Bobby Flay's Ann Arbor visit includes Mani Osteria, University of Michigan
This photo of Ann Arbor resident Talia Glass and celebrity chef Bobby Flay was snapped at Mani Osteria Sunday evening.
Photo courtesy of Talia Glass
Sunday afternoon, Flay tweeted that he and his daughter were at Zingerman's Deli. Then, perhaps following the advice of fellow celebrity chef Mario Batali, Flay was spotted dining at Mani Osteria Sunday evening. Batali has raved about — and tweeted from — both restaurants in the past.
Mani Osteria owner Adam Baru confirmed the visit by the Food Network star last night. Flay was especially taken with the charred octopus appetizer, and asked Chef Brendan McCall for the recipe, according to Baru.
Meanwhile, the Twitterverse is buzzing with reports of Bobby Flay spottings on the University of Michigan campus. It appears that he's in town for a campus tour with his daughter, Sophie.
Pastry Peddler Bakery and Cafe on Packard St. has issued Flay a challenge on Twitter, tweeting: "@bflay if you are still in Ann Arbor you should visit us! We are big fans!!!! We challenge you to an Almond Croissant Throwdown!"
Where would you send Bobby Flay for a good meal in Ann Arbor?
Jessica Webster leads the Food & Grocery section for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at JessicaWebster@annarbor.com. You also can follow her on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.
Comments
C'est la vie
Fri, Feb 22, 2013 : 2:49 p.m.
Zzzzz. Wake me up when Ludo Lefebvre comes to town. Qu'il est chaud!!!
a2miguy
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 4:38 p.m.
Bobby Flay is a hack. He gets regularly throttled on Iron Chef America.
a2miguy
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 8:17 p.m.
I should've cited his Throwdown show instead, where his record is 32-68-1. All hail Wikipedia.
a2miguy
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 8:08 p.m.
All in one's perspective, buckley. I would exactly call a 70% winning percentage stellar, either. He's lost roughly 3 out of every 10. Some would call that as having regularity attached to it.
buckley
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 6:50 p.m.
His record on Iron Chef is 39 W, 16 L and 2 Draws. Not what I would call regularly throttled.
dancinginmysoul
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 11:21 a.m.
It would be really nice if the "outside world" realized there is a lot more to Ann Arbor then Zingerman's and The U.
mady
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 3:26 p.m.
too right! Mr. Flay, if you want a taste of A2, I suggest the Hippie Breakfast or the half 'n half burger at the Fleetwood or is this not fancy enough for your tastes....?
seldon
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 1:34 p.m.
Sure you want them to? Zingerman's and the U get pretty overcrowded.
CynicA2
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 7:21 a.m.
Whoop-dee-doo! Send him to Knight's for a good steak, and then, buh-bye! This obsession with food and restaurants is really tiresome. Degenerate, and bourgeois - just like the current rendition of A2... bleecchh!
JRW
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 3:08 a.m.
Unfortunately, when a well-known TV chef visits an AA restaurant, the food he receives is very different from the food everyone else receives..........Guess who gets the top shelf food!
leezee
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 2:24 a.m.
Bobby, please, please......so many great places and everyone does Zingerman's. Depart from the pack and try something else.
Jim
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 11:35 p.m.
the earle
Jessica Webster
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 4:04 p.m.
Love the food at the Earle!
Dutchy734
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 3:03 p.m.
1982 is calling and wants its menu back
KIKIPIE
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 1:22 p.m.
It's the best food and the best deal in town!
Stephen Landes
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 11:07 p.m.
Send him to Knight's.
fjord
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 10:49 a.m.
Knight's? Really? They're good at what they do, but the menu is as boring as boring gets.
a2roots
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 2:21 a.m.
Knight's is good but certainly not the place for culinary gurus.
TheDiagSquirrel
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 10:09 p.m.
I wonder if he was as big of a tipper as Bill Ford was.
Jessica Webster
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:14 p.m.
I'd like to do a hamburger tour with him, hitting Blimpy, Zingerman's Roadhouse, Casey's, Sidetrack, Jolly Pumpkin, and Grange.
Lizzy Alfs
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 2:37 p.m.
@Jessica: Ok, I found this interesting - yesterday, I was interviewing the five Knight siblings and Bob Knight (from the market) was talking about what makes their meat special. Obviously, I'm a vegetarian, so I know very little about quality meat. But he was kind of (albeit, jokingly) scoffing at the whole "grass fed" thing. Apparently it tastes way differently?
Jessica Webster
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 3:40 a.m.
@An Arborigine - that's a lot for two burgers and two drinks, especially considering that the burger and fries are $13.95. Really expensive glass of wine? You should try going on Mondays, when your $13.95 will get you a salad along with your burger, and draft beers are $1.50 off. I was disappointed when the Roadhouse took their $9.95 Niman burger off the menu, but I do appreciate that the Cornman Farms burgers are grass-fed and locally and humanely raised, and they taste really good (in my opinion, in any case.) I just finally made the trek to Miller's in Dearborn for a burger over the weekend. Delicious!
zanzerbar
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 2:29 a.m.
@ An Arborigine $58.00...is that a typo.
Boo Radley
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 10:38 p.m.
Jessica ... great list except for the Roadhouse. Although that might be the only one you would get Chef Flay to set foot in.
An Arborigine
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 10:09 p.m.
@Jessica, you could have great burgers at Blimpy, Sidetrack and Casey's for the same price as a mediocre one at Zing Roadhouse. Friend and I went there, two cheeseburgers w/fries, one beer one glass wine, tab=$58! Not even close to that of the others above.
Jessica Webster
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:16 p.m.
How could I forget the Bunyan Burger at the Chick Inn?
a2roots
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:12 p.m.
The Grange
Brad
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 11:18 p.m.
The Grange - yum.
Jessica Webster
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:18 p.m.
That's on my list too, a2roots. I think Bobby and Chef Brandon would get along very well.
say it plain
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:01 p.m.
Okay, okay, already! Now we know he's not here to sample the exquisite (ha) cuisine AA has to offer, but to check out UM for his kid...can we let it rest with that info?! Not sure, but I'd guess whether Sophie comes here or goes elsewhere for college will have little to do with Flay's evaluations of the ambient appetizers....
say it plain
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 8:33 p.m.
Yeah, @Upperdecker; don't have a prob with their including that info, that's what they're supposed to do, being reporters. I get tired of the "lookie who we saw around town" thing as 'news'. Indeed, this news-gathering organization established that Flay was in AA to check out UM with his kid, so my point was that maybe now we can let the ooh, ooh, check out *my* favorite restaurant Mr. Flay thing drop, was all.
UpperDecker
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 4:07 p.m.
Maybe they thought if that info was not included everyone would have asked "Why is Bobby in town?" Seems to make sense to me.
Soothslayer
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 8:55 p.m.
Mani Osteria, Cafe Zola, Blue Nile or Frita Batidos. That's about it. The rest is more hype, less on everything else.
operabethie
Tue, Feb 19, 2013 : 12:48 a.m.
no way, no how, dude!
fjord
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:58 p.m.
I've eaten Ethiopian food all over this country, and Blue Nile is possibly my least favorite of all the Ethiopian restaurants I've tried.
seldon
Mon, Feb 18, 2013 : 9:32 p.m.
Blue Nile's got great service and the food is good food, but you're unlikely to be excited about it if you've been to Ethiopian places in major cities that have them like DC. It's toned down for American tastes.