The Most Delectable Cocktail Bars in Detroit

Midnight Temple

★★★★☆ 4 (82)

"Excellent and attentive service, I love the decor and ambiance, the food is delicious, and the drinks are tasty. The vibes are really good here. Spacious interior. I love how colorful and fun the space is!My lentil dish was so good! My friend's chicken dish was sizzling on a skillet and so tender. The garlic naan was lovely.I enjoyed my refreshing mango lassi."

Saint 1881 Coffee & Cocktail Bar

★★★★☆ 3.7 (87)

"Located within an 1881 church, Saint 1881 brings well made cocktails and small plates to the heart of downtown Rochester in a unique, modern setting. We visited on a Thursday post-dinner, and it wasn't super busy. The service was pleasant, helpful, and very attentive, while not imposing. Cocktails were fab: of course we tried the spicy margarita, which is made with pineapple but can ask for it without. We also made an off-menu request, essentially a spicy grapefruit margarita, which was cheerfully made without hesitation. The charcuterie board was likely one of the best charcuterie boards I've had: the meats and accompanying accoutrements, from dates and candied pecans, to pickles, pickled capers, and marmalade we're outstanding. I would have liked a bit more variety on the cheese, but overall it was a nice addition to our cocktails. Other reviews have shared that the prices are high - however, for the cocktails I found them comparable to other types of upscale cocktail bars and restaurants in Rochester at ~$16 per cocktail. The small plates can definitely add up, though. We really enjoyed our visit to Saint 1881. Will have to come back and try some of their espresso cocktails too."

Aqua

★★★★☆ 3.9 (430) • $$

"The appetizers were all amazing will definitely come back for some apps and a drink at the bar. The service was definitely lacking, very slow, didn't come back to check on our food, and had to stop her to grab more water and drinks. The vibe was great as far as decorations go and how it is laid out we were in chairs at a table but there were lounge style chairs that I was honestly jealous of , we had five people and they were set up for four and there was no way you could add a fifth. They also had a violin player but just kept playing the same songs over and over, probably the same 4 or 5 songs and we were there for what felt like forever for dinner. Again I'll go back to sit at the bar if someone wants to go but I wont bring it back up to try and the other four people probably wouldn't either."

Red Ryder

★★★★☆ 4.4 (14)

"Great new gem!I met some friends here while I was in town based on their suggestion. They had mentioned it was quite new.This small establishment has a big personality with an outstanding staff. The menu wasn't too large but just right. Unfortunately I do not recall what I had for my main course, but I do remember that I had their homemade meatballs as a starter. These were fantastic!The decor is cool. Musically themed and has a really solid cool factor to it. Not too dark and not too light. Overall, just right.Would I go back? Whether for a few drinks, appetizers or dinner, I would easily come back. Knowing that this is a new establishment, I hope they do well. This is just the type of bar/restaurant that would serve a neighborhood quite well. Good food, good staff and a perfect recipe for good times. Check it out!"

Old Pony Martini Pub

★★★★☆ 4.1 (170) • $$

"Simply put, Old Pony is underrated. The food menu isn't as elaborate as the drink menu, but pricing is more than fair. My favorite martini of the 15+ options is the key lime pie martini. The double cheeseburger is one of the best the Pointes have to offer, and the chicken sandwiches are good options, as well. As for the French fries, there are 3 different kinds: garlic dill, golden, and hott. The garlic dill fries are definitely the way to go. This is a great spot to hang out, and the burger is seriously a must try for locals."

The Old Shillelagh

★★★☆☆ 3.1 (224) • $$

"If you like the Shamrock Club in Chicago, you'll love it here. Old school Irish bar with delicious food and great service."

The Rind

★★★★★ 4.9 (24)

"We spent Saturday night with friends at The Rind. It was terrific! The variety of cheese and meats for our charcuterie made it fun to try things for the first time. The food was great. The wait and bar staff were attentive, friendly, knowledgeable. They paid special attention to food allergies and found proper workarounds. We had a meal that was memorable and will be sure to be back soon."

