This review is for the coffee window! It is INCREDIBLE that they changed their hours so they open at 8:30 AM. I am really hoping they continue to do so throughout the fall and winter. The staff members who work the window in the morning are so nice, generous with the dog treats and make a mean iced americano at a super reasonable price! I will keep coming here multiple times a week as long as they open early.
Nicolas Fereday
Once a favorite, it seems like EMBC is selling out the Ferndale project brand. We have walked out twice this summer due to a lack of food or beer. First weekend was when they got distribution and there were only 2 beers on tap because, as the bartender told us “they sold all our kegs.” Then this weekend we went in and the beer was back, but their once fantastic food selection was mostly X-ed out on the menu and down to just a selection of pizzas. No brunch, no more handhelds. A true shame they have seemingly forgotten the neighborhood that made the place.
Rotull
Great place! Especially if you have young kids, they have an area where they can play which is awesome. Shrip tacos and french fries were delicious.
Abbie Balmer
Please bring back your brunch menu! I showed up Saturday morning with the kids and we left because there were no food options. Love this place but this family can’t survive Saturday mornings on coffee alone!
Margeau Hogan
Lovely atmosphere for a happy hour, team outing or alternative place to WFH during the day. Could even see this being a good place for parents & kids. There were many open tables inside and outside. The food was great - especially the burger and fries. Wasn’t crazy about the pizza but it’s just because I tend to like my square slice a little less deep than this (like comos).
Sam Kane
I was really looking forward to trying this place with my girlfriend after seeing great things on TikTok — the menu looked delicious and we were excited to support a local spot. Unfortunately, the experience didn’t live up to expectations.
I ordered the pulled pork sandwich and chicken tenders and received a buzzer to let me know when the food was ready. When it went off, I walked up to pick up the order, but was told it wasn’t mine and that the buzzer had been activated by mistake. I was confused, as the order matched exactly what I had purchased. My girlfriend ended up going up herself and had to push a bit to get someone to double-check — only then did a staff member confirm it was, in fact, our food.
The food itself was fine, but it was frustrating to have to advocate so hard just to receive what we paid for — especially after tipping and spending over $30. I think a little more attention to communication and customer service would go a long way. I’m still open to giving this place another try down the road, but I hope this feedback helps improve the experience for others.
Chris McTaggart
Asked to tip 20%+ but absolutely no service. Order at bar. Pick up food yourself. Bus your own tray. Food and drink prices do not match quality or expectation to do everything but cook your own food. Beer is fine to good. Food the same.
The expectation of the consumer to do all the work and pay a premium was born out of the pandemic, and it is a service model that will die. Will this restaurant figure it out before it’s too late?
Edward Aube
The food was good. This would be a great place for a group of people as a headboth inside and outside seating.
Joe Proper
Every single aspect of my first time here was terrible.
Min Qin
I’m sorry, I had to update my rating after the Nashville hot tofu sandwich disappeared and then came back to the menu. Four years ago, I loved it, and my best friend who now lives in Korea introduced me to the tofu sandwich. So it’s a very precious memory between us. I was very sad when I saw it disappeared from the menu, and couldn’t be more exciting when I hear it had came back. So of course I came back today. But I’m sorry it was very disappointing. It only had flavor of frank hot sauce which is super sour, and no other flavor at all, not even savory. The slaw came with it was also sour, so did the pickle. So after the whole meal, I left with full mouth of sourness. I’m not saying I need the exact item back, but it needs to taste like Nashville hot, not classic frank hot.
BUT my bf had the burger and it was awesome. Loved it. Me who doesn’t really drink, enjoyed the key lime sour very much. The vibe is dope as always, service is amazing. We were super excited when we heard you guys are going into grocery stores!!! There are still tons of amazingness here. I just have to let you know about this tofu s’wich since it’s one of my favorites memory with my best friend!!
I’ve seen some of the other reviews and I can only speak to the vibes and the beers that we had. The selection of sours was amazing and they were all so tasty it was hard to pick one! So…we had two and then took some home! We do a lot of brewery stops so this was a cool vibe place, and I had no issues with the bar staff. I would definitely recommend this place to friends and family.
chris watts
Are you surprised that racism of abounds at a place that gentrified the name “projects” to open a drinking establishment?
