Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Detroit for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Detroit for grown-ups.
Standby in The Belt alley off Gratiot serves modern cocktails in downtown Detroit since 2015. Order the house cocktail, often barrel-aged. At 225 Gratiot Ave.
Signature drink: House cocktail, often barrel-aged
Food: Composed small plates
Tip: Entry is from The Belt alley; reservations through OpenTable. World's 50 Best Discovery list.
The Sugar House on Michigan Avenue in Corktown serves Prohibition-era craft cocktails in Detroit since 2011. Order the prohibition-era classics.
Signature drink: Prohibition-era classics
Food: Small bites and bar snacks
Tip: Walk-ins Monday through Thursday; Friday and Saturday need reservations. Tin ceiling, old bar.
Cliff Bell's on Park Avenue has poured cocktails in Detroit's downtown since 1935. Reopened 2006 by Paul Howard, it is the city's premier live jazz room.
Signature drink: Classic Manhattan
Food: Steak frites and chophouse classics
Tip: Tickets for the band run separately. The dining room is half the room; cocktails at the bar.
Baker's Keyboard Lounge on Livernois has poured drinks in Detroit since May 1933 and started booking jazz pianists in 1934, the oldest continuously operating.
Signature drink: Old-fashioned
Food: Soul food kitchen alongside
Tip: Only 99 seats; tilted mirrors let the audience watch the pianist's hands.
Two James Spirits on Michigan Avenue in Corktown is Detroit's first licensed distillery since Prohibition. Order the old cockney gin and tonic.
Signature drink: Old Cockney gin and tonic
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Backyard patio looks at Roosevelt Park and Michigan Central Station. Patio in summer.
Atwater Brewery Tap Room on Joseph Campau in Rivertown has served beer in Detroit since 1997. Located in Eastern Market. Order the atwater dirty blonde lager.
Signature drink: Atwater Dirty Blonde lager
Food: Pub menu
Tip: Atwater Arcade for the bar games. 225 cocktail bar reopens for summer evenings.
Detroit Beer Company on Broadway has brewed in downtown Detroit since September 2003. Order the local pony express ipa. Booking recommended.
Signature drink: Local Pony Express IPA
Food: Pizza and bar food
Tip: Game-day crowds spill from Comerica Park; weekday lunch books up faster than dinner.
PJ's Lager House on Michigan Avenue in Corktown serves Cajun food and live music in Detroit since 1991. Order the pabst tallboys. Open wed-sun 18:00-02:00.
Signature drink: Pabst tallboys
Food: Cajun po-boys and gumbo
Tip: Cover charge varies by act; Pabst is the canonical pour. Cajun po-boy is the deep cut.
Lily's Seafood Grill & Brewery on South Washington in Royal Oak has brewed and poured in metro Detroit since 1999. House-brewed beers alongside fresh seafood.
Signature drink: House brewed ale
Food: Seafood and pub fare
Tip: Patio in summer is the prime seat; book ahead for weekend evenings.
Pegasus Taverna on Monroe Street has been a Greektown anchor in Detroit since 1981. The flaming saganaki and the after-casino crowd are the constants.
Signature drink: Ouzo and Mythos lager
Food: Mediterranean small plates
Tip: Open through 02:00 weekends; the bar takes walk-ins later than the dining room.
Eastern Palace Club on John R Road in Hazel Park serves a community Key West beach bar in metro Detroit. Order the rum buckets and classic tiki cocktails.
Signature drink: Rum buckets and classic tiki cocktails
Food: Calico Jack's Kitchen elevated bar food
Tip: Voted Best Tiki Bar by Detroit Metro Times in 2023 and 2024; karaoke and dance nights run multiple evenings.