OK, here is my biggest bar pet peeve of all time (aside from snapping fingers and bad tippers): what I call the “outloud speakeasy.” Walking down a bustling Chicago street, I nearly collided with a giant sandwich-board sign in the middle of the sidewalk. In giant, neon-pink letters, the sign shouted, “SPEAKEASY THIS WAY.”
It reminded me of a line from the classic movie The Princess Bride: “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
Speakeasy-style? Sure. Craft cocktails? Definitely OK. If you choose to advertise your speakeasy, then it is, by definition, not a speakeasy. Rant over.
We’re not here today to talk about Chicago or speakeasies, per se. We’re here to talk about the cool, the interesting, the underground bars — in the literal sense.
Here in metro Detroit, we have tons of bars tucked down intriguing stairwells, just waiting for the intrepid explorer to plunge into a new adventure.
Underground bars run the gamut in price, personality, and purpose. Sometimes, locals need a hideaway to call their own, and an underground bar can be just that.
The origin of the term “dive bar” comes from a late-19th-century reference to drinkers seeking out lower-class joints where “frequenters may ‘dive’ without observation,” as the Oxford English Dictionary catalogs. A place like Frank’s Eastside Tavern in Mount Clemens may have once fit this description, but time and generations of loyal customers have smoothed out the sharp, divey edges of Frank’s, and now it’s simply a beloved basement watering hole. Ditto the members-only Jolly Old Timers in Midtown, a revered social club for the city’s die-hard Cass Corridor residents.
Then there’s the kind of underground bar that you duck into to escape the crowds. If I’m caught downtown when a Tigers or Wings game is letting out, I can head over to Easy Peasy and pop downstairs to Lowkey for some … well, lowkey chill time.
Repurposed banks seem to be an ideal spot to host underground bars. In Plymouth, The Ebenezer hides below a former bank. And downtown’s Shelby can be tricky to find for the uninitiated: The address may appear on Google Maps, but unless you know which business to enter first, you’ll never be admitted into the vault below, and the curated secrets will remain hidden from sight.
There’s something deliciously cozy about an underground bar, where the only light comes from low-wattage bulbs and candles, and the even clank of glasses is muted. It invites hushed conversation and whispered secrets. Places like Johnny’s in Royal Oak, Aladdin Sane downtown, and The Upright underneath Milwaukee Junction’s Oak & Reel lean heavily into the decadence of the underground. Sink down into a plush corner booth and let the world carry on without you for a bit.
Whatever you’re diving below the surface for, whether that’s a shot and a beer, a chance to escape the heat or the crowds, or the search for a sophisticated cocktail, metro Detroit has a range of choices for the discerning drinker. Call it a dive, a lowkey bar, an underground joint — even call it a speakeasy, sure. But if you’re doing the latter, maybe don’t put a sandwich board and directions out front, please.
This story originally appeared in the April 2026 issue of Hour Detroit magazine. To read more, pick up a copy of Hour Detroit at a local retail outlet. Click here to get our digital edition.
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