These Classic Michigan Comfort Foods Bring Back Sunday Dinners
There’s something truly magical about Sunday dinner. The gentle hum of conversation, the clatter of silverware, and that unmistakable aroma wafting from the kitchen – a promise of warmth, family, and delicious food.
In Michigan, these gatherings often revolved around dishes that felt like a hug from the inside out. For many of us, growing up in the Mitten State meant Sunday plates piled high with hearty, satisfying comfort foods that tell a story of regional pride and cherished traditions.
Join us on a culinary journey back in time to those beloved Sunday tables, exploring the flavors that define Michigan comfort.
1. Pasties: The Upper Peninsula’s Portable Feast
Cornish miners brought these handheld meat pies to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in the 1800s, and they’ve been a staple ever since. Filled with beef, potatoes, rutabaga, and onions wrapped in a flaky crust, pasties were the original lunch box meal for miners heading deep underground.
My grandmother would make dozens every Sunday, insisting that ketchup was sacrilege while my grandfather secretly dipped his in gravy. Lehto’s Pasties in St. Ignace has been serving these hearty handfuls since 1947, maintaining the traditional recipe that connects generations of Yoopers.
Whether eaten hot from the oven or cold the next day, pasties represent Michigan’s resilient spirit and practical approach to good food.
2. Detroit-Style Pizza: The Motor City’s Cheesy Rectangle
Born in the blue-collar neighborhoods of Detroit, this rectangular pizza features a thick, airy crust with caramelized cheese that crisps along the edges. What makes it unique is how the toppings are layered – cheese first, followed by toppings, then racing stripes of tomato sauce on top.
Buddy’s Pizza on Conant Street started it all in 1946, using blue steel pans from automotive factories as pizza trays. The repurposed industrial pans gave the pizza its signature crispy edges and helped create a style now imitated nationwide.
The combination of buttery crust, Wisconsin brick cheese, and those perfectly charred corners makes this pizza a Sunday dinner champion throughout Michigan.
3. Coney Island Hot Dogs: Battle Of The Sauce
Nothing sparks debate among Michiganders like which coney joint serves the best hot dog. These aren’t your ordinary franks – they’re topped with a meaty, spiced chili sauce, diced onions, and yellow mustard on a steamed bun. The rivalry between American Coney Island and Lafayette Coney Island in downtown Detroit has raged for generations.
Growing up, Sunday drives often ended at Flint’s Angelo’s Coney Island, where my dad would regale us with stories of his college days over plates of coneys. The Flint-style sauce differs from Detroit’s, using a drier, more finely ground meat mixture that locals defend fiercely.
Regional variations exist across the state, but the combination remains unbeatable comfort food.
4. Mackinac Island Fudge: The Sweet Souvenir
Creamy, rich fudge has been Mackinac Island’s signature treat since the 1880s. While technically not dinner fare, this decadent dessert often capped Sunday meals for families returning from weekend trips to Michigan’s famous car-free island. The traditional shops along Main Street still make fudge the old-fashioned way – on marble slabs where the cooling candy is worked with long paddles.
Original Murdick’s Fudge has been crafting their chocolate masterpieces since 1887, creating a tourist attraction from the fudge-making process itself. Visitors watch as confectioners fold and shape the molten mixture into perfect loaves.
Flavors range from classic chocolate to butter pecan and seasonal specialties like Michigan cherry.
5. Cherry Pie: Traverse City’s Claim To Fame
Michigan produces over 70% of the nation’s tart cherries, with most coming from the orchards surrounding Traverse City. These ruby gems transform into the perfect pie – sweet-tart filling encased in buttery crust that graced countless Sunday dessert plates across the state.
The National Cherry Festival celebrates this fruit every July, but Michigan families don’t wait for summer to enjoy cherry pie. My aunt’s secret recipe included a splash of almond extract that elevated her pies to legendary status at family gatherings.
Grand Traverse Pie Company serves some of the best commercial versions, using local Montmorency cherries that deliver that perfect balance of sweetness and acidity that defines a proper Michigan cherry pie.
6. Whitefish: Great Lakes Bounty On A Plate
Fresh from the cold, clear waters of the Great Lakes, whitefish represents Michigan’s maritime heritage on dinner plates statewide. Traditionally prepared broiled, smoked, or in a creamy chowder, this delicate fish has sustained lakeside communities for centuries.
The classic preparation involves a simple herb seasoning and lemon, letting the fish’s natural flavors shine. Restaurants like Carlson’s Fishery in Leland have been serving whitefish since 1904, maintaining fishing traditions that stretch back generations.
