La Noria Ristorante
Italian restaurant · Mexicantown ·
Wood-fired pizzas, tacos, cemitas, pasta, mole
Wood-fired pizzas, tacos, cemitas, pasta, mole
"I included La Noria Bistro in a regional Mexican guide for its cemitas, calling it one of the spots to seek out for regional Mexican dishes in the Detroit area." - Brenna Houck
"A Mexican–Italian hybrid restaurant and pizzeria led by Norberto Garita, combining Mexican flavors with Italian approaches across both full-service dining and pizza offerings to create a distinct cross-cultural neighborhood spot." - Brenna Houck
"The much-anticipated sibling to an established neighborhood Mexican restaurant has opened with some adventurous menu choices, most notably a grasshopper pizza that signals a willingness to blend traditional flavors with novelty preparations." - Brenna Houck
"Opened in mid-March on Michigan Avenue in Southwest Detroit by chef-owner Norberto Garita, this casual Mexican–Italian restaurant presents both Italian and Pueblan flavors separately and combined. Pizzas are baked in a red, wood-fired oven set in a bricked main dining area and range from thin-crust Neapolitan-style pies with arugula and prosciutto to Mexican-influenced options like a slightly spicy chicken mole pizza and a pie topped with spiced grasshoppers. The menu also features Pueblan staples such as tacos árabes (flour tortillas with shawarma-style rotisserie meat) and cemitas overflowing with breaded meat and Oaxaca cheese. A full bar pours beer, wine, and cocktails in view of flat-screen TVs, and garage-style doors create an indoor–outdoor feel when the weather is warm." - Brenna Houck
"A casual counterpart to a beloved fine-dining Italian–Mexican restaurant, this spot serves tacos, sandwiches, and pizzas baked in a blazing-hot Italian oven. Renovated from a former Coney Island at 5517 Michigan Ave., the finished space features an updated facade and a bricked indoor-outdoor dining room with garage doors for a patio feel. Seating mixes booths, two-tops, and counter stools—some overlooking the pizza oven and a rotating trompo spit where cooks shave roasted meat into tortillas—and several flat-screen TVs tuned to sports. Service is ramping up with a focused menu that includes chicken and steak tacos, cemita sandwiches overflowing with an almost schnitzel-like chicken milanese, guacamole, poblanos and stringy cheese on a sesame roll, and pizzas such as prosciutto-and-arugula or margherita with mozzarella and basil. A full bar serves beer, wine, and cocktails; the restaurant opened to the public on March 15 and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m." - Brenna Houck