Although MCBC loves to review burgers all over the metropolitan area, we often like to stay around home and enjoy the 25+ bars that we have in our 2.2 square mile city of Hamtramck. Most bars in the city do not serve food, but instead allow patrons to bring in their own food to eat while drinking. However, there are a small handful that serve good food to the hungry weird drunks of Hamtramck. A few include burgers on the menu, including Kelly’s, New Dodge Lounge, and Motor City Sports Bar.
After an informal survey of the best burgers in the entire metropolitan area amongst Hamtramck residents, many of them pointed to Motor City Sports Bar. We had often heard the burgers were the best in the city- but all of metro Detroit?
Many of our members are not strangers to Motor City Sports Bar. The bar has provided life-saving sustenance during long Paczki day beer treks and other bar crawls, and was the venue for us to watch the most recent MSU victory over UM in football. The drinks have always been cheap, and the bartenders friendly. Although bias certainly comes into play in our proud enclave of Detroit, MCBC aims to find the truth.
We arrived on a Saturday about 5:30 pm, after a walk through some slush that left Carl wishing that he had worn real boots. Luckily, after having dealt with winter weather for two months already, the rest of us came prepared for the miniscule five block walk and arrived with dry feet. The bar was sparsely populated at this hour, with a few people having drinks and a couple playing darts in the back. Some classic rock played on the internet jukebox (which are the worst, but that is a different story) at a level that would have annoyed your parents.
Carl described the place pretty well when he wrote that it is “Very much like a sports bar.” For a typical sports bar, it is kept clean, and I might describe it as borderline classy. Despite the well-kept appearance, it still has all the normal sports bar things. Several flat screen TVs are arranged above the bar, usually set to different games. The back room holds the largest TV, two pool tables, a foosball table (one of the only foos tables in Hamtramck), two electronic dartboards, and a couple small tables to eat or rest drinks on while playing pool. After surveying the bar compared to the others in the city, I realized that ALL Hamtramck bars have video poker machines. Who is still playing these things? Why do they need more than one? Does Danny D have anything to do with it?
Smoking is allowed inside, and several patrons sat at the bar with an ashtray. As a person who likes the occasional indoor cigarette, I am not as turned off by smoke inside as others may be. Unlike many other bars, however, the permeating tobacco smell is minimal and does not detract from other sensory experiences. For bars that serve food and allow smoking, the filtration system in place here should be mandatory. Those 40 year old Smokeeters don’t quite do the trick. It’s possible that the smoking in some bars in Hamtramck may slow down or cease- all bars were recently informed by the police of public act 188 (again), which bans smoking in all michigan restaurants and bars. Knowing the stubbornness of the people in the city, I doubt this will stick. We’re gonna smoke where we want to.
The locale is a huge part of what the bar is – in any other location, it would be a regular sports bar. In Hamtramck, it weaves into the fabric of the city and becomes a meeting place for the clientele of many cultures. You’ll see people stopping in from the Painted Lady, a notorious punk bar, or the New Dodge Lounge, which also has frequent live shows. Others traipse across town from mosques, distant bars, or block club meetings. Some patrons speak English as a second or third language. I’ve seen soccer matches of non-American teams on their flatscreens, and I know a handful of people that come just to enjoy the Bosnian specialities on the menu . It wouldn’t be out of the question to expect a CFL game or a cricket match to be playing on the TVs, either — the conglomeration of weirdos that come here make for a uniquely Hamtramck experience.
Upon arrival, we were greeted promptly by the bartender, who got us set up with a pitcher of beer ($5 for Molson or Labatt light, $1 for a single 12oz pour) and some cold mugs. Blue moon glasses are also offered for $2, and the bar has a full array of mixed drinks. A downside of Motor City is the lack of any kind of craft brews. In a state that is becoming more and more well-known for their fantastic craft beers, this is nearly inexcusable. The closest they come is a Sam Adam’s Boston Lager, which doesn’t quite cut it. Of course, they do have the otherwise full range of boring domestic lagers and pilseners, and a cold Canadian beer will certainly hit the spot. Unfortunately, my Molson order was denied, as the keg had recently blown. Carl expressed his disappointment and maybe a little bit of contempt, but we got Labatt light instead. For $5 per 64 oz pitcher, who can complain?
A potential problem was introduced when a couple of members came in with coffee from Cafe 1923, the local coffeeshop. One of the waitresses came to talk to them, and informed them that no outside beverages were allowed (obviously) but gave them approval to drink their coffee discreetly. It was a mostly pleasant interaction and was handled well by staff.
Our server remained attentive and prompt throughout the service, bringing us new pitchers and picking up baskets and condiments when we were finished. Most of us thought the service was good, except for Scott. He was told his dollar coin was “collectable”, and he spent a minute or two harumphing about it. The consistent waitressing at Motor City was in stark contrast to the bipolar service we received at Miller’s Family Restaurant (a story for another time). We played a few games of pool, and then got around to getting hungry.
