Bars in SouthWest Michigan

I think of St. Joseph like most beach vacation towns. The winter is pretty buttoned down, but in the summer, everything is packed.

Ok I’m a lifelong Saint Joseph resident. We are a TOURIST TOWN! Summertime all the bars, wineries and breweries are packed and open until their appropriated close time. We have way more breweries, distilleries and wineries than urban areas and locals have gravitated towards that somewhat. Winter sucks. Most of the downtown businesses close during winter.

Night life is awful in SW Michigan, I agree 100%. The only places open late are Sandbar, Bouy’s, or the Cubbie Bar in Bridgman. 221 Main used to be popping, but they took out the dance floor and made it a “fancy restaurant” instead. Czar’s used to be an underground music hall/club that was a ton of fun with good drinks, but pretty sure that’s closed now as well.

“The Welcome” in Stevensville seems to be the hip dive bar lately. Watermark Brewery in Stevensville gets a good crowd and offers live music some nights. The Livery in Benton Harbor has great beer, food and live entertainment.

Eh that's just the reality of rural life. People be tired and going to bed early.

The livery on Friday nights is pretty cool. Live music and a beer tapping at 5 but definitely a more mature age group. I know a lot of the young whirlpool people go to the most hodunk bars possible for late nights. Unfortunately though this town is mostly owned by rich old farts from Chicago and they like their town quiet.

Casinos sapped whatever nightlife there was out of the rural areas around here. GL with your search.

Need college-age people to make it worthwhile.

Lived there my whole life, went to lakeshore and yea it’s a rough place as a young person 20s-30s. I don’t live there anymore but I would say join a league. The kickers club has adult soccer, the racquet club I believe has leagues, the golf courses all have pick up games. You can also join the flying club at kbeh (don’t know if you are even interested in that). There’s also some ranges that have shooting clubs if you like that. In the summer there’s volleyball leagues you can join at silver. The night life gets better in the summer but then you have to deal with no parking downtown. Locals like Mickey’s pub, the welcome inn, watermark brewing company. There is live music at the livery. I will admit most young people will drive up the Grand Rapids/kalamazoo/ann arbor for the night (this is 10ish years ago when I would be in the area more). There is more to do and funnily enough you will inevitable see people from st.joe out in those places. The locals can be a tough nut to crack, they don’t really love to talk to new faces because of all the tourists we get.

I’m from Kalamazoo but live in another state now. Kalamazoo did not fair well with covid and when I went back to visit everything seemed to close early. It’s depressing when I go back that almost every restaurant closes at 9. There’s a diner place by the airport that when I was there last closes at 7pm! It’s not like it was man.

Connie's Place in Baroda and Welcome Inn in Stevensville .

You’re in a summer city bud, no action for a couple months.

I think people have moved away from the bar scene. Especially since weed is legal and so much cheaper. Why spend $200 at the bar when $10 at the dispensary will yield way more fun, no fights, puking, or hangover?

No bars - everyone gets drunk and passes out at home.

You gotta be willing to drive around a bit. That's what us locals do. New Buffalo, Niles, South Haven when you want a change of scenery. If you can get up to Kalamazoo check out Bells Eccentric Cafe and Kalamazoo Beer Exchange.

I think you’ll find that most people who drink in the area have been pulled over by the sheriff deputies. It’s a big revenue source for the county, at the cost of a vibrant night life.

Welcome inn in Stevensville and The Sandbar in st Joe are your best bets. Strikers bowling alley can be fun on Fridays/saturdays.

I’ve lived in Stevensville the last 10 years and lived in Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo before that. I used to drink a lot but basically stopped now that I live here. I have a lot more money now.

I have lived in the greater St. Joe area my entire life. The nightlife used to be better but around the late 00s and earlier 10s, there was a change in thinking around the city. Locals starting getting more tickets and since this was before Uber/Lyft and St. Joe does not have the best public transport, people slowed down going out. You were more likely to be stopped and ticketed the later you were out. Since the local major employers aren’t huge fans of DUIs, people stopped going out late. Also the go to bars slowly but surely were forced to close or change for a more tourist-centric approach. Once the Casino in New Buffalo opened, St. Joe just rolled up the sidewalks in the winter.

