The Painted Lady Lounge

This place is a time capsule to a simpler era. The decor is a hodgepodge of kitsch and nostalgia, the jukebox is stuck in the 80s, and the bartender has seen it all. The drinks are cheap and the clientele is a colorful mix of regulars and lost souls. It's the kind of place where you can get into a deep conversation with a stranger about the meaning of life or the best way to fry an egg.

This came up in a Google search as a gay bar. Aside from the oblique inference from the name, there were no indications that this was a gay bar or even a gay friendly bar once inside the door. As a solo out-of-town visitor, I made my way across Detroit on a Saturday early evening. The bar had two patrons, each of whom were on their phones. And the bartender kept to herself. I can’t say I was expecting much, but as a former bar owner, I would’ve thought she might’ve engaged me more once I mentioned I was from California, and I asked her to tell me about the place. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that I was unwelcome, but I suspect that if you are known you get a much different response. This may just be a sign of the times. Give it a try when there’s an event or you bring your own posse.

The painted lady lounge seems like it is unchanged since the 70s complete with a jukebox. There is an incredible bourbon selection. Our group had a great time, selecting songs on the jukebox and having cocktails.

what a hidden gem ! Andy the owner, Megan, the whole bar staff !! Create a true Detroit / Hamtramk experience. The music they choose, the original local peoples, cannot be replicated. OH ... And the Bourbon selection if OUT OF THIS WORLD. Pappy, Old Fitz, EHT, old Bookers, WLW, Thomas Handy, all he BTAC, and the goodies. At astonishingly lower dram prices. Treat yourself, you wont regret it

Awesome time. Andrea was such a sweetheart. Busy and did a great job. True juggalo and made that family feeling a real thing. Ty so much for the love Andrea and the painted lady.

When I lived in Hamtramck this became my little bar. Always enjoyed soup night, trivia, and movie night. Enjoyed raising hell in there and gossiping, lol.

Such a cool old school bar. Very knowledgeable bartender. And an amazing bourbon selection! By far the best prices you can find this high quality of Bourbon at!

Get in here and put your money in the jukebox! Pool table and pinball and excellent drinks with even better service!

This is one of our favs! Love the Painted Lady! It feels like you are stepping back in time. So much to see. The atmosphere is so welcoming. Everyone is always super nice. They were a bit surprised at having 20 people show up all at once. But they handled it super well! They had an unexpectedly terrific bourbon selection too. They had a variety of bottled craft beer to choose from. No food. But an awesome time!!

Great selection of bourbons and many other liquors! Beer selection is general, I didn't see many "unique" beers on draft and a few were out so the draft choices were limited during my visit. Locals friendly, bartender friendly and good prices. There's a juke box and the music style played was a lot of punk, I didn't look but I assume there's a selection of more thank that but the music is pretty loud. I can see this as a cool spot to just chill with friends or even alone as there's many people to talk to. It's an interesting location on a neighborhood street and I thought that was pretty cool.

You can see the history the first time you walk into this place. The old, classic bar has a great vibe and harkens back to when Hamtramck was a booming Polish community. I came to have a few drinks before a Detroit City FC game and had a good time.

Unfortunately place reeks of SMOKING the other bars in Hamtramck were not having this issue Man U forget how gross SMOKING was before they banned it, place was also pretty dead, just a couple vigilant smokers, go elsewhere

Cool Hamtramck Haunt on the must stop list of local bars. Building has tons of history being the old Lilly's but definitely making its own way all on its own. Good place to check out.

You WILL smell of cigarette smoke after coming here. Don't expect great service here unless you're in with the bartenders. It's very cliquey in a gross way. Some of the bartenders are decent, some are just grumpy and sad.

This bar is the coolest place ever! This place has some really unique history, the employees are awesome! The vibes are the best vibes of any bar i've been to! Can't wait for this place to open back up.