The menu is pretty small, but covers bar basics – Burgers, Chicken, and a bunch of fried foods. It also has several chevapi options. For those of you who don’t know, chevapi (or ćevapi) is a skinless Bosnian sausage made of minced beef and seasoning. You can get the plate ($8.75-12.50 depending on number of sausages, with salad and bread) or the chevapi pita ($6.00) – which includes swiss and american cheese, tomato, and onion.
Although our club was formed to pay homage to the glory of beef patties, we often bring along a vegetarian to evaluate the other options. French fries (seasoned waffle fries or steak fries) and other fried foods are the only option for vegetarians – but luckily for Pescatarian Michelle, they also include a fish sandwich and shrimp on the menu.
Burger options are limited to four choices – hamburger ($5.50), cheeseburger ($6), bacon cheeseburger (7.25), and the bacon, mushroom and swiss burger (7.75). They all come with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles and mayo. Frank was later disappointed that they didn’t ask him if he wanted mayo before putting it on his burger. If he had read the menu before he ordered, he may have realized it was standard.
MCSB uses half pound hand-packed patties, char-broiled on the grill. The bartender will make sure to ask you how you want it cooked – in a city that uses a lot of frozen foods and cost-cutting shortcuts, this is a delight. On a later reconnaissance mission, the owner told me that they get their meat freshly ground daily from Eastern Market, and use their own “special seasoning blend”. The cheeseburger comes standard with American cheese, but they will also give you swiss if you ask. The buns, like the beef,is also sourced locally, and made at Metropolitan bakery located on the south end of Hamtramck, just a few blocks away.
On their specials and drink board, they include the addendum: ”Add egg or garlic bread to any order: .75, jalapenos .50, marinara .50.” These possibilities would have likely sparked David’s creative side, but he wasn’t there, and none of us went this route. I ordered the bacon cheeseburger, cooked medium rare with everything on it, and a side of seasoned waffle fries.
The burgers are served open faced in a basket with wax paper, and fries in separate baskets. I was impressed with the colors on display from my burger. The vegetables looked fresh and recently cut, the patty wasn’t too greasy or dry, and the bun was pretty standard, but still intact. I’m thankful I went for the half order of fries ($2.50 instead of the regular $4 whole order) with my cheeseburger, as the patty was huge and the meal left me feeling stuffed. The half pound burgers promised by the bartender may have actually been bigger. I’m pretty sure they don’t use a scale – the cook was heavy handed on this day (lucky us!)
My burger was exceptional. Thick bacon slices lay on top, with a perfect saltiness to contrast with the cheese and mayo. The patty was as it looked- minimally seasoned, but with an incredible beefy taste that remained juicy throughout the meal. I expect their seasoning blend was little more than a light dusting of salt and pepper, as anything else would be lost in the flavor of the cooked beef. Condiments were unnecessary, although I did add a bit of mustard for good measure. Visual inspection and textural contrast provided no clues whether or not the bun was toasted beforehand. Mine stayed together, but Frank reported that his did not fare as well.
I found the toppings to be fresh and crisp, but up against a lighter protein, they may not have fared so well. Michelle was happy with her fish sandwich, except for the tomatoes, which she described as: “pretty terrible as far as tomatoes go.”
On the side, the seasoned waffle fries were crisp and salty. They were cooked as waffle fries should be, and fulfilled their purpose. The steak fries, however, were not as revered. They should have been crispier, as we all know there’s nothing sadder than a limp fry.
Somewhere during our meal, the volume increased and the music changed – somebody put on some bad pop music we could barely speak over. If your parents were annoyed before, they would have definitely left by now. The music volume turns out to be one of the bar’s biggest downfalls. I perked up when I heard a social distortion song followed by a replacements song, but my mood again turned sour when the musical tyranny of bad R&B continued.
Scott and I had a victorious foosball game and a couple more pitchers before the group paid our more than reasonable tabs. We walked away from the bar full and satisfied, and left the Hamtramckans to their own devices.
(note: this was written at the beginning of the year. There is still no smoking in the bar. The music is still too loud. The burgers are just as good.)
Ratings:
Burger: 4.06
Service: 3.92
Atmosphere: 2.94
Value: 4.25
Overall Rating: 3.82
(Although MCBC didn’t get the highest ratings for the restaurant, it has the highest so far for the burger alone – just a bit above Cutter’s! Nice!)
Michelle: “The Fish was great!” 4/5
Carl: “The burger was hella good, like, really good burger. Huge, good toppings, REAL bacon. I would definitely come back for a burger here. Just wish they had better beer.” 5/5
Scott: “Good place to watch a game. Would not bring parents here.” 4/5
Tara: “Meat and cheese were perfect. Bun was meh. I felt terrible that I could only eat half because it was too much. “ 3/5
Frank: “Great burger, cooked just how I like it. It fell apart though, too big for bun. Almost perfect…” 4.5/5
Erik: “A few things detract from an otherwise awesome experience.” 5/5
Motor City Sports Bar
9122 Joseph Campau Ave
Hamtramck, MI
(313) 875-4710
(Photo credits go to Erik and Frank)
Motor City Burger Club 
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