foods, Cafe Con Leche, El Rancho Restaurant and local families in the area, celebrates Hispanic cultural heritage. The free event starts at 2 p.m. and lasts into the evening. [-ED-]

GREEKTOWN — As controversy continues to swirl around the epic Wayne County Jail Site / Fail Jail on the eastern edge of downtown— millions approved for construction without county consent, continued insistence by county officials that the site could still very well be a jail sometime eventually, etc. — a lovely read from a guest columnist at Deadline Detroit urges the county and the community to get behind a bid for a massive mixed-use development that centers on a stadium for a Major League Soccer team. "Why not invest in a game that has taken hold of the world? Why not invest in ourselves?" contributor Paul Ruth suggests. Think of all the new restaurants that could come in along with the stadium! Then, of course, we'd potentially have five major sports arenas in a small confined central space, but that's something we'll have to deal with when we have it. Or not. [DeadlineDetroit]