This place is not safe for sober queer femmes experiencing gender based violence. I’d say it’s not safe for POC but as long as you don’t talk back to the white guy in charge you’ll be fine.
I was sitting outside yesterday and there were two very loud seemingly WHITE and femme presenting people siting talking loudly about their political views.
I left shortly after the long person with dark hair made rude comments about cops and yelling about drama.
I get it. It’s a public space and a lot of us maybe are working from home or visiting from other places.
But Jesus Christ, there was a reason nobody else was on the patio and it’s because these two people made the white queer space so uncomfortable for anyone else .
I left shortly after I saw the white owner called the cops on a woman who got harassed in the bathroom . I didn’t get her name, but I’m sure she’ll be OK.
As for the fences outside, I hope they learn to control their volume because I heard one of them say that she was not white and that was half her issue that people just keep thinking she’s white .
It’s so strange to be in Detroit and actually from Detroit and experience so much aggression and passive racism from white people who are in the space as a loud “guest”
But that’s why racist people say it’s not about race when they’re being loud and entitled in spaces because they paid enough to be there so they won’t ever have to worry about why men harassing them.
Anyway, I literally left because of those two people unnamed individuals were so loud outside.
I just want to sit in peace in the shade and they definitely ruined it and I feel bad for the woman who got sexually harassed in the bathroom twice.
Red Run
Go for brunch, get a coffee, some food, relax, browse the internet, play board games, etc. Plenty of variety. A quirky , fun, experimental, artistic vibe atmosphere, unique for a Cafe/Brewery
Spark
The fries and pretzels were amazing. The pizza has a nice crisp to it and a spicy red sauce that was delicious!
Aidan Holmgren
Absolutely one of the worst experiences of eating out I’ve ever had. The food was unseasoned and bland, the water tasted like chlorine, and the lemonade had bugs and floaters in it. The pizza was the only palatable food there, and even that was extremely underwhelming. My grandpa was yelled at too for setting the food trays in the wrong area, even though there was a stack of trays there, which is extremely unacceptable. My whole family came and not one of them liked their food. We will not be coming to eat here again.
This review is for the coffee window! It is INCREDIBLE that they changed their hours so they open at 8:30 AM. I am really hoping they continue to do so throughout the fall and winter. The staff members who work the window in the morning are so nice, generous with the dog treats and make a mean iced americano at a super reasonable price! I will keep coming here multiple times a week as long as they open early.
Once a favorite, it seems like EMBC is selling out the Ferndale project brand. We have walked out twice this summer due to a lack of food or beer. First weekend was when they got distribution and there were only 2 beers on tap because, as the bartender told us “they sold all our kegs.” Then this weekend we went in and the beer was back, but their once fantastic food selection was mostly X-ed out on the menu and down to just a selection of pizzas. No brunch, no more handhelds. A true shame they have seemingly forgotten the neighborhood that made the place.
Great place! Especially if you have young kids, they have an area where they can play which is awesome. Shrip tacos and french fries were delicious.
Please bring back your brunch menu! I showed up Saturday morning with the kids and we left because there were no food options. Love this place but this family can’t survive Saturday mornings on coffee alone!
Lovely atmosphere for a happy hour, team outing or alternative place to WFH during the day. Could even see this being a good place for parents & kids. There were many open tables inside and outside. The food was great - especially the burger and fries. Wasn’t crazy about the pizza but it’s just because I tend to like my square slice a little less deep than this (like comos).
I was really looking forward to trying this place with my girlfriend after seeing great things on TikTok — the menu looked delicious and we were excited to support a local spot. Unfortunately, the experience didn’t live up to expectations.
I ordered the pulled pork sandwich and chicken tenders and received a buzzer to let me know when the food was ready. When it went off, I walked up to pick up the order, but was told it wasn’t mine and that the buzzer had been activated by mistake. I was confused, as the order matched exactly what I had purchased. My girlfriend ended up going up herself and had to push a bit to get someone to double-check — only then did a staff member confirm it was, in fact, our food.
