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Mayer Hawthorne's Late-Night Detroit Eats

Lafayette Coney Island (Detroit, MI)

J.D. Pooley/Getty Images

Lafayette Coney Island (Detroit, MI)

The stone soul singer Mayer Hawthorne[1] may have been born and raised in Ann Arbor, but he's Detroit[2] through and through. He now lives and records in L.A., but whenever he's back in his native Michigan, he'll typically end his day with a couple of chili dogs from Lafayette Coney Island[3].

As much a local institution as Motown itself, Lafayette Coney Island has been serving up its chili dogs and other diner classics for nearly a century. "If I'm singing, DJing, record digging, or just hanging out in Detroit," Hawthorne tells 'Men's Journal,' "there's a very high probability that I will end up at Lafayette Coney Island."

Hawthorne, whose new album, 'Where Does This Door Go,' comes out July 16th, has been going there since he was a kid. After watching the Tigers play with his father, they'd stop at Lafayette Coney Island for a "loose burger" – "essentially a hamburger in a hot dog bun with chili on top," Hawthorne explains. "Nowadays I usually order two Coney dogs and some chili cheese fries – best in the world – which in Lafayette language is 'two up on one!'"

A purist, Hawthorne makes sure to warn visitors not to mistake the archrival American Coney Island[4], right next door, for the true authentic Detroit chili dog. (The second business opened after a feud erupted between the two immigrant brothers who founded the first.) The original place offers many advantages: Lafayette stays open until 4:30 a.m., for one, but the real secret to the joint's success is the "snap" of its natural-skin-casing hot dogs, which, combined with the spice of the chili, create a mouth-watering experience that is "absolutely magical," Hawthorne says.

"And if you're lucky, Faisal the waiter will mesmerize you with some more magic tricks while you eat." Clearly, it's really got a hold on him. [Lafayette Coney Island[5], 118 West Lafayette Blvd, Detroit, MI; 313-964-8198]

References

  1. ^ Mayer Hawthorne (www.mayerhawthorne.com)
  2. ^ Detroit (www.mensjournal.com)
  3. ^ Lafayette Coney Island (www.facebook.com)
  4. ^ American Coney Island (www.americanconeyisland.com)
  5. ^ Lafayette Coney Island (www.facebook.com)
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