Parrot Cove

In recent months I have visited the Parrot Cove twice. The first time a group of 6 gathered on a Sat. night & the experience was relatively fine. The waitress in my mind was a little pushy about us ordering food, even though we informed her that one of our guests was running a little behind & we were going to wait until they arrived to order. So we ordered an appetizer while we waited. The appetizer was fine. Once the last guest was seated it seemed like the waitress was right on top of us wanting to know if we were ready to order. When I go out to dine, for me its to relax, unwind, break bread & share good times with friends. Not to be hounded by a waitress about ordering.
The second experience was on a Friday night, we made reservations ahead of time. My hubby & I arrived 10 minutes before our reservation time being respectful since we pre-​scheduled our tables. All I am going to say is that, the restaurant could not provide us with adequate seating so our group could dine together, A few of our guests ended up dining at the bar due to the inability of the restaurant to seat us all together even though we made reservations. The restaurant was totally understaffed for the volume of people who came to dine that night. There was only 2-​waitresses on the floor for the entire restaurant, no busboys to help clear tables or to assist. It was a hopping Friday night & the restaurant was full the entire time we were there. In addition, the co-​owner Maria & her waitstaff were having chattering disagreements at the bar in front of customers, not too professional in my book. So due to the lack of proper planning on the managements part, we did not have the best experience & service was fair to med. My Chicken Caesar salad was ok. I have not found any place yet to outdo the Red Coat Taverns Caesar salad yet. They have simply the best CCS in my opinion. All our guests that night said the food was ok, nothing to write home about or special. Except for the prime rib. that is where the Parrot Cove shines. However, its not cheap & neither are their infamous Margarita’s at $ 10 bucks a pop.
I give the food at the Parrot Cove a thumb’s up overall. But the customer service is questionable.
Next time we might try earlier in the day & see how the experience goes, but it will be awhile before we stop back in.

Great place unless you want to actually have a group of people. We came in several days earlier to reserve for a group of 15 and we’re told we were good only to show up several days later to find out the owner «forgot» interesting except they seemed to manage to hold reservations for 2 smaller groups.
Update:
They did manage to find a large table, so that was good.

Parrot Cove is one of those places you’ve probably driven by 1,000 times and never given much thought to. It just so happens to be a rare one of such places that is actually worth stopping into. I’ll get right to the highlights:
Margaritas — These are self-​advertised as being the best around and they may well be. Pretty sure I’ve never had better (aside from perhaps a few I’ve whipped up at home). I’ve watched them make the mix for these before. Amazing. Half gallon after fifth after half gallon after fifth of assorted boozes. Everything that goes into the mix is booze. No filler. They have a two drink limit on these for rookies, and for good reason. If you want to do it right, order yours with a salt rim. And no, they don’t do frozen margaritas here so don’t embarrass yourself by asking.
Prime Rib — Also advertised as being the best around and once again, I’m pretty sure they can comfortably back up that claim. Just look at the pictures. It’s so perfectly cooked and tender, you can tell they really put a lot of love into this stuff. Worth the wait and worth every penny.
Burgers — Yet another item advertised as the best around. I don’t personally agree with that assessment but they ARE really good burgers. Parrot Cove uses ½ lb patties of Piedmontese beef and quality fixin’s. The kitchen seems to have a hard time getting the cook right on them (from all my experiences they overcook) but the flavor is there. They have a $ 6.99 burger & fries lunch special that is 100% worth it, especially if dining on a budget. But what you really want is the Cove Burger. Don’t even look it up on the menu, just order it. And be prepared to pick your jaw up off the floor when your server drops it off.
Other Food — Other customers have told me really good things about the crab cakes, french onion soup, and deli sandwiches (particularly the #1, The Michael, which is sort of like a Pastrami and Corned Beef combo Reuben of the cole slaw variety, looks really freaking good and it is next on my list to try!).
Atmosphere — Looking for the sort of cozy and dimly lit place where you’ll wind up in friendly conversations with the people at other tables whether you want to or not and where you can watch Fox News and get into animated discussions with your bartender about how Donald Trump is going to make America great again? Look no further, you’ve found it!
Service — I’ve seen some people complaining in other reviews but I have zero complaints. Everyone at Parrot Cove has taken really good care of me every time I’ve stopped in. Maybe the other reviewers in question are just assholes. This doesn’t seem like the sort of place that has much tolerance for assholes.
That’s it for my list of highlights, folks. Check it out for yourselves, and enjoy!

