As St. Patrick’s Day approaches, you may be wondering where the best Irish pubs in Detroit are.
In this guide, written by a metro Detroiter with Irish ancestry, you’ll find where to order a proper pint of Guinness and a plate of fish and chips — even when it’s not March 17th.
Disclosure: This guide to Irish bars in Detroit may contain affiliate links. This means I may earn a commission if you click on one of these partner links and make a purchase.
What Constitutes a “Good” Irish Pub in Detroit?
The answer likely varies depending on who you ask. After visiting pubs while traveling in Ireland, here is my opinion on what makes an Irish pub worth visiting when it’s not March 17th:
Atmosphere: I love the handcrafted dark wood paneling, brass trims, and stained glass of bars that replicate Victorian pubs of the Georgian era. Having a fireplace is a cozy touch that reminds me of pubs in Ireland, too. Finally, Celtic or Irish folk music played live or in the background adds to the ambiance of an Irish pub.
Food: The menu should feature traditional Irish foods, such as shepherd’s pie or fish and chips, and may also feature corned beef dishes, such as Reuben sandwiches, associated with Irish American heritage.
Irish Whiskey and Beer: Perhaps most importantly, an Irish pub should have Guinness and other Irish beers on draft and a selection of Irish whiskey.
History of the Irish in Detroit
When you think of cities in the United States where Irish immigrants settled, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago may come to mind.
Indeed, those four cities are among the U.S. metropolises that have reported having the largest single-ancestry Irish populations in recent years.
However, Detroit has Irish roots, too. When a wave of emigrants left the Emerald Isle during Ireland’s potato famine of 1845, some of those Irish immigrants settled in Detroit’s oldest neighborhood, naming it Corktown after their homeland’s County Cork.
By the 1850s, half of the population in Detroit’s 8th Ward, which included Corktown, was of Irish descent.
Is Detroit Still Irish?
As of the 2020 US Census, Irish is the second-most-reported ancestry in Wayne and Oakland counties, the two largest counties in the Detroit metropolitan area.
However, only 10,475 out of 672,351 Detroit residents who reported their ancestry in the 2020 U.S. Census reported having Irish ancestry, ranking behind Arab, German, and Sub-Saharan African ancestries.
Though much of the Detroit area’s population with Irish ancestry now lives in the suburbs, Corktown is still the heart and soul of Detroit’s Irish diaspora.
The neighborhood hosts an annual St. Patrick’s Day parade and the Corktown Races on the Sunday before the celebration of Ireland’s patron saint.
As you may have guessed, Corktown is also where you’ll find the oldest and several of the best Irish bars in Detroit.
Detroit’s Best Irish Pubs in Corktown
In this historically Irish neighborhood, spend St. Patrick’s Day on a self-guided pub crawl, go to a famous Friday fish fry at Detroit’s oldest bar, or watch lively performances of Irish trad music at a social club dedicated to preserving Irish culture.
Nancy Whiskey’s
As the sign outside this North Corktown bar states, Nancy Whiskey’s is Detroit’s oldest party. Established in 1902, the bar has the longest continually operating liquor license in Detroit.
But before it became a saloon, the building originally housed a general store that opened in 1898. You can still see the Digby name in tiles outside the bar’s entrance.
Also, as the oldest bar in Detroit, Nancy Whiskey’s has a fascinating history, from allegedly operating as a speakeasy during Prohibition to being a favorite hangout of Detroit Tigers players when their ballpark was in Corktown.
Another group known to gather at Nancy Whiskey’s was the Teamsters. Supposedly, union president Jimmy Hoffa suspected his phone line was tapped, and he would come to Nancy Whiskey’s to make private calls from a payphone inside the bar.
Over the years, Nancy Whiskey’s has also received 15 minutes of national fame. First, its Friday fish fry was featured in a Long John Silver’s commercial. Then, The Washington Post featured Nancy Whiskey’s in its 2017 guide to America’s most authentic dive bars.
As you may expect from its dive bar status, you can come here for cheap beer, but you’ll also find craft beers and Irish beers, Guinness and Smithwick’s, on draft.
Of course, you can also expect to find Irish whiskeys at a bar with whiskey in the name. In fact, Nancy Whiskey’s was the first bar in the United States to sell Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey.
However, despite what The Washington Post reported, this first-time visitor was not offered a welcome shot of Tullamore Dew. I did drop some Irish whiskey and Baileys into a Guinness, though.
From what I gathered, Nancy Whiskey’s is primarily a neighborhood bar catering to its regular customers. Yet, crowds still gather when the Friday fish fry is on, live bands perform, or it’s time to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day.
2644 Harrison St, Detroit, MI 48216
Stay nearby: Hostel Detroit
Gaelic League of Detroit and Irish-American Clubs
Another longstanding Irish bar in Detroit is the Gaelic League of Detroit and Irish-American Club, a Detroit social club whose members have celebrated Irish heritage and culture at this Corktown spot since the early 1950s.
The Gaelic League of Detroit, formed by Irish immigrants in 1920, works to preserve Irish culture and offer the community a welcoming “bit of Ireland” in the Motor City. Together with the Irish-American Club, it hosts Irish language lessons, Irish music performances, and other cultural events.
