Anno Dominick’s
Of all the places (you’d need the better part of one hand to count them!) to eat a delicious lunch in A2, The Boston Globe recommends “Dominick’s … an Italian cafe inside an old house with a fountain on its backyard plaza.” Is Dominick’s really known for its food?
Apparently it is in Boston.
posted by tom brandt on August 17th, 2007 at 11:47 am eI will confess to being fond of Dominick’s, but even I know better than to order food there.
posted by Larry Kestenbaum on August 17th, 2007 at 11:51 am ehuh? no mention of zingerman’s?
posted by kdl on August 17th, 2007 at 11:52 am echicken grande quesadilla…mmmmm
pizza
posted by Anonymous on August 17th, 2007 at 12:22 pm ePerhaps they recommended it for its ambiance and character, since that’s what the writer focuses on (there’s no actual mention of the food). It is particularly pleasant during lunch.
Haute cuisine is not my forte–chili cheese fries at Red Hot Lovers is my perfect food–but I have to disagree with Larry. The food at Dominick’s is not bad–it’s just not particularly worthy of mention in The Boston Globe.
posted by Chris H. on August 17th, 2007 at 12:23 pm eI’ve had to give them up, but as far as I’m concerned they sell the only real “Italian Sandwich” (read sub) in town. At least the only one that tastes like Roxbury ‘65, the best sandwich I ever had.
posted by a2oldie on August 17th, 2007 at 12:33 pm eThe food’s better than the beverages there … and the clientele … and the atmosphere … and the servers. So yeah, my favorite part of Dominick’s is the food, I guess.
posted by RDS on August 17th, 2007 at 12:44 pm eI love the pizza at Dominick’s but I’ve never been able to tell if that’s because it’s really good or because I have several jars of sangria in me already by the time the pizza arrives.
Man, now I want some sangria.
posted by srah on August 17th, 2007 at 12:52 pm eI’ve gone to Dominick’s many times for lunch, some of the food is great. I like the pasta dishes, soups (pretty good clam chowder, decent gazpacho), and some great sandwiches (Italian ham and cheese is all the magic of italian porks). The bonus of lunch is that it’s generally not too crowded–a nice relaxing outdoor lunch.
The sangria is pretty much the worst thing there, but thankfully they generally several excellent tap beers.
posted by bill merrill on August 17th, 2007 at 12:59 pm eThe writer didn’t say he EATS lunch, you know, but the Italian sub is very good. It is a point that Dominick’s does have a view of the exterior view of the Gothic law quadrangle, but it is primarily the Gothic Loading Dock and Gothic Triangular Hole in the Ground that you see from there.
posted by Nitro on August 17th, 2007 at 1:13 pm eOkay, I have to disagree and say that the food at Dominick’s is pretty much not good.
posted by Jordan on August 17th, 2007 at 2:16 pm eAlthough, echoing previous sentiments, at least the food does not contain MD 20/20 and leave you with a three-day headache, like that most famous of Dominick’s beverages. And at lunch they probably don’t have the “It’s ten o’clock get the hell out” siren.” That thing sucks.
Does it really matter that much what kind of wine you use for sangria? I always thought it tasted OK, and it’s never given me a headache (much less a 3-day one) but maybe I just haven’t attempted that quantity.
The food seems uneven more than bad. I have some things I’ve ordered there and liked. There’s a couple other items on the menu that have been disappointing, or just dramatically different on different days.
The “atmosphere” is even more uneven than the food, even though it’s the main reason to go. Sometimes it’s very pleasant, others it’s a total zoo. Probably I just don’t know when to go.
Mainly I wish we had liquor laws that were a little more lenient about drinking in public places, and then everyone that wanted to have some sangria with their friends on a summer evening wouldn’t be crammed into the same few approved locations. Oh well.
posted by Bruce Fields on August 17th, 2007 at 8:53 pm eIt occurs to me that my impression of Dominick’s food as terrible was formed more than ten years ago, so it may be out of date.
posted by Larry Kestenbaum on August 17th, 2007 at 9:14 pm e“Does it really matter that much what kind of wine you use for sangria?”
No. But the problem is that Maddog isn’t just wine. It’s bad wine fortified with crappy brandy, with artificial flavors and high fructose corn syrup added for good measure.
posted by todd on August 17th, 2007 at 10:00 pm eGood Lord, Todd! Did you have to reveal that? I was semi-content in my ignorance of thoes ingredients.
posted by Louis on August 17th, 2007 at 11:22 pm eSorry, Louis. I shouldn’t have written that.
