Jun 19, 2021

Beaver's Pub: Bourbons, burgers, bites and tails. No live beavers, but free smoke (your choice) in a drink

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Beaver's Pub: Cannabis is next door The hairy guy's report: Not to be outdone by all the beers made these days with odd ingredients,...
1 comment:

A downtown bar in need of a drink named for a beaver

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Stuffed beavers above the bar Doc’s report: “Little darling, it’s been a long, cold, lonely winter.” But here comes the sun: The masks are o...
Oct 19, 2020

Strikers Sports Bar: The Empire (some of it) returns, with pool tables, fried pickle fries and bowling (or not)

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Strikers: Plenty of beer The hairy guy’s report: Some bars have a great view. It’s hard to go wrong with a rooftop bar atop a skyscrap...
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Thoughts on life at Strikers, with a bit of Robert Frost

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Doc’s report:     It was only a year ago that Harry, the G-Man and I were visiting the newly launched MI Table. I noted then that it’s f...
Aug 21, 2020

VNO: Burgers, beer, a Skrewball on the rocks, quiet, a dash of New Age, a happy Sue - and wine, lots of wine

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VNO: Good place for reading The hairy guy’s report: Before the world went haywire, I was in a silent book reading club -- a friendly group ...

At VNO, an inconvenient (and New Age) veritas

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Doc’s report: “In vino veritas,” as the Latin aphorism has it: “In wine, truth.” The booze goes in, the truth comes out. Practical tip: Don’...
Jul 6, 2020

John’s Bar (and party store if needed): Good burgers, no fries, a warm welcome and a piano for Christmas

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John's Bar: "Nothing changes too much." The hairy guy’s report: One evening at work years ago, a guy got a call from his very ...

Looking for the johns at John’s? You'll need a tractor

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Men's room door at John's Doc’s report: In the mockumentary movie on folk music, “A Mighty Wind,” the fictitious Folksmen trio sing...
Jun 10, 2020

As bars reopen, we find masks, no masks, open space, foamy taps, everywhere a sign - and a lot of smiles

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Sign at the Green Hut The hairy guy’s report: What happens when bars suddenly reopen after being closed for – gee, how long was that,...

The masks are off, but I’d know those eyes anywhere

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Doc’s report: The loyal reader will be happy to know that I’ve kept my blog writing skills sharp during the shutdown by reading the approp...
Apr 18, 2020

Way too far beyond last call: We carry on as best we can in life without bars (but we surely don’t have to like it)

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Sign at Barney's Bar on Michigan Ave. The hairy guy's report: Here we are, stuck at home, hoping for better days -- a return t...
Feb 29, 2020

Willew: More soup than tap beer, a $4 burger, a Citra, Mentos, breakfast (on weekends) and lots of parking

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Willew: The doctor and barber are out The hairy guy's report: Old buildings can find new lives. A couple old downtown office buildin...

An afternoon on the wagon at the Willew, with tears

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Doc’s report: Global warming’s promise of an early spring lured Harry, the G-Man and your humble narrator out of winter hibernation, and w...
Jan 11, 2020

Country House: $1 beers (on Mondays), 50-cent pool, infused cherries and licorice (anytime) in Kawkawlin

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Kawkawlin Country House: almost perfect The hairy guy's report: A country house sounds like the sort of place where Martha Stewart m...
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At the Country House, you can save the tab you left

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Kawkawlin Country House, where beer tabs live on  Doc’s report: In the design of the modern beer can, John Updike saw in 1964 an image o...
Nov 2, 2019

At MI Table: Joe Louis Punch, Star Chicken Shotgun, Purple Gang and a restroom game (but no more oxtail)

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MI Table: big windows downtown The hairy guy's report: It's autumn, for sure. Leaves have fallen, the weather has turned brisk...
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At MI Table, decor and cuisine whisper Pure Michigan

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Doc's report:   As a janitor, I like my supper like I like my humor: clean. It’s harder than it looks. It’s less about Scrubbing Bubbl...
Aug 30, 2019

At Castaways: A blue Hawaiian, a Cranium Crush and an appetizer to wrestle with along the Kawkawlin River

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Castaways, a large place on the water The hairy guy's report: On a recent sunny afternoon visit to Castaways, up on the Kawkawlin ...
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An afternoon at Castaways: Trivial thoughts, bad jokes

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Doc’s report: Driving the 5.5 miles from my launch site at Coonan’s to my port at Castaways, I sailed past the Bier Garten at the 3.4-mile m...
Jun 12, 2019

The Rathskeller: Plenty of beer, burgers and TVs (even outdoors). Call it the Rat, but don't expect to find one

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The Rat: TVs out front The hairy guy's report: The printed bills at the Rathskeller, a stalwart presence on Midland Street, have a n...