Though you must be of Irish birth or ancestry to join the Gaelic League, the Irish-American Club’s membership is open to anyone over 18. Members and their guests can raise a pint of Guinness at the bar and partake in Detroit’s liveliest St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.
2608 Michigan Ave, Detroit, MI 48216
Stay nearby: The Godfrey Detroit, Curio Collection by Hilton
McShane’s Irish Pub & Whiskey Bar
With its bold red brick facade, McShane’s Irish Pub & Whiskey Bar stands out among the bars and restaurants lining Michigan Avenue in Corktown.
Inside, you’ll find an Irish-American sports bar where you can slide into a seat at the bar to sip one of the 40+ Irish whiskeys.
In addition to an extensive Irish whiskey selection, the bar also serves a Corktown burger topped with corned beef, shepherd’s pie, fish & chips, colcannon, and other Irish, Irish-American, and Irish-inspired dishes.
1460 Michigan Ave, Detroit, MI 48216
Stay nearby: Sonder Gabriel Richard
The Old Shillelagh
Ask a local about Irish bars in Detroit, and The Old Shillelagh in Greektown is bound to come up. As I suspect is true for other Metro Detroiters, the Old Shillelagh is the Irish bar I’ve visited most in Detroit.
But is it the best Irish pub in Detroit? I wondered that as I recently revisited the Old Shillelagh for the first time in nearly a decade — and the first time ever in daylight hours — just two days before St. Patrick’s Day in March 2024.
Dubbing itself “Downtown Detroit’s favorite Irish pub,” the Old Shillelagh is a bi-level bar and rooftop that serves comforting Irish and American pub fare by day and amps up at night to “savage craic” vibes with live music or DJs spinning on all three floors.
Since opening in 1975, the Old Shillelagh has been a family business. When ownership passed to the family’s third generation in 2015, this beloved family-owned bar also became a woman-owned business.
Under Shellie Lewis, the Old Shillelagh has elevated its food menu with locally sourced ingredients from Michigan farms, producers, and suppliers.
Additionally, the bar now offers a full vegan menu featuring plant-based versions of a Reuben sandwich, shepherd’s pie, and “faux” fish and chips made with beer-battered hearts of palm.
As I sipped Jameson Black Barrel neat and munched on fried Reuben rolls, I discovered a newfound appreciation for the Old Shillelagh.
The bar staff was the friendliest I encountered during my Irish bar crawl in Detroit. I concluded that I’d happily revisit — perhaps before taking the bar’s free shuttle to a Detroit Tigers game.
349 Monroe St, Detroit, MI 48226
Stay nearby: Shinola Hotel
More Irish(ish) Bars in Detroit
In addition to the Old Shillelagh and Corktown’s Irish pubs, there are a couple more bars where you can sip Irish whiskey in Detroit.
Thomas Magee’s Sporting House & Whiskey Bar
As this Eastern Market sports bar’s name suggests, Thomas Magee’s prides itself on being a place to watch “every sport, every game, and every fight” with cold beer and, of course, the soup of the day — whiskey.
Since it’s the home pub for Liverpool FC fans in Detroit, you might want to plan your visit to catch an English Premier League match and savor the whiskey of the month.
Of course, this whiskey bar is stocked with Irish whiskey offerings such as Bushmills Black Bush, Yellow Spot, and the coveted Red Spot aged 15 years.
Additionally, whether it’s St. Patrick’s Day or not, Irish beers such as Guinness, Harp Lager, Smithwick’s, and Kilkenny are likely to be on draft.
The downside? The bar doesn’t serve food, so come here for the whiskey and hit another Irish pub in Detroit when you’re craving a fish-and-chips platter or other traditional pub fare. Also, some online reviewers noted that the high-top seating was not wheelchair friendly.
1408 E Fisher Service Dr, Detroit, MI 48207
Stay nearby: The Siren Hotel
Grand Trunk Pub
Though the Grand Trunk Pub has dropped Foran’s from its name under the current ownership, some of this Detroit pub’s Irishness lingers.
This is particularly true of the food menu, which lists multiple corned beef sandwiches, a Reuben-esque burger, fish and chips, and shepherd’s pie.
Even the brunch menu features corned beef hash, shepherd’s pie hash, buttermilk waffles with a Jameson glaze, and an eggs Benedict dubbed the “Corktown Benny” with corned beef and Swiss cheese.
Because the bar now focuses on having Michigan craft beers on tap, you’re unlikely to find Guinness, Smithwick’s, and other Irish imports on draft here. However, the Grand Trunk Pub has a full bar, so you can probably order a drink with Jameson or Baileys Irish Cream.
612 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48226
Stay nearby: Detroit Foundation Hotel
Irish Pubs in Detroit Map
To find Detroit’s best Irish bars, you can use the interactive map below or click here to open the map.
How Was This Detroit Irish Pub Guide Created?
My method for compiling this list of the best Irish pubs in Detroit started with extensively researching online reviews and reviewing each bar’s food and drink menus.
I then visited some of these establishments on a self-guided Irish pub crawl in Detroit ahead of St. Patrick’s Day 2024.
I’ll update this guide as I continue to visit Detroit’s Irish bars. If you own, manage, or run the social media or marketing for an Irish bar in Detroit, please inquire here about how to be featured in this guide.
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