Miller’s Bar

A small little dive bar in downtown Dearborn. I went there for a large get together and we were set in the back room, or party room it seemed like. One of the best «cheap» burgers that I’ve ever had. The drinks were also really great as well. My only issue was with the entrance. Was incredibly confused as to where to go because I parked in the back and on the front side, the door isn’t very obvious either. Nonetheless, I loved being there and it was a great setting for my cousin’s 21^st birthday! Will go out of my way to come back.

Awesome Burgers and Onion Rings. Very busy. Waitstaff is on the ball. It’s cash only and on the honor system.

Pros: really cool historic vibe, beautiful bar with classy, tie-​wearing bartenders, decent no-​frills burgers and fries, ample parking.
Cons: they don’t except credit cards which is always a Red Flag for me. Terribly inconvenient for the customers and suspicious, to boot. Why on earth, in 2016, would you NOT accept credit cards? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Simple, no frills burger and fries place. The burgers are very delicious; It’s a bit divey but there’s nothing wrong with that. Fair beer selection.

I have heard about this place for years. We were in the area, so we went. I knew it wasn’t fancy (and that is fine). But, for the price. We could have gone to a «nicer» restaurant for the same price. I don’t mind that they serve it on wax paper (no plates); but the pricing should match the setting.
It was $ 66 with tip for 5 of us. That was really expensive for what we got. Oh well. Probably won’t go back.
I thought the burger was good. I don’t understand not serving lettuce and tomato. And the pickles on the table… not a fan.

Way over priced for such a small menu!
The «amazing» burger was just a burger. Hardly any toppings to pick from.
The pickles chillin’ on our table in the plastic container was the cherry on top.
What a joke.

Welp… The service is fast and friendly. The servers make you feel like you are visiting an aunt out of town. Honor system for paying. Very kind people. Because of that try it out.
The burgers were average. Didn’t have bacon, jalapeño peppers and a few other basic things. It’s a dive bar vibe. Honestly, the burgers are on the same level as a Coney Island in Detroit but safer. I say try it out but I won’t be going back for round two.

Honestly some of the best bar burgers around. It’s simple but tasty and that is really all that matters. Even my kids love it and they are real picky.
However can be slow if it’s busy.

Over Thanksgiving weekend we took an out of town guest for the Miller’s Bar experience. I have been here for lunch and dinner numerous times before over the years and I do love their burgers and fries. I also love the old time atmosphere, the burger being served on wax paper, the little highball glasses for drinks, the friendly staff and the honor system paying. It definitely is an old time burger and beer joint. Since it was a Saturday afternoon, sports was on the tv and that was perfect too. Well… Our burgers and fries did not disappoint. The burger was bigger and tastier than I remembered! My only thought was: I live in Dearborn — I need to come here more often!

Best burgers in the Detroit area. No frills experience. First come first serve seating. Don’t expect menus or even plates. Go for the cheeseburger and onion rings, you will not be disappointed.

To be completely honest, I do not know if there is a better burger in Metro Detroit. This isn’t the most elegant place and won’t blow you away necessarily, but I think it tastes absolutely amazing and is just about as good as it gets if you are looking for something simple and scrumptious. I can eat this real quick and really enjoy myself, they don’t have mayonnaise for the fries though, which is a bummer.

First I have to say I’m not a local. I found Miller’s on a Best Burger list. The burger was fine, nothing special and you really could call it average. There was a certain charm to the gruff bartender that took my order and then the flat top grill at the end if the bar.
My burger and fries were delivered along with the «basket» which consisted of ketchup, mustard and pickles.
Would I go back? Probably not.
Was it good?, well sorta, ok…
Like I said this place was on a best burger list. I am going to say from what I experienced no one in this place could care less. I really is just a local’s bar and I’m sure they would like it to stay that way.

Going here with some old college friends was an interesting experience. No menu, no bill. Just go to the register at the center of the bar and tell them what you had.
As a vegetarian, I was happy that grilled cheese was among the few sandwiches available aside from burgers. It was OK (old school and about like you would make at home). The sides were better: shoestring fries with the right amount of give and onion ring that were tightly breaded, not greasy.
Despite being a bar, Miller’s has a family atmosphere. It’s comfortable vibe was perfect for good conversation. If you’re OK with its short menu, it’s a good place to hang.

