Very little good to say about this place. The positives: beautiful space, great location, service was good, management was attentive. Last positive was the oysters, those were delicious. The rest of the food was awful. I hate to advocate for someone to lose there job but this chef and this menu must go. What the hell is with all the sweet. This place is a diabetics dream. Lamb shank served on top of a parsnip puree that tasted like pumpkin pie. The good news was the parsnips were so bad that they distracted from the dried out lamb shank. My wife had the fried chicken. Only had two bites of sweet awfulness. Another reviewer noted that dish was overly sweet. So bad. But wait there us more sweet; triple cooked fries with super sweet dipping sauce, gross. There was one item that wasn't sweet, in fact it was void of any seasoning, pork belly. Bland, dry, and served with a pasty umami sauce the despite the intent lacked any flavor. Good for a cocktail and maybe some oysters but that us about it. read more

amazing food, amazing drinks, amazing service. we came on a Thursday and they had awesome live music. can't recommend enough read more

See all

The latest stop on our whirlwind holiday dining tour of the new Detroit spots led us to Besa with a group of 6 on a recent evening. This is the rare place that managed to surprise me with its opening, since I hadn't heard a word about it before it opened its doors. Design itself is very modern and upscale, a combination rather new to the city of Detroit, but will be familiar to frequent Chicago or NYC restaurant visitors. Style of cuisine can best be described as contemporary American with a flair for the construction of artistic platings and mind-bending ratios between the size of the serving dish, and what's presented on it. In fact, the entire experience reads like everyone trying their best to copy Boka from Chicago. Unfortunately, the food itself didn't carryover. We ordered a smorgasbord of dishes to share amongst us, starting with the brussels sprouts and beef tartare. Brussels were one of the favorites of the nights, with a slightly too sweet sauce, but well seasoned, and surprisingly generous with the amount. Tartare was pretty good, loved the addition of dried blueberries, but needed salt. This is a theme that will become repetitive. I was in the mood for a soup, and ordered the "vichyssoise" next over the green curry offering. Imagine my surprise when in its place came a potato waffle with a leek sauce and sautéed leeks. Thankfully, the flavor and texture made it my favorite course of the night. Tried a bite of the green curry soup from a fellow dining companion, and it tasted like someone's idea of a green curry soup made for people afraid of Thailand. It tasted of coconut milk and nothing else. Next came the duck liver mousse donut. It managed to surprise with its massive size, but excitement melted away once it hit my mouth. Concept was great, duck mousse inside a rich donut with a cranberry glaze to cut through the immense richness. Unfortunately execution left plenty to be desired. The mousse itself had a strange flavor difficult to pinpoint even for someone who loves offal. Perhaps the inclusion of some type of spirit? The donut was cold and heavy, would have ate better warm and yeasty, less cake like. The wife's agnolotti was quite good, and well seasoned in comparison to almost every other plate served. Tasted like a pasta version of manakish to those in the area familiar with the tasty Lebanese staple. For an entree, I went with the half duck, as I love duck, and it was recommended by our waiter. The biggest disappointment of the night. The duck was cooked by someone who may have fallen in love with the sous vide machine, but the result was a strange grayness on the outskirts followed by a not quite pink on the insides. Fat hadn't fully rendered to my liking and there was no crispness to the sliced breast. Leg, which I thought had been confited, was instead tough and dry. Worse yet was the carrot puree, which was carrots and water. It tasted like it came out of a can marked Gerber. The dish itself was a simplistic utter disappointment lacking in anything resembling flavor. Bland on top of bland, layered with more bland. I don't look to be negative, and truth be told, at an average restaurant the lack of complex flavor profiles or even simple seasoning might be forgiven, but this restaurant doesn't appear to be trying for average, and the check certainly did not replicate my last trip to Coney Island. Total for the 6 of us came to north of 600 dollars. For that type of money (and a $48 duck dish), I simply shouldn't be relegated to staring longingly towards the salt shaker on the adjacent table. There are far too many restaurants downtown that take a few ingredients and make them sing with fat, spice, salt and acid leaving you hungry for more. The execution here needs to take a monumental step up to be considered on equal footing. Cocktail/wine list is served on a tablet ala Bistro 82, and the one cocktail I tried, a rye pineapple concoction, tasted like the bartender forgot the rye. Service was a strong suit and the attention paid by staff and management showed. Complimentary glasses of champagne were a thoughtful touch and did not go unnoticed. All told, design, decor, service and plating to rival some of the cities best, but execution in the kitchen and the lack of any type of penetrating flavor left plenty to be desired. read more

