La Dulce Closes In Royal Oak, Heads To Detroit

ROYAL OAK, MI — One of Royal Oak’s favorite restaurants is moving to Detroit. La Dulce closed its doors Sunday for the final time at 115 S. Main Street and is planning to reopen next month on Washington Boulevard in Detroit.

“We have absolutely loved our time in the Royal Oak community and will miss the neighborhood that embraced us as we built our footprint,” owner Luis Negrete said in a statement. “We had an opportunity to be part of Detroit’s growing culinary scene that we couldn’t pass up — we’re so excited for our next step.”

Judging by reviews on Yelp, La Dulce will be sorely missed in Royal Oak. It rated four out of five stars with more than 100 written reviews. The restaurant served a tapas or small plate style of Spanish foods.

(For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Royal Oak Patch, click here to find your local Michigan Patch. Also, follow us on Facebook, and if you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

“We discovered La Dulce via Yelp and have to say the food and craft cocktails are spectacular,” Ronda N. of Ferndale wrote in a May 15 review. She gave the restaurant four stars. “Honestly the expertly crafted cocktails are some of best we've ever had. They recently updated the drink menu for Spring/Summer.”

Wayne K. of Berkley had a different take in a June 14 Yelp review. “This is a hard one to review,” he wrote. “Food-wise, it's a 4-5 star place. As authentic Spanish food as you will find. I lived in Spain for 3 years so can vouch for that. Price-wise, it's 2 star. Very over priced. $20 for a cheese board with a few slices of cheese? $25 for grilled octopus. So overall, meh. While authentic, the value for the $$ just isn't there.”

The Detroit Free Press reported that La Dulce will re-open in Detroit's Crowne Plaza Detroit Riverfront. It will occupy 7,000 square feet and use many of the furnishings from its Royal Oak location.

Photo courtesy of Google Maps