Detroit — An alley across from Comerica Park smells like a putrid New York City sidewalk in the summer, even in November when it’s cold. Your knees get weak, your palms get sweaty. Then order your food at Mom’s Spaghetti.
Eminem’s restaurant based on the song “Lose Yourself” is a partnership between the Detroit rapper and the Union Joints, which run the very tasty restaurants like the Woodshop in Clarkston and Vinsetta Garage in Royal Oak.
Like the rapper himself, Mom’s Spaghetti isn’t for everyone. If you’re used to trailer-park fare, a hot box of spaghetti and meatballs with grated parmesan on top will taste like fine dining.
But for those who’ve mastered the art of spaghetti—boiling the noodles, draining them, adding a jar of sauce—the restaurant’s menu will taste very familiar. It may even make you wonder why you just paid $10 a serving for something that usually costs $10 to feed an entire family.
If you’re counting carbs, try somewhere down the street. The spaghetti sandwich is exactly what it sounds like: Texas toast with spaghetti thrown into it. It’s hot and hard to eat. It’s the kind of thing you might want after a rare Tigers loss and you need some comfort.
It’s not good food. It’s fine. Detroit has some really fantastic places to eat: Grey Ghost, The Apparatus Room, San Morello, Leila—these offer patrons what they can’t easily make at home. The chefs are inventive and the fare is unique.
Mom’s Spaghetti is the opposite: It’s a meditation on the mundane. It’s a celebration of everyday life and how mom used to make it.
Side note: The lyric about the pasta in “Lose Yourself” is describing the protagonist’s nerves: “There’s vomit on his sweater already, mom’s spaghetti.” It’s not an appetizing thought.
When it’s ready, take it around the building and walk into the small seating area, where there are signs that say “Order in the alley and eat s’ghetti inside.” It’s clever to dress up inconvenience as a quirk.
The Trailer, Eminem’s shop above the restaurant next to the upstairs dining area, has to be the big draw for superfans. It really looks like a mobile home with green shag carpet, wood paneling, and a drop ceiling.
It has merchandise, like signed prints, ashtrays, and glassware. There’s a projected video of Eminem so you can catch a virtual glimpse of his person. There’s also an outfit the rapper wore in “8 Mile.”
And when it’s in stock, The Trailer sells Mom’s Spaghetti sauce so you can recreate the same dish at home. A jar sets you back $13.
For a restaurant that serves only spaghetti, the spaghetti at Mom’s Spaghetti is unremarkable except that it tastes like a simple meal from back when money was tight.
Maybe the food is more celebration than a real culinary experience. It’s a reminder of when your back was against the ropes, when you were broke and stagnant.
So if you only get one shot to visit Mom’s Spaghetti do not miss your chance to blow $10 on something you could make better at home. But you can still lose yourself in the music before you go.
Brendan Clarey is deputy editor of Michigan Enjoyer.