After our first time at Besa, our friend who went with us wrote a less than favorable review, and was contacted by the owner or manager asking us to come back and give them another try, so we went again this past weekend for round 2. The service was excellent and they really made an effort to make us feel welcome, and they comped about half the meal for us, which was a very nice gesture. However, I think this is probably the last time that we're going to go there. Almost everything we had this time was better than the first time, but the food just isn't up to the level that we think it should be for the type of restaurant they're trying to be. If I was to explain it in a single sentence, there's too much focus on fancy techniques and not enough on the basics of flavor, texture and seasoning. Both times we've been there, several dishes were lacking seasoning. This time around, we ordered 3 appetizers and 3 entrees, and didn't repeat anything that we got the first time. The first two dishes that arrived were the best things we ate. The pork belly appetizer was very good, but the real standout was the cacio e pepe macarons. This is one thing where the concept of the dish is very creative and the execution matches the ambition. It takes an item that's on a ton of menus everywhere and puts a very cool spin on it, while retaining the flavor and soul of the original. It's a black pepper macaron with a parmesan cream in the middle. Very good flavor and a cool interpretation. The third starter, though, illustrates where Besa seems to miss the mark consistently. The raw bar items just seem to be extremely overpriced, and lacking in seasoning. We got the prawn ceviche, which is a dish that costs $19, and looks to be one prawn cut up into 5 pieces, with some popped sorghum and what I think was a citrus dust, which had very little citrus flavor. The result is some raw shrimp with no real acid like you'd expect from a ceviche. The entrees were a mixed bag, too. Our group ordered the fried chicken, ribeye, and scallops. The chicken was a bit dry, and underseasoned, and oddly, it tasted better with the breading taken off. My scallops were the best of the three dishes -- the scallops were nicely cooked, the pork belly added a nice salty element, and the pickled onions added a nice bright element to it. My only criticism is that the amount of polenta in the dish is out of proportion with the other elements, and lacked seasoning. Overall, it was a pretty decent dish. My wife's ribeye was very nicely cooked, but the rest of the dish just didn't make much sense. It came with a couple of little potato balls some compressed green apple (also in ball shape), and a pile of fried wheatberries. This dish really is an illustration of the problem with a lot of the food here. It was 4 or 5 nice slices of meat, with 2 or 3 little 1/2" balls of potato, a huge pile of oily, underseasoned wheatberries (basically seeds), and this compressed apple which had an unpleasant mealy texture and no real flavor, and didn't really add anything. The meat wasn't well seasoned and the wheatberries might have been more successful if they were seasoned and if there were just a few to give a bit of texture, but there were way too many of them, and it's just not pleasant to eat that many of them. There was also some thyme still on the stem sprinkled around, and that just seems like a lack of attention to detail. As we were eating our entrees, we finally asked for salt, which is not something we ever do in this type of restaurant, but it's been very consistent through two meals that they really need to shoot the lock off salt and pepper back in the kitchen. So, I'm sticking with my 3-star rating from the first review, which I think was a bit generous that time, but pretty accurate based on our second visit. With the restaurant scene in Detroit where it is these days, there's several places that I think are better than Besa and that are a much better value, so I can't recommend it with all of the other inventive and flavorful things going on in other restaurants in the area. read more

Besa - Compare to the photo on Eater Detroit of the same dish where the fish is approximately 3x as thick - New American Near Me - Detroit, Michigan

See all

Didn't know what I was getting into. This place is very hip and I really like the look, but 3 bartenders in and I have to flag 1 down to get a food menu. It was not a busy time. Again I flagged 1 down to order. They did not have the porchetta, which I was looking forward to. Instead I ordered the Angolotto. It was really good, but more of an appetizer than an entree. I didn't mind the price, but with a little more communication, my night would've gone better. Some tips: Offer a food menu when sitting down at the bar. Either go all technology or minimal (paper food menu and iPad drink menu?!) Maybe spend less time arranging your mis en place tray and look up to see someone is looking straight at you ready to order. If your dishes run on the small side, maybe educate your guest before they order. They may order more. If a manager asks how was it, and you say, "it was ok." Maybe they might ask a follow-up question. read more