San Jose Mexican Bar & Grill 2

★★★★☆ 3.7 (26)

"This place is all about the food. It has the best Mexican food I've ever had outside of Mexico. No paying me to say this. It's the best Mexican food I've ever had and beyond anything in Lake Orion, though, that really goes without saying. Everything on the menu we've had is fantastic, the flavors, the food quality, the quantities (excessive quantities but most folks love that). The place has been open for over a year now and doesn't seem to ever get crowded, and I assume that's driven by their being on Lapeer Road just south of Heights Road as opposed to in town where everything is located. If you want to wait forever for a table and very mid grade Mexican go in town to Sagebrush. If you want phenomenal food and good margaritas Lake Rock is just wow."

Rabbit Hole

★★★★☆ 4.3 (22)

"We went for a work event so took over the entire venue - the service was absolutely impressive from top to bottom. We had a couple hundred people there and things flowed smoothly in regards to being able to grab a delicious cocktail or delightful bite. Speaking of the food - wow!! 5 stars all around - usually when a place has "small bites" they are meh at best but everything offered was something I'd be excited to eat even at the fanciest restaurant! Would love to come here on a regular night sometime."

Don Juan Mexican Restaurant

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (103) • $$

"I've been coming here for a couple years and honestly it's been a great experience. Drinks are always on point staff is friendly and good it delicious. The tacos and enchiladas are my go to. The guac and queso con chorizo are both excellent appetizers! Happy hour is a blast 3 margarita sizes, and several flavors! Stop in for a good time!"

2 FOG's Pub

★★★★☆ 4 (254) • $$

"This is by far our favorite place to dine and reconnect after our work week. Many happy and delicious memories here and they just keep out-doing themselves. FOGS is literally a place where you could close your eyes and point to anything on the menu and it would be extraordinary. It never disappoints and we love taking our out of town guests and family here for cocktails and dining. Counting down the days til our next visit...Vesper anyone? You may not see it on the drink menu but they will make it for you if you ask!"

Fixins

★★★★☆ 4.2 (94)

