Name:Chin's
Type:restaurant
Street:28205 Plymouth Rd.
City:Livonia
State:MI
Zip:
country:USA
Phone:734 525-CHIN
Status:operational

Description:
http://www.tikifish.com/chins.html

Here's my review of Chin's from way back (note, this is NOT the Chin Tiki - it is a restaurant outside Detroit owned by the same owners) - have a good laugh - I was such a Tiki newbie at this point I called 'The Book of Tiki'.. wait for it... 'Sven Kirsten's Tiki Style'. I blame it on the MSG...

Hey, at least I had the enthusiasm, if not the knowledge...

[ Edited by: tikifish on 2003-07-27 17:30 ]

Here are pics from my visit to the Livonia Chin's on 1-11-07. Enjoy!

here is my before and after the first time I went. Note the BOT in my hand. And the red in my face.

Great pictures Chub!

Thanks for posting!! :)

Cheers and Mahalo,
Jeff

This archeological study has been great..Thank you for the pictures. They are great...i am hoping to hit this place with FreddieB. Great Work!

Just to warn you, the food is really not very good at all. I've been trying different dishes at Chin's for the last 4 years and the only one that is decent is the Szechuan Chicken. Even the egg rolls are bland and taste microwaved. The drinks can be decent, but it's hit or miss.

Have Fun!
-Chub

[ Edited by: Chub 2007-01-20 11:05 ]

I just drove by Chin's yesterday and was curious as to what the connection was to Chin Tiki's in Detroit here are some very recent photos like yesterday....double chin!

..i'm glad to see from your pics that they decided to move some of the decor from the old chin tiki downtown to the livonia location....especially those 2 large wooden tikis crammed in the booth...

My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh!

[ Edited by: Michele 2007-06-03 15:15 ]

Here's some new pictures of Chin's...

















Bigger versions on my flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sultmhoor/sets/72157600649979542/

The inside looks realtively new, so tell us more about the 'old' looking sign on the outside.

On 2007-07-04 21:18, Chip and Andy wrote:
The inside looks realtively new, so tell us more about the 'old' looking sign on the outside.

there is nothing new about the inside...it's always looked that way with the exception of some of the tikis that were brought over from the old chin's downtown...i wish they would fix the lights in the sign that used to blink on and off around the border....i think the neon portion is all that is working..nice to see they repainted the sign on the side of the building.

On 2007-06-03 15:12, Michele wrote:
My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh![

Well Michelle, I for one am not laughing. Please tell me what proof you have that Chin's or other Chinese restuarants serve cats to their customers? These common stereotypes are NOT accurate or humorous, but rather reek of racism . Did your son learn that from you?"

On 2007-07-05 11:24, dogbytes wrote:

On 2007-06-03 15:12, Michele wrote:
My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh![

Well Michelle, I for one am not laughing. Please tell me what proof you have that Chin's or other Chinese restuarants serve cats to their customers? These common stereotypes are NOT accurate or humorous, but rather reek of racism . Did your son learn that from you?"

Yeah, I've been priviledged enough to have a few snacks in the RongoRongo Room with Dogbytes, and I'm certain that no cats or dogs were served, even though Dogbytes is Chinese. That old stereotype isn't the least bit funny...I mean, unless Xenophobia is the new comedy.

[ Edited by: tekoteko 2007-07-05 17:35 ]

if i am not mistaken, and i rarely am, there was an article in a local paper many years ago that chef shangri-la was serving cats in lieu of cow for their dishes.....this must have been a good 9 years back or more....i may have to research the tribune archives for this one....hmmmmm. but never fear...they have since cleaned up their act and i have eaten there many times since.

On 2007-07-05 13:10, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
if i am not mistaken, and i rarely am, there was an article in a local paper many years ago that chef shangri-la was serving cats in lieu of cow for their dishes.....this must have been a good 9 years back or more....i may have to research the tribune archives for this one....hmmmmm. but never fear...they have since cleaned up their act and i have eaten there many times since.

I'd like to think that the quote above was written "tongue in cheek". Because, clearly I could find an article to substantiate any preconceived notion about any ethnicity. What I find horrifying about the "Cat" issue is that another generation could be raised to believe that people are stereotypes. Being Jewish and looking like everyone else seems to allow people who are "unaware", the latitude to be insulting when I'm around. It's not okay to teach your children to be biased against any ethnic group. Read the news sometime... this tribe hates that tribe, millions die, we are not the same religion, millions die. I'm not meaning to be political but it's important that we do not "raise" generation after generation of small minded ignorant people...

And, if you wish to know what the cat symbolizes in Asian culture you might try Google for an informed answer!

Will there be a tiki party this year at Chin's? MotorCityTiki.com has become a cobwebsite, and I've heard no news of anything coming up.

On 2007-07-05 11:24, dogbytes wrote:

On 2007-06-03 15:12, Michele wrote:
My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh![

Well Michelle, I for one am not laughing. Please tell me what proof you have that Chin's or other Chinese restuarants serve cats to their customers? These common stereotypes are NOT accurate or humorous, but rather reek of racism . Did your son learn that from you?"

