Serena Maria Daniels

The longtime Dearborn institution sits in one of the country’s largest Arab American communities, and is one of metro Detroit’s defining Lebanese restaurants—a typical first stop for locals and visitors after touching down at the airport. A lot of that has to do with their velvety hummus and smoky baba ghanoush, house-baked pita bread baked in a traditional pita oven imported from Lebanon, and a showstopper slow-roasted stuffed lamb, served family-style atop some sneaky-good, toasted almond-studded rice. Just as essential are their sandwiches, especially the chicken or beef shawarma, wrapped in warm pita (or upgraded with housemade saj bread, for an extra $1.50) and spiked with bold toum and pickles. To drink, spring for the Lemon Crush, a lemon and orange mix that spotlights the fresh juice tradition found throughout Lebanese cooking.

Baobab Fare serves Burundian comfort food that’ll keep you coming back.

This Hazel Park restaurant celebrates Romanian-inspired cooking the way it deserves to be celebrated: shared among friends over a long dinner. So prepare to pass around exceptional plates of garlicky Transylvanian goulash with rich, velvety braised beef, baseball glove-sized tomahawk schnitzel, and olive-oil-and-salt-kissed focaccia served with tangy whipped feta, perfect for sopping up leftover sauce from a short rib rigatoni, or smearing with chicken paté. And just when you think the family-style party is over, housemade gnocchetti brightened up with seasonal spring peas and asparagus, and another round of the European-influenced cocktails, like the rhubarb-forward gimlet, will land on your table, inspiring you to keep going. The oversized corner booth is the best seat in the house, and spacious enough to squeeze in a half a dozen friends, making it all too easy to keep passing plates until you’re lulled into satisfaction.

This compact dining room with petite floral centerpieces and subtle beachy vibes is showing how varied layered regional Mexican cooking can be. Birria appears in all its traditional glory as a stew or tucked into warm corn tortillas, but it also turns up in egg rolls and ramen. Crispy Baja-style fish and shrimp share the menu with the Otro Nivel, a surf-and-turf taco layered with shaved sirloin, shrimp, huitlacoche, and Detroit-style zip sauce. The standout spaghetti verde pairs creamy poblano sauce and chicken milanesa, bringing a comforting Mexican home-cooking staple to Detroit. Housemade salsa macha and rotating seasonal salsas deserve a place on everything, while the nonalcoholic aguas frescas are always a necessary finish.

This Midtown restaurant is one of the few places in town doing the whole nixtamalization thing, transforming heirloom corn into fresh masa that gives every tortilla toasty flavor and supple chew. That durable yet bouncy masa also serves as the base for their huaraches, tetelas, and other antojitos done really well. Start with the sikil pak, a fiery, nutty pumpkin-seed dip from the Yucatán, then move on to the whole red snapper, painted half in salsa roja and half in salsa verde before it hits the fire. Inside a dramatically renovated corner building from the 1920s, dark walnut, leather, and ceramic tile fuse modern

Noori Pocha/Chicken is for anyone chasing generously portioned Korean fried chicken that keeps you wanting more. Their soy garlic version delivers the audibly crisp skin, lacquered in a sweet-savory glaze that clings to every ridge without turning soft. Or go dry with their signature Magic Sprinkle seasoning, a sweet-savory, slightly funky blend of cheese, garlic, and a dash of sugar. The supporting cast of sides deserves as much love, like a rose tteokbokki that leans richer with its creamy, spicy sauce. Their dining room is designed to resemble a Seoul street scene with more than enough visual details to keep your eyes busy between bites, like faux storefronts, glowing neon signs, and paper lanterns, making this spot good for late-night groups who are happy to get a little messy together.

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Tacos Wuey, a taqueria in Detroit, is one of 10 establishments named to Hour Detroit's 2026 Best New Restaurants list.