"In town for a winter vacation and my nephew chose this place (thank you TikTok).The menu was full of every comfort soul food known to man. I couldn't decide so, I got a few apps and created a flight of sides. Whether you are a picky eater, on a diet or not, there is something on the menu to satisfy you.For my beverage I of course ordered the koolaid... red. Why red? Because no other flavors matter. And requested lemon slices, squeeze one in and let the other float. It's the only way to enjoy koolaid. The serving size was sizable, it was perfectly sweetened & i was kind enough to share with Ok.. let's start with the food. Thr fries are like no other. It's like they were seasoned, breaded & fried. Crispy.. amazing. I asked if they were sprinkled with a lil crack. Beyond delish. Words cannot describe. The collard greens were better than my grandmothers and her were THE best. They were so good, I ordered a second helping. The pot liquor (juice from the greens) was so soul healing... IFYKYK... I wish they offered that as something you could drink. The Mac n cheese.. the potato salad.. the black eyed peas... all were **chef's kiss**. I think the charred okra had potential but my batch wasn't the best. (I did still eat them). My suggestion is to quick blanche in a veg broth with butter, char and then lightly sea salt, garlic powder & onion powder. Trust me. I ordered the side salad. Listen... basic salad. It was most literally a basic salad but.. it wasn't. It was magnificent. Romaine, red onion, cherry tomatoes, croutons (they were homemade herbed cornbread croutons). I got the dill ranch to which I learned it's made in house. Listen, that was the best salad I have ever had in my life. There's nothing you can say that wouldn't convince me those vegetables were not grown in some greenhouse in the back & was not handpicked by angels. Not one unripe, shriveled or non crunchy vegetable was in there. Everything perfect & crisp. (And this is coming from someone who ONLY buys from small farms) It was so fresh that I ordered a large one to go. Ok rewind...the apps, the fried deviled eggs were perfection. Per my nephew, "the bacon is what took it there". The fish nuggets... I don't even know what kind of fish that was. Tender... and the cornmeal batter they were fried in. **praise him** . I didn't get to try the fried green tomatoes but it's on the list for next time. My nephews both ordered fried chicken (you get to pick your pieces!) Both said the chicken was juicy, well seasoned and liked the crunch. I didn't order an entree that day because I wanted a tapas experience so I was good with apps & sides. (All of which I shared... I'm the nice rich bougie auntie) No dessert was ordered only because I forgot and whyyyyy did I forget? The service. No really.. service was five star. From the moment we entered. I like that there was seating for us to wait and we were texted when our table was ready. We got water while we waited. The host, hostesses & manager were very friendly. The restaurant was fully staffed & functioned like a well oiled machine, The vibe is very good. Im not sure who did the hiring but good job. They turn over tables with swiftness. The service was impeccable. I say this as a business traveler who dines a lot. And if our waiter had other tables, I didn't notice. We were catered to. He was so attentive but not so much so that we weren't given time to eat & felt bombarded. He shared what he enjoyed from the menu (I asked him). He checked in to ensure we were enjoying our meal. He gave great eye contact. He was personable... funny.. professional.. appropriate. Had he said "my pleasure" vs thank you I would have thought he retired from chikfilA! I was very impressed. He even agreed to a pic. Given, how much I feel we were spoiled... and I am I'm certain the other waitstaff are equally as spectacular but, I'm going to stick with Joshua and only Joshua when I come. I mean... I like what I like **shrugs** and once you feel like a VIP, you don't chance it with others. Now, would I recommend this place... absolutely. But empty belly only and be prepared to order more to take home. What should you order?... the whole menu x2. Will I be back?... Mapping my next trip back in my head as I type."

Barrio Cocina y Tequileria

★★★★☆ 4.1 (833) • $$

"We usually order salsa fight to try all 3 different flavoured salsa with chips. Fried avocado taco is a must try for vegetarians. They are very quick at serving. It has an amazing vibe overall. Not just on weekends but on weekdays too."

Cibo Detroit

★★★★☆ 4.3 (194) • $$$

"This was my first time to Detroit, and Cibo's set the bar HIGH for future restaurants. My boyfriend ordered the Giuseppe pasta, and I ordered the Bolognese. For drinks, I had the Stormy Night and he had the Jalisco Kiss. BY FAR the best food either of us has ever had anywhere. He hasn't stopped talking about needing to go back since we left."

flights of fancy

★★★★★ 5 (3)

"Great food and drink! Excellent gluten free menu and gluten free options. Well worth the stop."

The High Dive

★★★★★ 4.7 (11)

"New owner now Called the High Dive. Lenord is the new owner. I love the Asian inspired cocktail options. The ambiance is a lot different than the prior bar in this location I hear. But to me now the vibe is hipster, chill, relaxing. Kind! Community oriented. Make sure to check out the involvement later in the year they might even start a photography group! Check it out. This one received reconciliation in my book and made it to the 5 star mark!"

Host Utica

★★★★☆ 4.3 (195)

"Five stars for Omar who is the kindest human and pizza maker extraordinaire. He made us a modified fungi pizza and takes pride in his work. Ordered a pizza to go while enjoying drinks and apps. New chef Angela in this month. Found two vegan apps and both were delicious. Cucumber salad was crunchy and flavored with garlic, sesame/chili oil, tamari, and cilantro. So good. Veggie potstickers were handcrafted and full of vegetables. Sidney, our server, was very sweet. End of the night on a busy Saturday, but everyone was friendly. Cocktail menu is always changing. Classics, creative cocktails, interesting beer and wine list too."