An afternoon of street-level fun and games at the Rat

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Doc’s report: Sing along with me, gentle reader, to the tune of “Ode to Billy Joe” : "It was the third of June, in our historic city ...
1 comment:
Mar 23, 2019

At Old City Hall: A katsu sando (?), imported cherries and more wines than beers. (Nope, this isn't a dive bar)

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Old City Hall: It really was This is our 50th bar report. We're not done yet! The hairy guy’s report: Merriam-Webster, our favori...

Old City Hall is charming, polished and professional

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Doc’s report: A few observations on the importance of old halls: When tourists returning home highlight their trips, it’s surprising how o...
Feb 6, 2019

At the Oasis: Perch for sure, but also liver and onions, gray walls, porch chops (but no porch) and breakfast

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Oasis sign, with wrong phone number The hairy guy's report: On a biting-cold day, with much of the city huddled indoors, we figure...

Back from the ashes, the Oasis serves up memories (along with its food and drinks) in the South End

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Roxy behind the bar at the Oasis Doc’s report: I used to have the $3.99 breakfast at the Oasis Lounge at 8:30 on Wednesday with Dan, wh...
Nov 20, 2018

The Wanigan: Whiskey and oatmeal at 7:30 a.m. (if you want it), named sandwiches and a river view till 10 p.m.

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Wanigan: Now with a full bar The hairy guy's report: One of the perks of being human is that we get to name things -- pets, kids, s...
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Wanigan adds a bar, and we examine sandwich names

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Sign outside the Wanigan Doc’s report: Near the northwest foot of the Lafayette Street bridge and a stone’s throw from Putz’s Hardware...
Oct 3, 2018

Tri-City Brewing: Beer, more beer, popcorn (usually), crayons (!), well-behaved dogs and canning on the fly

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Tri-City Brewing: Beer made here The hairy guy's report: Fashioning himself a reverse beer snob in minor protest of all the strange ...

Tri-City Brewing: One of the cleanest places in town

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Behind the bar at Tri-City Brewing Doc’s report: The two words that come up time after time in descriptions of beer and breweries are ...
Jul 26, 2018

The Crowne Pub: Cheap beer, a bear to be named later, free games and a deep-fried Ding Dong (till 1:30 a.m.)

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Crowne Pub, despite what the sign says The hairy guy's report: When someone asks which bar is our favorite, we say there really is...
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A day at the new West Side free-game wildlife preserve

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Doc’s report: I met Harry and the G-man recently at the new Crowne Pub on Midland Street and settled into the late mid-summer afternoon. A...
3 comments:
Jun 1, 2018

Hooters: Wings in bacon, salt on a napkin, a great view, a Big Daddy and a Royal Flush. But sorry, no vermouth.

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Hooters at the end of Midland Street: Lots of orange UPDATE: This place has gone out of business. The hairy guy's r...

Branding at Hooters: An owl and orange (lots of it)

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Doc's report: Hooters, a “breastaurant” where Midland Street meets the Saginaw River as you drive or amble east from the west side of t...
Apr 11, 2018

At J&R's (or is it JR’s?): Farmers in the morning, Road Burgers at lunch and fine (maybe) art on Center Road

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J&R's, despite what the awning says The hairy guy's report: The only problem with being retired is that even if you like t...

Thoughts on life (and a victorious pool game) at J&R’s

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Kelly, the bar manager at J&R's Doc’s Report: I pass by J&R’s on Center Road twice a day, five days a week, on my way to and...
1 comment:
Feb 28, 2018

JT's Pub: An old place with a new name, a great burger, fancy fries, a nameless drink and a useful ladies' room

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JT's: Around the corner from Midland Street The hairy guy's report: Midland Street isn't as hopping as it once was.  O...

10 things (mostly) about JT's: Inventive drinks, great food, college football history, good hosts and more

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Holly behind the bar at JT's Doc's report: A recent question at bar trivia asked: "Which of these drinks does not belong wi...
4 comments:
Dec 29, 2017

The Sabre Room, a cocktail lounge with all you'll need (fried cheesecake, anyone?) to stay out of the gutter

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Sabre Room: A place to play The hairy guy’s report: Everybody likes to act like a big wheel once in a while, doing things like buyin...

Shakespeare and Sisyphus turn up at the Sabre Room, helping us uncover the true meaning of shuffleboard

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Doc’s report: On a table in Tap Alley, a new craft bar complementing the larger Sabre Room at Bay Lanes, stands a 30-inch-high, 48-piece J...
Nov 3, 2017

Tubby’s: A longtime South End joint for beer, burgers and games galore, including Schmier (just for mom)

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Tubby's: Drab on the outside, warmer inside The hairy guy’s report: A posting from earlier this year on Tubby’s Facebook page show...
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Tubby’s: Friendship and poetry (!?) on Kosciuszko

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Doc’s report: To paraphrase Woody Allen: Now that I’m 68, I know that my life is easily a third over. Indeed, it is the autumn of my l...