I will write this, though. I love Dominick’s. Run by a truly great Ann Arbor family.
posted by todd on August 18th, 2007 at 12:05 am eI love Dominicks. My love of Dominicks may be influenced by the fact that a girl was I enamoured with in college and I went there all the time.
I liked the spiced shrimp, and the pizza, but mainly I like the atmosphere and the beer. It’s an A2 treasure.
posted by PeteM on August 18th, 2007 at 2:41 pm eOccasionally, some of the pasta is really good for lunch. I have had the crab/lobster ravioli and the tortellini Alfredo and am usually pretty happy.
posted by peter on August 19th, 2007 at 1:49 pm eI gotta say, I think the food at Dominicks is some of the best in town. I like the pizza, the quesadillas are good, the tuna fish sub is great as are the other sandwiches, the soups are good, and the appetizers are some of the most interesting in town. Their food is interesting, they actually make most of it there, it is tasty, and they have a real oven so everything isn’t just Sysco food reheated in a microwave. They have a good selection of beer, a few bottles of reasonably-priced wine, and the sangria seems less harsh this year. Even their lemonade is better than in most places. Dominicks really shines at lunch when it isn’t so crowded and you can sit in back, relax, and enjoy a hot summer’s afternoon.
posted by Juliew on August 19th, 2007 at 7:51 pm eI’ve never been able to completely get over the sweaty tank-topped service guys at Dominick’s. It would be tolerable if they were 1) civil; or 2) less hirsute.
posted by cdog on August 20th, 2007 at 2:11 pm eSangria. It is horrible, and delicious all at one. I have fond memories of those hang-overs, tempered with bee-bim-bop and a large Coke at Steve’s Lunch.
posted by Scott on August 20th, 2007 at 8:51 pm eDominick’s Italian Sub = Awesome
posted by koward on August 21st, 2007 at 11:57 am eYou say “sweaty tank-topped service guys” and “hirsute” as if they were bad things.
The food is better than the sangria. I mostly associate Dominick’s with “a place its easy to drink if you’re under 21″ but maybe that’s changed somewhat.
Makes me think I should have lunch at Dominick’s sometime…
posted by Brian on August 21st, 2007 at 3:24 pm eNever mind Dominicks…….how is it that, in a town that loves to brag about its culinary options, I cannot find a decent Chinese, Mexican, Italian or French restaurant? The food in Ann Arbor is expensive and it sucks. (Except for Zingerman’s…although it does require its customers to take out a home equity loan in order to afford anything on the menu.)
posted by Constantly Hungry on August 21st, 2007 at 7:08 pm eI agree with Constantly Hungry. The quality of food in this town is consistently mediocre.
posted by OWSider on August 21st, 2007 at 7:51 pm eThe thing that continues to astonish me is how people rave about the food here. Like they have so many terrific choices.
posted by a2oldie on August 22nd, 2007 at 8:09 am eno offense, but mentioning eve and the earle in the same breath is a mistake. while eve doesn’t always hit her mark with every dish, at least she does most of the time while being creative, inventive and, best yet, evolving. (also an apt description of the folks at logan). the earle menu is fit for franchising - stagnant and in no place in it better than o.k. it wouldn’t last a minute in a town with real food options. if you want this type of fare done right, pay the few extra dollars and hit up the west end grill. and please don’t call paesano’s italian — i am one and its insulting. reasonably executed nuevo cuisine with lots of tomatoes and cheese does not italian make. head out to windsor some afternoon. there’s italian food there.
posted by oh jesus on August 22nd, 2007 at 9:48 am eConstantly Hungry (and others) hit the nail on the head. If I see one more Thai, Arabic, or Indian food restaurant, I will weep. (Before anyone starts–this is not a complaint about the cultures…I just don’t care for the food). I’d appreciate a nice Mexican restaurant (like Don Carlos–I thought that place was good, and reasonably priced), another Greek restaurant (I loved the Pegasus), a reasonably priced sandwich shop (Zing’s is way out of the budget for us) and hell–a good ol’ American restaurant (Roadhouse, again, is out of our budget).