Trendy, fine dining in the heart of downtown Detroit. Besa has a great atmosphere, elegant and sleek. t's fun to sit by the window and people watch on Woodward. The food was all delicious but some dishes were very small portions for the price. I got the agnolotto pasta and the server warned that it was small but it was definitely smaller than i expected. It was delicious but i wish i got two! It was very tasty so i might recommend it as an appetizer but not a full dish. I also got a side of asparagus but didn't leave feeling too satisfied. I got a cucumber cocktail and was not a fan, it was too strong for me. Overall the food, service and atmosphere were all great, just expect smaller portions which is to be expected at trendy restaurants! read more

I thoroughly enjoyed dinner at BESA. The food was was top notch. Some very original cocktails to start and good wine selection. The food was delicious with very fresh oysters and fish and some novel takes on some classic dishes. Dessert was potentially the best part and really made the meal. They also did a great job with the decor and ambiance, which was stylish without trying too hard. Recommendations: Appies - Fresh Oysters to start, followed by the VICHYSSOISE (amazing) Main - WILD ALASKAN HALIBUT an exploration of onion Dessert - All of them! read more

Fantastic experience. Menu was interesting and all plates were delicious. We especially enjoyed the lamb porchetta. Melon sauce cut through the rich meat. Incredible! Wine list was of an appropriate size and had some good values. Will go again soon! read more

A fantastic meal and great service. Everything was amazing, but the duck liver mousse doughnut, scallops and halibut where awesome. I am looking forward to going back. read more

See all

Great restaurant !!!!! We went for our anniversary The food was great Really enjoyed everthing except the deserts, they were too sweet (and I like things sweet) Service was impeccable. We would go back in a heartbeat. Perfect for dinner with friend. They have a vegan option that made this carnivore weak. Well priced also. Hopefully they will work on the Deserts read more

Really disappointingly average food, high prices, and overhyped expectations. Over $25 for one average drink and price wasn't discussed upon server's recommendation. So many better places to go read more

My wife and I had dinner there on Monday, November 5th, and we were very very happy with all aspects of this restaurant. The food and the drinks were both well done and creative. All of the staff was amazing. Daniel, our waiter, in particular really stood out. He really took the experience to the next level. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone, especially if you enjoy seafood. This is a great addition to the city of Detroit, and more restaurants like this will help grow a positive opinion of our city. read more

Great food and amazing service. Lamb belly ragu, red snapper and steak are 5 star. The server was very knowledgeable and gave all the right recommendations read more

Had a great experience here. Service, food and drink. It was the complete package. I really liked our pork belly (it comes bone-in!) and the oysters, which were shucked close by. Probably the best duck breast I've ever had and I've been places. The branzino come cut and ready to eat so no hassles there. Decor is modern and chic with white linens and distinct lines. Service was engaging without being overbearing. Loved it through and through and will need to come back to explore the rest of the menu. read more

See all

Come here if you're looking for delicious oysters and an interesting combination of flavors. Nice atmosphere. The staff seem happy and genuinely interested in the food they are serving. Nice sized drink menu, with a wide selection from mezcal to grappa. Besa will be a new regular for us. read more

Besa - Bagel and Lox Cannoli - New American Near Me - Detroit, Michigan

Everything on the menu is amazing!! My favorite was the lamb chops, cucumber salad, fresh pita and their drinks are unreal. Outstanding service. Definitely the perfect place for a date night, girls night and happy hour. read more

Besa - Lamb chops! - New American Near Me - Detroit, Michigan

My first review was a 5 star After 2 visits I can say that the service is very spotty. The dishes are great but sometimes they are trying too hard to be different and esoteric. I still want to give it another chance. Service better be very good given the price and what they want to present themselves as. Detroit is having many new places open every week. Need to remain competitive. Consistently good service is a good start read more

If I could give this restaurant even more stars, I would. Possibly the BEST restaurant in Detroit! The interior decor is jaw dropping and the food is even better! Owners and staff are extremely friendly and truly go out of their way to make guests feel like luxury. Check out BESA, you will not regret it! I can't wait to be back read more