1 Up Arcade Bar

★★★★☆ 4.3 (50) • $$

"1 Up Arcade Bar is a blast!! Booze and video games...need I say more!! I've been to several arcade bars including Ready Player One, Pop + Offworld, and Pinball Pete's and 1 Up is probably my favorite!!! It's great that it's local and easy to get to. It's located in Downtown Farmington above Basement Burger Bar. The entrance is behind the building and there's plenty of parking behind the building too. I also like that it's not as tight, compact, and crowded as Ready Player One can get. I also had less problems with machines eating quarters or games getting stuck. The barcade itself is super cute and themed perfectly. The bar area has a giant light-up Pac-Man backdrop and all of the drinks on the menu are themed after old school video games. There's the Pac-Man old fashioned and Ms. Pac-Man cosmopolitan, a Ginball Wizard G&T, and a Diddy Kong banana flavored cocktail made with Screwball peanut butter whiskey. The craft cocktails are $9. They also have super delicious frozen cocktails! My favorite cocktail here is the frozen Donkey Kong! Do yourself a favor and order this! You will thank me later lol. It's a frozen banana cocktail with dark rum, cinnamon and vanilla. The best part: they actually flambé a banana and top the cocktail with the caramelized banana....yum!! The frozen cocktails are huuugee!! 23 oz for only $11. It's so large, it's the only drink you'll probably need for the night. I thought I had ordered the big one by mistake but apparently the big one is 51 oz and looks like a giant fish bowl to share for $22. They also have frozen Pac-Man cocktails called Blinky (raspberry), Inky (blue curaçao spin on a pina colada), Pinky (watermelon colada), and Clyde (whisky peach smash), and also a Kirby froze. They also have some craft beers on tap, some tasty $4 shots, and some bar snacks including chips, popsicles, Fun Dip and candy cigarettes for $1-$2. There's plenty of seating at the bar and also 1-2 tables throughout the barcade. Service was great! Bao was our bartender and he was super helpful, friendly, fast, efficient, and knowledgeable. Cocktails ordered come with 4 tokens for a game, and beers come with two tokens for a game. You can use tokens or regular quarters on all of the games and they have a couple change machines throughout the barcade. Most games require about two quarters/tokens and bigger games require four. I would say about $8-$10 is what you would need for tokens/quarters here to enjoy between two people for a fun night. They also have little tables by every video game to set your drink and drink holders at the pinball machines. They have about 5-6 pinball machines. I played the Pirates of the Caribbean one and it was super fun! I like how the pirate ship came to life. They have lots of nostalgic video games like Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Mortal Kombat, and Street Fighter vs. X-Men. They have some of my faves like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They have some driving games like Mario Kart and a game where you shoot zombies and of course an air hockey table which is always a blast. I've been here a couple times recently and before the pandemic, they even had a DJ spinning on the weekends. It's a fun spot to start your night with friends and maybe head to karaoke at BBB after or Swing Dancing in the park/pavilion. It also makes a great date night too!! I came here for a date and started the evening with tacos across the street at Masa and it was a lot of fun! They're closed on Mondays and Tuesdays but are open Wednesday & Thursday from 5pm to 12am, Friday from 5pm to 2am, Saturday from 12pm to 2am, and Sunday  5pm to 10pm. I highly recommend stopping in! Feels like you're at Chuck-E-Cheese minus the scary animatronic singing robots plus now I can have cocktails, yay! You will have a blast guaranteed!"

Buhl Bar

★★★★☆ 3.8 (53) • $$

"Best old fashioned I've ever had. Emily is super knowledgeable and provided fantastic service. The dim lighting is perfect. Whole spot is dope."

