My spouse and I visited Joe Muer Seafood for dinner with two
friends on a Sunday evening in early July 2017. The restaurant serves lunch on
weekdays and dinner daily. We reserved our table using the online Open Table
reservation system. Joe Muer Seafood is part of the Andiamo Restaurant Group,
with a location Downtown and another in Bloomfield Hills. The restaurant has received
many awards over the years, including “Best View”, “Best Service”, and “Best
Seafood”.
The original Muer’s restaurant opened near Eastern Market in
1929 and closed almost 70 years later, before it was re-located and re-opened
in one of the towers of the General Motors (Marriott) Renaissance Center in
2012. (The current space previously housed the restaurant Seldom Blues.) The
restaurant space faces the Detroit River, so you must pass through the maze of
building lobbies to access it. Your effort is rewarded with excellent views of the
river, Windsor Ontario, the Ambassador Bridge, and Caesars casino.
(Alternatively, it seems that you can reach the restaurant from Atwater Street
preceding the RiverWalk.)
The restaurant space is expansive, offering seating in the
main Riverfront Room, or at one of the many bars (traditional drinks bar in the
Joe Muer Lounge, Sushi Bar, Raw Bar, or Piano Bar). For a special experience,
you can dine at “Joe’s Table”, which offers views of the kitchen. You can also
dine outdoors on the small terrace. The Ship Room is available for private
dining. The décor is contemporary yet reminiscent of the retro 1960s, with
large windows, dark wood, white tablecloths, and elegant place settings
decorating its many tables and booths. Strategically placed mirrors reflect the
outdoors for those seated on the less preferential side of the table so that
every patron can enjoy the view.
As its name implies, seafood is the focus at Joe Muer
(although the chef also offers a selection of meat and poultry entrees). After
we were seated, our waiter delivered a basket filled with three bread options,
accompanied by a dish of shell-shaped butter, tiny ramekins filled with a
smoked fish spread, and a bowl of white bean salad. (The bread, butter, and
spreads were good, but we found the offering of beans strange.) Next, as
appetizers, we shared the blue crab balls (which our thoughtful waiter recommended
adding a fourth piece to the usual order of three) and the fried calamari (both
rings and whole “critters” served with a lemon butter caper sauce rather than
the usual red cocktail condiment). One of us ordered a wedge salad, which our
server offered to cut for him, so we never saw the actual wedge but instead
received a plate of tossed salad; the only disappointment of the meal). We
ordered a variety of seafood entrees (including the barramundi, trout,
flounder, and monkfish), each presented nicely. At the end of our meal, without
asking (which is clever, because it did not give us an opportunity to refuse),
our waiter wheeled a dessert cart in front of us, from which we chose the
signature coconut cake (amazing!) and a chocolate lava cake. Again
thoughtfully, our waiter offered two wine tastings to accompany the desserts.
We enjoyed a great dinner at Joe Muer Seafood – the food was
tasty, the service was terrific, and the view was excellent!
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