May 2025
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The Dearborn Inn Reopens After Historic Renovation
The Dearborn Inn, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, has a new life. The 94-year-old property that was originally built by Henry Ford and designed by Albert Kahn across from what was once the Ford Airport, now welcomes guests once again with a gleaming transformation. “It was a Marriott hotel and now it’s […]
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Hour Detroit: May 2025 Digital Edition
Spring is in full swing, and our May issue is packed with plenty of things to do and personalities to read about this month and beyond. For our cover story, we head to Detroit’s WJR studios for a conversation with Mitch Albom.
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Meet the Owner of Tekiah Kosher Spirits
It’s a clarion call, a long blast from a ram’s horn, and a summons to action. It reminds the listeners of the power of community, and for Greg Sobol, it’s a reason to celebrate that community. The tekiah is a blast from the shofar in Jewish ceremonies, and it’s also the name of Sobol’s brand […]
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The 2025 Summer Events Preview
Fairs & Festivals in Detroit May-June Detroit Grand Prix This annual IndyCar race returns to the streets of downtown Detroit this year and includes tech talks with industry insiders, food trucks, a car show, and more. May 30-June 1. Downtown Detroit; detroitgp.com Motor City Pride As Michigan’s largest Pride celebration, Motor City Pride includes a […]
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Culture Convo: Will Calling My Mom Make Me a Better Person?
I miss my mom. She isn’t dead, so it’s a little weird to write. But I miss her in the way I miss a close friend I haven’t called in a while. And in either situation, it’s selfish not to think they’d appreciate a call. We don’t keep in touch like we should. Or how […]
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Don’t Miss Metro Detroit Events for May 2025
The Rat Pack Lounge This jukebox musical follows Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr. as they return to Earth from heaven to attend to some unfinished business. Featuring more than 30 hit songs, including “Come Fly with Me,” “My Way,” and “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head, the high-spirited spectacle will have […]
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Jewish Delis in Detroit
Fat stacks of corned beef, hearty matzo ball soup, tuna salad, lox, bagels, and plenty of breakfast options — Jewish-style delicatessens abound in the Detroit metro area. Befitting of an ever-evolving city, these delis have continued to transform in deliciously interesting ways. After all, no two deli menus are ever the same. Stage in West […]
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How to Do Something About Infrastructure Changes in Your Community
No, seriously — why did the city put that there? You may be tempted to ask yourself this question upon seeing a change made to a park, a rearrangement of transit options, or a new and obviously massively expensive thing being foisted upon your neighborhood by one government authority or another. It could be that […]
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Editor’s Letter: Covering Michigan Central
While this column in usually about what is in this month’s issue, I’d like to talk about something that happened last May. On the 20th of that month, we finally got word that Michigan Central would be opening. It was a project that we — and everyone else in Detroit — had been following since […]
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Meet Metro Detroit’s Derby Darling
Gena Conti is no stranger to wowing fans. Starting in high school in Southgate, she did it by singing and writing music, touring around Michigan with religious musical groups — and was even offered financing for a career. In college, at Northern Michigan University, her sound got folkie, with a Joni Mitchell vibe. But then […]
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Kronk Gym Returns to Detroit
Although perennial heavyweight champion Joe “The Brown Bomber” Louis had positioned Detroit as one of the nation’s boxing capitals in the late 1930s, a half-century later another boxer brought the city a different kind of boxing fame. Emanuel Steward, a former national Golden Gloves bantamweight champion, would go on to become a coach, a mentor, […]
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14 Cool Airbnbs and VRBOs for Rental in Michigan
Summer is almost here, but it’s not too late to plan a getaway. Luckily, Michigan is home to over 22,000 vacation rental listings across Airbnb, VRBO, and other sites. From the bottom to the top of the mitten, there’s plenty to discover, whether it’s a historic lighthouse on Lake Superior, a barn in Three Oaks […]
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How Mitch Albom Became ‘The King of Hope’
About halfway through Tuesdays with Morrie, the book that took Mitch Albom from local columnist to internationally famous and bestselling author, he asks his old professor Morrie Schwartz, who was then dying from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, aka Lou Gehrig’s disease, about aging. Albom was 37 at the time and wanted to know if Schwartz really […]
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Teaming Up for a Seat at the Table
Strength in numbers. That hope and philosophy prompted nine Detroit-based female architects, architectural designers, and landscape architects to join forces last year in an effort to raise awareness of their work and the possibilities it represents for transforming Detroit. Their name, The New School, is a loose and tongue-in-cheek reference to the New York Five, […]
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Where To Find Mental Health Help
A 2024 edition of The State of Mental Health in America, a report by Mental Health America, showed that approximately 1.8 million adults in Michigan reported having any mental illness in 2022; that’s 22.89% of the adult population, just a fraction below the national average of 23.08%. And while those numbers are grim, we’re doing […]
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Enjoy Big-City Vibes at Otis Harbor Springs
Downtown Detroit’s renaissance has brought countless modern bars, cozy cafés, and extravagant hotels with it, all developed with the Midwestern hospitality Michiganders have grown accustomed to. Now, imagine a similar experience, but instead of tall buildings and electric scooters, you’re surrounded by towering trees and galloping horses. Otis Harbor Springs opened last summer, introducing a […]
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Public and Private Garden Tours in Metro Detroit
The Metro area is abloom with eye-popping landscapes this month, and there are plenty of ways to enjoy them all summer long, from garden-club tours featuring private home gardens to public facilities offering everything from Mother’s Day feasts to plant sales. Of course, garden events are nothing new. Just ask Mary Schwark, a steering committee […]
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In Conversation With Mike Laing of Mawby in Suttons Bay
Since its start 52 years ago, Mawby wines has been pouring out some new ideas, including an alcohol-free bubbly and a second family-run winery on its property. Like a fine wine that gets better over time, Mawby has undergone growth and expansion while maintaining its intimate, special Michigan vibe. In 1973, the award-winning winery’s founder, […]
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How to Make Griffin Claw’s Ruby Julep
Ingredients 2 ounces Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo bourbon 1/2 ounce honey simple syrup 3 raspberries 5 mint leaves Directions In a cocktail shaker, muddle the raspberries and mint with the honey simple syrup. Add in ice and the Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo bourbon. Shake well, then strain into a metal glass with fresh ice. Garnish […]
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The Way It Was — Mexicantown, 1990
One of the most vibrant and culturally significant areas in our region is Mexicantown, located in Southwest Detroit near the Ambassador Bridge, where it has long been a popular destination for visitors and metro Detroiters attracted to the small shops, bakeries, and authentic Mexican cuisine. Mexicantown’s roots go back to the early 20th century. During […]
