Molly’s Picks

Restaurant veteran Molly Abraham noshes around town, tracking down some top spots
1901
Pho Lucky’s Bún Thit Nurong/Gà Nurong Cha Giò: Chicken and spring rolls served with noodles, herbs, lettuce, and bean sprouts, topped with peanuts and sautéed green onions. Photograph by Joe Vaughn

PHO LUCKY /// Midtown’s first Vietnamese restaurant is a charmer, run by Cong and Tommy Nguyen and their extended family, serving a focused menu of authentic fare emphasizing pho, the national dish. Brimming bowls of spicy broth with noodles, round steak, and meatballs are available in several variations. Other dishes include excellent summer rolls and crisp spring rolls. The high-ceilinged setting that formerly housed the Addison Eatery has been spruced up, and in one corner rough-hewn picnic tables and low stools are meant to be reminiscent of street dining in Vietnam. Asian beers and robust Vietnamese coffee are the prime beverages. 3111 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-338-3895. L & D daily except Tues. when it is L only. $8 H

FOREST /// The updated version of Forest Grill, now just Forest, offers a brief but well-chosen menu from the kitchen headed by Nick Janutol, who worked as chef de cuisine for the previous regime but now is executive chef. The selection of small plates and main courses with a faintly Mediterranean spin will be updated as seasons change. In the early going, it offered a notable duck breast, a number of pastas, and lamb shanks with chickpea ragu, all handsomely served to linen-covered tables in the Victor Saroki-designed single room. 735 Forest Ave., Birmingham; 248-258-9400. D Mon.-Sat. $20 H

Symbol: H Handicap accessible
Note: Dollar amount is the average entree price