As soon as you cross the threshold and breathe in the surroundings you come to the realization that you have entered a sanctum that positively reeks of refinement and class. Your eyes will at first rest on the ancient mahogany back bar stocked with the finest elements a skilled mixologist will utilize to create the libations of your dreams. Fine artwork adorns the walls featuring a combination of delightfully naughty retro prints reflecting the nose art on army air corp bombers to the promotion posters celebrating the places storied history as a music venue. No detail is overlooked, even the men's room contains a fluid mural reminiscent of the street art on the Carabobo line of the Buenos Aries subway. Next you will notice you are in the presence of some highly esteemed patrons. Mostly hushed, but occasionally raucous conversations are taking place amongst the community's leading poets, artists, clergy, musicians, runway models, academics, thespians, captains of industry and members of the fifth estate. This is a place where the best, brightest and beautiful enter to escape the sordid mundanity of society and gather with like minded people to solve the worlds problems, or enjoy a friendly game of billiards or cards.

The Painted Lady... Total dump with tons of character (think Old Miami without the backyard). We were totally thrown off when the front door appears to be the entrance- but no - that's the bands entrance. Well, we tried to buzz ourselves in there, and felt like total idiots when we were told to enter thru the side door. Geez, a sign might be nice, but I guess that's a quick way to identify (or dissuade) the newbies. We were thrown off by the $6 cover, but since we were already there, wth. We sat down at the bar, only to be overwhelmed with cigarette smoke (seriously, how did we go so long allowing this - its disgusting). The first of two bands started when we were there. Decent band, horrible sound. They do a good job updating their Facebook page - it is intriguing enough for me to check them out. Now I know.

There's a creepy randomness I love about Hamtramck's Painted Lady that always brings me back. Located among houses and a McDonalds' this sorta seedy music venue is the place to go if you wanna see a band that is at the heart of the Detroit music scene. It's an easy venue to miss and a bit disheartening on your debut visit when you realize that to get into the joint you have to walk through a slim, chain linked lined alley to get in, but once you do expect to experience something truly Detroit. Cluttered with couches, retro chairs and a juke box from everything from Ray Charles to the Descendents to Marvin Gaye, the Painted Lady has featured some of Detroit's best as well as indie national acts like Thunderlip. This is a hardcore beer and whiskey sort of bar, so come prepared in jeans and boots. The bartenders are a blast and drinks afforadle, just b.y.o.t.p (Bring your own toilet paper), ladies,. For some reason every time I go to the loo here, there's no t.p.

Smug bartender who ended up throwing out the last of my beer, which was paid for already WITH a tip, when she got too fed up listening to the conversation between myself, another customer, and my friend. Made comment after comment about how hard and misery-filled her life has been because she grew up in Hamtramck as opposed to my friend and I who grew up in downriver, using this as a reason to say we didn't belong there and were part of the new scum moving to Detroit because we thought it was "cool". In another part of the conversation my friend mentioned how he had just gone on a road trip across the country to get to burning man and back, and this atrocious, belittling woman had the nerve to put in her two cents again by very scornfully commenting "that's great" and that she could never afford such an adventure, "because I live in Detroit" and she doesn't get things handed to her. I was defending my friend who had just been ridiculed time and time again by this bartender who thought he was not free to have an opinion because he couldn't claim to have grown up in Detroit. For doing so this woman proceeded to threaten me, knowing from a previous statement that I had just moved to Hamtramck less than two months ago. Her exact words: "I can wreck you, and unless you want to enjoy your life here, I suggest," basically that I back away from my position within the argument and "never bring someone like this again" (talking about my friend). The bartender told us to leave. We realized we wanted our tip back. Not only did this lady no longer deserve it for the stuck up way she was treating us, but she threw our unfinished drinks out. She then called the cops and began exaggerating details saying she had two customers yelling at her who refused to leave. On our way out she pushed my friend to hurry us and knocked his hat off, telling us to "go back to Kansas!" because my friend brought up he drove through Kansas on his trip across the country lol. And of course, Kansas is no Detroit. Since I moved to Hamtramck I had been hearing about the Painted Lady and it's nice, chill, underground atmosphere, which is always appealing to me. Every other bar I have been to in this town I have been met with friendly, welcoming greetings and fantastic customer service leaving me absolutely no room for complaint. But this place, no. The moment I walked in my friend and I were given an attitude by this woman. Because she didn't recognize us and assumed we were from out of town, and, therefore, unwelcome? Because we didn't look like hipsters? Because we came in laughing and having a good time on a Monday night? It doesn't matter. The whole experience is a hilarious, crazy memory but even so no one deserves this kind of treatment and I will implore anyone who mentions this place to never go.

