\aut\ BAR in Ann Arbor

It breaks my heart to write this review. Have been coming nearly every weekend for 10 years. Staff is wonderful, environment is charming, location is excellent. New management is unfortunately ruining everything else. Menu changes and poor ingredients have changed the experience. Please new owners if you’re reading this it’s not too late. No changes had to be made to this beautiful perfect restaurant. If you’re trying to improve the bottom line the answer is ALWAYS to increase the price not to cheapen the product. Please give us back our Aut Bar that we know and love. Reach out to me if you have any questions - Jesse Kane

The steak with crab last night was so good! The sauce put us over the top. Loved the mashed potatoes and greens that went with it. Thanks for the recommendation, it was perfect comfort food. Please do it again.

Edit (09/25/19):⭐⭐⭐Would be 5 stars but for the past few weeks, service has been super slow. I dont blame anyone and will keep coming by but gotta dock the 2 stars. Plus no more second floor juke box. Still a unique spot with great people and good food but just been a bummer lately waiting for long periods to get served.---Original Review:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Very kind and open staff. Relaxing beer garden and tame downstairs area with a lively second floor if that is your thing. Im not a regular at bars like this but this one seems different to me and more inclusive of not only the LGBTQ community. I would highly recommend it to anyone who us open minded and wants to sip some beers on a shady patio in the summer.

Brunch at this place has taken a nosedive. The menu used to be perfectly fine before. Now they have a new menu with a lot fewer options, and not nearly as good. Really disappointing!

I dont know whos cooking in that kitchen today, but they put they foot in it.I ordered egg omelette with tomatoes, mushrooms and green pepper without cheese and rye toast.It was very delicious indeed!!!!Thank you Ian and Staff

Had an AMAZING time at Pride last Saturday. Got a delicious señora dog outside on the patio while watching the trump piñata being smashed. :Even though it was extremely busy, all of my friends/family and I received drinks quickly and made well. When we went to the upstairs bar later on, we got great and fast service there too. Great vibes here. Aut bar never lets me down with a good time!

My girlfriend and I went for Tacos and drinks and well.. I have to say the taco menu was not as great as I heard. I love tacos I honestly dont think there is ever a bad taco. But it was just disappointing at the effort put into the plates. The drinks were overpriced and the elotes were not good at all. I did mention to the waitress to have her put my elotes in the oven. She came back with a tastier plate than the cold corn in a dish. The chicken tacos tasted as if they were from a can. The beef tacos were very wet, tasted as if I was eating a pot roast in a tortilla. I did try the Taco Tuesday tho. I am proud to support my community to the fullest, but come on..Taco Tuesdays are the best. Lets make it the best. ❤

Great place! The best time out I’ve had In Ann Arbor! Wonderful staff and just can’t say enough good things! Enjoyed the pride after party and am completely happy. I actually think the LGBTQ community is the best part of Ann Arbor! 😊❤️😊💜

First time here in about 5 years, this place has really gone down. i used to go all the time with friends, play pool sing songs on the jukebox and be have amazing conversations with the other regulars and bar staff. I went in today because I really missed the food, got some nachos with chicken. The chicken on the nachos was cold/lukewarm, the bartender dodnt seem to interested in tending to us. Never offered to get me a second drink or even fill up my friends water. The moscow mule wasnt portioned properly, tasted like a cup of lime juice. I really hate that I have to say this about a place i called a favorite spot for so long when I was younger but Im not sure if its the new owners or what but I don’t think ill be coming back in any foreseeable future.

First time with here with my boyfriend. Atmosphere was very enjoyable. The food was cheap but really good and the alcohol was reasonably priced. The staff was all cool and very attentive to what we needed. Will definitely be back at some point!

Found this place about a year ago and have been coming every Friday ever since. Good food but most of all great people, special atmosphere and great music! Now under new ownership many is very small and food quality seemed to go down ( chicken wings shrunken in size ). But will see

I love the music playing in the background and karaoke on Tue night. The 🌮 Tue specials are great for the price and tasty too.The fig Manhattan 🍸 is awesome as well. Always a great time for myself 😊

My favorite place in Ann Arbor! Ive been a regular since 2003. Im there all the time. Love the people and the atmosphere. Ive had so many great times in Autbar over the years. Ill be there tonight for New Years Eve, as always. Lets see what the new year brings for the bar.

I absolutely LOVE this place!!! Good food, great atmosphere, super friendly and helpful wait staff, and the fire pit is always a magical gathering spot. Tiny kitchen, so when it’s busy, you might have to wait a bit, but totally worth it!!! Will ALWAYS recommend to anyone and everyone!!! ❤️

The food is fantastic. The place is a bit disorganized when coming in for lunch or dinner and service can be slow or fast, it’s a coin toss. But the quality food, warm and welcome atmosphere alongside great cocktails makes it a worth-it experience.

