Food is Not the Only Thing Served at Detroit Fleat

The space is an homage to Motor City
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Detroit Fleat
INTERIORS OF DETROIT FLEAT // PHOTOGRAPH BY JACOB LEWKOW

The exterior of Detroit Fleat, a “food truck park and boozery” in Ferndale, draws hoards of hungry locals with its lively patio and selection of dining options from a roster of rotating mobile eateries. The interior of the restaurant, which boasts a full bar and house menu, is also worth a visit. Odes to the Motor City, including a mural honoring a bag of Better Made potato chips, remind patrons that, from good eats to prideful design, there’s no place like home.

Towards the back of the establishment is a weathered-looking Faygo painting. It’s inspired by an early advertorial iteration for the bubbly and sweet drink and it’s a reminder of Detroit’s culinary explorative roots. Brothers and Michigan-natives Ben and Perry Feigenson established Faygo Beverages Inc. in Monroe county in 1907, producing only three bottled flavors, strawberry, grape, and fruit punch, all inspired by their cake-frosting recipes.

The works sit next to a reproduction of a billboard for Stroh’s which reads “America’s Favorite Beer” and pays homage the Detroit brewery started by Bernhard Stroh in 1850. In the corner are barrels branded with local distillers, like Ferndale’s Valentine Distilling Co., awarded the title of “World’s Best Vodka” two-years consecutively by the World Drink Awards, and Motor City Gas Whiskey Distillery in Royal Oak.

“Katie [Picard] and I designed Detroit Fleat ourselves; we felt that being in the food truck industry for four years that we could best relate to food truck culture, and the cities of Detroit and Ferndale,” says Aaron Tye, managing member of owner and operator Picard’s Detroit Fleat.  “Everyone involved in Detroit Fleat grew up here locally in the Detroit area and grew up with these brands, they serve as a constant reminder of what it takes to be successful here in the Detroit area.”

Detroit Fleat Website

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