I think I could almost tolerate the lame choices, except that everyone runs around raving about the Main Street restaurants like they invented food….
posted by Another Townie on August 22nd, 2007 at 9:57 am eAA Townie, are you CM?
Why do I feel like I just wrote a CL “missed connection”?
posted by peter on August 22nd, 2007 at 3:02 pm eHmmm, this thread has apparently lost a bunch of comments, which makes it hard to follow.
posted by Larry Kestenbaum on August 22nd, 2007 at 4:36 pm eMan, you know what I had on Saturday? These amazing vegan corn and black bean tacos from Real Food Daily. And on Friday, I had some kung pao vegetarian chicken (and some of the best fake chicken nuggets I’ve ever had) at California Vegan. At both places, I paid less than I usually did for, say, dinner at Seva’s.
I’m rubbing it in, especially since so many people were like, “Man, LA’s going to be so expensive for you!”
On the other hand, speaking of things that I do miss, how would I go about getting your gin out here, Todd? It’s one of a handful of things from Michigan that I really do miss (most of them are booze, weirdly enough— there’s no good beer here).
posted by js on August 22nd, 2007 at 5:21 pm eOh, and folks— there are a bunch of decent Chinese places, though no great Mexican (Sabor’s C+ at best), and you’re fucked on Italian and French.
But Don Carlos sucked ass. The only good thing about that place was getting drunk on margaritas underage.
posted by js on August 22nd, 2007 at 5:24 pm eI must like the taste of ass then, JS
We have gone to Los Tres Amigos, but it’s near the mall and you get all of the mall traffic that goes along with it.
I will say that there is a good Chinese restaurant on the SE side of Ann Arbor, called Miss Saigon. They also have Vietnamese food, which I haven’t tried….
posted by Another Townie on August 22nd, 2007 at 6:35 pm eNo, no, you really want to go to Ypsi— La Fiesta Mexicana is the best Mexican before Detroit. And they had a couple taquerias out there that were pretty dece too. Is that Vietnamese place still open on Michigan? They were pretty tops, despite having a limited menu.
And I liked Chia Sheng out on Packard.
posted by js on August 22nd, 2007 at 7:29 pm eJS, you should check out the Craftsman Brewery beers made up in Pasadena. But yeah, California is a bit more wine-centric than MI.
And you’re echoing something I remember saying A LOT when I lived in A2: I always ate better in LA for far less money.
posted by Nick on August 22nd, 2007 at 7:29 pm eMiddle Kingdom is far and away the best Chinese food in A2*, but it will cost you. And they have no booze. So I would always get take out
(*=not exactly a rave review in any case)
I too will stock up on some Leopold’s gin on my next trip to the deuce in early september.
JS, have you been to Señor Fish in Glendale? My fave LA treat, though I haven’t been in a few years.
Plenty o cheap and good stuff here in nyc, but life is a bit tougher in these parts (thus the craving for gin, ha-ha)
posted by (former) OFWinsurgent on August 22nd, 2007 at 10:18 pm eafter spending three summers in Champaign-Urbana I will never complain about Ann Arbor food again. Although, each visit to UIUC the food has improved.
posted by christina on August 23rd, 2007 at 10:45 am eOFWi— Nah, I’m a vegetarian, so while I’ve heard about it, I’ve not been. It’s also in Glendale, man, which is, like, an hour from where I am. Thumbs down!
Still doin’ PR?
posted by js on August 23rd, 2007 at 6:28 pm eThe best thing I can say about A2 food is…
Le dog
Quick, delicious, evolving selection, relatively cheap. Of course it is strictly to-go so it doesn’t really count as dining.
posted by dcwp on August 23rd, 2007 at 6:57 pm eHow is it that these threads keep turning to discussions of L.A.? A.A. is overrated by Left Coasters? Ugh, makes me want a Scotch and a steak at Knights!
posted by Young Westside on August 23rd, 2007 at 11:42 pm eYoung Westside: is that by Fairfax or in Westwood?
posted by Nick on August 24th, 2007 at 2:56 am eYoung Westside, maybe someone should start an laio blog.
posted by tom brandt on August 24th, 2007 at 8:49 am eActually, LA may be a lot of things, but as arguably the most hated city in the United States it certainly isn’t overrated. The weather really is nice, the population really is diverse, the nightlife really is interesting and exciting, the restaurants really are incredible, and the beaches and mountains really are pretty.
posted by Nick on August 24th, 2007 at 9:32 pm eI must be a Philistine, but I love the food at Dominick’s, especially the Italian Sandwich, and I really enjoy drinking a beer and munching a sandwich or some pizza in the beer garden. On a nice evening, there is no place in A2 I’d rather eat. A happy, relaxed atmosphere. A nice place to catch up with my son, who is at U of M.