Excellent! Great service, great food. Only wished the light over the table was brighter to see what we were eating.

My husband and I stopped here on a Thursday afternoon (around 4PM) because it was my birthday and I’d recently read online that Parrot Cove’s prime rib was similar to Mountain Jack’s. There were only a few other tables occupied, so service was prompt and friendly. We didn’t know about their specialty Maragaritas, so I’d ordered a Long Island Iced Tea. My husband ordered a burger and I had the prime rib. I was NOT disappointed! Unlike most restaurants, I was told that I could have my beef as rare as I liked (I prefer to hear a hearbeat when the plate is set before me) and my order was nice and red and juicy and **delicious**! I’d ordered the medium-​sized portion with the intention of taking part of it home for later, but it was so tasty I ate the entire steak. My husband, who’d ordered one of their burgers, had to take half of it home because it was so big, and then the poor guy had to sit and watch me finish a slab of cow.
Another nice surprise was that French onion soup au gratin was an option as a soup/​salad choice with the meal, and the bread basket was filled with buttery garlic toast. The onion soup was also the same Mountain Jack’s recipe (the PC chef used to work at MJ, turns out) and was very tasty — lots of cheese, the broth just salty enough.
Our server did eventually ask us if it was our first time, at which time a couple sitting two tables away joined in the conversation and told us that they were regulars, and that I should’ve ordered the Margarita. We chatted across the room for a few minutes, and the server joined in… it was kind of a nice, friendly atmosphere that I enjoy in an eatery. Our server surprised me moments later by bringing me a miniature Margarita «on the house, for your birthday», and it was everything the Couple at the Other Table said it was — you could really taste the Tequila and even that small glass packed a punch!
I’ve seen other reviews for this restaurant complaining about the service, but we had no issues. Maybe it was because it wasn’t particularly busy when we were there, but our server was willing to work as slow or fast as we preferred… for example, when we first arrived I told her when she brought our drinks that we’d prefer to «chill» a bit before ordering, and she smilingly didn’t press us with «Are you ready to order?» questions until I’d finished my drink. Once our food was served she was very prompt to fulfill requests for soft drinks, horseradish sauce, things like that. All in all, I certainly wouldn’t mind becoming a «regular» here!

People get excited because they serve strong drinks and rate this place high. I can sit at home and drink Popov in my underwear and that’s not a 5 star experience, so why would I give this place a high rating? The waitstaff was weird and distant, the food was bland and overpriced, and the bar was kinda crappy, but not in a good way. Oh, and what kind of bar only has Newcastle and Heineken on tap? A bad one, that’s what kind.

LOVE THIS PLACE! Margs are amazing, skinny Jimmy is delicious (get it everytime), sweet potato fries are yummy, other dishes are just as good! Great atmosphere and service.

One star is way too generous for this place, zero would be more appropriate. The owner of this place is one of the worst business owners I have ever seen. She is incredibly rude (our party was told to shut up) and not accommodating whatsoever. I dine all over the Detroit area and this is one of the worst places I have been too. Don’t waste your time here, they will treat you poorly and the food/​drinks are average at best. With all of the competition out there, you would think a business owner would value their customers and realize how fast word of mouth can spread. She does not. Needless to say, I will never return and I will make sure all of my family and friends know how poorly this dive is run! Everyone has a bad day, but this was well beyond that. Please stay away!
If you are in the area, go to Nicky-D’s which is right around the corner. They know how to treat customers! Stay away!

Terrible place. The restaurant is filthy, food is gross, and staff is incredibly rude. Save your money and go someplace else

I have been going to this place for some time. I wouldn’t call myself a regular. However yesterday we made reservation for 15 people. We all got there between 5 – 5:30. Half way thru the evening the owners wife Maria comes to us and says we are two loud and the «regulars» are upset. We looked around and honestly we were not any louder than anyone else. No foul language was being used or anyone being rowdy. She comes back a few minutes later telling us if we don’t quiet it down she will throw us out of the restaurant. To that we decided to get up and leave. Getting a tab for almost $ 400 I would have expected a little bit more respect. Looking at the bill we couldn’t recognize many of the items and when asked about it we were told by Maria to shut up! I have never been treated so poorly by a restaurant. Bottom line if you are not a regular you outta luck and you will be treated like crap.