The food was really good… yummy burgers! It’s not your traditional set up, so that was nice to experience something different. Onion rings were excellent, I usually don’t order that from any place so I’m glad we did. I would definitely come back when I’m with a group of friends… ;)

This restaurant has a unique flair. The interior is dark like a dive. The wait staff is friendly and old school. The payment menu is kept in the memories of the wait staff. It’s a sit-​down, but you’re served on wax paper. Payment is done with cash only and on the honor system. It feels like you’re in a but of a club eating here, but I’d rather cancel my membership.
There was a lot of hype coming into here, but it was honestly disappointing. The burger was not bad. Each one was nice and meaty, albeit unseasoned. The bun that it came on was plain and cheap like the value buns from the grocery store. You get options of onions and cheese and they have pickles at the table. The onion rings are decent, but the fries are kind of soggy and rather plain. A burger, fries and drink will set you back over 10 bucks with tip, which is where I have a problem with the food. It’s kind of a rip off. Considering the low buck plating, can only fizzy drink or bottled water only, I can’t help but feel a bit cheated by the time it came to pay. For the money, you can get so much more and so much better at so many other places.
The place was worth a visit for the novelty, but not worth a repeat.

It’s a nice family run bar restaurant, which is good. I like mom and pop shop. Everything else that follows is out of the ordinary.
Water only served in a bottle. Soda only served in a can which means «no free refills». Each Sandwich or burger is served on «two pieces of wax paper» directly placed on the table, which means «no plates». At one point, a thought crossed my mind, «I am not a dog, why is my sandwich served on two pieces of paper at a sit down restaurant»? I guess my sandwich was placed on a table, so it not that bad, its actually meant for a customer, me. Then I looked around my environment and it looks like a decent local bar and it doesn’t look like a food truck either… so where is my plate? I ordered to dine in too. I am so confused.
Then I asked for a «small box» to pack up my left over half sandwich. I received «two new wax papers» + a brown bag. :) just what I wanted. It’s fantastic… lol
Then I was advised that it’s an honor system when it’s time to pay the bill. At first I thought «wow, that different», in a good way. Then I went to pay for my bill and I forgot to tell the cashier i ordered two water bottles. The cashier reminded me of my mistake and I was so so so embarrassed. Then I thought, «honor system», not so good idea, because a customer can potentially be embarrassed by not remembering what they ordered.
Overall, not what I expected from a restaurant as far as basic accomodations. But my sandwich and burger was pretty good. I thought the owners must be very confident and sure with their food they serve because they expect me to not see anything else that was amiss but unfortunately our dinner conversation was not about the food. I guess I am not coming back??? Wait, I think bbq restaurants serve on paper too… maybe it’s ok to eat off the table… lol

I’ve been to Miller’s many times since the 80’s. Used to be a good place. A few years back something changed. The burgers are now prefab, the prices are HIGH, and they haven’t attempted to add any drafts to the selection of Bud and Miller. I get they want to be an anachronism, but they aren’t giving me any reason to want to go there. Although there seem to be plenty of folks who enjoy paying a premium price for the questionable quaintness of receiving their food on waxed paper.
**the burger photos for this place do not reflect reality. Be forewarned!

Step inside the doors of Miller’s Bar and you’ll enter a dark fortress where the automotive elite, college students, average joes, and bikers meet to eat together as strangers bonded by juicy meaty goodness at the bar as well as the many surrounded tables.
Miller’s is an excellent establishment that doesn’t have any dress codes or n aura of snobbiness. It’s just a place where you can walk into and get a damn good meal. (Cash only — bring cash, it’s worth it)
Miller’s is old school… as the late «Rowdy» Roddy Piper would say, Miller’s is Old School, Miller’s was Old School, before Old School was cool.
It’s meat and bun and cheese and onion if you wish served on a bun soaking in meat juices that comes delievered served on wax paper and it tastes so damn good man, so damn good. You want condiments, there’s a pickle jar near by along with ketchup and mustard. If you need nothing else on your burger here, maybe a tasty beer to help wash down the greatness.
Fries are okay and I guess they have onion rings, but those aren’t really needed here. Forget the sides and just order a secondary burger to go along with the first one. The Hamburger patty here is the star and you definitely just want to eat as much of that as possible. I’d get 3, it’s that damn good man.
The service is great here and the patrons are nice. The tables are convenient and comfy, but the best seat in the house is behind the main bar. To sit there means you get to peak in on the kitchen and see the steel heated canvas that the cook prepares the meat on… it’s like watching an artist creat a masterpiece of art, but juicy meat is their canvas and we all get to feel alive in this great museum of taste.
Miller’s Bar goes by an honor system, which means that at the end of your trip, you tell your server what you ordered and they believe you. To many, it may sound silly, people will be like, why can’t I just lie and say I ordered 1 burger, fry and beer when I actually ordered 2 of each?
Answer — Because they are THAT good, so fucking good, pardon my French, and that they KNOW that their patron’s won’t lie about anything. When you serve burgers so good like they do, you will NEVER want to get caught in a lie and say anything to jeopordize ever tasting their elite meat, ever!
Trust me, their burgers are THE TRUTH!!!

