MI Best - Weekend Edition - March 26, 2023

When we chose the stories for this edition, all the events and dates were accurate. As always, find the mostup-to-date information on the event/activity website, Facebook page or other direct information source.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

hTry Noodle Pig’s authentic Japanese ramen bar in Grand Rapids

GRAND RAPIDS, M

onoring his Japanese heritage, the owner of Grand Rapids’ newest ramen restaurant has worked hard to create the perfect blend of east meets Midwest at Noodle Pig.

All the ramen noodles are handmade at the restaurant, following traditional Japanese methods for creating the comfort food.

“Ramen is a noodle soup dish,” said Noodle Pig owner Chris Wessely. “What makes it distinguishable from other Japanese noodles is that the hydration level is very low. When I was testing my recipes at home, I broke five home pasta machines because the moisture level is so low.”

In order to be able to make all the Noodle Pig noodles in-house, Wessely imported a Japanese noodle machine for the restaurant.

Diners at Noodle Pig can choose a make-your-own ramen bowl route or pick from seven signature bowls ($13 or $14) crafted by Wessely.

All the ramen at Noodle Pig starts with the traditional noodles and a chicken-pork broth base that takes two days to make. Vegetarian diners can swap out the chicken-pork broth with a Buddhistinspired veggie broth.

“I’m half Japanese, so on our menu we have some traditional and then we have a handful of fusion bowls,” Wessely said. “In the base, I use lots of fruits and vegetables in it. There’s apples, carrots, celery, and then there’s bacon and butter and sake. You get flecks of goodness in there. It’s like Japanese ramen but it’s more gourmet.”

Along with the ramen bowls, the Noodle Pig menu includes a wide variety of bubble

teas, cocktails, Japanese-inspired fries and a pankofried pork cutlet sandwich.

The most popular ramen bowl at Noodle Pig is the Zessan signature bowl ($14), made with housemade noodles, a chicken-pork bone broth, scallions, bean sprouts, kikurage mushrooms, a steamed fish cake, seaweed, black garlic and chili oil. A variety of proteins can be added to the Zessan bowl, including braised pork shoulder, cheese and a soy sauce marinated egg.

“Zessan is the first one I developed, and I wanted it to be approachable for Americans but people in Japan could still enjoy,” Wessely said. “It’s a comfort food. To make it even more American, I add shredded cheese and pulled pork shoulder.”

Along with classic flavors, Noodle Pig also offers some more unique bubble tea drinks, a Taiwanese beverage that normally includes small, chewy tapioca boba balls. The Noodle Pig bubble tea menu includes flavors like strawberry cheesecake, matchajasmine latte, chai cinnamon latte and strawberry Sakura.

Noodle Pig, at 601 Bond Ave. NW Suite 102, also offers alcoholic bubble beverages like the mango boba-rita, a mango margarita with mango popping boba

bubbles.

One of Wessely’s favorite adult beverages on the menu is the Pau Hana, a tropical drink with white rum, orange and pineapple juice, coconut cream and Sakura jelly boba.

“If you close your eyes, it’s like you’re in Hawaii,” Wessely said. “There’s some sunshine in that. We only came out with just a handful of drinks, but we’ll have more coming out soon that are more crafted cocktails. We give everybody a tall size, so it’s a goodsized drink.”

For diners new to the ramen game, Wessely recommends either the miso ramen bowl or the shio ramen bowl, both of which are classic ramen flavors. No matter which ramen bowl you choose, Noodle Pig will give back to those in need with each purchase. According to Wessely, three hungry children are fed with every ramen bowl sold at the restaurant.

Each ramen purchase allows the restaurant to give donations to three different nonprofit organizations, which are Hand2Hand, No Kid Hungry and Faith In Deeds.

Noodle Pig is open 11 a.m.- 9 p.m. every day and has a happy hour from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. A full menu is available online at noodlepig.com/menus. Contact the restaurant at 616 327-2922.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats: A Girl Scout cookies and beer pairing? One Well has you covered

Who isn’t a fan of Girl Scout cookies?

tFor those who are also fans of craft beer, Kalamazoo’s One Well Brewing is offering up the perfect pairing this week and through the weekend, featuring five Girl Scout cookies and five of One Well’s favorite craft offerings in the form of a Girl Scout cookie flight.

