Yes/No Detroit

*Disclosure: I received a meal at Olga's Kitchen in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. This week, a friend and I were able to stop by the Troy, MI Olga's Kitchen location, to try out some of their new seasonal menu items, including the Autumn Turkey and Apple Olga. Other seasonal menu items include a Kale and Roasted Apple Salad with Chicken, a Pumpkin Spice Olga Bread Pudding, and apple cider. We of course had to start out with an appetizer order of Snackers—they are my favorite menu item at Olga's. If you've never been to an Olga's, Snackers are little seasoned pieces of pita bread, served with a mound of Swiss almond cheese on the side, and they are DELICIOUS. My friend ordered the Autumn Turkey and Apple Olga, which is made with oven roasted turkey breast, fresh spinach, sautéed Gala apples and onions, Cheddar cheese, house-made cranberry aioli, all wrapped in an Olga pita. She said she really enjoyed it—al...

*Disclosure: I received a meal at Fogo de Chao in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. I was super excited to try out Fogo de Chão ( pronounced "Fogo dee shown" )   this week in Troy. It's only about a 5-minute drive from my house, and I had been curious about it ever since I saw its sign go up a few months ago, replacing the Champps that used to be there. Fogo de Chão is a Brazilian steakhouse, or churrascaria , where meats are delivered to you tableside. You can also opt for just the Market Table & Feiojada Bar if you're more of an herbivore. I've been to Texas de Brazil before, in Detroit, which is essentially the same concept, so I was interested in comparing it to Fogo. When you first arrive, you enter through the lobby, which is dazzling—the whole restaurant is very upscale, and would be great for a special occasion or date night. The first thing you'll want to do is check out the Market Table...

*Disclosure: I was provided with brunch from The Morrie in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. This was my fourth time at The Morrie—I've been twice during Royal Oak Restaurant Week, and one other time as a blogger —but the first time for brunch! I'm not really a "brunch girl" (my standard is cashew milk and Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast) but I do sometimes enjoy going out on a Saturday or Sunday for it. We had a group of about 12 bloggers, all eager to try The Morrie's brunch menu . I think a lot of people don't realize that The Morrie does brunch on Saturdays, since it wasn't very full at the time (11 am), but I've heard that on Sundays it's packed! I recommend going on a Saturday, then, to avoid the crowds. I don't usually eat eggs, but everything else on the brunch menu sounded good. I ended up going with the Nashville Hot Chicken & Waffle Stack ($13), with a smoked cheddar biscuit ($3) o...

*Disclosure: I received a complimentary meal from Noodles & Company in exchange for this blog post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. If you're a longtime reader of my blog, it's no secret that I'm a big fan of Noodles & Company - I go there fairly often with my family, and I have reviewed them twice ( here and here ) on my blog, as well. This week, I was able to sample some of the restaurant's new dishes, at the Novi, MI location, and I definitely did not leave hungry! We started off with the new Thai chicken soup, which I have actually ordered before, fairly recently. My previous favorite at Noodles & Co. was the chicken noodle soup, which is now a seasonal menu item, I believe, but this is a close runner-up.  The Thai chicken soup is a coconut curry soup (although not spicy, in my opinion) with onion, cabbage, red bell peppers, lemongrass, lime galangal, turmeric, and shallots, and is quite tasty; it manages to taste creamy withou...

*Disclosure: I was provided a free meal at The Morrie in exchange for this review. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. I had been to The Morrie one other time before this dining experience, back in November for Royal Oak Restaurant Week, and that meal was great  (as was the ginormous ice cream cookie sandwich I had for dessert). When I was invited back as a blogger for a meal last week, I didn't hesitate to say yes to the invitation. We started off with drinks - a few of the other bloggers ordered the Train in Vain-B. Side martini ($11), so I did as well. The martini included pear-infused Hendrick's gin, allspice-cardamom-vanilla simple (syrup, I believe), and peach-pear La Croix. I wasn't the biggest fan of it (I didn't realize until later it had gin in it, which isn't my fave) but it started to grow on me after a few sips.

*Disclosure: I received a meal at MOD in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. MOD Pizza in Northville, MI, opened in August 2015, and a Rochester Hills location opened soon after. This month, MOD's across the country are celebrating National Pizza Month, and I stopped by the Northville location to check out the October seasonal pizza, the Petra. A regular-sized pizza is $7.87 at MOD, and that includes all the toppings you want. I highly suggest getting an order of the cinnamon strips, as well ($2.97), with cinnamon dipping sauce, as that's fantastic as well.

