Huron Hotel: Huron Motor Inn Menu from the "Indian Room"

In 1962, Ypsilanti lawyer Bill Anhut bought the Huron Hotel in 1962, and, so far as Dusty can tell, was the person who renamed it the Huron Motor Inn. The restaurant in the hotel, in the old-time coffee shop space, was called the Indian Room. Here is its menu.

Things I find interesting: one of the sandwiches consists of "imported sardines," served open faced on toast with spanish onion, tomato, and olives. Dusty D would love this sandwich, but was surprised to see it on a menu, since I don't think it would be popular today...but why not? A mystery.

Note also that lemonade is offered only "in season." We can infer that the Country Time et al drink mixes that line shelves in the store simply did not exist in the early 60s. And it hearkens back to the time when we ate everything in season (or preserved or from storage) since that's the only thing that was available.

To give you some idea of the prices, 25 cents in 1962 is $1.76 today. 50 cents = $3.52, $1 = $7.04, $2 = $14.09, $3 = $21.13.

Huron Hotel: Woodruff's Grove Restaurant

Here's a piece of Huron Hotel history; a menu from its 1980-1989 restaurant, Woodruff's Grove. The cute bit of this restaurant is that the menu choices are themed, with names reflecting tidbits from Ypsilanti history. Dusty Diary's favorite is "Asa Dow's Crab Legs." I can just imagine him saying, "I BEG your pardon!"

There's also the Judge Woodward (steak, but should be something more Detroit-y), the "Raftsmen," featuring a water creature on a li'l English muffin raft, and the Salad Demetrius, which is appropriately Greek. Were Dusty D to have lunch there today, she would choose...hmm, the "Fire of 1851," yummy.

The "Fence Watcher" burger confused Dusty D till she read on the back of the menu, in a little glossary there: "Fence Watcher: (mid 1850s)--A one man job riding property lines making sure fences were in good repair; prevented livestock from wandering and becoming the center of ownership disputes." Ah.

Huron Hotel: Dinner in 1931

During the Depression, the Huron Hotel (here called Hotel Huron; both names were used through the years) was one of the few hotels in Michigan to stay open and successful. Here is what you could choose for dinner in November of '31.

Things that I find interesting: There are zero ethnic-influenced dishes on the menu, though they're standard fare today. Buttermilk is one of the beverage choices. Oysters were still a common appetizer--oysters had been popular in Ypsilanti since the 19th century (one aspect of the past Dusty D is sorry she missed). Leg of lamb is still a popular and apparently common meat. All in all, it sounds delicious. I'll take the Mackinac trout if you please.