KALAMAZOO, MI

his probably has been done before, but it’s a good opportunity where there are no shortage of people selling Girl Scouts cookies right now,” One Well owner/founder Chris O’Neill told MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette.

“We were looking at the list of beers that we have top and looking at these cookie options and saying why not? It’s a good opportunity for people to try some different beers.”

The flights, which cost $12, are a $2 markup over the cost of a basic flight which covers the cost of the cookies, O’Neill said. There are no substitutions allowed, so if you aren’t a fan of a specific cookie or type of beer, you should bring a friend and order two flights, he said.

The flights start with a peanut butter-

jelly-styled pairing featuring Tagalongs and One Well’s Raspberry Fruit Infusion beer. Next up on the flight board is the Adventurefuls cookie and the Bad Adz brown. In the middle of the board is the lemon and lime combo of the Lemon-ups cookie and Only Gose to Show kettle sour beer.

The last two combos on the board are the coffee and toffee pairing of the Toffee-tastic cookie and Sweet Water Street beer. The flight lands with the chocolate and coconut pairing of a Samoa cookie and One Well’s Wizard Potion, a barrel-aged Imperial stout.

“I think the coolest thing about a flight in general is just getting out of your comfort zone,” O’Neill said. “Most people know what they like, but they don’t know that they like something until they try it if it’s not their regular beer. So doing a set pairing, we figured this offers the opportunity for our customers to try some different stuff that they don’t normally try or retry something that they haven’t tried in a while and enjoy some Girl Scout cookies while they are at it.”

O’Neill said after they first announced the

pairing on social media March 6, they had about 30 people try the flights that night, on what is normally a slow night of the week at the brewery.

The plan is to continue offering the flights, at least through Sunday, March 12, but as long as supplies last and they can get their hands on enough cookies, they will keep doing it.

In addition to the Girl Scout cookie pairings, One Well, located at 4213 Portage St. in Kalamazoo’s Millwood neighborhood, is preparing to roll out a special menu the week of St. Patrick’s Day.

The menu will feature items such as a “semi-traditional Reuben” highlighted by corned beef braised in the brewery’s Bad Adz Brown and made with Swiss cheese, Thousand Island dressing and a choice of sauerkraut or coleslaw. Also on the menu will be a Kalamata olive dip, a lentil salad and a new take on One Well’s grilled cheese sandwich, consisting of sliced tomato, Havarti, Swiss, gouda and mozzarella cheeses, O’Neill said.

The brewery, which will celebrate its ninth anniversary in November, prides itself on itself its communal atmosphere, upscale pub food and beers which are crafted by head brewer Trevor Klimek.

“Through the way that the taproom is set up, with community style tables, games to play, the arcade that has allowed us to do a foosball league, pinball league, a chess meetup, dart league, we have a big trivia crowd — all of those things really kind of cultivate that community feel where most people that are coming here regularly know other customers that are here when they’re here,” O’Neill said.

As for the beer, in addition to some of the aforementioned brews, the brewery is known for mainstays such as the Moral Support Session IPA and its Xalapa blonde, which is made with no-spice jalapenos, as well as rotating beers such as the Root Beer Float Milk Stout and Spy Games Lager, which launched Friday, March 10. Beers such as the State of Bean and Sweet Water Street coffee also highlight

partnerships with other local businesses. The State of Bean is made with pecan coffee from Kalamazoo Coffee Company and the Sweet Water Street coffee donut porter offers a taste of Sweetwater Donut Mill and Water Street Coffee.

New partnerships are also budding on the horizon, as the brewery is preparing to launch a terpene-infused IPA to be called “Gotta’ Rip This,” working with Waypoint Processing in Bangor. The beer will have no traces of THC or CBD, O’Neill said.

Continuing on with local partnerships, one of the brewery’s topselling appetizers, the Local Twist, is a pretzel made by Kalamazoo’s Victorian Bakery that is served with a choice of Xalapa beer cheese or honey mustard.

For more information, visit www.onewellbrewing.com, call 269-459-9240 or find them on Facebook or Instagram.

“There’s alot of places that are doing the standard, so we try to do the things that aren’t just the standard,” O’Neill said, adding that the brewery which offers a new rotational beer about three times per month, plans to being rolling out a new rotational menu every six weeks or so.

