I think it was 1993, I opened three stores all on one day in the Detroit area - Mount Clemens, Warren and Troy. The city of Detroit back then was a war zone so I can't even imagine what it is like today.
I remember being in Detroit proper twice. Once to pick-up something from a manufacture during the day and once looking for a famous restaurant at night.
During my day excursion I saw a lot of drug activity, abandoned building's, trash, etc. A place where you would check your door locks often and have a keen desire to get in, do your business and get out to the highway fast.
One night one of my colleagues wanted us to go to a restaurant that was famous for something or other - I forget at this telling; however we made a wrong turn and ended up in the hood. Burned out cars lined the street where there were boarded up houses. In some cases you could see light coming out from within the houses escaping gaps between the boards. Some houses had groups of locals drinking from bottles on the porches. The night lights were not lite and the pot holes in the streets were in reality anti-tank traps.
Well we were at an intersection debating whether we should make a right or a left when a cop car appears out of nowhere from my right. The driver makes a quick left turn, stops driver to driver and makes a "roll down your window motion" to me.
I roll down my window and he asks, "What are you guys doing here?" Before I could answer my colleague hollers from the passenger seat, "Do you know where we could find some CRACK?"
The police officer rolls his eyes and I say, "We are actually looking for X restaurant."
As if I hadn't even said anything he say's, "Boy's you are in the wrong neighborhood. I want you to drive straight three blocks and make a right and drive till you cross the highway (I-75). Once you cross 75 pull over to the first gas station there and ask for directions. NOW GET!"
We heeded his direction and eventually found the restaurant. The food must have been ordinary as I do not remember it at all.
As I wrote earlier, I can't imagine what Detroit proper is like now