What food is Detroit known for? Two dishes above all: the Coney Island hot dog and square, crispy-edged Detroit-style pizza. Close behind are a handful of hometown brands locals grew up on, including Vernors ginger ale, Faygo pop, Better Made potato chips and Sanders hot fudge, plus the paczki that pack Hamtramck bakeries every Fat Tuesday.
That short list is the answer most people want. The better question is where each one came from and where you can still try it, because nearly all of these foods are still made or served in the city. This guide covers both, then finishes with a simple one-day plan for eating like a Detroiter.
Table of Contents
Detroit’s Famous Foods at a Glance
| Food | What it is | Detroit roots | Where to try it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coney dog | Hot dog with beanless beef chili sauce, mustard and onions | Greek immigrant diners, early 1900s | American and Lafayette Coney Island, downtown |
| Detroit-style pizza | Square, thick pizza with crisp, cheesy edges | Buddy’s Rendezvous, 1946 | Buddy’s on Conant Street and dozens of local pizzerias |
| Vernors | Bold, sharp ginger ale | James Vernor, first served 1866 | Grocery stores; order a Boston Cooler at a diner |
| Faygo | Pop in dozens of flavors, famous for Redpop | Feigenson brothers, 1907 | Grocery and corner stores |
| Better Made chips | Thin, crisp potato chips | Moceri and Cipriano, 1930 | Stores across Michigan |
| Sanders | Hot fudge and bumpy cake | Fred Sanders, 1875 | Grocery stores and bakeries |
| Paczki | Rich, filled Polish doughnut | Hamtramck’s Polish bakeries | Hamtramck, especially on Fat Tuesday |
The Coney Dog: Detroit’s Signature Food
If Detroit has one dish, it’s the coney. A Detroit coney is a natural-casing hot dog in a bun, topped with a beanless, beef-based chili sauce, a stripe of yellow mustard and chopped onions. Ketchup is not part of the deal.
The two most famous places to get one sit side by side on West Lafayette Boulevard downtown: American Coney Island and Lafayette Coney Island. Both trace back to Greek immigrant brothers from the Keros family. American Coney says it opened in 1917 and is still run by the Keros family. Lafayette, next door, was sold to its employees decades ago.
Which one came first is a fight with no clean answer. Each restaurant has claimed the earlier date, and historians who checked old city directories have found a different timeline from either. What locals agree on is that you should try both and pick a side.
The coney is also everywhere else. Metro Detroit has an estimated 500 “Coney Island” diners, most of them unrelated, independently owned restaurants. If you hear someone mention a “loose” or Flint-style coney, that’s the drier, ground-meat cousin popular outside the city.
How to order a coney like a local
- Order the classic first: chili sauce, mustard and onions, no ketchup.
- If you’re with a friend, split up: one of you orders at American, the other at Lafayette, and you compare.
- Skip the onions or mustard if you must, but try the chili sauce, since it’s what makes a Detroit coney different.
- Check hours before you go. The downtown coney spots can change hours around games and events.
Detroit-Style Pizza: Square, Thick and Born on the East Side
Detroit-style pizza is a rectangular pie with a thick, airy crust, cheese pushed all the way to the edges so it caramelizes, and sauce often ladled on top. According to Buddy’s Pizza, Gus Guerra made the first one in 1946 at Buddy’s Rendezvous at Six Mile and Conant on Detroit’s east side, baking it in steel pans borrowed from local auto plants.
That original location is still open at 17125 Conant St. Its website lists daily hours of 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and there’s also a downtown Buddy’s at 1565 Broadway St. The style has since spread well beyond Buddy’s, to neighborhood pizzerias and national chains.
Want the full story, including how it differs from Sicilian and deep-dish pies? Read our guide to what Detroit-style pizza is and how it tastes.
Vernors, Faygo, Better Made and Sanders: Detroit’s Pantry Classics
Many of the foods people link to Detroit aren’t restaurant dishes. They’re grocery staples that started here and never left the local shopping cart.
- Vernors ginger ale. Detroit pharmacist James Vernor first served it to the public in 1866, which makes it one of the country’s oldest soft drinks, according to the Detroit Historical Society. The popular story says the recipe aged in an oak barrel while Vernor served in the Civil War, though that tale is disputed. Vernors with vanilla ice cream is a Boston Cooler, a Detroit dessert drink despite the name.
