Inside Sid Gold’s Request Room, Detroit’s Retro Piano Karaoke Bar

Visitors to downtown Detroit will soon be able to belt out their own renditions of “Free Fallin’” accompanied by a live piano. Sid Gold’s Request Room, a piano karaoke bar, is preparing to open its second location inside the Siren Hotel in mid-July. Sid Gold’s is the brainchild of Beauty Bar founder Paul Devitt and former Psychedelic Furs keyboardist Joe McGinty. The pair opened their first piano bar in New York in 2015. Devitt and McGinty worked on finding a location for a second Sid Gold’s in Detroit for several years before eventually settling into the Wurlitzer Building.

Like tasting menu restaurant Albena, Sid Gold’s is located down the alley between the Siren Hotel and the Element Hotel. Customers can find the door below the karaoke bar’s brightly lit neon sign. An alcove next to the entrance will feature a calendar indicating the week’s scheduled entertainment as well as the bar menu. Stepping inside, visitors enter Sid Gold’s lounge area complete with a large, U-shaped bar with a mirrored back bar and dim lighting from a mixture of antique lamps and amber pendant lights. Devitt amps up the throwback ambience with retro barware and 1970s-era chairs and couches. The walls, meanwhile, shimmer with blue and gold paint.

The venue is divided into two distinct spaces with the piano area in the back. A curved table surrounds the instrument while high top tables line the walls. Both rooms feature recessed ceilings with clouds and swirling galaxy motifs painted by New York-based artist Steven Hammel.

The bar will offer a similar menu to the New York location with a mixture of classic cocktails such as French 75s the and music-inspired drinks like the Velvet Underground with bourbon, lime, and velvet falernum. Sid Gold’s will also offer beer and wine. The physical menu is designed to look like a record.

Sid Gold’s will feature a menu of songs as well ranging from goth rock staples like “Bella Lugosi’s Dead” to iconic Brit pop tunes like “Let It Be.” Patrons put in their requests and then take the mic as a trained musician plays along. The bar is also expected to host other entertainment including burlesque performances.

Sid Gold’s is aiming to open within the next two weeks followed by a grand opening the following weekend featuring McGinty at the piano and a special musical guest. Stay tuned for an official opening date soon. Photographer Michelle Gerard took a tour of the cool new bar ahead of the opening. Take a look around Sid Gold’s in the gallery below.

Michelle Gerard | michellegerard

• Piano Karaoke Lounge Sid Gold’s Request Room Eyes Early June Opening [ED]
• Sid Gold’s Request Room Is Bringing Piano Bar Karaoke and Burlesque to Downtown [ED]
• All Eater Inside Coverage [ED]