Detroit: Mercury Burger Bar
Detroit’s Corktown is quickly becoming one of the more popular areas for dining out in the city of Detroit. Located west up Michigan Avenue from the downtown area, there are a number of new places, as well as some old classics to choose from offering everything from high-end dining to a burger and a beer. This week we are focusing on the burger and a beer.
This years reopening of the Michigan Central Train Station has drawn a lot of visitors to the area, and the local restaurants are reaping the benefits. In the vicinity you have at least a dozen places to choose from. Places like Slows BBQ, Takoi and Ima, Supergiel, Cork and Gable and Grandma Bob’s, just to name a few, all right there within walking distance . . . but this weeks adventure is taking us to Mercury Burger Bar.
Mercury Burger Bar looks like a classic bar that has been there since the 40’s or 50’s, but in reality they have only been open since 2012. The building, which was built in 1924, was The Mercury Bar, which closed it’s doors in the 1980’s and was more recently the Mercury Coffee Bar, before they closed their doors in February of 2009.
Here is a little history on the Mercury Bar and how it got its name:
While we are not 100% sure when the Mercury Bar actually opened, we do know that it was a popular hang out for guests that would stay at the hotel right down the street. In 1923 a 250 room hotel called The Hotel Roosevelt opened on 14th Street just south of Michigan Ave. It was right next to Michigan Central and was a convenient location for travelers coming through the station. While it wasn’t a “first class” hotel, it was popular with the tourists and travelers. In the 1930’s to the 1950’s there was a train that ran out of Michigan Central Station called The Mercury. It ran from Chicago to Detroit and then on to New York. It was a line commonly used to transport soldiers who were on their way to fight in WWII. They would stay at the Roosevelt and the Mercury Bar was their “watering hole” since it was a block down the street.
In the 50’s and 60’s, with the introduction of the interstate system, the rail industry started to decline. As the train stations business dropped off so did the hotels as well as the bars. At the time the whole city, as many larger cities were, was in decline. The train station closed in 1988, Mercury Bar sometime shortly before or after that, and The Hotel Roosevelt in the early 90’s. In 2005 Slow’s BBQ took a leap of faith and opened on the rather run down stretch of Michigan Avenue . . . and 7 years later Mercury Burger Bar opened it’s doors.
2 retired Detroit police officers, David Stienke and Dennis Fulton, took a chance with a burger bar. They thought it was what the area needed. There was already a BBQ restaurant with Slow’s and a couple sports bars down the street, Nemo’s and McShane’s, and thought a burger bar would give people something different. The 2 had been talking about opening a burger bar for years, and chose Corktown because Fulton used to work in Corktown and Steinke lived there for years and wanted to be part of the resurgence.
When you walk in it is a pretty simple layout. There is an L shaped bar is to the left with the kitchen through a window behind it, like you would see at a diner. You can sit at the bar, which seats 14 or so, or one of the tables around the perimeter. It is not a big place, so it can get crowded. There is an outdoor patio and lower level dining area, so in all they can seat around 100 people. The bar is a Zink countertop, decorated with Mercury Dimes, and is engraved and stamped with names of contractors, friends, family and even city workers who helped in the journey to get the doors opened. The walls are decorated with old time signs, classic posters and sports memorabilia.
The lower level, which is where the restrooms are located, is like someone’s basement. It’s dark, with brick walls, neon beer signs and a Faygo clock . . . like I said someone’s basement. They also still had Christmas decorations and lights up when we were there which added to the coolness of the vibe.
Much of the focus for the Mercury Burger & Bar is the “pure Michigan, pure Detroit theme.” The bar features 16 beers on tap, 12 of which are from Michigan, that they rotate throughout the year.
The burger is locally sourced, ground fresh daily, and hand packed. There are 15 different burgers to choose from on the menu ranging from The Classic to their Before The Butcher which is a Vegan burger patty, they also offer a salmon burger and Turkey burger. There is something for everyone’s taste. They offer some creative local specialties such as the S.W. Detroit burger — a chorizo slider, topped with candied jalapeno relish, münster cheese, avocado, tortilla strips and salsa on the side, the Flint Burger with green olives, mayo and cheddar (take that Halo) but their best-seller is The Juicy, a burger with cheddar cheese stuffed inside the beef and on top.
There are also a nice selection of sandwiches like the Lake Superior Whitefish, Fried Green Tomato BLT, and a Fried Bologna sandwich with grilled onions, Swiss cheese and served on an onion roll, which of course is served with Better Made Potato Chips. They have ¼ lb hot dogs which you can get plain or Detroit, Chicago or NY style and don’t forget to get some fries or tots. They offer hand cut fries and tater tots which come a variety of ways, chili cheese, bacon fries or poutine. You can also get Tater Tatchos with cheese sauce, crumbled bacon, salsa, cowboy candy, cilantro and sour cream. They do have soups and salads but really…we are at a burger bar.
We had stopped here for Happy Hour which runs Monday – Friday from 3-6PM. They offer discounted beer, wine and well drinks but not a lot of food. They did have a dozen Buffalo Wings for $10 which were pretty good and a good deal for wings these days. If you are in the area give Mercury a try. The burgers are creative and really good and the staff is always super friendly.
Save room for one of their awesome milkshakes…with or without booze. YUM!!!
Mercury Burger Bar is located at 2163 Michigan Ave in Detroit and is open daily at 11AM until 10PM Sunday-Thursday and Midnight on Friday and Saturday. Happy hour is M-F from 3-6 and they offer brunch Saturday and Sunday until 2PM.
Until next time . . . live well, eat well and enjoy life!
-Keith & Teresa Becker