Literally a gem. A homey no bullshit nostalgic vibe. The bartenders Andrea and Ann are incredible conversationalists... I could talk to them into the next century. The price point is on point, and the music is great. They have some pool and pinball machines and a really old piano. All in all I had in incredible time here and if you are into a down to earth good bar please do yourself a favor and stop by the painted lady for a cold one.

Wow. Anne is great. Her soup is even more delicious. I cannot wait to come back on Thursday to see her. Wowowowoowowow.

I was impressed with the talent. the pretty things peep show was worth the 10$ cover. and annette's friend passing out yelp goodies made it much better. my boyfriend got to pull the proverbial sword out of the girls gullet and it made for a show. the emcee was hot in a john waters gay kinda way, which is right up my alley. the thing i was most disappointed with was the drink prices. maybe they need to charge a higher price, but this was not dive bar prices. sorry, i will be back, just for the open smoking, but i thought it was more birmingham prices. i loved the tin ceiling and the clientele love juston

I will never say 'no' to going in a side door that's unlabeled. Locals abound. Super friendly sassy cigarette-wielding bartender who even offered us pizza. Great music. Felt like home. Although, if I had not come with a local myself, I probably would've felt a little uneasy at first (as is the case with most places I love). Strongbow and guinness on tap along with some other beers. Some mid-shelfie booze to compliment the well. If you've been mourning the extinction of the rocker bars of your youth, this is the second coming. Bring your sins. There's plenty to go around.

Pretty freaking cool place. For the first time in my life, we spent some time in Hamtramck instead of going to Polish Village, Karakus or Polonia and leaving. We walked up and down Joseph Campau probably a good 2 mile each way from Holbrook. We often hit Suzie's bar and saw on Yelp that Painted Lady had just opened for the day, so we headed that way. I'm not sure why but the outside sort of reminded me of the Munster's house. It definitely stands out. We approached and rang the buzzer 2-3 times and were finally let it. Upon entering we see a ton of people. The bartender tells us that most regulars use the side door. Good to know. We sat at the end of the bar and ordered a few drinks. The bartender was great, not sure of her name but she was very helpful in telling us a bit about the bar and Hamtramck in general. As we order a 2nd drink, a guy walks in with his dog and it was that time we notice people smoking in the bar, so it seems to be a do what makes you happy bar. This is further enforced when a guy goes to the bar, bypassing the jukebox, and plugs his phone into the speaker system to hear his tunes. Pretty cool. We played with the dog for a bit and now being regulars, we exit out the side door. They don't serve food but the bartender said they applied for a grant to get a grill. Had a pretty fun time.

I was excited by the sight of the cute exterior, and the random location. And I was even more excited by the divey interior, and the fact that they have Spaten Optimator on tap ($4). But then, they let people smoke. I mean, everyone was smoking except me. This is gross (and illegal). It was like a flashback to bars of yesteryear, in the worst of ways. I guess the hipsters will at least keep the healthcare system alive and bloated, but I'm never returning here again. Even though I love Optimator on tap. Just plain gross.

I find myself here a lot. Usually to see a band that's playing. I have caught the B movie night once. It was pretty sweet, I'll be back for it again. They usually have a cheap beer on tap and the bartenders are friendly. Scuzzy bars are my favorite kind. It's one of the reasons I love Detroit so much. p.s. If you mention to the bartender that the bathroom is out of tp they'll come to the rescue. It maybe too late for you but the next person will be eternally grateful!

Just wanted to balance out the avererage rating for one of my favorite spots. If your usual night out consist of Martini's, fashion and $50 per plate dinners, this likely wont become your favorite hangout, infact you'll probably hate it. However if you're laid back and open-minded and aren't terrified of being bumped into, I think you might be able to have fun here. As noted below, the bands are hit or miss, the drinks are good and fairly priced, the stage is small, but enough for most of the bands that play there. The burnt out house next door have been torn down and is now use for parking.

