Gus' Famous Red Hots, Plattsburgh, NY

We started our now annual Montreal roadtrip last week with another stop in Plattsburgh, NY, an hour from the Canada border. On this ride, we stopped at Gus' Famous Red Hots to try their version of the Michigan dog.
The offered them using a Glazier Redskin frankfurter, a red skinned natural casing hot dog from the region. The Michigan sauce was a little zesty. The redskin really made the dish for me. It was great. We also agreed that their macaroni salad was good as well.

2 Cumberland Head Rd.
Plattsburgh, NY
(518)561-3711

La Belle Province, Montreal

After grazing a little at the Marche Atwater in Montreal, we met up with our cousins from NYC who were hungry after a long wait at the US-Canada border.
We went to La Belle Province, a diner a block from the market for a snack. I ordered their poutine. Their version was solid- great fresh cheese curds and tasty gravy.

Redneckhunter tried their version of the Michigan hotdog. We had heard that the Montreal versions of the Michigan sauce were a little more runny than the ones in Plattsburgh. This was true in this case.
Stephen ordered a wonderfully fatty smoked meat sandwich. Xtine got a pogo, which basically was a corn dog.

3001, Rue Notre-Dame Ouest
Montreal, QC
(514) 931-2574

Pastry House Hippo, Novi, MI

HelloKT told me to go to Pastry House Hippo, a Japanese bakery near Detroit, MI, to pick up her favorite item, a turtle shaped pastry filled with chocolate cream.
It certainly reminded me of bakeries I've been to in Tokyo. When you enter, you get a tray and tongs, and then you grab what you want.
The bakery has both sweet and savory choices. I was also happy to see that they had the Japanese style of sliced white bread which, when toasted, is just amazing with butter.


42130 Grand River Avenue
Novi, MI 48375-1833
(248) 347-6408

Comet Coffee, Ann Arbor, MI

Visited my friend Chupacabra in Ann Arbor, MI. He is one of the biggest coffee snobs I've met, and he took me to his favorite local coffee shop, Comet Coffee, in the Nickels Arcade one morning.
We had some delicious pastries- a pain au chocolat, and a spectacular almond croissant loaded with marzipan.

However, their coffee was pretty spectacular. They really take pride in how the coffee is prepared as well as their beans. All cups are freshly ground to order. I had a wonderful cappuchino, and Chupacabra had a double espresso.


16 Nickels Arc
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
(734) 222-0579

Zingerman's Roadhouse, Ann Arbor, MI

I was lucky to make it to the famous Zingerman's Roadhouse this winter for dinner with some good friends in Ann Arbor, MI.
We started with an order of Chopped Liver, made of Amish free-range chicken livers broiled in schmaltz with onions and ground with hard boiled egg and pepper.
We also ordered their Chili and Cheddar Fries- twice cooked fries topped with ancho beef chili and with grated 2-year-raw-milk Vermont cheddar.
Based upon the smell of the restaurant, I could not resist getting the BBQ Pork Entree made of Cornman Farms hogs, pit smoked for 14 hours with mashed potatoes and greens. I opted for the Carolina style vinegar sauce.





My friend See ordered the Cornman Farms Chicken Fried Steak made with sirloin topped with chicken gravy. It was pretty delicious.
There was not question about me getting, for dessert, Ari’s Original Doughnut Sundae-
a housemade Dutch doughnut covered with bourbon-caramel sauce topped with vanilla gelato, whipped cream, salted Virginia peanuts and a cherry. Unbelievable.


2501 Jackson Ave,
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
(734) 663-3663