Travel Muse Magazine

I’m sitting at a patio table sipping a spicy hot drink, and the smell of meat wafting from the side door of the deli is mixing with the cool winter air that’s pretending to be spring today. Two ladies behind me are discussing their life stories as families distribute different sandwiches to each other from the depths of their yellow to-go bags. Zingerman’s Next Door Café makes me feel like I can become a regular, as inevitable as the paintings of people eating chocolate that decorate the interior walls. 

Next Door, as its name denotes, sits cozily to the right of the company’s famed delicatessen, which opened in 1982. According to the Zingerman’s website, “The deli was founded by Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig, two friends who dreamt of creating a traditional Jewish deli that would bring very special foods to Ann Arbor in a way that was unique to them.” As the Zingerman’s timeline highlights, the Next Door Café was converted from a residence building in 1991 into the haven of chocolates, coffees, and baked goods that exists today. So don’t get confused! If you’re looking for meats, cheeses, groceries, or a freshly made sandwich, Zingerman’s Deli is where you want to go. If you’re looking for a place to crack open a book or chat with friends over drinks and dessert, the café is the perfect spot. 

My favorite item here is the coffee, the signature drink on a self-serve table next to the pick-up counter. The wooden cash box sits beside it, a monument to the trust and community that the café champions, as well as a huge time saver on weekend days when the line has too long of a wait to order a simple black coffee. 

On this sunny February day, I’ve decided to branch out by ordering the “Livin La Vida Mocha,” which features a Chocolat Moderne cocoa blend. I’m unfortunately allergic to dairy, but luckily this spicy chocolate drink is made with water instead of milk. It also includes two shots of espresso for a boost! 

Interestingly enough this concoction is quite similar to the early Mesoamerican chocolate beverage that inspired it, which according to an article from the Institute of Culinary Education, “was made with water, flavored with spices and flowers, and frothed with repeated pouring from one vessel to another.” The article’s author Michael Laiskonis says, “Chocolate can be traced back thousands of years to the Olmec, Mayan and Aztec cultures – and its first form was a beverage…The modern chocolate bar didn’t emerge until technology and innovation converged in the mid-1800s.” You could say Zingerman’s is blending the ancient and the modern with this treat. And if you end up enjoying their hot chocolate, you can actually buy some to take home too.

The ancient combination of spice and sweetness pours down my throat and warms me completely as sunlight dances across the brick exterior of the café. I’d certainly order it again, although the menu includes many other coffee and chocolate beverages to be discovered. There’s also an array of artfully designed truffles, as well as a freezer of sorbets that would be the perfect antidote for the heat of summertime. 

According to Eater Detroit, Zingerman’s Delicatessen was a finalist in 2018 for the James Beard Award in Outstanding Service; and it’s clear why when you spend time at Zingerman’s, as the customer service has always been outstanding. The magic of the Next Door Café, especially for a college student like me, is its bustling atmosphere and diverse clientele. It isn’t only populated by college students and their stickered laptops, but also frequented by community members of all ages, professors, families, and tourists in the know. Nearby residents come here weekly, like I do, picking up a local newspaper from the side of the counter and just soaking in the environment. 

“What I appreciate most about the environment is the intentional culture and strong sense of community,” Liliana Grueber, who has worked at Zingerman’s for eight years, told me. “What I love about the people who visit Zingerman’s is that it’s not just locals from the community enjoying our products – people come from all over the world!”