Alibi of Troy, good for large groups
If you're in the Troy/Rochester area and you need a good restaurant that can handle a large group, we suggest The Alibi of Troy.
We still had several family members in town lingering for 1-2 nights after our Michigan wedding because many of them came from out-of-state. Our extended family members spent their Sunday afternoon touring various parts of the metro Detroit area. Some families went to the Detroit Zoo, others went to Greektown, while still others went meandering through the streets of Oakland county with no destination in mind.
After a hard day of wandering and taking in the sights and sounds of a Michigan summer we converged upon Alibi of Troy for pizza, salad, and an all around good carb-laden meal. Our motley party of 20 (!) grandparents, parents, children, and newlyweds showed up at Alibi semi-announced (they do not accept reservations) and the restaurant managed to seat us within a decent time. Alibi is my wife's favorite pizza because the crust is a little sweet and the toppings are generous. The space interior is casual and homey, lots to like here. It's a family place without being Chuck E. Cheese.
If you ever have the pleasure of coming here, I would suggest a pizza, some breadsticks, and a salad. This carbo-licious meal is awesome.
Honeymoons in Michigan: Mackinac Island
Some honeymoon ideas for those soon-to-be-wed couples interested in staying in Michigan for their honeymoon. You will find that some of the nice spots are just as quaint, scenic, picturesque, and romantic as anywhere else in the world.
Mackinac Island (prononced Mack-in-aw) is a classic tourist-honeymoon kind of place. You have to take a ferry boat to access it and no cars are allowed. Only bicycles, horses, and your own two feet. Having been there 1 or 2 times in my life I would say it has the same charm as you would find on either West coast like Mendocino, CA. Maybe the wine isn't as good in Michigan but the scenery is just fine
Oxo Salad Spinner, one of our favorite wedding registry items
The Oxo Good Grips Salad Spinner that we put on the registry has become literally an every day item. The salad spinner has become indispensable in our kitchen and if it breaks we will undoubtedly replace it. If you've been eating wet salad like we were, decently dry leaves after a spin will be like night and day.
We don't use it to just spin salad. It's good for getting the excess moisture off all of our miscellaneous produce items like grapes, herbs, all sorts of stuff. We generally chose Oxo products and the salad spinner in particular has been great and easy to use.
Pressure Cooker, a Favorite Wedding Registry Item
Of the many items that we received from our wedding registry, I have to say the pressure cooker has been one of the most beloved new additions to our kitchen. We got a medium-sized Fagor Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker that has been awesome for making some great weekend meals in less than half the time. Because it's so quick I use it pretty regularly. It is a good quick alternative to a crock pot although the crock pot's "set it and forget it" method is handy. Pressure cooking requires vigilance on the part of the cook.
Whereas making oxtail soup -- one of my favorites to make at home -- used to take 3-4 hours to get nice tender tails the pressure cooker achieves equal fork-tender meat in about 45 minutes. The only difference is that pressure-cooked vegetables seem to have a different texture. The design of the Fagor cooker can be precarious because when you release the pressure valve it blasts steam which certainly is a burn risk. Definitely not something you want kids to be handling.
President Tuxedo, a Michigan Men’s Wearhouse alternative
President Tuxedo
Support Michigan businesses! If you are considering Men's Wearhouse please also consider President Tuxedo. They have been voted best tuxedo in Detroit several years.
Although I did not do a lot of research into the the tuxedo pricing I think President Tuxedo may have more reasonable prices because it is place. Support Michigan business! You may be able to find some coupons for discount tux rentals. Before our wedding I found a few choice coupons that I think would have saved me a few bucks.
The only real downside is if you have a nationwide groomsman crew it may be hard to coordinate getting everyone measured and fitted. If all of my groomsman were living in the Michigan area I would definitely opt for President Tuxedo to support the little man. Their website even offers a referral reward so that bride and groom and the referring person gets a nice little gift card.
President Tuxedo has many Michigan locations including Ann Arbor, Birmingham, Novi, Rochester, Sterling Heights, Troy and West Bloomfield.