The Block — Restaurant in Detroit

We were in town for the Detroit Tigers opening day game and looking support black-owned businesses or restaurants. We found this place and we are not disappointed.

The hostess who greeted us when we walked in was all smiles and super friendly. She sat us on the side where the bar is but there was also a side with nothing but tables so if you didn't want to be near the bar you didn't have to be. There was plenty of light from the huge windows in the front.

The menu you access by scanning a QR code and it comes up as a PDF on your phone. The menu is a bit limited but I think that's so that they can focus on what they do well and that is definitely the wings!

The wings had some sweet chili on them and everybody was eating them so we had to try them and they were absolutely amazing! They were fried hard like we like them, super sticky and sweet, and not huge like you wonder what was done to them to make them grow so big. Haha.

The burger was delicious also; it was juicy and crunchy on the edges and a nice size especially considering it was like a $20 Burger (I took a star for this) . The prices were a bit high but you pay for the quality I guess.

I also got a drink called "Say Less" which the name alone cracks me up. It was lemonade raspberry and dusse. This drunk was $16. Good but the bartender has a heavy hand, FYI if you driving.

We also got something called shotgun shrimp which was similar to boom boom shrimp but not as saucy. Also great. Esp with these little things that look like cherries but they weren't there were some kind of pepper little red pepper. Yum!

Plenty of street parking. It's also within walking distance of Wayne State University and a bakery. There's lots of seating. The food came really fast and fresh. The walls are decorated in really cool art that it seems to be locally done as it references midtown and the cass corridor of Detroit.

I definitely plan to go back here and would urge anyone to stop by. Even on our way out the hostess asked us if we needed a bag and then bagged it for us ...we had two little boxes. Lol.

It was a really friendly inviting atmosphere and the food was great and I would come...

We had a very nice dinner on a Wednesday - we just missed happy hour, but would return for that! 3:30-6:30.

I like the vibe - lively with views of Woodward Ave. There is always an eclectic mix of people walking by. Our server Van was attentive and friendly, and made our special requests for us. Drinks and food came out fast, and they gave a very nice pour on my hubby's drink.

The food here is better than I expected. They have a rather small menu, but I think that works in their favor, because everything tasted really good. The wings looked a little dark, but were juicy on the inside and very flavorful - seasoned well and the homemade buffalo sauce was very yummy. They also have the good ranch here. Our salads were very fresh with nice spring mix and veggies, and my salmon and broccoli was seasoned and cooked absolutely perfectly. I didn't even ask for hot sauce. The salmon was smoky and juicy and tasted so good. And when I asked for double broccoli instead of potatoes, that wasn't a problem at all. It was really fresh and perfectly cooked - a very nice healthy dinner. My hubby had the double down burger and added bacon, and fries. The burger patty itself was actually seasoned and cooked really well with high quality meat. The homemade cheese sauce is dangerous! It's so good, you'll want to dip fries in that for sure. The fries were super crisp and seasoned; excellent fries. All in all, a very good meal.

I will say that their bathroom could have used a little cleaning, and the hallway leading to the restrooms has chairs lined up and looks like a storage area - not the vibe. This aspect keeps them from being a 5-star place.

That won't keep us from returning though. The food and service was excellent and we really appreciate the fresh ingredients and cooking skills here....

We had a bad experience! I made reservations for 5:30 PM, when we got there the place was almost empty. It was early for dinner. When we came in the host was on his phone texting and did not acknowledge us at all, other than throwing our menus on a table and never even making eye contact. The waitress came over, and was friendly at first. Once we ordered happy hour items we were later informed that we had to move in order to get the happy hour prices. We collected our items and moved 2 tables over to get the happy hour deals. While waiting we noticed another group of folks come in on their way to the Tigers game(this was a Friday night 7/28/17). That group was seated and they waited approximately 15 minutes to be served. Sadly they never got past waters and the group of 4 left out. At this point my friend and I had been there for an hour and still had not received our appetizers nor had we heard back from our waitress. We had to search the place for her. Once found, we cancelled our food and paid for our drinks and left. 6 people including myself and friend left the establishment that afternoon between 5:30 and 6:30 PM. I'm sure none of us will EVER return. Poor customer service is DEATH to an establishment, especially on a Tiger game night. We ended up going to Mexican Village where we were promptly waited on! The food came out in less than 10 minutes. A floor manager checked up on us and the staff there was friendly. Midtown Detroit must do better! I will never return to The Block, which is sad. The food on the other tables...