Dive Bar Service, Chain Restaurant Food, Farm-​To-​Table Prices
Miller’s Bar makes a lot of, «Best Of» burger lists, but don’t drink the Kool-​Aid. On Second thought, if they put Kool-​Aid on the menu, get it, because it is probably more satisfying than their beer selection.
Miller’s is a family restaurant trying to live up to a theme, like Bubba Gump’s or Dick’s, only the people who run Miller’s are real-​life slow-​witted assholes.
However, Miller’s Bar isn’t what it says it is and the aesthetic was the first sign that they weren’t going to live up to their embellished reputation.
Though Miller’s calls itself a «dive bar», the inside better resembles an Airport TGIFridays. This was probably comfortable and preferable for the white haired boomer on his Bluetooth ignoring his family and the zip-​fleece adorned couple with an infant in a high-​chair.
The Eight Tops
The server who seated Kara and I was amenable and helpful, helping us fuse two four-​top tables for the eight people due to attend. Unfortunately, she was at the end of her shift and the server who replaced her perfectly embodied Miller’s Bar’s smug discourteousness and unjustified sense of self-​importance.
Server #2 crassly listed Miller’s few menu items, apparently prideful about its limitations in her embittered and gravelly voice, as though to say, «why don’t you know this already?».
Inglorious Beerstards
Even dive bars in Michigan have a Michigan beer on tap, especially in Metro Detroit.
Unfortunately, the only draft Miller’s offers (that isn’t more popularly consumed while camping with your Confederate Flag apologist redneck uncle) was a Leinenkugal Snowdrift Vanilla Porter. I suppose that is pretty divey, but by that same token the Novi Red Lobster is also a dive bar.
To Miller’s discredit, Finley’s American Grill, a small chain of family steak restaurants in Michigan, offers a better selection of Michigan Craft Beer. Even by family restaurant standards, Miller’s fails at beer.
Modestly redeemed, Miller’s Family Restaurant offered Bell’s seasonal Winter White Ale in bottles, which is served along side a very tiny glass that encourages savoring.
This is a principle I welcome, but one better enjoyed with a view of Piazza San Marco or the 8^th arrondissement and feels somewhat incompatible with a large television showing an NFL Playoff game in a Dearborn Family Restaurant. Also, you need to get a buzz on to tolerate the servers and clientele, and the tiny glass wasn’t helping.
Tartare or Tar?
Miller’s Family Restaurant has one job: Get the burgers right. Most of Burger Club was fine with what they ate, but there was a common complaint about burger doneness. Rare was raw, and medium was well-​done. It’s baffling how a burger joint that hasn’t figured out burgers makes so many «Best Of» lists.
Food Presented Poorly
Miller’s does not use plates or even baskets for their burgers. They are served on a piece of wax paper and tossed in front of you like you are Piper Chapman waiting for a Tampon on English Muffin breakfast sandwich.
For those who want onions, they are presented in a pile in the middle of the table, smörgåsbord style. It’s as though they are trying to labor a divey aesthetic without understanding what that means. A dive bar is divey despite itself; Miller’s is a trust fund snot wearing distressed-​style Diesel jeans and trying too hard to have an edge at a loft party to which they were not invited.
Miracle Whip? It’s A Miracle I Don’t Whip Your Ass For Offering It To Me.
Whether you’re someone like me who prefers mayonnaise with their fries, likes mayonnaise but not on your fries, or hates mayonnaise, you should resent that Miller’s offers Miracle Whip and not Mayonnaise. This isn’t a byproduct of aspiring to a dive theme or being a family restaurant, this is just bad taste. Though, this makes sense, people with bad taste are likely Miller’s most reliable clientele.
Want To Pay For Your Food? Fine, Millennial Scum, Pay-​Up.
The tab was quite a bit more than I expected given the quality of food and service. At best, Miller’s does an adequate burger. However, I waited more than 10 minutes to pay cash to a yuppie jerk with his gut pushing over his belt who treate me like a nuisance even as I patiently waited in line with a stack of cash. If you go to Miller’s, I suggest you exploit their honor system by wadding up a $ 20.00 and throwing it at the Cash Register. They might appreciate your insolent gumption.
Like Jay Leno, Miller’s Will Please The Easily Impressed
Miller’s is the Jay Leno of burger joints: Each their popularity can be attributed to the aging, undiscerning, and those easily impressed by shallow and dishonest appeals to a blue-​collar sensibility. People go to Miller’s because it’s there and presume that because it’s there that it must be good enough. Or maybe, they just fell asleep during the 11-​o-​clock news or lost the remote.

Classic décor, friendly service and a burger which was excellent.
OK, the onions rings were bland, but they usually are, I should stop ordering the things.
The bar is well stocked and they still use an honor system of telling the barman what you had.
I was hoping for a classic American bar burger experience and all expectations were exceeded.