When I review a restaurant, I try to be fair by grading them on how successful at what they're setting out to do. Perhaps the most challenging thing I can say in reviewing Besa is I'm not sure what they want to be. The prices say "fine dining" which is why I'm giving it a 3-star review, because I don't think they were particularly successful at that. The dishes were good and the menu is really interesting. But some of the dishes like the donut with duck liver mouse, feel like they belong in a more casual/cheaper restaurant. My scallops were delicious and the butter lettuce salad was, too. The produce they used was all fresh and the highest quality. There was just some polish missing. Our waiter was fine but was clear he was on a learning curve. And as I said, I couldn't decide what the menu wanted to be. The space is GORGEOUS and has amazing views. The restroom are really boring when you compare to what the newer restaurants in Detroit are doing these days in terms of decor. There is hope for this place--with some refinements and some menu tweaks, it could grow into its own. But I think there are a lot of other options in the area to drop a wad of cash and have a better experience overall. read more

I love this restaurant! I have dined here 4 times and each time the food, drinks, and service were perfect. They have the best bread. On my most recent visit, I had the open face spinach pie, roasted maitake mushroom, and fries. Also enjoyed couple of delicious cocktails and a cappuccino for dessert. It was an amazing meal. Already made plans to go back with a friend next month, can't wait! read more

I was disappointed overall. The food was good, not great, except the squash which was fantastic. Service was average but our waitperson never asked us if we'd like another drink. Most of all, I'm disappointed in the management. I called because I needed some information on my food allergies. The gentleman I spoke to was very knowledgeable and this is one of the reasons I chose Besa for my wife's birthday. We were seated at a tiny table along a wall and there wasn't any acknowledgement we were celebrating my wife's birthday even though this was discussed during the phone call I had earlier. We have dined at many fine restaurants in Detroit over the years. I think we'll be returning to some of our favorites. Besa will not be one of them. read more

Best place you can ever visit Delicious food and drinks, the staff is very friendly and attentive. The Menager Gerti is always alert when it comes to the costumers, thank you for everything People of Besa read more

I ordered Bucatini with clams. The clams were very clean and tasted good. The restaurant is very nice and for the price the food was ok. It didn't blow my mind. read more

Besa - Bucatini with Clams - New American Near Me - Detroit, Michigan

We had a less than ideal experience our first time at Besa (we actually ended up not eating there), so I left poor review. I was surprised and impressed when the owner called me personally to follow up on our bad experience. He invited us to come back sometime to give them a second chance. I took him up on his offer and brought my family with. We had dinner on a Saturday night--we were welcomed to our table right away, greeted by the owner and sommelier, and had fantastic service throughout the night. The food was amazing as well--to start, we had cacio e pepe macarons, octopus, a cheese board and brussel sprouts. I had a super savory and rich parpardelle for my entree and my husband had the branzino, which he enjoyed. I'm glad we went back to experience Besa. It was a super enjoyable evening with creative and delicious food. Hope to be back soon! read more

Nice tasting food and ambiance. Wait staff was polite but didn't place our order correctly which isn't something that should occur at this price read more

This restaurant was much better than I expected! I called for an early reservation and was basically the last table available on a Monday night. The place was packed but not too loud. I had a "beet the heat" cocktail made with mezcal, beet juice, lime and jalapeño simple syrup. Super delicious! For the meal I had the sable fish and I thought I was in heaven. I shouldn't have had dessert, but a couple bites wouldn't hurt, right? I got the tres leche cake. It was huge, and incredibly delectable. Perfectly dense cake with a firm but creamy top. It was covered with a flan-like caramel sauce. I at the whole thing! Needless to say, I was on the treadmill the next morning. It was so worth it! read more

5 stars and more!!! The fish I ordered was the best I've ever had. It's expensive yes, I went for my honeymoon so the bill was fine, but anyone who wants a new standard for a fish cook should try this. Amazing amazing amazing. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Order the sable fish and leave happy. read more

Elite service and amazing space- fine dining in downtown Detroit. Besa is competing for one of the best fine dining experiences in Detroit. The experience begins the moment you walk in when the host offers to take your coat. From then on the entire meal is a series of appreciated gestures. The menu was not particularly unique, although a bit fish heavy compared to other places. The brussel sprouts were amazing and a surprisingly large serving. I also really enjoyed the eggplant. The waiter recommended we order another dish, so we went for the French fries. We definitely didn't need anymore food and the fries were not interesting in the slightest. We also tried two of their cocktails and were not impressed. Opt for the wine instead. Quick note: -The downstairs lounge is worth checking out. With an original tile floor and some comfy chairs it could be a good place to have a glass of wine before or after dinner. read more

