Mabel Gray Kitchen, Hazel Park, MI

 

 

For my last trip to the Ann Arbor/Detroit area, while I started with breweries, food was going to be a major part of it.  I previously wrote about the day in Ann Arbor starting at Zingerman's Deli and ending at Vinsetta Garage.  The next day started with Supino Pizzeria, which I had visited before and liked a lot, but our crowning finish was at Mabel Gray in Hazel Park.  The cinder block building has been a neighborhood restaurant for many years, but it opened as Mabel Gray in 2015 as a scratch kitchen serving local, seasonal, and farm-to-table food with no set menu and a choice of tasting menu or a la carte and it blew up.  It won Best Chef for Chef James Rigato in the Eater Detroit Awards in 2016, James Beard Semifinalist for Best New Restaurant in 2016, and Detroit Free Press's Restaurant of the Year in 2017.  They take reservations one month in advance and on the day that reservations opened, the earliest we were able to get a reservation was 10 pm, but as we had a large lunch, a late dinner was fine.  Located in the north Detroit suburbs, the road was quiet when we got there despite the fact that it looks like a major road.  The neon sign was on top of the awning, which with walls, formed an enclosed entrance/dining area that was open on one side.  Entering, the space is long and narrow with the bar/grill/kitchen taking up one side behind a counter and a banquette on the other side.  It kind of has the appearance of an old diner or cafe. The lighting was a combination of track lighting and lights that seemed to be built from/supported by recycled lab equipment.  The lights above us were supported by a lab stand.  We were seated and really enjoyed the menu because it was hand written.  While we could have gone either with the tasting menu or a la carte, we decided to go with the tasting menu, because we figured that we would be able to try more things and it would be a better value.

After quickly deciding on the Tasting Menu (we had actually pre-decided to do the tasting menu), the next decision was what to drink.  While there was a beverage pairing for the tasting menu, I had to get up in the morning, so I decided I would take a pass on that, though I did look at the cocktail list.  There were several interesting cocktails on the menu as well as a dealer's choice, where given the choice of liquor, the bartender creates a drink for you.  The prices for the cocktails were fairly standard, in the $11-14 range, but the Dealer's Choice was Market Price.  This worried me a little, but I figured that I was splurging a little, I can splurge a little more if necessary.  I ordered a gin drink and was brought a drink with Citadelle Gin, Lemon, Yellow Chartreuse, Grapefruit, Angostura Bitters, and a few other things that I don't remember.  It was complex, but similar to a couple of cocktails that I like already and I liked it as well.  After getting the bill I discovered that it was less than the cocktails on the menu, so it made it even better.

And then the Tasting menu started.  It started simply enough with an Oyster, Hibachi Grilled, with Chipotle Butter, Garlic, and Bread Crumbs.  It was similar to Oysters Rockefeller with less green and more spice and it was a great one bite wonder.  It was cut from the shell, so it was easy to swallow quickly and with the garlic and chipotle butter, it was a taste explosion.

The use of the hibachi continued with the second course as well.  We got Hibachi Grilled Asparagus,

Fermented Chile Mayo, Green Almonds, and Fried Lemon.  I like asparagus and the grill added a nice char flavor.  The fermented chile mayo was interesting.  It had the spice of chile peppers, though softer and with a tartness.  The green almonds were also very interesting.  I had never had them before.  They are unripened almonds and apparently have a very short season when they taste good.  After that, they get a woody flavor and it's better to eat them after they're ripe.  These have a slightly tart and green flavor with a texture that is much softer than ripe almonds.  The fried lemon contributed both lemon tartness and a char flavor.

The next course stayed vegetarian with Artichoke and Kimchi Salad with Black and White Sesame Seeds, and Sour Cream. I hadn't though about it before, but artichokes and kimchi pair pretty well together.  Artichokes have a tartness (with a little woodiness) and the kimchi is very sour and spicy. The Black and White Sesame contributed to the Asian flavor, and the sour cream contributed to the tartness.

From a Korean-ish flavor, we then wandered over to Japan with a Hamachi Crudo with Shishito Peppers, Grapefruit, Ramps, and Grilled Taro Root.  The hamachi was very tender and flavorful.  Shishito peppers are funny. 90% have no heat at all and taste like slightly sweet bell peppers, but the other 10% have some heat.  It isn't a lot of heat, but there is enough to surprise you.  It is fun to eat them because getting some heat is like hitting the lottery.  My Shishito remained mild.  Ramps are wild onions and have a flavor between a green onion and garlic.  The grapefruit added some bitter tartness and the taro root was similar to a corn chip which added a little texture and a vehicle with which to eat the softer components of the dish.

The next course was an Aged Goat Cheddar Dumpling, which was similar to a Tortellini.  It was served in a Benton's Ham Broth with Chili Oil and Greens.  The broth had a significant amount of Chili Oil, so it had a bite in that respect, but it also had a huge amount of ham flavor and it was like drinking liquid ham and all together, it was like a ham and cheese sandwich presented differently.

Normally, palate cleansers are served after the last savory course and before the dessert.  I do however, understand the logic behind serving a palate cleanser after the previous dish.  It was so savory, it may have overwhelmed any more delicate flavors that came after.  For our palate cleanser we were served a Strawberry Rhubarb Granita (a semi-frozen ice dish similar to a sorbet) with Sesame and Mint.  It was simple, tart and sweet, and very good, both with its taste and the ability to clear the palate.

A dessert would normally follow a palate cleanser, but as I said, the dumpling and broth would have overwhelmed the flavors of the next dish, Quail with Polenta, Fried Green Tomatoes, Greens, Benton's Ham, and Parmesan.  The quail was breaded and the body was boned, with only bones in the wings and legs remaining.  It was good, but I am glad that it was mostly boned, because it is so small that it would have been a lot of work to get the beet off of the bones.  With the breading, the greens, the tomatoes, the ham, and the cheese, the flavors were similar to a club sandwich.

And then we came to dessert.  We were served Chocolate Ganache with Founder's Stout Caramel, Raspberry, Fennel, Graham Cracker Crumbs, and Meringue.  The chocolate was very dense and on the dark side which made sense for the caramel which had a bit of a bitter flavor from the stout.  The fennel added a light licorice flavor, the raspberries brought in a little tartness and the toasted meringue added some lightness.  It was a great finish to a creative and very good dinner.  I'm glad that I had the opportunity to come here.