The food itself was fine, but it was frustrating to have to advocate so hard just to receive what we paid for — especially after tipping and spending over $30. I think a little more attention to communication and customer service would go a long way. I’m still open to giving this place another try down the road, but I hope this feedback helps improve the experience for others.
Asked to tip 20%+ but absolutely no service. Order at bar. Pick up food yourself. Bus your own tray. Food and drink prices do not match quality or expectation to do everything but cook your own food. Beer is fine to good. Food the same.
The expectation of the consumer to do all the work and pay a premium was born out of the pandemic, and it is a service model that will die. Will this restaurant figure it out before it’s too late?
The food was good. This would be a great place for a group of people as a headboth inside and outside seating.
Every single aspect of my first time here was terrible.
I’m sorry, I had to update my rating after the Nashville hot tofu sandwich disappeared and then came back to the menu.
Four years ago, I loved it, and my best friend who now lives in Korea introduced me to the tofu sandwich. So it’s a very precious memory between us. I was very sad when I saw it disappeared from the menu, and couldn’t be more exciting when I hear it had came back.
So of course I came back today. But I’m sorry it was very disappointing. It only had flavor of frank hot sauce which is super sour, and no other flavor at all, not even savory. The slaw came with it was also sour, so did the pickle. So after the whole meal, I left with full mouth of sourness. I’m not saying I need the exact item back, but it needs to taste like Nashville hot, not classic frank hot.
BUT my bf had the burger and it was awesome. Loved it. Me who doesn’t really drink, enjoyed the key lime sour very much. The vibe is dope as always, service is amazing.
We were super excited when we heard you guys are going into grocery stores!!! There are still tons of amazingness here. I just have to let you know about this tofu s’wich since it’s one of my favorites memory with my best friend!!
Restaurantji Recommends
I’ve seen some of the other reviews and I can only speak to the vibes and the beers that we had. The selection of sours was amazing and they were all so tasty it was hard to pick one! So…we had two and then took some home! We do a lot of brewery stops so this was a cool vibe place, and I had no issues with the bar staff. I would definitely recommend this place to friends and family.
Are you surprised that racism of abounds at a place that gentrified the name “projects” to open a drinking establishment?
This place is not safe for sober queer femmes experiencing gender based violence. I’d say it’s not safe for POC but as long as you don’t talk back to the white guy in charge you’ll be fine.
I was sitting outside yesterday and there were two very loud seemingly WHITE and femme presenting people siting talking loudly about their political views.
I left shortly after the long person with dark hair made rude comments about cops and yelling about drama.
I get it. It’s a public space and a lot of us maybe are working from home or visiting from other places.
But Jesus Christ, there was a reason nobody else was on the patio and it’s because these two people made the white queer space so uncomfortable for anyone else .
I left shortly after I saw the white owner called the cops on a woman who got harassed in the bathroom . I didn’t get her name, but I’m sure she’ll be OK.
As for the fences outside, I hope they learn to control their volume because I heard one of them say that she was not white and that was half her issue that people just keep thinking she’s white .
It’s so strange to be in Detroit and actually from Detroit and experience so much aggression and passive racism from white people who are in the space as a loud “guest”
But that’s why racist people say it’s not about race when they’re being loud and entitled in spaces because they paid enough to be there so they won’t ever have to worry about why men harassing them.
Anyway, I literally left because of those two people unnamed individuals were so loud outside.
I just want to sit in peace in the shade and they definitely ruined it and I feel bad for the woman who got sexually harassed in the bathroom twice.
Go for brunch, get a coffee, some food, relax, browse the internet, play board games, etc. Plenty of variety. A quirky , fun, experimental, artistic vibe atmosphere, unique for a Cafe/Brewery
The fries and pretzels were amazing. The pizza has a nice crisp to it and a spicy red sauce that was delicious!
Absolutely one of the worst experiences of eating out I’ve ever had. The food was unseasoned and bland, the water tasted like chlorine, and the lemonade had bugs and floaters in it. The pizza was the only palatable food there, and even that was extremely underwhelming. My grandpa was yelled at too for setting the food trays in the wrong area, even though there was a stack of trays there, which is extremely unacceptable. My whole family came and not one of them liked their food. We will not be coming to eat here again.
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