2 Detroit restaurants land on New York Times' best dishes in the U.S. list
(CBS DETROIT) — A pair of Detroit restaurants are receiving high recognition for serving up some of the best dishes in the United States.
The New York Times named the Lebanese sundae at Leila and the ham sandwich at Mike's Famous Ham Place as two of "The 26 Best Dishes We Ate Across the U.S. in 2024."
Leila, located at 1245 Griswold Street in downtown Detroit, prides itself on bringing the "youthful cosmopolitan energy of modern Beirut to the beating heart of downtown Detroit to offer a next-generation Middle Eastern dining experience."
Its Lebanese Sundae is a mix of ashta ice cream, fairy floss and pistachio.
Leila's owners, Chickpea Hospitality, also operate Birmingham's Phoenicia, which has been serving Middle Eastern cuisine since 1971, as well as Forest and Wilder's, also in Birmingham.
"Arriving to the table like a 'Star Trek' tribble ready for a night on the town, this dessert holds your attention from the first bite. Pistachios cover the mop of fairy floss atop the dish, and ashta, the rose-flavored ice cream with hints of orange blossom water, hides underneath the gossamer. The restaurant, on Capitol Park in downtown Detroit, is named for the matriarch of the Eid family, also the owners of Phoenicia, and the menu nods to home cooking. This dessert delights with its simplicity and whimsy," wrote Sara Bonisteel in the New York Times.
Meanwhile, Mike Muftari has been serving up ham sandwiches at Mike's Famous Ham Place, located 3700 Michigan Avenue in Detroit, for 50 years. Muftari sold the business during the fall.
"I don't know if Mike Muftari dreams of ham, but his ham sandwich has been on my mind since May. He's been plying pork for 50 years at Mike's Famous Ham Place on a desolate stretch of Michigan Avenue. His is an honest and satisfying sandwich built on a poppy-seed roll, with five or six solid planks of ham, a slice of cheese, a squirt of yellow mustard and some pickles. He sold the business in October, but has stayed on through the end of the year to teach the new owners the ropes. Aside from forms of payment, they don't plan to change a thing," wrote Bonisteel.
You can read the New York Times' full list of best dishes of 2024 here.