If you like loud, grungy and cheap, you will love this place. This place has a wonderful dirty punk rock feel. They usually have live bands during the weekends. To be honest, the bands are hit or miss, I've been there for not-so-bad bands and some where...albeit terrible. Overall, I always enjoy this bar. One of the reasons, I love this place so much is because of the great bartender! Andrew will make you some of the best drinks you'll ever have!! He's hands down my favorite bar-tender. ...side note, you'll always find an eclectic group of people here and some will even tear their shirts off ;-)

Basically, this bar consists of one large room with a vaulted ceiling and two hellhole bathrooms to round out its divey character. The ambiance of this place - eclectic is the word - is what is going to keep me coming back after my first visit. Let me elaborate: - It's hipster, but not pretentious - The bartenders are rough-looking, yet polite and funny - The scene ranges from hipster grunge to hipster chic - There's always a good movie playing on a projector - There are live bands and a DJ a couple nights a week - There's a free pinball machine with a graphic on the top that features Ronald and Nancy Reagan in the front car of a roller-coaster - Pool is only $1.00 a game, though it might be time to get a new table seeing as how it's anything but level - Drinks are cheap, with PBRs for around $2 and pitchers of Portland IPA for $12 And did I mention you can smoke inside? If you don't like secondhand smoke, don't go. Most of the clientele will be smoking - it's one of the place's charms.

A smoky, grimy, booze-soaked place for seeing shows.The decor is practically a shrine to Pabst Blue Ribbon with some awesome cheesecake art from the 40's thrown in for good measure. It's also a good place to throw the end of your hamburger from Checker's at Ely. They have Ms. Pacman and a Tommy pinball game. Rockin! Also - a good place to stand on the toilet and marker up the bathroom ceiling!

The Painted Lady has everything you would want in a dive bar: indoor smoking, dim lighting, lots of character, reasonably priced drinks, hit or miss bands, a juke box, and a pool table. There are even a couple of arcade games (one of them is Pacman, if I'm not mistaken) There's a front entrance that is only for bands, and a side entrance for patrons, so sorting the regulars from the newbies is easy(funny) when you see people walk right up, hesitate, look around and then shuffle into the parking lot behind someone who knows where they are going. The bartenders are friendly, funny, and tattooed. The whole place is a delight for the eye, with stickers and scribbles all over the place in the bathroom, and posters/flyers of previous bands on the walls in the main room. There's even a projector to play movies in the background. Even though you'll leave reeking of smoke, at least you won't have to worry about weak drinks. Ignore how seedy the surrounding neighborhood looks and go there!

How can you NOT like a place with an unmarked side door coupled with a questionable...perhaps it's a cellar door? ...in the ground right underneath said unmarked side door? Adventure...heh. Excitement...heh. A jedi craves not these things...and I guess that rules out me being a jedi. Bummer. Fun place. Locals are a good hang, and there are bands from time to time you can check out. Give it a whirl. Live a little.

My cousin randomly took me here about a week ago. At first I thought we were actually just going to a friends basement, and that a few of his buddy's just gave the place a jazzy name. I was far from wrong though. This bar radiates character with the pinup artwork hanging around, pinball games lined up, and punk music blaring from wall to wall. The drinks were EXTREMELY reasonable and tasty, and all of the bar goers seemed friendly! Only part I can complain about is that they ran out of the famous tacos they serve each night. Serves me right for arriving so late! Go try this place!

Damn, people. If you don't like the smoke, you should be having a $10 craft beer up in Ferndale ... I know the pose: Oh, I LOVE these cute little dive bars in the city; what a shame they're wasted on actual city residents with their disgusting habits...

Five stars for the smoking! All these hipsters bitchin' about it? It's a bar! That's how it was in the good old days...before smoking bans. Take your health nut BS to a CAFE. Used to come here all the time when we lived in Hamtramck, & it was Lili's. Hasn't changed.

If you're bummed out about smoke, you're probably in the wrong place. You should be more concerned your tetanus shot is up to date.