Vino & Vibes

★★★★★ 4.7 (68) • $$

"Happy hour is great! Ladies night on Thursdays are outstanding. The wine is wonderful ( I never have Hangover ) and they always have live music! Service is outstanding and we love Andrew. These ladies have great taste in wine and music and also offer a great spirits offering. It's a must go every week with friends"

North Bar & Grille

★★★☆☆ 2.7 (18)

"Another addition to the lack luster night scene in Southfield. Although I'm oh so grateful this place has opened next to my favorite bar which makes it easy to bar hop I just hate it shares parking with 2 other venues. As you may read in another review the parking is atrocious. My cousin and I took our happy tails to happy hour on a Friday and was greeted by our server Nikki who explained happy hour and the menu. We already knew we were ordering the lobster fries. We also ordered sliders: catfish, salmon, and crab cake. My favorite is the catfish slider. After the first round of food and the second drinks we ordered wings and quesadilla. There was a long wait for our food. I don't eat chicken but my cousin sent it back for being too salty. She had lemon pepper and buffalo mixed. Nikki brought back buffalo alone and she was pleased. I didn't care too much for the quesadilla. It lacked quesa in the dilla (flavor). If you are going to order food, make sure that you get your order in before the comedy show starts. Because Punchlineline and North share the same kitchen you will wait a long time for your food. That didn't stop us from coming back a few days later for drinks. We just didn't order food."

The Sugar House

★★★★☆ 4.3 (619) • $$

"My wife and I went to the Sugar House on 2/22/25 for some delicious cocktails before her birthday dinner at another establishment. The "Model T" on the new cocktail menu is . Every time I've been to the Sugar House it's been busy so reservations are recommended, especially on the weekend. We had such a good time while we were there that we signed up for the Mixology 101 on the following Saturday. I'm hoping to learn some skills so I can entertain friends and family at home. They also offer other classes that are specific to a particular type of spirit so if you're interested, details and upcoming dates are available on their social accounts."

Red Martini

★★★☆☆ 2.8 (18) • $$

"$5 happy hour martinis? Yes please! This was a great stop when I was in town for business. The owner was behind the bar and very engaging. Choices for martinis is pretty good, but they can really make anything you want."

Lightning Rounds

★★★★☆ 4.1 (20)

"Fast service. Spicy chicken slider was great also their shoe string fries. Had Oberon on tap. Any Michigan restaurant or bar not having Oberon during season is unforgivable. Cheese curds also tasty. Very reasonable prices. If I had to search for any negatives would be hopefully they expand their menu and it was quite noisy. Don't know if that's beyond their control though."

Nightcap

★★★★☆ 4.2 (105) • $$

"Visiting Ann Arbor and came upon this dark little bar. Inside was much larger than it appears from the entryway. Great drinks. A true mixology bar. Went on a Friday and the music was amazing. It happened to be Disco Friday. Very unexpected! Great vibe and they also serve lite bites. Great option if you're in Michigan!!"

54 West

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (48) • $$

"Cute quiet spot in Clawson to grab a drink. My friend recently moved to the area and wanted to show me some of the bars and restaurants in Clawson. They're located behind Mojave Cantina and have a cute outdoor patio area open in the summer with cushioned seats and fire pits, which was closed for winter but it looked like they had an igloo setup outside in the patio area. We sat inside which was dim lit and decorated with chandeliers, and had a comfy cushioned booth that goes around the perimeter of the restaurant. Their cocktail list has several different flavored margaritas, sangria, and Moscow mules, as well as mojitos, and other specialty cocktails like a lemon drop, Manhattan, and gimlet. We both had the margarita flights which were $9 for 3 different flavored margaritas. I had the blood orange, raspberry, and blackberry margaritas in my flights with sugared rims and the blood orange was my favorite of the three. They also have sangria flights but were out. They also had some craft beers on tap from Bells, Founders, and Magic Hat. 54 West's food menu was mostly appetizers and shareables with items like southwest egg rolls, pretzels and queso, Bosco sticks, chicken tenders, and potato poppers. They also had salads. Most menu items were$7-$10 and most cocktails were around $9. It was pretty quiet there for a Saturday night but my friend says it gets pretty busy there in the summer whe the patio is open. Service was good and our server was friendly, helpful, and attentive and checked on us several times throughout our visit. Enjoyed the margaritas which were tasty and I'd definitely stop in again."

