Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe
| Address: | 97 Kercheval Ave, Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236, USA |
| Phone: | +1 313-882-5299 |
| Site: | dirtydogjazz.com |
| Rating: | 4.2 |
| Working: | Closed 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 5–10PM Closed |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
A
A Private User
I really want to love this place. The atmosphere is awesome and the sound system is amazing. But there are some things holding me back from giving it a gleaming review. First off the food is very expensive, sure they can price it up a bit higher because of the music, but its really too pricey. The drinks are very expensive, granted they use high end stuff (grey goose, etc) but they really do charge a lot more than the other places on the hill. That being said, the food is tasty if youre willing to pay, and the drinks are good, if youre willing to pay. The service was good, nothing too amazing, but decent. Next thing is the music. Ive been a few times and I understand its hard to get a solid act in every W-Sunday but on a Saturday night you would think theyd have someone good. Ive never been impressed by the acts Ive seen here, sure they are decent but other jazz places in Detroit have considerably better acts in my opinion. Its hard to justify the cover charge when the sax player is hitting the wrong notes and the band has no clue what a beat line is. I guess I need to start looking ahead of time and finding out who Id want to see instead of just strolling in there. The last thing is the crowd. When it first opened my family went there maybe 2 months after and it was the stuffiest crowd in Grosse Pointe history. The people didnt seem to understand that its not a play, you can talk amongst yourselves at a jazz club even when the music is playing. We were at the very back table speaking quietly and we got shhd by a woman who looked to be 90 years old. Today the crowd is much different, it seems to have loosened way up and is usually a mix of GP people and Detroit people, a much much better crowd scene today. Overall if youre on the east side and are dying to see some kind of classic live entertainment this is probably your best bet. Other places in the area might have music but usually its rock. Id give it a 3 1/2 if I could but I just cant justify a 4 star.
A
A Private User
At first, the service was terrible. We waited roughly 20 minutes for a waiter to even come to our table to order drinks. The waiter never offered us a menu of any sort. The music was nice until it stopped abruptly for what seemed like an hour or so. Finally, it came back on. The service in the meantime was minimal and, in fact, we saw our neighbors waiter more often than we ever saw our own. We even had to order an appetizer from THEIR waiter because ours never really came by. When the bill came by, we were totally in awe how we could be charged for a Baileys and Coffee $20 alone for the 2 shots of Baileys and an additional $2.50 for the generic cup of coffee! This is not New York or Chicago, this is Grosse Pointe! Even the restaurants nearby, The Hill Chop House only charged $8.25 for a Baileys with Coffee and Lucys Tavern $6.25. The Hill also had live entertainment, so that defeats an argument for charging more with live entertainment. The worst part of this cafe experience was speaking with the manager. He was rude and unrelenting. He said, "oh, why dont you compare our prices to The Hill, youd pay a lot more there!" In fact, I did! I told him how unreasonable the prices were for a coffee with Baileys and he did not care. I said, "I will not come back here if this is how you treat your customers," and he said, "oh well!" I was so thoroughly disgusted with the poor attitude and service of this restaurant and, especially, that of the manager that I highly recommend going elsewhere the next time you want good food and service!
A
A Private User
First off let me say I have read some of the reviews of unhappy customers and am shocked! This place is excellent! My wife and I have dined here twice now and will continue to come back. I think that some of the bad reviews are because the people were expecting something different or not used to fine dining possibly? Also this place is really about live jazz, when they are performing you listen, you dont try to talk over the music, if your not a huge music/jazz fan this may not be the place for you during a weekend night show. My wife and I have eaten at what I believe are some of the finest restaurants in the state and this is definitely one of our favorites. Are the prices a little higher, yes. But you are paying for an overall experience not just a meal. The Ambience is very intimate, the music we have seen there was phenomenal both times, the service was very good, and the food and wine was nothing short of great! Between cover charge on a weekend, a full meal with 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, 2 desserts, a bottle of wine and tips, you can spend $200. But you could definitley get out the door for less by having a few glasses of wine and a flatbread pizza. To me though, this place is well worth the money for a special occasion dinner or a night of great jazz and gourmet dining. Not a place I would go to every weekend (if I had the money I definitely would), but for an overall dining experience w/ great live jazz 5 feet from your table, by far the best Metro Detroit has to offer!!!!!
JA
James B
Not much room for improvement! 1) its in a great neighborhood and a great place to walk around before or after the show. 2) The complimentary valet parking is very convenient. I dont usually like to valet park my vehicle but even I used it. 3) The club is a decent size and has a great atmosphere that gives a warm cozy feeling. 4) My server Elizabeth was very attentive and a pleasure. 5) The sound system used at the club along with the acoustics sounded amazing and never was too loud even sitting at the closest front table to the performers. 6) The food at the club was very good. I ordered off menu at dinner wanting a burger off of the lunch menu with no problems. 7) its more than just a little obvious that the management at this establishment wants to make sure everybody has memorable experience. 8) Last but not the least the hidden gem of this place is a lady named Marina. I should elaborate but this is best experienced in person. I thank the dirty dog Jazz Cafe for a memorable evening and a great experience we will definitely go back. My only shortfall I can see of this establishment is the menu. Im a firm believer in sometimes simpler is better and do it better than anyone else. I am never impressed by a pretentious menu. UPDATE: I have been back here at least 7 times over the last 2 yrs with with my Wife and 13 yr old son. It just keeps getting better with each visit. James Boyle
MI
Michael A. McEwen McEwen
The dirty dog jazz café has to be the worst experience in dinning out in my life. I ordered the lamb (something), the dish was so salty I could not finish the meal. I informed the waiter of my disgust and she ask me to pick another dish. I asked for a garden salad; the salad was ok, nothing to write home about, I didnt finish it either. The chairs were the worst! They were so high and uncomfortable, the back of the chair barely came midway of my back which made it difficult to setup in the chair. I will never dine here again, the only good thing was the music, I enjoyed Gene Dunlap, I have 3 of his albums, in fact that he was the reason why I chose to go to the dirty dog. Lastly, for $100 bucks I would expect better service! Also, if I had the choice of giving this review zero stars I would do so, it seems that you are forced to give it at least one star....this place is not worthy of the single star!
