A Punk Rock Cocktail Lounge Is Filling the Former Our/Detroit Vodka Space

A new bar is settling into the former Our/Detroit Vodka building in Mexicantown. Detroit bartender and managing partner Mike Ketelhut tells Eater that he plans to open a casual pub called Bagley Central this spring in the recently vacated distillery space.

Ketelhut is partnering in the new venture with Green Dot Stables owner Jacques Driscoll, who owns the property. Ketelhut is a longtime friend of Driscoll’s and has worked in bars throughout Detroit and Hamtramck including Green Dot since 2001. Bagley Central will be one of two projects Driscoll is involved in on the block. He recently partnered in a neighboring Mexican restaurant and bar called Peso, which is slated to open within the next three weeks in the shuttered Fist of Curry location. “Essentially we’re trying to create a punk rock cocktail lounge,” Ketelhut says, adding that the bar will feature a soundtrack of punk, rhythm, and blues, glam rock, and more.

The Our/Detroit Vodka space was relatively sparse, allowing Ketelhut and his partners to apply their own aesthetic to the white walled brick bar at 2545 Bagley St. “Imagine trying to turn a blank white space into something as comfortable as the living room,” he says of the vision for the Bagley Central renovation. For now, Ketelhut is staying relatively tight-lipped about exactly how the 45-seat lounge will look when it’s complete, but confirms that he’s preserving Our/Detroit’s existing bar. The windows on the building currently feature intricate patterns using blue tape, which he says are being used as guides to create a “gilded” design on the windows.

As for the menu, Bagley Central patrons can expect to see a list of classic cocktails with a handful of original drinks and a relatively simple beer list. Cocktails will be priced around $7 to $9. The bar does not have a kitchen, but Ketelhut hopes to host pop-up restaurants regularly in the space as well as local DJs and musicians.

Bagley Central is on track to debut the first week in April. Stay tuned for more updates as the project moves forward.

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