Mercury Burger & Bar Review & Bathroom Guide
2163 Michigan Ave, Detroit, MI 48216
A hell of a Corktown room and tater tots worth coming back for. The burger didn't move me, and there's one restroom, down in the basement.
Reviewed May 2026
First-hand Shooki editorial
Shooki’s Review of Mercury Burger & Bar
By Shooki · Reviewed May 2026
A hell of a Corktown room and tater tots worth coming back for. The burger didn't move me, and there's one restroom, down in the basement.
I may be starting a fight in the Detroit burger community here. That's fine. Somebody has to say it.
The burger didn't move me. Not bad, not offensive, just not the one I'd send someone across town for. The tater tots are another story. Crispy, dangerous, and probably the reason I'll end up back here after telling myself I'm just stopping in for one drink. For burgers, I'm still a Nemo's guy. That's the beauty of this city: everybody has a spot, and everybody will defend it like hell.
What Mercury does have is a hell of a room. History on the walls, old Detroit memorabilia, and Corktown character you can't fake. I caught myself staring at old photos longer than I meant to, trying to picture the city before the new glass, the cranes, and the condos.
And you're right by Michigan Central and Michigan Avenue. Eat, then take a walk through one of the most interesting parts of Detroit right now. Old bones, new energy, a city very much in motion.
Best for
- Tater tots
- Old Detroit memorabilia
- A meal before a walk around Michigan Central
Less ideal for
- Anyone chasing the best burger in Detroit
- Anyone who can't do stairs
- Big groups sharing one restroom
The Shooki Bathroom Review
First-party restroom record · Reviewed May 2026
Restroom verdict
Clean, with paper towels, which I appreciate. But from what I could tell, it's one unisex restroom for the whole restaurant, and it's down in the basement.
- Restroom inventory
- 1 private gender-neutral room observed — venue-wide total unknown
- Review coverage
- Detailed observations recorded for 1 restroom area; venue-wide inventory is unknown
- Room reviewed
- The basement unisex restroom
- Reviewed room fixtures
- 1 stall/toilet · 0 urinals · 1 sink
- Why this score
- Clean and stocked, but one basement restroom for a restaurant this size costs real points, and the stairs create a real accessibility problem.
- Layout
- A single room at the bottom of a flight of stairs: toilet, sink on steel legs, round mirror, hand dryer, and a cart with paper towels.
- Capacity
- From what I could tell, one restroom serves the entire restaurant.
Observed accessibility limitations
- The restroom is in the basement, down a flight of stairs.
These are first-party observations from the reviewed experience, not an accessibility compliance assessment.
From what I could tell, there's one unisex restroom for the entire place, and it's down in the basement. I hope I'm mistaken.
The room itself was fine. Clean. White subway tile, a round mirror, a sink on steel legs, a hand dryer, and paper towels on a cart, which I appreciate. But one restroom for a restaurant this size is tough to overlook, and the stairs make it a real accessibility problem.
What Google Reviewers Say
4.5 on Google · 3,553 reviews · Read on Google →
The sides outrank the burgers in the reviews: tots are mentioned 169 times and poutine tots 98, with garlic fries (28), the fried bologna sandwich (21) and the salmon burger (14) all named, and shakes — including the boozy ones — appearing in roughly a hundred reviews between them. The patio is the other favorite at 108 mentions, with basement seating for bigger groups. Reviewers consistently praise the staff, the beer and wine list, and the fact that vegetarians and families are looked after. Of its 3,553 ratings, 2,343 are five stars.
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