Eastern Palace Club

Eastern Palace Club is a new Key West-inspired beach bar in Hazel Park | Eater Detroit

"After more than a year of renovation and over a dozen years of dreaming, Eastern Palace Club in Hazel Park opens to the public on Jan. 17 (fittingly on National Bootlegger’s Day). I found it to be a beach-themed, beach-hut–style bar (not strictly tiki) with a wide selection of beer and wine, non-alcoholic cocktails, and an emphasis on tequila and rum alongside simple warm-weather drinks like rum runners and frozen margaritas. Co-owners Dustin Leslie, Adam O’Connor, and Mike Pierce draw on decades of restaurant experience — Leslie managed a Key West restaurant for about 10 years — and modeled the space on Key West dives such as the Green Parrot, Captain Tony’s, and Sloppy Joe’s: black-painted drop ceilings with bright sails and netting, faux grass and bamboo everywhere, a custom-built bar roof, five cabanas that seat up to eight, and a wave-shaped bar top with hand-poured resin evoking sand flowing over waves. They’re aiming for a fun, social, inclusive daily hangout where anyone can meet friends, enjoy drinks and barbecue from partner Smoked Lotus, and support local causes — the bar has hosted nonprofit pop-ups and opening night will fundraise for HAVEN. Entertainment and atmosphere include pool table, Skee-Ball, shuffleboard, pinball, buckets of beer, sangria and frozen-drink specials, a massive interior wall projecting a tranquil beach scene, occasional guest DJs, and a steady soundscape of Dad rock, yacht rock, new wave, and surf rock. For now it’s walk-in only (may add reservations for cabanas), open Tue–Thu 4–11 and Fri–Sat 4–midnight, available for private rentals, and planning patio events in spring and summer." - Mickey Lyons