Two bars are opening soon in Hamtramck | Eater Detroit

"Operating under its original name since 1917, this Holbrook dive bar was purchased in July 2021 by Kiersten Schilinski and Garrett Ragsdale from Brad Ruff and Patti Banas (Ruff was killed a month later by a drunk driver). Schilinski and Ragsdale have spent the past 18 months honoring the bar’s legacy while modernizing it — bringing it up to health code, adding ADA-compliant ramps, refacing the exterior, leveling floors, gutting and rebuilding the kitchen, and installing a new back bar built by local woodworker Daniel Ross while retaining the original piece beneath. The renovation replaced the hot-pink plastic bathroom walls and obscene graffiti with slick black tile and pink grouting as a cheeky nod to the past, clad the exterior in vertical black steel while preserving the sticker- and signature-covered doors to the large backyard, and kept the bar’s straightforward identity: “a regular bar where you can come and drink.” Kelly’s will reopen with a party at noon on Saturday, February 18 (running until at least midnight), will celebrate Paczki Day beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, February 21, will be open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., and will host food pop-ups for now with hopes for a regular lunch and dinner menu down the road." - Mickey Lyons