- Faygo. Brothers Ben and Perry Feigenson, trained bakers, started bottling drinks in Detroit in 1907 and adopted the Faygo name in 1921. Redpop, one of their earliest flavors, is still the best-known. The pop is made on Gratiot Avenue, where the company moved in 1935.
- Better Made potato chips. Cross Moceri and Peter Cipriano went into business together in 1930, and the Better Made brand followed in 1934. The chips are still made on Gratiot Avenue on the city’s east side.
- Sanders hot fudge and bumpy cake. Fred Sanders opened his candy shop in 1875 at Woodward and Gratiot. The brand is best remembered for hot fudge and bumpy cake, a chocolate cake with ridges of buttercream under a chocolate coating. Sanders can also claim to have introduced the ice cream soda to Detroiters.
Paczki, Eastern Market and Detroit’s Neighborhood Food
Detroit’s food identity also comes from the communities that built the city.
Paczki in Hamtramck. The small city surrounded by Detroit is the heart of local Polish food, and its bakeries draw long lines for paczki on Fat Tuesday, known here as Paczki Day. The next one is Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2027. Our guide to the best paczki bakeries in Detroit covers where to go and when to pre-order.
Mexicantown. In Southwest Detroit, the restaurants and bakeries along West Vernor Highway and Bagley Street are the go-to for Mexican food and baked goods.
Greektown. Just northeast of downtown along Monroe Street, Greektown reflects the same Greek community that gave Detroit its coney diners.
Dearborn. Just west of the city, Dearborn is home to a large Arab American community and is where many Detroiters go for Lebanese and other Middle Eastern food.
Eastern Market. The Eastern Market calls itself the nation’s largest historic public market. The city formally designated it in 1891, and its Saturday Market runs year-round from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 2934 Russell St.
How to Eat Like a Detroiter in One Day
If you have one day and an appetite, this order works well:
- Saturday morning: walk Eastern Market for produce, coffee and snacks.
- Lunch: coneys on West Lafayette, using the ordering tips above.
- Afternoon: walk it off in Midtown. Our guide to the best museums in Detroit lists options a short drive from both downtown and the market.
- Dinner: a square pizza at Buddy’s or another Detroit-style shop.
- Dessert: a Boston Cooler, or a slice of bumpy cake.
Before you go, a quick checklist: Step 1, check each restaurant’s hours on its official site. Step 2, plan Eastern Market for a Saturday, when the year-round market is open. Step 3, bring a cooler bag if you plan to take home pizza, chips or pop.
This season: the Lions host the Chicago Bears at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2026. If you’re hosting a watch party, a tray of square pizza, a bag of Better Made and a few cans of Vernors or Faygo will feel right at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Detroit’s most famous food?
The Coney Island hot dog is Detroit’s best-known food, with Detroit-style pizza a close second. Both started in the city and are still served at the restaurants tied to their origins, including American and Lafayette Coney Island downtown and Buddy’s on Conant Street.
Is Detroit-style pizza really from Detroit?
Yes. Buddy’s Pizza says Gus Guerra made the first square pizza in 1946 at Buddy’s Rendezvous on Detroit’s east side. The style is now sold across the country, but the original location still operates at 17125 Conant St.
What is a Boston Cooler?
A Boston Cooler is Vernors ginger ale paired with vanilla ice cream. Despite the name, it’s a Detroit tradition. The Detroit Historical Society says the name likely came from a general term used in the early 1900s.
Which came first, American or Lafayette Coney Island?
Nobody has settled it. American Coney Island claims 1917, Lafayette has claimed an earlier date, and researchers using city directories have found different dates for both. The two restaurants still operate next to each other on West Lafayette Boulevard.
The Bottom Line
What food is Detroit known for? Start with a coney and a square pizza, then work through the local pantry: Vernors, Faygo, Better Made and Sanders. Save room for paczki in February. Most of these foods are still made or served within a few miles of where they began, so the best way to learn Detroit’s food story is to eat your way through it. For more context on the city itself, see what Detroit is known for beyond food.
Buddy’s and Eastern Market hours were checked against their official sites on Nov. 1, 2026. Hours change, so confirm before you go.
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