Overnight Stay: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Take a weekend trip to the Western Michigan city for great beer (plus coffee, a supremely good steak, and tropical drinks).
Welcome to the weekend! Here’s what you’ll find in today’s newsletter:
Overnight Stay: Go to Grand Rapids for the beer, stay for the coffee, cocktails, and steak.
Weekend Reading List: Hot dogs in Upstate New York, soda fountains in the South, and some new favorites in Palm Springs.
The Order: Where to find the very best lobster roll in Portland, Maine.
Featured Field Guide: How to download your complimentary copy of our digital dining guide to Portland, Maine.
Hit the Rapids
GRAND RAPIDS, MI — If you know the Grand Rapids food and drink scene, it’s likely because of the beer. There are a number of notable breweries, like Brewery Vivant, which focuses on Belgian and French styles (it’s worth stopping for a Farm Hand saison at the taproom, which is located in a historic funeral home and has stained glass windows behind the bar), Arvon Brewing Co., with New England IPAs and sours, and, our top pick, Speciation Artisan Ales, which we’ll explore more below.
But Grand Rapids, which is the second largest city in Michigan, has a lot more to offer seekers of great food and drink. It’s within a five-hour drive of many Midwestern cities, making it an easy weekend destination. Get your bearings by grabbing a nitro draft cold brew at Madcap Coffee (which has two locations in town). We’ve mapped out the rest of your day below.
Breakfast: Field & Fire Bakery
Why you should go: Shelby Kibler, who made his name at Ann Arbor icon Zingerman’s, bakes beautiful long-fermented loaves, from Scandinavian rye to brioche, at the Grand Rapids Downtown Market (tip: the blackened fish sandwich from Fish Lads in the market is also good if you need another lunch pick). Grab a loaf to take home, then order gougères, croissants with spinach, ham and cheese, or local fruit, and weekend-only cinnamon raisin buns. There is also a café location with a more robust food menu.
What to get: Croissants
435 Ionia Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Instagram: fieldandfire
Lunch: Forty Acres Soul Kitchen
Why you should go: Owner Darel Ross’ restaurant aims to tell the story of Black American food and does so through soul food classics, from three types of shrimp and grits to hot chicken. Don’t miss the Forty soul rolls, crispy egg rolls stuffed with chicken, black-eyed peas, collard greens, and dirty rice. About half the menu is vegan, including the fried cauliflower with house hot sauce. The bar specializes in cognac; order a flight or get your preferred one as a mule with ginger beer and lime. Forty Acres is a four-minute walk from Speciation Artisan Ales, so head over after lunch.
What to get: Forty soul rolls, fried cauliflower, cognac mule
1059 Wealthy St SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506
Instagram: fortyacresgr
Beer: Speciation Artisan Ales
Why you should go: Speciation makes the most interesting beers in town, as founders Mitch and Whitney Ermatinger make beers both with wild yeast (like a sour ale with passionfruit and pink peppercorn) and without (like a Kveik-fermented lager). They also craft ciders, seltzers, and natural wines, which are made with Michigan grapes.
What to get: Lager, rosé piquette
928 Wealthy St SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506
Instagram: speciationales
Dinner: Butcher’s Union
Why you should go: This downtown hotspot specializes in meat and whiskey, but there are plenty of great seasonal vegetable dishes too. Start with one of the multiple Manhattans or old fashioneds on offer, like the Butcher’s Manhattan with Four Roses, Dubonnet rouge, Angostura, and orange bitters. The butcher’s cut section features seasonally changing composed steak dishes like a ribeye or hanger steak with crispy potatoes, patty pan squash, roasted garlic butter, and salsa verde. There are no reservations, so check online to join the waitlist before you head over.
What to get: Wedge salad, butcher’s cut, Butcher’s Manhattan
438 Bridge St NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504
Instagram: butchersuniongr
Nightcap: Max’s South Seas Hideaway
Why you should go: One of the country’s top tropical bars, Max’s comes from a pedigreed trio: Martin Cate of Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco, Mark Sellers of HopCat and the now-closed TikiCat in Kansas City (which I enjoyed very much), and Gecko, a Hawaiian artist who specializes in mugs and carvings. The upstairs bar resembles a ship, and this is where you want to sit. The drinks are excellent and include tropical classics, from a Jungle Bird with Plantation Xaymaca rum to the gin-based Saturn. Our favorite: The Angostura Colada, with Hamilton pot still rum, pineapple, lime, coconut, and loads of Angostura for warming bitter notes.
What to get: Angostura Colada, Saturn
58 Ionia Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Instagram: maxstiki
The Trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan
🚘 2 hour and 30 minute drive from Detroit
🚘 3 hour drive from Chicago
🚘 4 hour drive from Indianapolis
🚢 4 hour ferry from Milwaukee
🚘 4 hour and 30 minute drive from Cleveland
Regional Hot Dog Report: In his Substack newsletter,
, you’ll find your man in the mustard-soaked trenches seeking out Michigans in Upstate New York. Why are hot dogs unique to New York called Michigans? I’ll let him explain.Old Fashioned Soda Fountains: Writing for Garden & Gun, Sadie Chafe has a roundup of old-school ice cream parlors in the South. I like a good malt when I can find one, and I can vouch for Leopold’s in Savannah.
An Oasis in the Desert: Los Angeles Times food critic Bill Addison spent a week in Palm Springs and shares a couple new favorites in town. I’m obviously intrigued by the newspaper-themed cocktail bar, The Evening Citizen. (Deadline: 12am)
— Compiled by Kenney Marlatt
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