Handmade Meals With Fresh Michigan Ingredients Garner Attention
In partnership with: Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development
With an abundance of new development over the past decade, a recent influx of restaurants has expanded the culinary scene in Lansing. Two restaurants that have been around nearly 10 years and have seen these changes are The Cosmos and Meat BBQ. Picking up on their fantastic food and atmosphere early on, Food Network’s Guy Fieri filmed “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” at these local favorites, showcasing them to a broader audience of food lovers both inside and outside Michigan.
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Trust Us, It’s Good Pizza
The only wood-fired craft pizzeria in the area, The Cosmos, has two locations in East Lansing and Lansing. With traditional Neapolitan-style crust, each pizza is prepared with culinary flair.
“Everything we make is from scratch, and our mozzarella is hand-pulled,” says owner Sam Short. “We work with local farmers and distributors for many of our ingredients and appreciate being in Michigan, where we produce a wide variety of agriculture products. We have a huge breadth of Michigan agriculture options to choose from and take time with fresh ingredients.”
Setting The Cosmos apart is the Trust Us daily pizza option. “We designed it as a way to add a playful element,” Short says. “It offers one-of-a-kind selections, such as pumpkin or squash crème pizza with goat cheese. People don’t know what they’re getting until the pizza arrives at their table.”
Additionally, they offer a daily vegan and vegetarian Trust Us and a Trust Us cocktail. All cocktails are handcrafted, and they offer an array of local Michigan beer and wine.
We work with local farmers and distributors for many of our ingredients and appreciate being in Michigan, where we produce a wide variety of agriculture products.”
Sam Short, owner of The Cosmos
Right On “Que”
“When we opened almost 10 years ago, people worked downtown but didn’t live downtown,” says Sean Johnson, owner of Meat BBQ. “Now, we’re seeing a gentrification of the downtown area with many high-rise condos and a noticeably changing skyline.”
A Michigan native, Johnson was inspired to open an authentic barbecue restaurant after moving to pursue a music career in Nashville, Tennessee, where he also sampled a variety of barbecue. The music side of things may not have panned out, but the barbecue sure did.
Today, Meat BBQ sells more than 3,000 pounds of Texas-style brisket in a busy week with everything made in-house, from sausage varieties to scratch-made sauces. Johnson uses a Michigan-based distributor that sources meat from local farmers.
“Most of our alcohol is locally produced from Michigan distilleries, wineries and breweries, and our bread, buns, cakes and cookies all come from a bakery down the road,” Johnson says.
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Wisdom from Guy Fieri
Both Johnson and Short recall filming “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” as an exciting experience.
“Guy Fieri was genuinely knowledgeable and much more than a celebrity chef who knows his stuff,” Short says. “He took time to chat with every member of our staff, and it was a long yet fun process.”
The same dishes had to be made many times during shooting. “Being on camera, we did things 100 times, and cooking maneuvers were done 20 times in a row,” Johnson says.
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“We made 50 of the duck sausage pizzas during filming because they wanted to see ingredients added, then bubbling in the oven,” Short adds.
Being featured in the show has made an impact.
“We were a busy restaurant before the show, and when it aired, we became busier than ever,” Johnson says. “We went from being a small restaurant that did well in our community to national exposure where people travel to eat here. I’m grateful to the show and happy we’ve been as fortunate as we are. It’s a tough business. We’re here thanks to our employees, our customers and others who have contributed.”
If You Go:
The Cosmos
1200 N. Larch St., Lansing
1351 E. Grand River Ave., East Lansing
Meat BBQ
1224 Turner Road, Lansing