160 Main

★★★★☆ 3.7 (134) • $$$

"Always a great time when I dine here. Sitting at the bar or at a table, always great service. The food is to die for. Can't wait until the next time I come back."

168 Crab & Karaoke

★★★★☆ 3.6 (90) • $$

"Had a Christmas party with coworkers and we had lots of fun! We were still singing all the way out the door when we left lol. Food was pretty good too. Awesome place to have a great time!"

Mi Mosa

★★★★☆ 3.8 (647) • $$

"Decided to stop in for brunch. Ordered the salmon bites which came with this spicy sauce, which was delicious! After the salmon bites ordered the omelette which you can chooses four things to add to the omelette. The potatoes that come with the omelette are phenomenal. Also ordered a picture of blushing mimosas! Overall great experience."

Churchill's Food & Spirits

★★★★☆ 3.7 (83) • $$

"We loved everything about our dining experience. The service was excellent, the food was great, and the atmosphere was wonderful. Don't forget to have dessert!"

Amore da Roma

★★★★☆ 3.6 (160) • $$

"Fast service and it was very fresh, though the sauce was a little bit sweet, which I wasn't expecting. We definitely would go back if I was in the area."

Stella's Restaurant and Bar

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (216) • $$$

"Enjoyed this stunning salmon burger that was obviously homemade Delicious and very satisfying. Service was superb and atmosphere lovely. Four stars as the non-alcoholic Stella's was far overpriced at $8."

Unwined Winery

★★★★★ 4.7 (24)

"We found this place on our way back from Detroit. We tried a flight each and they allow you to mix and match wine with cider and even slushy. There are plenty of choices to quench your palate. We tried an appetizer and were extremely pleased. We will be back."

Goomah

★★★★☆ 4 (46)

"Great food, great space and a welcome addition to Keego. This is a new Italian restaurant in the old Pepinos space. Live Bait is a new oyster bar next door and both are owned by the same people that own El Camino. They have only been open for three months so still working out some of the service kinks. The pizzas were delicious with good sauce and tasty crust. We tried the margarita and the mushroom. The leeks decorating the mushroom pizza were out of place but once we scraped that off the pizza was great. We tried the antipasto, Caesar and Caprese salads and all were fresh and well prepared. The only thing I regretted ordering were the glazed carrots, because they were flavorless. The pasta dishes that the table next to us ordered looked amazing and I will be back to try them.We had some issues with the bar and the mixed drinks coming out were both too weak and too strong. Those of us that ordered beer and wine were the happiest. Overall the food is great. Service is very slow but they are still getting the hang of it and I don't mind overlooking that for now."

Pequeno Cantina

★★★★☆ 3.9 (74) • $$

"You get complimentary chips and salsa here. The salsa is AH-MAZING (homemade, fresh ingredients).The drinks - heavy pour .I ordered one of their tequilas with tonic water and lime (only charged for the price of the tequila I ordered). My friend got a "specialty" cocktail, mango flavor.Almost got tacos, but portion sizes looked a little small for the price.I ordered the burrito, added steak (+6) and if I hadn't been so hungry from a day out I would've had leftovers (large portion, full of great ingredients!). There was quite a bit of meat in the burrito. Side of fresh made pico, lettuce, sour cream, and homemade guac perfect addition.My friend ordered chicken quesadilla with side of rice and raved about it. Portion was large for that as well. Her drink: Mango Pequeño de Original ($16) cost more than her meal and per her the flavor to alcohol ratio left something to be desired in the flavor department.The reason I am giving 4/5 is because the music for the size of the space is too loud (hard to have a conversation) and for the small size of the restaurant we waited a hot minute to get seated right in front of the restaurant.Staff is very friendly."