Opened in October 2018. We were there for brunch on Mother's Day. Service was excellent until it got pretty crowded, at which point the manager pitched in to clear our table and take our dessert order. Then dessert seemed to take forever to arrive. The food was overall excellent and we'll be coming be coming back to try out the dinner menu. read more

See all

Excellent cuisine. Service is impeccable. Ask for Shaun; she's a treat! It never disappoints. read more

Besa - Lamb should with brown butter hummus - New American Near Me - Detroit, Michigan

I cannot emphasize how incredible this restaurant is. We picked Besa to host our wedding of 36 guests (they have a private events section in their lower dining area). From the moment I corresponded with Gerti, the Managing Partner, I knew that I would have a seamless event. He was so attentive to every detail, he was available for all questions, and he made our night a priority for him, which we were so grateful for. First of all, the food is the most impressive food I have ever had and we ordered a lot of food. Our guests had the olives, the braised lamb, eggplant toast, and calamari as appetizers and for mains, they had a choice between the lamb, the chicken paillard, the Branzino, and the Mushroom. We also had the asparagus and Napa cabbage as sides and finished off with the basbousa as dessert. The execution of every meal was perfect. They accommodated vegan needs, gluten free and lactose intolerant needs. Everything came out on time. Every single guest commented on how incredible the food was and how generous the portions were. This is truly a gem of a restaurant that deserves superior praise. We were able to play our own music in the lower level, bring our own decorations, light candles, etc. Gerti and our main server Ra'ad (and all of the amazing team that made our night so memorable) are truly people you would trust with the most important day of your life. A million thanks. read more

The food was fantastic, but the service really took the experience over the top. G was extremely personable, charismatic and friendly. They gave us great tips and conversation, and really made me feel extremely comfortable, like they invited us into their home. Highly recommend this spot if you can make it read more

Excellent spot for a swanky night on the town! The atmosphere was high-class, the meals were beautifully and creatively curated, and the space was broken up into a gorgeous bar and dining room on the first floor with stunning views of the city. The lower level was for bigger parties and was opulent. The staff were not only knowledgeable but passionate about the menu items and went out of their way to make sure that our dietary needs were attended to. I would recommend highly to anyone visiting the city and am looking forward to our next visit! read more

See all

Omg loved this place. Service was amazing, drinks were good, food was amazing, nothing bad to say about it read more

See all

Rude host. Subpar, unimaginative food. Nice interior though. Go for drinks, skip the food.

We've been coming here pretty regularly for years. We like the tall windows in the bar area and mod decor, and the food is terrific and innovative with owner Gerti and his very talented chef serving up some seriously good and seriously creative food. I like it here so much that I had my birthday dinner December 2020 in the gutter when The Wretch shut down inside dining. We were singing the praises of the new fall menu recently. The spinach pie is back from its summer hiatus and was fresh and good. We split the octopus which was sautéed , very tender, and served with sliced olives in a white bean purée sauce - new on the menu and new to me. Equally as innovative - offal to some - is the Lamb Ragu - made from lamb heart and served with bucatini. Terrific, and don't be scared. I had the lamb chops which are large fresh and perfectly browned. For me, this is the best dinner in Detroit right now! read more

Looked for a nice dinner while in the " D" for business. Service was great and over all the food was quite good. The mackerel was very good although not as crispy as described. Side of green beans were awesome. Calamari was ok. Sauce was meh and again, not crispy. Drinks adequate. read more

Really picky about where I eat due to COVID-19. All staff are wearing masks and at times they are even wearing gloves. Seemed very sanitary which made it very comfortable. Had salmon which was seasoned perfectly. Owner and manager are also very nice. Would recommend and will come back! read more

Food was delicious. They had amazing vegan options. Drinks were good. I wish they had more of a selection of wines served by the glass. Also took a star away because staff is not wearing masks properly. They use them as chin guards and not as face masks. read more

See all

Had the raviolo. The sauce inside is extremely bitter and the pasta was almost sour like. The only thing i would do here is get a drink read more