Never said that you ASSUMED it. I was saying that my cat has a bald CHIN, so he put her photo on the CHIN'S sign get it? Calling people racist, nice. Yes, there were articles about SOME Chinese restaurants serving meat other than cow, one in Pontiac did close because of evidence, I never pointed any fingers, I enjoy life and make light of things. Chill out life's too short.

On 2007-08-31 15:19, Michele wrote:

On 2007-07-05 11:24, dogbytes wrote:

On 2007-06-03 15:12, Michele wrote:
My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh![

Well Michelle, I for one am not laughing. Please tell me what proof you have that Chin's or other Chinese restuarants serve cats to their customers? These common stereotypes are NOT accurate or humorous, but rather reek of racism . Did your son learn that from you?"

Never said that you ASSUMED it. I was saying that my cat has a bald CHIN, so he put her photo on the CHIN'S sign get it? Calling people racist, nice. Yes, there were articles about SOME Chinese restaurants serving meat other than cow, one in Pontiac did close because of evidence, I never pointed any fingers, I enjoy life and make light of things. Chill out life's too short.

But you did say this: "you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!!"

So when you "make light of things", racist comments are okay because "life's too short"?

And if someone points it out just tell them to "chill out".

Nice.

On 2007-08-15 22:58, RudyV wrote:
Will there be a tiki party this year at Chin's? MotorCityTiki.com has become a cobwebsite, and I've heard no news of anything coming up.

there may yet be a chin tiki event this fall.....the official word is not in, but it could be feasible if chin's is a little more amicable about shelling out some dough to help pay for advertising this year instead of leaving it all up to the promotors, considering chin's makes a killing in terms of selling food and drinks, not to mention the piles of tips the waitstaff makes that night, making it their best night of the year. ...stay tuned.

On 2007-08-31 15:19, Michele wrote:

On 2007-07-05 11:24, dogbytes wrote:

On 2007-06-03 15:12, Michele wrote:
My son teases my cat that she has a bald chin, look what he did to the Chin's sign OMG! too funny and you know what they say about CHINese food and cats YIKES!! Have a good laugh![

Well Michelle, I for one am not laughing. Please tell me what proof you have that Chin's or other Chinese restuarants serve cats to their customers? These common stereotypes are NOT accurate or humorous, but rather reek of racism . Did your son learn that from you?"

Never said that you ASSUMED it. I was saying that my cat has a bald CHIN, so he put her photo on the CHIN'S sign get it? Calling people racist, nice. Yes, there were articles about SOME Chinese restaurants serving meat other than cow, one in Pontiac did close because of evidence, I never pointed any fingers, I enjoy life and make light of things. Chill out life's too short.

BACKPEDDLE! QUICK! Nothing like making a racist comment and then backing off on it saying that Life's too short!!! LET'S GO LYNCH SOMEONE. Jeez. (yes that was sarcasm.)

Don't get me started on the racist concept of Chinese using dog/cat/whatever in Chinese food.

Okay, I will. Let's just step back and think about this logically.

1. Let's say you're a cook at a restaurant, and your boss says, "I need you to cook 50 lbs of meat, and I don't care what kind of meat it is." What's easier? a)Finding, catching, killing, skinning, gutting, and deboning 50 lb of cat/dog meat? b)having a USDA certified meat purveyor deliver inspected and already butchered meat right into your walk-in refrigerator. First of all, restaurants aren't even set up to process carcasses, they couldn't even pluck a chicken. Economically and practically, b) is the better choice.

2. Fact: Most Americans are used to mild tasting meat. We're used to corn fed beef, industrially raised chickens, and lean pork. All of them are mild tasting meats. Many people don't even like the taste of grass fed beef. Most people don't like gamier meats, lamb, goat, and especially not exotic game meats like elk, deer, or partridge. What do cats eat? Cat food and the occasional rat. Cat food smells terrible. I'm going to assume that would give cat meat a VERY distinct and assertive taste. ANYONE will know that's not beef/chicken/pork.

3. Perhaps it's true that SOME Chinese used to eat dog in the very rural areas. But presuming that means that ALL Chinese eat dog is the same logic as believing that ALL Americans eat roadkill opossum just because some hillbillies eat flattened opossum. That logic is flawed and smacks of racism.

I'm also going to have to call bullsh*t on the the claim that a Shangri-la even had cat meat in their refrigerator. Reliable source please? And just because we think "If I read it on the Interwebs it's gotta be true" let me point you over to snopes the myth and hoax debunking site: http://www.snopes.com/horrors/food/chinese.asp

PLease lets hope they have another event here this Fall. I ruly miss these. If I am not mistaken Chin Tiki has been sold to the Illitch. I would imagine no tours then. Still fun to have the vibe at Chins ( especially cause I live 2 miles away )