Great place to catch an occasional good band, but the plumes of smoke, angst-ridden crusty punks, and too-cool-for-school bartenders ruin it.

i really like this place... i've only been here to see music, so i can't speak to it when there isn't a band playing, but it's a great little sh*thole music venue. the band sets up right by the front door, which you can't enter... you've got to walk down this really creepy side alley that has a door that opens into the back area of the painted lady. there's no danger in the alley, as it doesn't lead anywhere... it's just small and dirty... but it's part of the charm. the bars got your standard fare on tap... and the crowd is always diverse. pretty awkward stage setup for the band, it's always hot as hell and the sound isn't that great... a real first class place!!! but it's those things that make for a good experience at this place. the kind of place you'd only find in detroit. it's tough to find, too. it's right at the end of a row of houses, and looks like a house itself. it's one of those places you feel cooler for having visited... b/c most of detroit doesn't even know it exists. park in the lot across the street, it's quite safe and never have i had my car messed with.

The numbers on the building have a lot of history in Detroit music lore. The name is an homage to the wonderful woman who owned it before she passed away. There is no pretension here, it is just a damn fine place to grab a beer and enjoy whatever raucous noise is bouncing off of the walls. I love it to pieces and I am going to miss it like hell when I move out of state. Go get sauced and rock out to a great juke box during the week or open up to new sights and sounds at weeks end.

The drinks are cheap and almost always colder than room temperature. Most dive bars are full of grumpy characters that refuse to interact but the grumpy characters here are always willing to chat over a plate of the house tacos and sometimes will actually manage to get you your drink when you ask.

Reading the above reviews, I had to comment. The Painted Lady Lounge is a fine little dive bar in Hamtramck, a town filled with dive bars and churches. But, what everyone failed to mention is that this little place used to be the legendary Lili's 21 club. Lili's was the epicenter of the Hamtramck music scene for the better part of 20 years until it closed in 2001 (I think) If you go to the Painted Lady, it would be wise to genuflect or cross yourself at the door, Lili's was and always will be a Holy Temple of Detroit Rock n Roll. As Art Lyzak always said, "Be Optimistic"

I'm kind of in love with this place, Its the definition of "Dive Bar" - Young happening punk rock/Hipster crowd every time I have been in. Love it.

One of the best dive bars around. Never had a bad time here. It's small, the stage is awkward ,and the sound isn't the best ...But that's what makes it sweet.

This was our last stop during the Fat Tuesday festivities in Hamtown. Great dive bar - cheap drinks, nice bartenders, friendly patrons and just enough divey charm to keep me happy. It's a tad dirty, and smokey - but still quality in my book.

I dig this place. Atmosphere, staff, crowd, drinks, prices...its a pretty Hamtramck kind of scene. And live music all the time.

One of the best bars in Hamtramck. Good service, great atmosphere and tacos on Wednesday. Did I mention the awesome people, good music and lack of sports?... best bar.

I want to like this place, because it has some cool things going for it, like the antique carved wooden back bar and its history as the former Lili's 21, not to mention pretty cheap drinks. But the negatives greatly outweigh the positives. I understand that this is a dive and a shoestring operation. But... the place does virtually nothing to promote its bands and shows. The stage layout is odd (but not entirely unworkable, I guess). The sound system is marginal. But the WORST aspect of the Painted Lady is the thick concentration of cigarette smoke in the air; there is no ventilation whatsoever. I believe you can catch TB just by walking in the door... it is that bad. Yes, this establishment freely allows smoking in flagrant disregard for the state law (like most Hamtramck bars)... and it is noxious. The last time I was there, I had to step outside every 10 minutes to catch my breath and prevent a heart attack. No. Never. Again.

I came here to see the Pretty Things Peep Show, so I had no idea what I was in store for. The place is a total dive...but I loved it! There's an old piano, some vintage light fixtures, they serve PBR on tap, awesome bathroom grafitti, cool bartenders, laid back vibe, but.....they allow smoking :( That totally turned me off. Other than that, I had a great time here. I'm sure I'll be back when I come down for the Polish Fest.