As others have said, Mickeys, Connie’s, and the Welcome stay open later.

I know exactly what you are talking about. My wife and I have lived in NYC and Orange County, CA, and we are consistently baffled by the way they roll up the sidewalks at 7:00 around here. It's weird.

We have been to the drag Queen show in downtown Kzoo. That's on Saturday night and it doesn't even start until, like 11:00. It's at what is the Blue Dolphin during business hours, but calls itself something else for the drag show. Can't remember the name. We had a great time. It's a very fun night. Big crowd, great positive energy.

I live in rural Northern Michigan and bars are open til midnight. Don’t always believe google just go and see for yourself?

Also, why do you want something busy? Just go and have a good time, meet locals, have a few drinks.

I’ve noticed that bars around where I’m at in SE MI usually just judge closing time based on the feel of the situation. If there’s no one in there at 10-11pm they’ll shut down, but if it’s busy enough to justify staying open they have no problem with it.

Posted hours are different than active hours for most of the bars in this area. Pretty much every dive bar is going to be open past the listed closing time on weekends or busier summer weekdays.

The real tragedy of the nightlife around here is that the only things that exist to do after 8 or 9 are go to a dive bar or go to the casino.

2 AM is the norm from what I remember. I thought all bars in Michigan have to close by then?

I live in the area and I agree with your assessment. However I will be of no help as I am past the point in life where I can function after night life activities, lol.

Covid broke so many things. On the SE side, the main issue around here is a lack of employees to work, so restaurants are closing 2 days a week, opening for lunch dinner and closing in-between, just trying to hang on and keep open.

I also tend to think of fall as the busy time of year when there are the most events and activities going on.

Journeyman Distillery in Three Oaks is great.

As another local, late-night bar scenes a) aren’t really a huge draw in the non-summer months, even for locals and b) most locals seem to prefer places like Watermark, Haymarket, North Pier, etc. etc. to enjoy a nice beer or two in a great atmosphere. Yeah, most places don’t stay open until 2, but we’re not Chicago. Mickey’s, sandbar, welcome inn (my dad worked there back in the day lol) will be open on weekends until 2, and they’re typically quite crowded then.

Eau Claire has a great little dive bar.

Hightower Bar and Grill in Hesperia, Michigan.

Angelos & Richardo in Hesperia.

Pentwater on main street, every other building is a bar.

Kristi's Pour House in Hart.

The Sandbar in Ludington.

It was better before Covid. All the most popular bars shutdown for good. Czar's was a great place to hang out until close back in the day. Mickey's is OK. I've never liked the Sandbar but it's still open last I knew. Too cramped and only 1 pool table.

Short Answer -

The places close because traditionally you got pulled over for driving at 1am even though the sun just went down three hours ago.

Long Answer -

You have to understand late night on rural roads plus drinking = death, deer and DWI. Half the potential patrons are even on central time and the summer night life is quiet. There just are not many loose morals 22 year olds escaping from the beach houses as in the olden golden days.

We do some late nights at Caseys in New Buffalo, Watermark, Haymarket and until 11 at Journeyman. Fact is most of the bars are within 500 feet of someones home and should be quiet at 11:15pm by MI state law. I would say a ton of people are now smoking weed at home, hook up online, and are done by fucking and frying brain cells by 10:30, instead of looking for weed and making new friends at 2am like the 1990s.

Solution -

Chicago is a $9 train ride away from Michigan city, catch it in on friday night, book a cheap nice hotel over any random weekend, and bar hop like it is 1994 for two nights in a row, catch the train back to your car sunday afternoon and drive home sober.

I have never known St Joe to be a place to go to bars, only the beach in the summer. When I lived in SW MI the only place that had the best nightlife was Kzoo.

I would say get out and check out some places outside of the town. My brother moved to Grand Haven and every time I go visit him we have a blast. So many rad places in GH/Muskegon.

You are in Dutch country- or rather the land full of people holland kicked out because they were no fun lol.

We moved here during COVID. I thought eventually it would get better. Nope. It's absolutely dead down here. And the people are just not friendly. I miss Manistee where there is a bar on every corner.

