Inside: Black Market in Clinton Township

(Credit: Ese Esan/Metromix)

related items

Black Market

Detroit Metromix bar and club reviews

The nightlife scene is thriving and Metromix doesn't miss a...

Status: It’s been almost a year since the ticker tape lit up Black Market in Clinton Township, but it’s not stock prices you’ll see scrolling across the screens.

The simulated tickers on the flat-screen televisions change every 15 seconds to reveal daily food and drink specials.

“It’s run just like the stock market,” says general manager and bartender David Kowalski, who has worked at Black Market since it opened January 13 replacing the Box Sports Bar.  

Located on Garfield Road between 18 and 19 Mile roads, Black Market is owned by Bob Rotundo and two partners.

Gear: The 350-person venue has a very casual dress code, which means “pretty much keep it clean,” Kowalski says.

With the club atmosphere and the female wait staff dressed in black skirts, dresses and shorts, women would be more than comfortable cutting loose in club wear. The men at Black Market kept with the black theme, but their outfits mainly consisted of t-shirts and jeans, much like the male patrons Friday night.       

Mood: Black walls provide a stark contrast to more than a dozen plasma TVs spread throughout the club. Two generous fish tanks house a small array of fish behind the l-shaped bar which serves as a kind of divider between the game room and the wood dance floor.

Servers Danielle Glodich and Ashley Rossignol, who began working at Black Market a short while after it opened, say the crowds tend to lean towards the lower 20s on Fridays -- the club’s busiest night, and is a little more mixed in age on Saturdays.

“It’s a well-rounded bar,” says 26-year-old Jeff Hewelt of Eastpointe who was helping celebrate the birthday of his friend Chris Rahm of Roseville Friday. “You can watch sports at the bar and then go to the dance floor and dance.” He says he also appreciates the “wicked good bartenders.”

Pick me up: While obviously a bar and club, the Black Market also has a comprehensive food menu with wraps, wings, salad, pizza, ribs and more. Almost every item is less than $13 with most topping out around $7.

If you’re craving something a little more unusual than a pita, Black Market comes through with a selection of exotic meat like kangaroo, alpaca, ostrich, yak and emu.

There is a full bar and 18 beers on tap.  

Entertainment: The Black Market has you covered when it comes to dancing, drinking or dining, and other than specials occasions like St. Patrick’s Day or Halloween, there’s no cover.

You’ll find Monday Night Football on Mondays, $2 you-call-it drinks Tuesdays, karaoke on Wednesdays and DJs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.