The Detroit Free Press and Chevy Detroit recently unveiled the 2026 Restaurant of the Year, Restaurant of the Year Classic and the 10 Best New Restaurants and Dining Experiences in metro Detroit.
Now it’s time to dine at the honored restaurants.
The Detroit Free Press/Chevy Detroit Top 10 Takeover dinner series enters its 12th year, offering guests a chance to experience a curated selection of dishes at this year’s recognized restaurants.
Each dining event is an exclusive and personal interaction at the establishment. Typically, the experiences take place as a private event and, at times, when the restaurant is closed.
The next stop in the Top 10 Takeover series is the Franklin Oyster Bar and Eatery in Franklin, which was No. 1 on the 2026 Detroit Free Press/Chevy Detroit Top 10 New Restaurants & Dining Experiences list for bringing this neighborhood oyster bar to Oakland County.
Jay Farner and Nicole McGrail are behind the transformation of the spot, previously a tavern, into a place where locals and visitors could slurp oysters in the evening, or start their days with cups of coffee on weekends. Their vision was inspired by cities like Charleston, South Carolina and Savannah, Georgia, “where historic homes have been reimagined as bijou restaurants, namely oyster bars where the mollusks are shucked in the dining room and served by the half shell on ice,” wrote Detroit Free Press dining critic Lyndsay C. Green.
Here’s what to know about the Top 10 Takeover dinner series event Franklin Oyster Bar & Eatery.
When is the Top 10 Takeover dinner at Franklin Oyster Bar & Eatery?
How to get tickets to Top 10 Takeover
Starting Thursday, May 21, Detroit Free Press subscribers get early access to ticket sales for the Franklin Oyster Bar & Eatery event. Subscribers should check their email at noon Thursday, May 21, for a link to ticket sales.
Tickets for the general public go on sale at noon Friday, May 22, at freep.com/top10. General ticket sales take place every other Friday.
For each dinner event in the series, Chevy Detroit offers a chance for one winner to receive two tickets to the event. Enter the contest at chevydetroit.com/top10.
Tickets for this event are $89 per person, which includes tax, gratuity, and $3 donation to Keep Growing Detroit.
Since the inception of the dining series, the Free Press and Chevy Detroit have maintained a charitable aspect. That effort continues this year with $3 of each ticket sale donated to Keep Growing Detroit — an organization aiming to make Detroit a food-sovereign city.
Keep Growing Detroit (KGD) provides seeds, transplants and soil to members for a small membership fee. It also hosts classes, community dinners and offers a CSA — Community Supported Agriculture. The organization supports both backyard gardeners and larger-scale urban growers. For information, go to KGD’s website detroitagriculture.net.
Franklin Oyster Bar & Eatery Top 10 Takeover menu
Amuse bouche
Osetra Caviar
Potato leek croquette, lemon creme fraiche
First course
Minter Sweet Oysters with cilantro chili horseradish, chamoy, lime
Vegetarian first course: Fried Mushrooms with truffle salt, French onion ranch
Second course
Dill Caesar Salad with polenta croutons, parmesan Reggiano, roasted tomato
Third course
Duo of Jonnah Crab and Icelandic Haddock crab cake with bearnaise, fish and chips
Third course vegetarian: Roasted Cauliflower Steak with English peas ragu, mustard greens, pickled ramps
Fourth course
Mississippi Mud Pie with cocoa crust, French silk mousse, vanilla fluff
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Franklin Oyster Bar & Eatery Top 10 Takeover dinner tickets go on sale
Reporting by Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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