And while you won’t find a burger and fries at One Well, other popular items include the fully-loaded “It’s Mine nachos,” the “Go Cluck Yourself” pulled chicken sandwich, the “Bite Me Fried cauliflower bites, the “I’m So Falafel” sandwich and the Out of the Woods pizza which is made with a vegan mushroom pesto sauce.

The brewery, which is working on a major kitchen expansion right now, expects to also reintroduce some old favorites such as their mac and cheese and ramen bowl once they are able to add a new sauté station in the next couple months.

The expansion, the first for the kitchen, is one of many for the brewery, which since it opened in 2014, has expanded from 99 seats to 220 to 420 counting the expansive outdoor patio.

One Well Brewing is open from 3-10 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 3-11 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 11 a.m.midnight Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. on Sundays. The kitchen closes one hour before close during the week and two hours before close on the weekend.

One Well’s beer, which can be purchased in a can or growler to go on site, is also available on shelves in about 75% of the lower peninsula, with the only exception being the northeast portion of the peninsula.

uBAY CITY, MI

ptown Bay City’s Cream & Sugar

Ice Cream Co. is back open for the 2023 season with limited-edition flavors like peach cobbler made with Michigan-grown peaches and green peppermint Phoebe, perfect for St.

Patrick’s Day.

The seasonal ice cream shop, open from March to October and located at 160 Uptown Drive, is known for its ice cream made with locally sourced ingredients and its freshly made bubble waffle cones. Other limitededition flavors listed on the Cream & Sugar website include honey lavender, lemon blueberry, red velvet cake and salted caramel.

“Some of them are past fan favorites that we’ve had, and some of them are brand new,” said Cream

& Sugar Ice Cream Co. Manager Tim Mangan. “Of course, we have our peppermint Phoebe because it is March, and St. Patrick’s Day is coming up.”

Other limited edition flavors coming soon include caramel cashew and maple. Also new this year, Cream & Sugar will offer curated sundaes, including “Brownie Bomb,” “Berry Burst,” and “Caramel Crunch,” and pints and quarts of ice cream to go.

iTHOMPSONVILLE, MI

t might feel like spring will never arrive, but one sure sign of the season already has: Tickets are on sale for the annual Michigan Beer & Brat Festival at Crystal Mountain resort.

This slopeside event is the first big party of the warm-weather season for Northern Michigan craft drink lovers. It draws not just brat and sausage lovers, but also those who look forward to finding new favorites among the locally made beer, hard cider, wines and other pours.

The Beer & Brat Festival is set for Saturday, May 27

“Enjoy live entertainment while sampling an enormous selection of Michigan’s finest microbrews, meads, hard ciders, wine, liquor and gourmet brats from northwest Michigan markets,” resort staff said.

VIP admission begins at 3 p.m. on festival day, with general admission lasting from 4 to 8 p.m. You can find more details on Crystal Mountain’s website about when and where to pick up admission tokens - as well as some FAQs.

ADMISSION Includes an 8 oz beer glass and 10 event tickets. Cost depends on when tickets are purchased:

• March 1 - 31: $30 per person

• April 1 - April 30: $40 per person

• May 1 - May 26: $45 per person

and side dishes. A full pour will range from 3 to 6 tickets, while a full

• Tapistry Brewing

• Uncle John’s Hard Cider

• North Peak Brewing Company

• Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales

• St. Ambrose Cellars

• Beards Brewery

• Draught Horse Brewery

selections of popular songs and artists that span decades of charttopping music, Barefoot has songs for every generation to share.

• Jedi Mind Trip plays from 5:30 to 8 p.m.: Jedi Mind Trip is a rock and roll band playing your favorite hits from the 70’s, 80’s and today! If you’re ready to dance and rock out, you won’t be disappointed.

STAYING OVERNIGHT?

Barefoot, plays from 3 to 5 p.m.: Barefoot’s smooth and groovy acoustic styling offers fun vibes, unique interpretations and familiarity, all rolled into one act.

Check out Crystal Mountain’s available lodging at crystalmountain. com/your-visit/ accommodations. It’s a great spot for an on-site getaway with its spa, biking trails and activities. But the Thompsonville area also makes a great home base for day trips to Frankfort, Traverse City, Sleeping Bear and more.

JACKSON, MI

La Catrina Bar and Grill is bringing more authentic Mexican cuisine and drinks to Jackson.