The DeVartis have maintained a positive environment for flirting or political talk for a generation, and I thank them for it. They close at 10 or so, as they once told me, because after that, people would get too drunk and get in fights. No doubt, they would make more money if they stayed open longer.
posted by SayHey on August 25th, 2007 at 8:38 am eSayHey— I think, in part, your comment gets to the crux of my criticism of Dominick’s: I went there and enjoyed it because of the people there, the flirting and the politics. It was a great place to get a long table at and drink and argue. If I ran a campaign in Ann Arbor, I’d fastidiously hold all of my gatherings at Dominick’s and Leopold’s. But aside from the great people there, it has passable food and decent beer (at tourist prices),
It’s like how the Del had good pizzas, but you didn’t tell people to go there for the food.
posted by js on August 25th, 2007 at 9:53 pm eFor pretty good Mexican there is Senor Lopez on Stadium.
posted by bem on August 27th, 2007 at 4:37 pm eNo booze though.
Being a former Dominick’s employee, I have to say most of the food is absolutely horrible. Stay away from the sandwiches, except maybe the italian sub which is oven cooked, and the tuna sub — most everything else is microwaved until it’s nice and rubbery. You’re pretty safe with the quesadillas as well.
The thing about Dominick’s is that there is kind of a seniority system, wherein the employees who have been around the longest have the more important jobs, such as: Working the pizza deck, and the pasta deck, etc — usually resulting in decently prepared food. The sandwich deck on the other hand, is generally inhabited by new employees/slackers who generally don’t give a flying shit about the quality of your food.
Dom’s has got great character though, there’s no denying that.
posted by former dom's slave laborer on August 29th, 2007 at 6:15 pm eAh, for crying out loud. Nothing better to talk about then what some lame site has to say about Dominick’s? The thing that I love about the owners of Dominick’s is that they couldn’t give a rats a#$ about any of this prissy waste of time. Heck, go there and you’ll be treated as a minor inconvience and nothing more. And that is exactly why I love the place. Now piss off and get your value meal and shut up!
posted by green meanie on September 30th, 2007 at 6:57 pm e“Stop for lunch at Dominick’s on nearby Monroe Street, an Italian cafe inside an old house with a fountain on its backyard plaza. Seating out front includes an exterior view of the Gothic law quadrangle across the street.”
Where does the boston globe piece describe the lunch at Dominick’s as “delicious”? Or was the Globe alerted to your post and embarrassed enough to alter its content?
posted by A2hater on October 2nd, 2007 at 7:27 pm eDomicks food - YES, NO, YES. If you are hungry and just want it now and delivered to you BY NAME…YES. If you really want a REAL italian dinner or some such and want candlelight and no students…NO. If you are hungry and tired and finally alone with your partner and don’t have any kids and all you want to do is sit outside by the fountain and order good beer and sangria and eat….hell, Yes.
It’s great place. They were right to write it up. Screw the chains forever.
posted by uhright on October 3rd, 2007 at 8:38 pm eOK, you don’t get it delivered (or do you? I had too much wine, I guess). Well anyway, given the situation, Domick’s can be the most delicious food of all. Compared to high cuisine, uh DUH, we’re not talking that. Why does everything have to be compared to New York and LA. Who the hell cares? We’re not about that…
posted by uhright on October 3rd, 2007 at 8:40 pm eI think Great Lake Seafood on carpenter blows away middle kingdom. I’ve been going to MK on and off since the 80’s and I think their menu is significantly lacking (esp beef dishes). The Last Time I went there the owner was rather rude, like he couldn’t care less. Fortunately I discovered GLS shortly after..
Always been a big fan of Dominick’s. The food is pretty decent for a2 and you can’t beat the atmosphere and being outdoors.
posted by slobberer on October 5th, 2007 at 5:13 pm edominicks ghoust still romes the resterant to this day and if u listen very closely u can here it say ” what r u hunhhhh! “
posted by antwan on November 24th, 2007 at 5:56 pm e