Ypsilanti’s lively and varied dining options will be showcased in the first-ever Grub Crawl.

The Oct. 5 event will allow participants to purchase a ticket for $20 and choose from specials at seven downtown and Depot Town eateries.

Sidetrack is among participants in the Grub Crawl.

AnnArbor.com file

The Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Chamber of Commerce organized the event, and its events manager, Katie Jones, said the Grub Crawl will generally work by having guests present their ticket at each destination. Each will receive a stamp and be allowed to sample appetizer-sized specials the restaurant is offering for the evening.

Haab’s owner Mike Kabat said his restaurant, which specializes in steak and seafood, will offer a fall favorite in their butternut squash soup, fresh boiled salmon cakes, broiled black bean burgers and gazpacho. He said the food will be put out buffet-style and those with tickets can sample each if they wish.

Kabat recently heard from a neighbor at the bus stop that she was looking up things to do in Ypsilanti and the Grub Crawl popped up, so she purchased tickets for herself and her kids. He said he was glad to see the event was there and being promoted.

“There’s a lot of variety in Ypsilanti, and you can choose from almost any type of ethnicity,” he said. “There are a couple places that will soon be opened up downtown, and a lot of individualism and independent restaurants here.”

Sidetrack owner Linda French said she wasn’t certain yet exactly what the Depot Town restaurant would be offering, but said it would be “something special off our menu.”

She said there was a uniqueness to the Ypsilanti restaurants that made them attractive destination stops, and she also highlighted the fact that there’s abundant free parking in the city.

The Grub Crawl is a different way to promote and highlight Ypsilanti through a community event, Jones said.

“There are so many restaurants and a lot of them are unsung,” she said. “But there are really great ones to highlight and draw people to downtown and Depot Town.”

According to Ypsilanti Mayor Paul Schreiber, the event is another bit of evidence of the city’s transformation from an industrial town to a city with culture and entertainment.

“We’ve got some places that have character that you can’t find any where else, but there’s no pretension,” he said.

The event runs from 6 to 9 p.m. and Golden Limousine is providing a trolley car to run between the restaurants.

Participating restaurants are Haab’s, Sidetrack, Aubree’s, Cafe Ollie, the Ypsilanti Food Co-op, the Harvest Kitchen and the Corner Brewery.

Jones said a similar crawl for Ann Arbor is in the works for next spring or fall.

Anyone interested in purchasing tickets, which are $20 for adults and $5 for kids, can check the chamber's website at a2ychamber.org or email Jones at Katie@a2ychamber.org or call at 734-214-0105.