You picked the conservative Christian puritian nightmare side of the state, what did you expect?

I don't really prioritize on late night. I can tell you where the good beverages are....

Besides all the beer, because you know there is plenty of good beer... Hummingbird in New Buffalo is excellent for cocktails. Terrace Room and Brewster's are not open very late at all but they have excellent drinks and the bar is almost always full in the evening. Leeds in Michigan city is good - they're more of a summer/outdoor bar, but they do make excellent drinks.

IDK usually if we're up that late the party has gone home and we're drinking around a fire pit or inside.

Your best bet is the Stray Dog in New Buffalo. Not sure about 2 am until the summer. The person who said Saugatuck is also correct but once again probably summer

Kalamazoo will have the nightlife you're looking for, if you don't mind driving an hour each way. Back in the day, the St Joe spots were Boathouse and Sandbar. But things may have changed since I was going out.

I'll echo the other comment about winter being pretty buttoned down around here. Business hours get more friendly after memorial day.

Connie’s in Baroda during the summer. Oh boy. That’s an - interesting - good time. Especially when there’s some weddings in the area.

There’s not a lot around here. I’m closer to Niles and Joey Armadillos is a great spot with cheap drinks. Always open late, 5 pool tables, bowling and great food. Other than that I hop down to South Bend. Lots of smaller bars have been closing early since COVID.

AJs in Berrien Springs is pretty good

Kalamazoo is your closest friend.

As a Wisconsin resident, I was always blown away by the lack of bars in Michigan. Even the smallest, most rural towns in Wisconsin have a local watering hole or two.

Head up to Kalamazoo

Credit nova

Unfortunately St. Joseph isn't a "big" city like Grand Rapids or Kalamazoo. And I say big in relevance compared to St Joe.

West Michigan is in the off season so you won't find what you're looking for.

Wait a few months until tourism picks up and your local spots will be filled up and you'll find what you're looking for.

In the meantime, wait for a clear day and look across the lake and admire the bustling Chicago nightlife

Saint Joe resident hear. Czars used to be the weekend spot, now it’s Sand Bar. It’s more of craft brew spot for tourists but Kzoo’s only 45 minutes away.

Find a job in Grand Rapids and move. You'll probably find the pay is better too.

I grew up in SW Michigan near Niles and go back to visit friends/family from time to time. Spending time there in the summer every so often so I can check out my former haunts is fun.

You're not gonna find much going on near St Joseph or Stevensville outside of tourism season from late spring to early fall. The fact is that they're retirement and tourist communities. Even during tourist season the nightlife isn't exactly poppin.

The nightlife or just entertainment in Michiana in general is atrocious. It's a family-focused, conservative, and religious area ruminating about the "glory days" of Notre Dame, Michiana, and the Bears. Many people are your average alcoholic midwesterner getting married soon after high school, retirees waiting to die, or kids going through K-12. Many young people leave soon after they graduate high school and I don't blame them. Although I did go to Southwestern Michigan College for a bit and enjoyed it, but there isn't any sort of a nightlife associated with the school.

South Bend as the population center has some passable spots and the highest density of young adults but it's so freaking depressing hearing about what Michiana was like when my parents were in their 20s.

Personally, I'm so happy I left Michiana. The only nice things about it are summer on the coast, the wine belt, and how there are more trees than much of southern Michigan.

St. Joe, where fun goes to die. Hahaha

lol at packed Georgia bars. Roadhouses are the bomb.

If you live in st. Joe, you clearly aren't looking for bars. There are about 10 in "downtown" alone. Some great dives near the river and south of town. Also, craft breweries/wineries everywhere.

SW MI bar scene is weird. Actual bars and few and far between, unless it’s tied to a brewery/restaurant. Any other state in the Midwest, there are corner bars in just about every town no matter the size. It’s just not a thing here and it kinda sucks!

Maybe get a hobby besides alcoholism, seriously. People don't go out as much, it's too expensive. Also a lot of people are realizing just how fucked drinking culture is and aren't partaking anymore.

One of the reasons I moved from SE Mi to GR.