Detroit Restaurant Experts Share Their Biggest Dining Grievances of 2017

As is tradition at Eater, we closed out the year by surveying local food writers and our own staff on various restaurant-related topics, and publishing their responses throughout the week. Next up: The annual airing of dining grievances. Readers, feel free to share your thoughts below.

Melody Baetens, Features Reporter, Detroit News:

Linty napkins. I’ve started carrying a lint-roller with me.

Mark Kurlyandchik, Restaurant Critic, Detroit Free Press:

Accidentally becoming the burger grouch of Detroit.

Brenna Houck, Editor, Eater Detroit:

This is an incredibly specific remote employee problem but coffee shops that advertise wifi but in fact have no wifi. Also that Kid Rock has a restaurant in Detroit.

Serena Maria Daniels, Editor, Tostada Magazine:

This message goes out to national media outlets. Please stop calling Detroit the most exciting food destination on the planet. When every neighborhood can enjoy delicious, inventive, healthy and affordable dining options, then we can revisit that headline.

Nick Britsky, Beverage Director, Thrillist:

La Dulce: Why did you move downtown?!?! Being a Royal Oak resident, I was there all the time. I didn’t agree with the move and I’m sad to see them close.

John Reyes, Ann Arbor Contributor, Eater Detroit:

A big grievance is that too many restaurants haven’t changed their menus enough — if at all. My bigger grievance is that I still haven’t learned to lower my expectations on that.

Dorothy Hernandez, Contributor, Eater Detroit:

The BS around getting a table, e.g. going to a restaurant without a reservation where all the tables are empty and not getting a table because they are all “reserved”/calling to make a reservation and leaving a message and not getting a call back so you can’t make a reservation/going to a restaurant’s website to make a reservation and being unable to because there are no reservations so you have to call and then go through the rigamarole of leaving a message and waiting for someone to call you back/going to a restaurant that doesn’t take reservations and then going at 5 pm like you’re going for the early bird special with the hopes of getting a table only to be told the wait is 2.5 hours/having to call a month in advance like damn I don’t even plan what I’m going to make dinner tomorrow night.

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