Bastone Royal Oak

I recently visited Bastone in Royal Oak for a light lunch and some beer tasting with my wife and was pleasantly surprised on the Sunday afternoon.  When we walked in we were greeted promptly and seated in a nice wood booth.  The restaurant was dimly lit (not good or bad) and our booth looked like classic polished hardwood.  

The menu is very extensive but also a little pricey.  We both opted for the soup.  I chose to try beef soup and my wife had the creamy mushroom.  Both soups had the consistency of heavy cream and were delicious.  The beef in my soup seemed to be pureed and mixed with the cream.  They were served in gigantic bowls and although I was not able to finish all of mine (she liked mine more than hers) it gave me the opportunity to try both. 

We also ordered the beer sampler that includes all 6 of Bastone's regular beers and two of their seasonal beers.  I would highly recommend the Royal IPA and their seasonal Pumpkin Spice Ale.  The IPA was bitter and hoppy just like IPAs should be and the pumpkin spice was extra spicy with a pumpkin pie body and a cinnamon nose.  They also offer a beer club membership that includes 22 oz beers for the price of pints, a beer club t shirt, $2 beers on Tuesdays, 25% off all retail merchandise and beer to go (growlers), special event discounts and much more.  The cost is $55... I think... our waiter didn't know.

I would say the one knock on Bastone would be that their wait staff was not very knowledgeable about the food or beer menu.  It seemed like our waiter was preoccupied with something else that might have been going on in the kitchen and he didn't even know how much the beer club cost.  But he was polite.

All in all I would visit Bastone again to try the beers and something else from their appetizer menu.  It was a great place to have a few beers and some good conversation on a Sunday afternoon.