La Catrina Bar and Grill has taken over the former Chilango’s Cantina Grill location at 501 Longfellow Ave. The restaurant is owned by Heladio Sr. and Elvia Lopez, but is managed by their son Heladio Lopez Jr.

The restaurant is currently in its soft opening phase and so far, business been going well, Heladio Jr. said.

CHLOE MILLER | cmiller@mlive.com Catrina Give the a try at La Catrina Bar and Grill Molcajete

“Right now, we feel good,” he said. “This is the first time we opened (a restaurant) in Jackson.”

Owning a restaurant has been a dream for as long as he can remember, Heladio Jr. said. His sister and brother also own a Mexican restaurant called El Toro Bar & Grill in Brighton and Pontiac, he said.

The menu at La Catrina Bar and Grill is still being put together, but people can expect to see lunch and dinner options, including burritos, tacos, enchiladas, fajitas and chimichangas.

So far, the Molcajete Catrina has been piquing customers’ interests. The dish is served with chicken, steak, chorizo, fried onions and jalapenos, all

served with a sauce inside a stone bowl.

Customers are also loving the street corn and the Carne Asada, which is ribeye, served with fried onions and jalapenos, and comes with a side of rice, beans, lettuce, avocado, tomatoes and tortillas.

“People love the ribeye,” Lopez said. “More because they like the seasoning.” La Catrina Bar and Grill is still waiting to receive its liquor license before it has an official grand opening, hopefully before May, Heladio Jr. said. When the liquor license is approved, the restaurant will serve traditional drinks, such as margaritas, mojitos, and bee. Plans are to also offer a margarita flight so people can try multiple flavors, Heladio Jr. said.

The restaurant’s location has been home to several restaurants over the years, including Bullinger’s Restaurant & Pub, which closed in 2009 after more than 20 years.

The building was then purchased by the previous owners of The Crazy Cowboy, Kim and Hugo Gamez, in 2010 and became Hugo’s Bar and Grill, which also eventually closed.

More information and updates can be found on its Facebook page.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

ee shop

fills retail, latte void in downtown Lapeer

eLAPEER, MI ver had a homemade Pop-Tart? Here’s your chance.

Opened in spring 2021, CREAM is a coffee shop that specializes in gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan friendly alternatives.

But in addition to traditional coffee shop options, CREAM offers homemade pastries based off the owner’s grandmother’s recipe.

Samantha Warren, who owns the shop with her mother Nickol Schop, stumbled into the pastries by accident.

Suddenly, Warren and Schop found themselves without a baker after the previous one backed out. Warren had to

scramble.

“So I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, like, what are we going to do? Like, we are a coffee shop. We have to have something,’” Warren said.

Months later, on Small Business Saturday, Warren sold out 400 pastries. She does themed avors with different llings during every bake. Right now, CREAM is offering holiday themed pastries alongside favorites like cake and cookies and cream.

CREAM is located in downtown Lapeer on the corner of Nepessing and Court streets.

The business opened brie y before COVID-19 began in March 2020, but then shut down for a year while it found its place in the community.

“We kind of regrouped and thought about where we wanted CREAM to go and what we wanted it to be,” Warren said. Warren looked at the downtown Lapeer community and wanted to bring a calming-atmosphere coffee shop that doubles as a retail store.

More than 50 vendors, local and nationwide, are featured on the shelves in CREAM. Everything from Zingerman’s Candy to Camp Craft Cocktails to Public Goods care products are for sale.

It was important to Warren to ll a

retail void that she sees in downtown Lapeer, which has plenty of resale stores but not enough retail stores, in her opinion.

“I feel like we’ve got something for everyone. I feel pretty con dent in saying that” Warren said. Recently, the business has capitalized on some pop-up themed events that have brought hundreds to downtown

con dent in pop-up downtown Lapeer.

CREAM hosted a “Cereal Saturday” with themed drinks and pastries, Small Business Saturday goodie bags and is planning another pop-up for Valentine’s Day next year. The business has a handmade neon sign that reads “you want CREAM with that?” designed from Warren’s handwriting. She must have rewritten it “like 100 times,” Warren said. It’s just one part of the very carefully designed interior that Warren is proud of. In her free time, she works in interior design with partners through Instagram.

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