Detroit restaurant named one of the best in the country by Bon Appetit magazine

It’s a wine bar, not really a restaurant, but Ladder 4 in Detroit keeps being heralded as one of the best new restaurants in town.

The latest accolade comes from national food and dining publication Bon Appetit, which named the bar on its list of 24 Best New Restaurants of 2023.

“The food isn’t just delicious; it’s exciting and even a little cheeky,” writes Kate Kassin of Bon Appetit. “At Ladder 4 Wine Bar, chef John Yelinek doesn’t traffic in the sort of predictable small-plates-meant-for-sharing menu we’ve come to expect of a wine bar. Case in point: A homemade chicken sausage arrives, beak and all, in a pool of glistening jus with islands of celeriac and potato purée.”

Kassin also recommended the pork chop schnitzel and the burnt Basque cheesecake.

Ladder 4 Wine Bar, which earned a glowing three-star review from The Detroit News last fall and was named on our list of 2022’s Best New Restaurants, is located in a beautifully restored former fire station and operates more like a neighborhood pub and wine shop than an upscale restaurant.

Find it at 3396 Vinewood in Detroit. It’s open for dinner Wed.-Sun. Call (313) 638-1601 or visit ladder4winebar.com.