Cliff Bell's

Cliff Bell’s feels like Detroit in a tuxedo.

All wood, low light, live jazz, and that Frank Sinatra/Rat Pack kind of energy that makes you want to order something brown, sit at the bar, and pretend your phone doesn’t exist for a while.

This is easily one of my favorite bars in the city. The room has history in its bones. Old school without trying too hard. Classy without being stiff. The kind of place you walk into and immediately wonder why more bars don’t feel like this anymore.

I’m honestly curious if Detroit has another bar quite like it.

My move here is simple: sit at the bar, grab a drink, and let some of the best live music in the city do its thing.

Now, the restroom.

Clean, solid, and they actually covered capacity pretty well with two stalls and two urinals, which I always appreciate. That alone saves a lot of headaches.

But it does lose points for accessibility and privacy. The restroom isn’t exactly easy for everyone to get to, and the walk there is… let’s call it theatrical.

You basically have to pass right by the drummer on stage to get there, so yes, the whole room might catch you making your restroom journey. 🤣

Just a heads up.

Still, Cliff Bell’s is absolutely worth the trip. It gives you a little taste of what Detroit must have felt like in the 40s and 50s — smoky, stylish, loud in the right ways, and full of life.