Worst service I have ever experienced. We were there for almost 3 hours and the staff managed to get 2 rounds of (wrongdrink orders and overpriced food. I went there to start my bachelor party and cringed at our limo sitting on the street just waiting for us. Had to cancel our next event because of the incompetence of the staff. The worst part was after we finally received our bill, the server stopped us and admitted she forgot to add our first drinks on there. Most had already paid and she made us stand there and go through each bill over her mistake. I’ve never felt so trapped at a restaurant starring at servers fumbling over each other and getting every single order wrong. The manager offered a gift card and I told him no one in my party had any interest in returning. 3 hours for a mimosa and undercooked eggs... nope. Messed up my entire day.

5 solid rainbow stars! The atmosphere is great. We went for Sunday brunch and had a little wait, we went to the bookstore that is on site. We were met with a very friendly good old boy, Neut. Brunch was exceptional, really tasty and met all expectations.

Best brunch in Ann Arbor, hands down. The staff is really attentive and quick, and the ambiance is awesome. Reservations for brunch are recommended.

AMAZING vegetarian food, especially the spinach dip and the chili. I wished Id had more room in my stomach; luckily, the chili was great as a leftover, too! (Im told the meaty food is great, too.)The restaurant/bar is next to the Jim Toy Community Center (especially for LGBTQ+ peopleand across the street from an LGBTQ+ bookstore. If you havent guessed yet, aut is the phonetic spelling of "out," signaling that it, too, is part of the gay community. And it truly is a community.The atmosphere is welcoming --gay or straight, alone or as a group. In the restaurant area, there are table games people can play together and books that people can read by themselves.And did I mention the food????

We came in on Friday at 5:30 PM, and there were 4 waiststaff serving 7 tables. It took them 40 minutes to even take our order -- so long that we were considering leaving our table to go somewhere else. We had come during happy hours, and asked if a moscow mule met the $3 well drink qualification. The server told us yes, of course: and our entire order was for 1 bottle of two hearted, 1 moscow mule, and 1 appetizer. It took another 50 minutes for this to arrive. And that moscow mule wed been told was okay on happy hour? On our bill for just shy of $8. When we brought it up to the server, she said that the bartender made the specialty version, so we were charged the specialty price.

Rude & stuck-up is all I can say about this place. Gay people need support. Not attitude and judgement.

Unsurpassed easy-going service with an eye for detail. Friendly and welcoming atmosphere. Wonderful campfires during weeknights outside. Great selection of bar food and always willing to make the odd drink that isnt well-known. One of my favorite places!

One of Ann Arbors best kept brunch secrets. The Mexican inspired brunch options are to die for. Great prices, friendly staff and a cozy atmosphere make Aut Bar a no-brainer on a Saturday or Sunday.

A staple in the Ann Arbor LGBT community, that maintains a sort of "gay Cheers" vibe. Pool table and jukebox upstairs, patio seating outside, and a nice menu. Some food items are a bit overpriced, but I love this place.

Really Love The Air BarGood good, much of it Mexican, because the parents of the current owner had a Mexican restaurant there for years. Yes, it is primarily restaurant/bar that welcomes LGBTQ people and their families and friends. However, my husband and I go without our son, who happens to be gay, all the time. Im a vegetarian, and so is one of my sons. The rest of the family are confirmed omnivores and we all love the food and atmosphere.The other, welcoming part of The Air Bar, besides trivia night, not to be missed, but we have 4 boys. Two of them are on the Autism Spectrum. They do not like eating out, because if one of them needs to rock, or stim another way, we remove him quietly, and have never been stared at, made to feel like freaks, or just bad parents. This is so much more than a restaurant bar, its for straight dates, not straight dates, families and fun. We are so happy this is in our home town.

Best Sunday brunch in town! Seriously, the food is delicious and so are the drinks! It helps that the wait staff is super friendly, and if you have a doubt on what to order, just ask them!

Food and drinks were good but incredibly poor service.Waited ages for orders to be taken, food and drinks to arrive even though most of the drinks were just bottles of beers and even longer for the check.

This was our first visit and we enjoyed the food and friendly service. One of the waitresses even built a fire in the courtyard fire pit which made the snowy evening very memorable.

Food, atmosphere, culture, drinks, venue... Its all good here. I originally came to support friends, and I keep coming back because I love it every time.

Super friendly people here, a wonderful and welcoming atmosphere for anybody. On top of that, they have great food, especially for brunch!

This place is not just a Haven, but an inspiration to the LGBTQ community in the Detroit area! Its a welcoming and warm atmosphere, incredible food and cocktails, and the owners commitment to the community and social activism is truly inspiring! No matter how long we are away, it always feels like home.

The food was okay, good value for money. The location was cool, we sat outside in amongst the trees and cool breeze. The service was slow. Fries were good! Freshly squeezed orange juice was excellent! And cheap! Three stars as food was okay.

I have passed by this place so many times and never noticed it. Made a quick stop for a few drinks, live music, and a few games of pool. Wonderful atmosphere. The staff was super friendly and welcoming. Cannot wait to go back.