*Disclosure: My family and I received a free meal in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Fast-casual pizza is officially a trend in the U.S., and Michigan now has many choices for those of us who like pizza and being able to customize it. My family and I were able to check out 1000 Degrees Pizzeria, in Plymouth, this past weekend, one of the newest additions to the scene. I really liked the interior of 1000 Degrees, it's modern and very bright and open. The building is kind of in the middle of the parking lot, near the Xfinity and Grand Traverse Pie plaza on Ann Arbor Rd. near 275 in Plymouth. Like most of the fast-casual places I've been to, you can choose a pre-set pizza (ingredients have been pre-set) or make your own. I usually make my own, and that's what I did here, too. A 10" pizza is $8.95, and you can get it on gluten-free crust for $9.99; if you'd like a 14" pizza instead, that's $16.95. My dad and...

credit: Bonny Buckner *Disclosure: I received a free meal at Punch Bowl Social in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Last week, I was able to check out Punch Bowl Social (Detroit), which was a lot of fun - I had not been before but had heard a lot about it. Punch Bowl Social is a restaurant but also has arcade games, darts, bowling, and even a private karaoke room. The interior has a modern feel and is very nice. We were seated at a high-top area designed to seat large groups, and the table had a reclaimed wood type of feel. There are 2+ bars, as well, and lots of booths and other high-top tables.

*Disclosure: I received a meal at Brome in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. This week, I had the pleasure of dining at Brome Burgers & Shakes, in Dearborn, MI, with a few blogger friends, and it was a very tasty meal. This was not my first time at Brome, but the first time I visited I was in a rush (I was in Dearborn for the Cinetopia film fest , at the Henry Ford Museum, and had limited time between films), so I was glad I was able to sit and enjoy my meal this time. We were able to choose an entree, side order of fries, and a milkshake off the menu . Dairy doesn't always play nice with me but their milkshakes looked fantastic, so I knew I had to try one. I chose the Brome Deluxe, which included beef bacon (yes, beef bacon - I had to look it up - it's bacon but from a cow), aged white cheddar, red onion, tomato, romaine, and dijonnaise - hold the romaine, because I'm a little kooky and I don't like lettuce on sandwich...

*Disclosure: I received a free meal at Noodles & Company in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Noodles & Company just released two new salads, in time for summer, and they've also been revamping their menu a bit. I've been a huge fan of Noodles for a while now (their pasta dishes are super tasty!) and I was excited to stop by the Royal Oak, MI Noodles along with some other local bloggers to try out the new salads as well as some of their more classic pasta dishes. We started off with their Korean meatballs , with Gochujang sauce, which are new on the menu, so I had not tried them yet. The sauce they are in has a bit of a kick, but I don't usually like spicy foods and I found them to be very tasty - I will definitely order them again at some point for an appetizer.

*Disclosure: I received a free meal at the soft opening of Burger 21 in exchange for this post. All opinions expressed here, however, are my own. A friend told me that Burger 21 was opening in Novi, MI recently, and later I got the chance to check it out at its soft opening. Burger 21 is a chain restaurant, but Novi is its first Michigan locations, and they have hopes to expand in the next few years as well. The interior of the restaurant was decorated very nicely, with modern designs. My parents and I sat in one of the booths, which could have comfortably sat four people, and I really liked the design of the booths. One of my favorite parts of the restaurant is the shake bar at the back (see pic, above) - it reminded me of an old-fashioned soda fountain, in drugstores, where people used to go to share shakes or sodas.

*Disclosure: I was provided with a gift card to try out Chive Kitchen. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. I recently heard about a new restaurant in Farmington, MI called Chive Kitchen, and I was invited to check it out. My mom and I were able to stop in yesterday and we were both quite pleased with the service and our meals. Chive Kitchen has only recently opened, within the past few months, and it caters to vegans/vegetarians, or those who would like to eat some vegan or vegetarian food. I myself am not vegetarian, and neither is my mom, but I try to eat less dairy, since it doesn't usually agree with me, and she tries to avoid red meat, so we were both excited to try the restaurant. The interior is very welcoming - someone on Yelp called it a "European cafe-type atmosphere" and I would agree. Green seems to be one of its signature colors, which is one of my favorite colors, and the bar was set up nicely with green barstools. You can check out...

I'm no stranger to Granite City - I attended the Northville, MI location's soft opening last year, and I live pretty much down the road from the Troy location. So when I received an invite to the new Detroit location's soft opening, I definitely was excited to attend. The new Granite City is Michigan's largest, of the three, and it's over 15,000 square feet, so when I first walked in, I was in awe of the restaurant's size. The restaurant has not one but TWO bars, one of which will have an outdoor patio in the summer, and when you first arrive, you walk down a long hallway to the seating areas, which makes the restaurant seem even bigger.