In northern Michigan homes, Sunday dinner often meant freshly caught whitefish. Sometimes just hours removed from the lake, served alongside locally grown vegetables for a meal that captured the essence of Great Lakes living.
7. Vernors Float: The Medicinal Dessert Drink
Part medicine, part dessert, the Vernors float combines Michigan’s beloved ginger ale with vanilla ice cream for a creamy, fizzy treat. Vernors itself is a point of state pride – created in Detroit in 1866 by pharmacist James Vernor, it’s considered America’s oldest surviving ginger ale.
When I had childhood stomachaches, my grandmother would serve a modified version without ice cream, insisting its medicinal properties were scientific fact. The distinctive barrel-aged flavor and intense carbonation (Michiganders call it “mouse” when it tickles your nose) make it unlike any other soda.
Restaurants across Michigan serve proper Vernors floats. But Sunday family dinners often ended with homemade versions that somehow tasted better than any restaurant creation.
8. Cider And Donuts: The Autumn Ritual
Fall Sundays in Michigan inevitably involve a trip to the cider mill for fresh-pressed apple cider and warm cinnamon-sugar donuts. This seasonal tradition brings families together as leaves change color across the state. The donuts – cake-style, never yeast – come hot from the fryer, often still too warm to handle.
Franklin Cider Mill near Bloomfield Hills has been pressing apples since 1837, creating the perfect tangy-sweet cider that pairs perfectly with their donuts. The experience includes watching apples being crushed by the mill’s water-powered press.
Many Michigan families cap their Sunday drives with this autumn pairing, creating memories that smell of cinnamon, apples, and the crisp fall air.
9. Wet Burritos: Grand Rapids’ Mexican-American Fusion
The wet burrito might seem out of place on a Michigan comfort food list, but in Grand Rapids and western Michigan, this smothered creation is Sunday dinner royalty. Unlike traditional burritos, these are completely covered with red enchilada sauce and melted cheese, requiring a knife and fork to eat.
Beltline Bar claims to have invented this regional specialty in 1966, selling millions since then. The magic comes from the contrast between the crisp edges of the tortilla and the sauce-soaked center filled with seasoned meat, beans, and cheese.
My college roommate from Grand Rapids introduced me to this comfort food marvel during a homesick moment, recreating his family’s Sunday recipe in our tiny apartment kitchen.
10. Senate Bean Soup: Dearborn’s Political Connection
Michigan’s long-serving Senator Carl Levin helped popularize this hearty navy bean soup that’s served daily in the U.S. Senate dining room. The simple combination of Michigan navy beans, ham hocks, and vegetables became a Sunday staple in homes across the state, especially in Dearborn where bean production was historically significant.
Miller’s Bar in Dearborn serves a version alongside their famous burgers, connecting local agriculture to Michigan’s political influence. The soup’s straightforward preparation reflects Midwestern practicality – inexpensive ingredients transformed into something substantial and satisfying.
Families often put the soup on to simmer before Sunday church, returning home to a house filled with the comforting aroma of beans and smoked pork.
11. Frankenmuth Chicken Dinner: German Tradition Lives On
Family-style chicken dinners have been drawing visitors to Frankenmuth since the 1950s, when Bavarian-themed restaurants began serving all-you-can-eat feasts. Zehnder’s and Bavarian Inn compete for chicken dinner supremacy, each serving golden fried chicken alongside buttered noodles, mashed potatoes, and signature bread stuffing.
These massive meals mirror the Sunday gatherings once common in Michigan’s German farming communities. The chicken arrives perfectly golden, with a crisp exterior hiding juicy meat beneath. What makes these dinners special isn’t just the food but the experience of passing platters around the table.
Both restaurants maintain the tradition of multiple courses, starting with appetizers like chicken liver pâté and ending with ice cream. Just like grandma’s Sunday spread.
12. Cudighi Sandwiches: The Upper Peninsula’s Italian Influence
Italian immigrants brought this spiced sausage sandwich to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula mining communities, where it evolved into a regional specialty. The cudighi combines a patty of spiced Italian sausage with melted mozzarella and tomato sauce on a long roll – creating a sandwich that bridges Italian and American food traditions.
Vango’s Pizza in Marquette serves one of the most authentic versions, maintaining the distinctive blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves that gives cudighi its unique flavor profile. The combination might sound unusual, but it creates a perfect balance of savory and sweet.
Sunday family gatherings in the UP often featured homemade cudighi, with each family claiming their spice blend was the definitive version.