Food + Drink

Fancy yourself a chef? The West Michigan Whitecaps are once again calling on fans to contribute ideas for its 2018 concessions menu.

With January’s slow, nothing-to-celebrate slump settling in, I was looking for an experience to set the tone for the new year ahead. I craved a getaway or staycation that catered to exciting the senses—something my husband and I could enjoy together in our own town, on our own time.

In addition to its beers, HopCat has gained a reputation for having some of the most addictive fries in town, so it’s no surprise really that the restaurant is hosting a crack fries eating contest to commemorate its 10 year anniversary.

The first thing you see when you enter Littlebird is the bar.

Promising to warm your belly during the cold days ahead, a downtown restaurant is launching a whiskey league.

A family-owned winery in Traverse City is just waiting on the final stamp from the State of Michigan to open its new tasting lounge, kitchen and retail space in downtown Grand Rapids.

When Sapporo Ramen & Noodle Bar opens on Saturday at 5570 SE 28th Street, it’s owners hope there will be a regular sound of slurping as patrons enjoy their meals.

You’ll want to head to Alger Heights after work Thursday, Jan. 11 to check out the Brass Ring Brewing, which opens its doors at 4 p.m. for its official grand opening celebration.

"Butcher’s Union is a place where you can get a square meal and a stiff drink at an affordable price.”

In case you missed any of GR|MAG's chef demos this year, we've compiled them here. Check out these talented chefs at work, and if you're daring enough, give one of their recipes a try.

GR|MAG can’t think of a better pairing than beer and donuts and thankfully, neither can the Grand Rapids Public Museum.

Choose from 25 different Brewery Vivant beers this week during the Brewery Vivant Holiday Extravaganza.

Meet the new kids on the block. Grand Rapids has a blossoming culinary scene that continues to grow year over year. Increasingly, we’re seeing chefs take tasting expeditions to the regions their menu highlights, from the Basque Region of Spain to America’s low country coastline.

Our sister publication Grand Rapids Magazine recently set out to find the city’s most Instagrammable cocktails. One of its finds is the Smoked Old Fashioned from Amway’s recently opened Rendezvous bar. The cocktail is a fun spin on the classic Old Fashioned, which it turns out, is the original cocktail.

Butcher’s Union is one of the hottest restaurants in town these days; even at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, the dining room is bustling. GR|MAG asked executive chef Alexis Rocha to share how he and his family will be spending the Christmas holiday and most importantly – what will be on their plates.

Basque Country is nestled in the north of Spain near the western border of France. The autonomous community sits at the foot of the Bay of Biscay and celebrates a culinary culture that’s unique to mainstream exported Spanish cuisine.

Ever wonder what Grand Rapids’ chefs do for the holidays? GR|MAG spoke with chef Jenna Arcidiacono, of Amore Trattoria Italiana, to find out what she’ll be cooking this year.

Matchbox Diner and Drinks owner and executive chef Eric Chaitin knows the Grand Rapids food scene better than most. Originally from the North Shore of Chicago, he served as the executive chef at Rose's on Reeds Lake and later at the Watermark Country Club. He’s since snapped up West Michigan favorites like Ottawa Beach Inn in Holland and the dockside Mermaid Bar and Grill in Saugatuck.

While it’s not the first restaurant to offer poke bowls in Grand Rapids, Wikiwiki Poke Shop is the first to put the popular Hawaiian cuisine front and center on its menu.

A brewery along the lakeshore announced today that it is relocating into a larger location.