Taking Fine Dining to New Heights in Detroit, Iridescence Opens at MotorCity Casino Hotel (Ann Arbor: house)

[AncientCoins]

Fine dining in metro-Detroit has been elevated to new heights as Iridescence, the only AAA Four Diamond restaurant in the city, moves to its permanent location atop the new MotorCity Casino Hotel tower. Iridescence will seat its first guests on Saturday, Jan. 26, introducing them to breathtaking views of the city, a luxurious setting, a bold new menu and impeccable guest service.

MotorCity Casino Hotel :: Taking Fine Dining to New Heights in Detroit, Iridescence Opens at MotorCity Casino Hotel

[Dexterguy]

Originally Posted by AncientCoins

Fine dining in metro-Detroit has been elevated to new heights as Iridescence, the only AAA Four Diamond restaurant in the city, moves to its permanent location atop the new MotorCity Casino Hotel tower. Iridescence will seat its first guests on Saturday, Jan. 26, introducing them to breathtaking views of the city, a luxurious setting, a bold new menu and impeccable guest service.

MotorCity Casino Hotel :: Taking Fine Dining to New Heights in Detroit, Iridescence Opens at MotorCity Casino Hotel

I'm sorry to say, but this is not going to help the city of Detroit's economy. This just keeps all of the flowing cash, flowing into the casino. One reason that I will not go. WHY can't Detroit promote new restaurants to open all over downtown, and not all in the casinos!!

[Coldjensens]

How can they claim to be a four star or four diamond resturuaunt before they open? You will not know how good the service or even the food is until they have been open for six months.

I have eaten at the MGM Casino a few times. The food was decent, but way way overpriced for what you get. We have not found a lot of good fine dining locales since we moved from OC CA. That is one of the drawbacks, but then we cannot afford to fine dine much anymore.

The best Fine Dining that I have found is in Ann Arbor and the surrounding areas.

[OhEdo]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

How can they claim to be a four star or four diamond resturuaunt before they open? You will not know how good the service or even the food is until they have been open for six months.

I have eaten at the MGM Casino a few times. The food was decent, but way way overpriced for what you get. We have not found a lot of good fine dining locales since we moved from OC CA. That is one of the drawbacks, but then we cannot afford to fine dine much anymore.

The best Fine Dining that I have found is in Ann Arbor and the surrounding areas.

I agree. The MGM's restaurants are okay but way overpriced, and the same is true of most of the better known high end places in this city. But the strange thing is they all seem to be going like gangbusters. IMHO, Mosaic, Sweet Georgia Brown, and Seldom Blues all fall in this category. I don't think they would fare nearly as well in more established markets. Haven't been to Coach Insignia but heard it is more of the same.

However, there are some decent places, among which are the Rattlesnake (if you have a very high budget, but it is tasty), Atlas Global Dining (unique and interesting menus, and a little less pricey than some of those others), the Majestic across the street from Atlas (cheaper than the others mentioned here and really good, unique stuff as well) and the Detroit Beer Company, which is basically bar food but done much better than most bars. Speakng of bars, Jacoby's and Dakota Inn are very good authentic German places. And of course there is always Greektown and Hamtramck as well as the sprinkling of Middle Eastern places. Seems to me that around here the restaurants to avoid are the expensive ones.

And I also agree with the earlier poster that it would be nice if some of these new restaurants and shops were opening somewhere other than in the casinos, but they're the ones making the investment so it's their prerogative I suppose.

[Coldjensens]

I agree with your references to okay but overpriced restaurants. Have not been to any of the ones that you indicate are good. We will have to try them once we have money again. There is another "decent, but too expensive for what you get" place in Eastern market. I have only eaten at that one place, so I do not know about the other places.

I would add Andiamos to the list of good restaurants, although they just barely make it from the Okay category to the good category.

We also really liked the Irish pub EPH. Not expensive and just sandwiches, but quite good (maybe we were just really hungry).

We were disappointed by the famous middle eastern restaurants in Dearborn. Perhaps we were spoiled by Pappa Hassans in Orange California. We still have found nothing comparable. I think that we were simply spoiled by the quality food and service in Orange County in general. We have a hard time finding comparable places here and the service is always fair at best. There seems to be a different attitude in Michigan.
That does not make Michigan bad, just different. It takes some getting used to (as does smoking in restaurants).
Some things about Michigan are a lot better, fine dining options is not one of them.

[Bluefly]

Leadership in Detroit and the casinos have to work so hard to ensure that Detroit doesn't become a Midwestern Atlantic City - with these extravagant hotel casinos sitting next to abandoned lots for decades on end.

The only way to do that is to ensure that the casinos interact with the city in a way that people move outside their doors (the cardinal sin of casino management) to restaurants, clubs, theatres, etc... in the surrounding area - not self-contained monoliths like the Renaissance Center. Greektown Casino has a nice set-up to work with the neighborhood rather than detract from it. I worry a little bit about the other two - but they're classy and people are coming downtown. It's a start.

[Michigansnowflake]

Try Tapawingos in Ellsworth and also the Rowe. There is the Grey Gables Inn in Charlevoix..........all fine dining with wonderful food. Come on up where the good stuff is!

[OhEdo]

Hey we do agree on something Andiamo's is on the better side, as is their service, which alone is enough to earn them a spot above the others. But for some reason I was more impressed with the Andiamo's in the Ren Cen than the ones in Royal Oak and Novi (haven't been to the others yet). And you're right, Eph's has the best sandwiches this side of the Apalachians. Eph's doesn't have beer, but Foran's next door probably has the best selection of homegrown Michigan beer of any bar in Detroit, so maybe you can get your Irish roast beef to go and wash it down at Forans! Now that I think about that area of Woodward, there is a new and relatively inexpensive wine bar ('inexpensive wine bar' is so rare it's almost an oxymoron!) called Enoteca on the ground floor of the First National building. Their "flights" of wine are very good.

And you're right about service too; service at restaurants around here just seems to lack that little extra to leave you with a smile. The service at the really expensive places is generally no better than the merely acceptable service you get at the cheaper places. There are unexpected exceptions, though. I went to Carl's Steakhouse on Grand River (across from Motor City casino) for the first time the other day - okay food, but the service was great!