The Ultimate 24-Hour Staycation in Grand Rapids, Michigan

The staycation is the great workaround for when you need to get out of the confines of home, but can’t spring for a flight or take several days off work. Luckily for Detroiters, we live in Michigan — home to a wide variety of staycation options, ranging from Lake Michigan beach towns, the great unknown of the Upper Peninsula, the wine country of the Traverse City area, and yes, tons of ways to splurge right in our own backyard in Detroit.

Looking for ways to indulge in one of Michigan’s seriously underrated food scenes? Check out Grand Rapids. It’s just a two to three-hour drive from Detroit and makes for a nice midway point to the beach. Make this a practical trip and pack a large cooler that you can store in the backseat of your car, which will come handy for when you’ve scored some farm-fresh ingredients at Fulton Street Market or any of the other destination-worthy food vendors in town. You will be rewarded with food that’s been grown in the middle of one of the country’s pristine agricultural regions.

Eater Detroit visited Grand Rapids this year, in part to report on the Midwest’s growing nixtamal movement, and found a plethora of ways to enjoy the city through the lens of food and drink. Diverse options range from a modern Korean cafe that serves an incredible offering of bulgogi; an all-day Tex Mex diner that explores the intersection of Mexican and Michigan foodways; complex summertime sours from a century-old mechanic’s garage, turned breezy brewery; to an iconic hot dog joint that seems to combine some of the qualities of a classic Chicago dog with the chili-laden comforts of a Detroit coney. Obviously, there’s so much more to explore that a staycation may not be able to uncover, but if you’re looking for a fun overnight trip within a couple of hours driving distance from home or are headed elsewhere and are in need of some choice pitstops, here’s a weekender’s guide to staycationing in Grand Rapids.

Where to stay

Take in the breathtaking architectural gems of the city’s historic Heritage Hill neighborhood with an overnight stay at the Parsonage Inn, situated in a majestic 1882 Queen Anne-style home, within walking distance to the many restaurants, bars, bakeries, and cafes that line Wealthy Street. Or, if you’re looking to rake in those Hilton Honors rewards points, the Amway Grand Plaza, Curio Collection by Hilton is set in a 1920s-era building along the Grand River offers a number of convenient amenities, including several restaurants, bars, and cafes, as a duckpin bowling alley.

Friday

Before lights out the night before your trip, be sure to place your order of tortillas de nixtamal from Madre Masa & Tortillas. The co-founders of this online tortillería have embraced nixtamalization to make thick packages of tortillas made with locally-grown organic blue dent and yellow Wapsie that are available for sale, usually on a weekly basis. Each Friday, freshly made tortillas and masa are available for pickup for $8 for a 10-pack or $5 for a pound of masa. Check Madre Masa’s Instagram page in advance for precise ordering instructions. When you’re back home, use the masa to make your own tortillas, sopes, huaraches, or quesadillas hot off the comal, or score big on Taco Tuesday by making use of those durable and flavorful tortillas. Also, keep in mind you’ll need access to a refrigerator to keep your goods cool, so check with your hotel to make sure you’re covered in that respect.

Dinner and Drinks

Drop off your bags at the hotel and make your way to SpeakEZ Lounge for dinner and drinks, which offers a blend of Prohibition-era cocktails, shareable plates like house-made Argentinian-style chorizo with chimichurri crema, barbacoa tacos, and grilled sandwiches. The interior, adorned with the regalia of various world soccer teams, helps to set the stage for fútbol fans to gather and enjoy the big match.

Saturday

Breakfast and Coffee

Start the day with a plate of breakfast tacos from Basalt — an all-day diner that offers a fun interpretation for Tex-Mex. Owner Steven Martinez tells Eater that he grew up in the Houston area, but has lived in Michigan for several years. He wanted the menu at Basalt to be a reflection of his Texas roots and current Midwest home, starting with the tortillas used in the eatery for its creative tacos. The tortillas are made with nixtamalized corn — the pre-Hispanic process that transforms maize into masa — using varieties of heirloom corn imported from Mexico through Masienda, as well as a red corn from a farm in nearby Holland, Mich. These sturdy, earthy discs make for the perfect vessels for breakfast tacos like the Mommie Dearest, made with green chicken-chorizo or the vegan mushroom asada taco with locally grown oyster mushrooms and nixtamalized hominy. To drink, expect a variety of fun coffee beverages, such as the cinnamon and nutmeg-spiked Dirty Horchata that comes with a shot of espresso. Or perhaps you’re looking for a little punch of umami flavor. Kaffeine Place is a Korean-owned cafe and restaurant that, on top of offering a wide selection of lattes, matcha teas, and espresso beverages, includes a really impressive food menu. The bulgogi, in particular, is a local favorite. Thinly sliced marinated beef is ladled in a soy, onion, and ginger sauce and topped with a fried egg. Try it as a rice bowl, inside a burrito, or atop a crunchy piece of toasted Italian bread.