This place might have good margaritas and decent food, but none of that is worth having to deal with the horrible customer service. My coworkers/​friends and I had a get together here last night and were treated like absolute garbage.
We have come here many times and have spent a lot of money here. Last night, after we all had a few snacks and drinks, the owner/​waitress came over to tell us we were too loud, that we were disturbing her dinner crowd and that we needed to be quiet. We were shocked… this is a bar after all, not a library.
We were so taken aback that we asked for our checks and wanted to cash out and take our business elsewhere. When we got our bill, we noticed a discrepancy between what we ordered and what was on it. Upon asking, we were treated like trash, we were told that she didn’t have time to figure out why it didn’t match with what we ordered. We asked why this was, and why we were being treated like this, and we were called multiple names and were told to shut up.
I would understand if we were stingy, bad tippers, or cheap people who were hogging up a table and not ordering much, but when our bill was over 400 dollars, you would think that we would get just a tad more respect.
Such a shame, Parrot Cove. You’ve lost our business forever and you can be sure that our friends (who also like to have fun and spend money) will never support your establishment again.

The food was yummy! I got the prime rib which was perfect just like reviews and the margarita was holy cow strong but good just like the reviews but omg the prices were insane! 10 bucks for a small well tequila margarita and 6 bucks for a pint of summer shandy! It’s a god damn hole in the wall bar! And it’s regular beer not some local fancy beer in downtown royal oak! Crazy! Glad I tried it but we won’t be back… It’s just a dive bar with a parrot theme that’s over priced.

Very disappointing. We saw the signs a few weeks ago that said Oxford Inn ribs and wanted to give it a try. Our ribs were extremely salty unlike Oxford inn. When we told our waitress we we told no they weren’t because we were the first people to complain. We also said the same to the hostess (owner?) who checked with the kitchen and said they were indeed prepared by a different person who had rubbed the seasoning into the ribs rather than giving them a light sprinkling. I was assured that if we gave them a second chance it wouldn’t happen again.
However that wasn’t the only problem, the bread and butter plates at our table were disgusting. The top one appeared clean but the one below it was covered in brown grease and the one below that was full of used bread crumbs. There is no excuse for that.
We ate only half of our dinner and then the hostess took my plate into the kitchen to bag the rest. Did she really think I would eat it when I didn’t see her wrap it? It went straight into the garbage. We won’t go back.

Small menu where are the chicken dishes with no bone? But they have Mexican? Weird but I’ll tell you it was surprisingly good. Fish and chips were great, the fries were short and stumpy but good. I got a grilled chicken sandwich which was excellent. And probably top 3 potato bacon soup I’ve had! Very dark in there which I didn’t like and the waitstaff is slow and never offered refills. Overall it’s good and I’d go back, but I would not run back.

Why only one star? I’ve got three words for you… Flies in February!
The last couple times I’ve been here I was very disappointed. I ordered a margarita, no salt or sugar, but it showed up with a lot of salt. Same thing happened the last time I was here. The margaritas are VERY expensive so I sent mine back. They dumped it into a different glass but it was SO salty because the salt from the first glass dripped down into the drink.
I ordered a full slab of ribs which were DEEEELICIOUS and had plenty to take home to mom.
After waiting a VERY long time for the check I finally got the server’s attention, I asked for a shot of tequila and the bill. She showed up with my shot and bill then asked that we leave in a hurry because people were waiting. REALLY?! I was waiting at least 20 minutes for my bill and SHE wants to rush ME? RUDE. We tried to pay with a credit card but the server kept putting in the wrong expiration date so it got rejected and I had to pay with cash.
The worst part of my experience was the flies. You read that right, flies in the dead of winter. There’s no flies outside so that means their kitchen is filthy and has rotting food. I’m very disappointed since I used to love this place but the service and quality have gone way down hill.

Well, not so good not so bad, the waitress was funny, gulf shrimp for 17 bucks for only 6 shrimps not worth it, cove burger was a joke, I’m sure it was so big just for the Facebook pictures, the place was dead, wonder why, food was just ok, but the margaritas rocked.

