Rose’s Fine Food offers a nostalgic vibe while serving fresh, fun dishes.
By Lindsey Shaw
Photos by Lindsey Shaw
Rose’s Fine Food is set up to be a long-time mainstay on Detroit’s east side. Rose’s delivers an ultimate gourmet twist on typical American diner food. Located on 10551 E. Jefferson at Hastings St., there is a giant sign you cannot miss. The free-standing building is adorned with a steel smoker out front emblemized with roses.
The Detroit-chic diner occupies less than 1,000 square feet, leaving you with an intimate feel. This may be in part to the welcoming staff, who are knowledgeable, friendly and easy to converse with. You could sit and schmooze with them like old-time friends!
The tables are salvaged wood, and chairs have been collected through the decades. Or park yourself at the diner counter on a leather swivel stool with a chair back. The mismatched vintage china flatware, mugs and cups are dainty and eclectic.
Live succulent plants along with jars of house-pickled kimchi, onions and cucumbers line the floating shelves above the kitchen line. It’s your classic open-style kitchen dining experience. The overall feel of Rose’s is a nostalgic vibe with the absolute freshest ingredients.
Enjoy the fresh smells of daily home baked items inside an antique display case and definitely indulge in one. The most recent delectable dish I tried was a rhubarb yogurt pie. The items rotate along with daily drink specials such as lavender lemonade.
The menu is fairly stable but does change per the season as Rose’s focuses on fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Fun fact — one of the part-time chefs is a full-time farmer whose urban farm is about six miles away in Detroit.
The menu clearly marks which dishes are vegan and gluten-free.
Staple items are Grandpa Richard’s Pancakes (stack of delicious cakes made with organic stone-ground flour, Michigan maple syrup and cultured butter), Staff Favorite 2.0 (a bowl of heirloom rice topped with maple bacon, mushrooms, house kimchi and avocado with a fried egg on top), and you can’t go wrong with one of the lunch sandwiches.
Don’t skip out on the variety of side dishes: organic grits, toast, herby beans, grilled potatoes and sides of flapjacks. Fresh sides of meat include applewood bacon, corridor sausage — pork or chicken.
Corridor sausage is a local product to Detroit. Maybe you’ve seen the Corridor Sausage deli at Detroit Metro Airport or Ford Field.
The 40-seat artisanal gem of a diner is best with a small group of four or less. It is also a great place to dine alone.
The dynamic duo behind the origins of Rose’s Fine Food are Molly Mitchell and Lucy Peters. They are cousins and named the restaurant after their common grandmother.
Next up for Molly Mitchell will be a Polish-inspired restaurant serving up perogies and more in Detroit’s West Village at the corner of Agnes and Van Dyke.
Rose’s Fine Food
10551 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit
(313) 822-2729
rosesfinefood.com
Open until 3 p.m.