Casa Dominick's
Richard DeVarti studied in Madrid, came home and suggested his father start serving sangria, and Dom's has poured it by the quart Mason jar since the 1960s.1
Why go
The jar is red wine, brandy and diced fruit over ice, and DeVarti has tuned the recipe away from the Spanish one his father started with. I like our recipe better,
he says. It's not quite as sweet, and it's darker.
1 The magic ingredient stays in the family: People are always trying to get the recipe from me. I think it's better if we keep it in house.
1 Dominick DeVarti started the place on a shoe-string in 1960 in a two-story building overlooking the law quad.3 The patio is the room, and the tables fill from late afternoon.2 Dom's runs on the university's calendar. It opens the Monday after spring break and shuts after the last home football game in November.1
Order this / avoid
- Order: the sangria, by the quart, in the Mason jar.1
- Avoid: turning up in December. The season is over and the patio is shut.1
- Avoid: arriving late on a warm night and expecting a table. The Infatuation's advice:
get ready to camp out at 5pm.
2
What locals & experts say
- Bella Simonte, The Infatuation, 25 March 2026:
A grungier equivalent to Bill's, Dom's has flickering string lights, sangria-stained wood, and rowdy card games.
2 - Hour Detroit, on the ritual:
On opening day there's always two guys here first thing in the morning,
DeVarti says.It's a tradition for one of the houses on campus, I guess.
1
Good to know
- Hours: Hour Detroit prints 10am to 10pm Monday to Saturday.1
- Seating: the patio tables are the main seating.2
Jeff's take (his words)
- Note: "A favorite place for an outdoor drink on the patio. Craft beers and cocktails in mason jars - the house sangria is a local student favorite." Hour Detroit and The Infatuation lead on the sangria too, and the season is the thing to check before you walk over.
Verdict
should-visit — Hour Detroit and The Infatuation have both written this up and land on the same thing: a house sangria with a sixty-year recipe and a patio that runs on the academic calendar. DeVarti explains the recipe himself and will not give it up, which is the kind of evidence a listing never carries. The food is not the argument and no source makes it one. Go for the jar, sit outside, and know the season closes in November.