Parrot Cove. I imagined baby boomers overweight in tommy bahama shirts reliving that time 24 years ago in daytona beach when they had a 5.0 convertible parked seashore amongst a busload of granny panty bikini girls at spring break doing pg-​13 rated things.
But honestly, I had a great time here last Saturday. Ordered the prime rib with blackened shrimp and both were very delicious. Check their pictures of the prime rib and tell me you’re not salivating… Thought so. The potato soup was laced with all the goodies but served lukewarm. Can’t hate though, still tasted great.
Beer menu was limited but had a few nice selections including one from dragonmead that I ordered two of. Super small pint glasses =(. Mary Ann, our waitress, was a sweetheart and catered to all of our questions and requests with skillful professionalism. When we asked for a doggy bag to bring home to our pitbull, she came back with two large meaty steak bones on the house! Awesome service!
They had a deal for two 8 oz steaks, a side and dessert for $ 30. We added shrimp for another $ 12 and that got both of us three large well cooked shrimp that tasted perfect. Atmosphere was decent albeit cramped. I’m going in on a cove burger next time and will report on the results soon after. I have to give this hidden gem on Dequindre the thumbs up and would go here over Outback any day of the week. Thanks for the heads up Unilocal,well worth the $ 56 + tip we dropped.

…and you my ask why a 5star rating… No it’s not the «fine dining experience», unless you like food. I’ve been to $ 200−300+ an evening this is not the wine of night club yes they have wine. This is just what the name intends, the islands… and then some. had the fish tacos for lunch. For land lovers, I would suggest something else, but. if you’ve been to FL, this hits the ol preferably spot. Most might not like the slaw, but it’s friggin great and blends well with the fish. Home made slaw… try it mate. And this fish isn’t the bar food fish… it’s g.o.o.d. What might be confusing is the rice and beans… that’s where the taco influence comes in… folks, your missing out. prime rib Is always a Speciality, ribs, burgers that are prime, coconut shrimp… YA know, go there, eat, you tell me.

Usually we both head home on Friday Nights, and avoid the crowds however today was the exception.
After catching a flick at the MJR Marketplace we shot over here for some nachos & 2 of the Perfect Margaritas.
At 7:30 the lot was packed as was the entire dining room & bar, but being the «CHEERS» type place that its known to be, people scooted/​shifted/​moved & made room for a couple at the bar.
Marie one of the friendly owners stepped up & said «Whaddaya Drinking «
2 perfect Margaritas please
5***** truly none like it anywhere, yes its $ 9.50 limit one, but it is solid.
The Chicken Nachos were beyond plentiful & cooked just right. Served with plenty of sour cream/​salsa/​jalapenos on the side.
And Friday Night at the cove is no place for a quiet evening out, it was LOUD –FUN– EXCITING-​FRIENDLY, another couple squeezed in next to us, admired our NACHOS & wanted to share & introduced himself & his gal & said it was his 1^st return visit in 9 years.
The place is legendary
I wish i were hungrier as the slices of Prime Rib that everyone else was ordering looked/​smelled fabulous!

I liked Parrot Cove, and I’d love to go back.
The Margaritas were fabulous, and I see why you’re only allowed two! Sheesh… Even after all the food I consumed, I was still pretty buzzed
My friend and I both ordered burgers a la Piedmont… not sure I’d do that again. Not that they weren’t good, they were just lacking the VAVA-​VOOM I look for when I have a burger… I’ll take mine good and fatty thanks!
Our server was an idiot… not in the sense that she couldn’t put words together to make a sentence, but in the sense that she just doesn’t get it… yet…there’s hope for her, she’s young… More than anything I cannot stand when a restaurant nickel and dimes you for things… like our dear waitress charging me $.30 for a side of 1000 Island… just stupid petty stuff like that, she never asked how our meal was, but then again she was never out of our sight, as the place isn’t big at all… It’s just the principal for these types of things… She’ll learn… when her tips are effected… she’ll learn… Anyhoo… enough about her…
Our neighboring table all ordered Prime Ribs and they were all salivating while talking about them, and eating them so gregariously as we were on our way out… they highly reccommended them, so I’d love to go back and get my hands on one of those baby’s and also try a regular burger… no Piedmont.
Cute atmosphere, they should totally make an outside deck though… they have the room… deck it all out like they do on the inside… smash!