The Root

Photo courtesy of Eat It Detroit

For the first time in nine years dating/marriage, Scottie and I actually went out to dinner on Valentine's Day, and Scottie certainly picked a winner for our first outing.  Scottie knows I'm much more a fan of cooking a special meal for the Hallmark holiday, but this year, he made a reservation at The Root out in White Lake.  We have been eyeing this restaurant ever since I read this review from Eat It Detroit among a few others giving the restaurant raving remarks for their local, seasonally-designed from-scratch menu.  I almost forgot to mention that it was named 2012 Restaurant of the Year by the Detroit Free Press.

While opened it 2011, the reason it has taken us this long to get out there is because it's about a 45-minute drive northwest of us.  We almost blew by it on M-59 because we were a bit surprised that it was located in a strip mall adjacent to a random JC Penney.  But looks can be deceiving, and from the moment we walked in to the moment we left, I felt like this place genuinely worked hard to please its customers.  With a bit of an industrial look with exposed ceilings, the interior was actually set up nicely with an open kitchen and decent-size bar area and seating area.  Once inside, I completely forgot we were sitting in a strip-mall restaurant.

For starters, we both ordered salads.  I chose the Michigan standard, The Root Orchard Salad, which contained Green Apple, Red Leaf Lettuce, Marcona Almond, Dried Michigan Cherries, Saga Blue Cheese, Pickled Onion, and Crispy House Made Bacon.  While Scottie opted for the unique Vegan Chilled Farro Salad that blended Roasted Leeks with Blood Orange, Pickled Raisins, Arugula, Olive Oil, and Pistachio.  Both of us gave these generous-sized salads thumbs-up.  While I wanted to save myself for the dinner, I couldn't stop eating the salad.  They did not skimp on the cherries, which I appreciated despite it being a rough season for the cherry farmers!  While we didn't necessarily need it, we moved onto the bread foccacia-style bread they left for us on the table.

For our dinners, Scottie ordered the Miller Farms Amish Chicken ‘Cacciatore' and I chose the Linguine & Michigan Farm Raised Shrimp that included House Made Bacon, Pecorino & Guernsey’s Cream Ragout.  They substituted puttanesca for the bacon, but I probably should have just had the bacon because the puttanesca was a little on the salty side for me.  And I have to admit, I also should have probably ordered something different since shrimp isn't the most seasonal or local item around Michigan.  But I can't complain too much as they salvaged the dish as best they could!

Scottie and I noticed sides on the menu so we ordered the brussel sprouts (with lemon and balsamic) and mac 'n cheese assuming our meals would be on the small side.  Again, another oops, as our meals were again decently proportioned.  But we were glad we ordered the sides just to taste them because who knows if we'll ever drive out this way again.  In the end, I ended up with about three meals!  No dessert for us, nope.