Serena Maria Daniels

Make a Stop at the Fulton Street Market

Get to know your local food producers and enjoy one of Michigan’s many historic farmer’s market spaces with a stop at Fulton Street Market. Grab your supply of locally-sourced vegetables for the week (you’ll be back home the next day anyway), take in some people watching, and do a little shopping from one of the artistic vendors on deck. Once you’ve secured your farmer’s market bounty, swing by Louise Earl Butcher, which specializes in whole animal butchery. Select from the shop’s deli meats, crackers, tinned fish, olives, and other snacks and turn lunch into a picnic at the Meijer-Shedleski Picnic Pavilion at the picturesque Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. Purchase tickets ahead of time to ensure a seamless visit.

John VanderHaagen/Meijer Gardens

An afternoon brew

Grand Rapids is known as Beer City USA to beer lovers from all over the country, drawn to attractions like the Winter Beer Festival organized by the Michigan Brewers Guild, which draws in more than 100 breweries. You’re bound to find plenty of options for light ales and lagers, IPAs, malty stouts, and hard seltzers and ciders no matter where you turn in the region. For a unique selection of sours from a secluded 101-year-old auto shop in an alley off of Wealthy Street, Speciation Artisan Ales & Native Species Winery is the place to be. Speciation is an exploration of the ways that species change over time, or in the case of the brews made here, it’s an examination in how beer can evolve. Owner Mitch Ermatinger tells Eater that Speciation utilizes the solera style of brewing, a process that involves perpetually blending each batch of sour beer inside oak tanks, allowing for the remnants of all previous batches to be incorporated into every new one. The result, a rotating selection of complex beers offering subtly fruity notes, such as the rhubarb and vanilla pastry-infused March of Progress, a sour that Eater Detroit tried during a May visit.

Snacktime

Now might be a good time for a leisurely walk along Wealthy Street, where you’ll find ample opportunities for a snack. For a taste of Mexico City, the Taquería Chilango food truck at 1119 Wealthy St SE offers tacos al pastor with pineapple hot off the trompo, specials such as tacos filled with tender cuts of cecina and crunchy shoestring french fries, tostadas loaded with chicken tinga, and quesadillas — with all tortillas for the tacos and the quesadillas made by hand. Or, for a bit of nostalgia, Yesterdog, an old-school hot dog spot at 1505 Wealthy St SE is almost a required stop for locals and out-of-towners alike. Visitors are expected to file into the space — covered in vintage posters and memorabilia — and place their hot dog orders first with a member of the team. Once everyone’s ordered their weenies, it’s time to select chips, followed drinks, if wanted. Then after that round of ordering is complete, it’s time to pay. Remember, this is a cash-only spot. To eat, order the Yesterdog — which offers the chili, onion, and yellow mustard that make the basis of a Detroit-style coney, plus ketchup and shredded dill pickle.

Myrth/Kevin Miyazaki

Dinner

It’s time to check out of the hotel and head home. But don’t leave before having dinner. If you’re staying at the Amway Grand Plaza, hit up MDRD, a Spanish restaurant situated on the 27th floor. Take in stunning views of the Grand River, while sharing tapas such as Galician-style grilled octopus and Spanish tortillas, or go big with an Iberian bone-in pork chop paired with Romesco sauce, citrus salad, and sherry vinaigrette. Or, make a stop at Myrth from chef Paul Berglund, who in 2016 won a James Beard Award for Best Chef Midwest for his work at The Bachelor Farmer in Minneapolis. At Myrth, you’ll find wood-fired pizza and pasta made in-house, in a bright, welcoming space accented with light greens and neutral tones. Berglund tells Eater that his kitchen uses flour sourced from two wheat purveyors, including the Midwest-based Janie’s Mill in Ashkum, Illinois, which mills its own flour using a stone mill. In addition to supplying the restaurant with much of its wheat and rye, Janie’s Mill also provides the restaurant with semolina flour sourced from the Great Plains area and Canada. This attention to the finer details of flour results in pizzas and pastas that offer a rustic depth of flavor and texture. Select from a wine list that leans into Italian and Californian regions or a cocktail made with locally-grown botanicals. Once your belly is adequately full, it’s time to drive home to Detroit. Time it just right and you’ll be home by 10 p.m.