Great good, and good price considered the amount they served. The staffs are super nice and helpful. Like to sit at the patio during the summer time.

we arrived around 1:30 on a sunday and being our first visit, we were confused about where to wait to be seated. the sign seemed to indicate that we should wait on the patio if we wanted to sit outside, so we wandered inside to take a look. the host was great and let us know that she could help us if wed follow her outside. after giving our names, we grabbed a drink at the bar while waiting for a table. after getting the table and ordering, the food took awhile to arrive. however we had our drinks and were enjoying the weather on the patio. the food was fresh and hot when it arrived. i had the chilaquiles and my partner had the rio grade special, which was pork tamales covered with beef picadillo. both meals tasted great and had generous portions.

Food was good. It was just unfortunate that the employees at a gay bar use such gendered language. I spent all of dinner with the waiter assuming I was a woman. Use gender neutral language - Hi folks, what can I get you? for example.

Worst night of the summer!! Watched a table next to me get horrible service! Have the cook come out and try to explain why 3 of the same salads look different! And have the audacity to tell them that it was their fault!It had nothing to do with me but was embarrassed for the establishment. I know people can be tough sometimes but these women did nothing but order food and drink!Will never be back and will share what I saw with everybody!No stars involved for lack of customer service!!!

Great location right downtown Ann Arbor and across from Kerrytown and the Farmers market. Great day to have a casual brunch in outdoor seating in a relaxed setting. Elaborate menu with several Mexican options to choose from. Service was slow (did not matter on a casual Sundaybut would matter if you try to go there any other day of the week. Our Waiter was a bit stiff and not so polite. Served coffee and disappeared for 15 minutes even when we asked for cream to go with it. Coffee got cold in the mean time.

I really want to give the Aut bar 5 stars, but the food and the drinks are kind of sub par. The tacos are great on Taco Tuesday, and simple drinks are fine, but I think its time to update the cocktail and food menu! Great staff and great vibe otherwise!

I have never visited this bar, but a good friend of mine is a former employee of the establishment as a server. She was very emotional in stating that the management/ownership there has been outright toxic-- even stating that one of the owners used physical contact with his ELBOW to her chest to express to her that she was out of her section and needed to get back where she belonged - as if she was his pet. She also states that she spoke with both the aforementioned owner, as well as the co-owner, his husband, after the fact. Not only did both essentially tell her that she was lying, (one even going as far as blaming her recognition of the incident as "just a product of her bad attitude"the co-owner - a mediator of sorts - immediately "took sides" with his husband rather than handling and hashing out the incident reported in a professional, business-oriented manner; just some "I know my husband better than that" nonsense. It is outrageously inappropriate for owners of any business to dismiss the claims of their employees just because theyre sleeping with a party involved. I hear this bar is considered a "safe space" for all by many-- unfortunately, it would not seem that women of color get that same benefit.

Ive been here for brunch and another time to grab a drink and sit outside. The staff were friendly, there was a good selection of beer, the spicy margaritas were delicous and the omelettes were great.

This place is a bar and its geared towards queer. The staff were very friendly, the drinks were priced like anywhere else, and the art decorations are fantastic.

Aut bar has good food and my friends and I used to go quite often but the service is consistently terrible. They are always understaffed and the wait for a table and to get food/ drinks is incredible long. I understand being understaffed but it is every time and the staff is apathetic. Its a good place but they need to improve their service / expand.

One of the only places in Ann Arbor to escape the gross bro culture. For that, it is my favorite place. Also, THE best brunch in town, all around great food and specialty cocktails, and awesome staff and clientele.

The food tastes fine and I liked the atmosphere. However the food selection for brunch didnt really include much that interested me. Also the service was quite noticeably slow and getting a second or third glass of water to help digest my meal was unnecessarily difficult. They eventually brought out a single carafe of water for 10 people and then neglected to refill that too.

Great food and a wonderful atmosphere on the patio. Ann Arbors weather is chilly and wet so this is a great place to go on the occasions when its nice to be outside.The food here is special. They have a lot of Mexican dishes that are unlike whats available in typical places. Each dish is prepared with care and attention to detail. I never regret coming to aut BAR.

Cozy little place. Casual dining. Fried avocado was great. Piña colada seemed small for the price, but it was tasty. Not many places in ann arbor where you can get one.

My favorite neighborhood bar. Im a regular and my go-to (upstairsbartender is Matt! Always enjoy the pool table even if it is a little cramped, the cocktails are quite good from what Ive tried, and the student discount on Thursdays is fantastic. Its a pretty small space and is often male-dominated but Ive managed to carve out my own little lesbian corner. I really wish they had beer on draft!!!

Nice place to meet a group for brunch. The food is decent and the staff is friendly though sparse if you end up outside.

Pretty terrible customer service. I have no idea about how their food and/or drinks are, as I was never able to try them. Went there on a Friday night, it was somewhat busy but nothing out of control, and waited close to 45 minutes on drinks, and prior to that 20 minutes before we were asked if we wanted to order (which we had to ask if we could, we were never formally approached). We were brushed off and ignored by various staff members and treated rather disrespectfully. I would personally never go here again, nor would anyone in the group I attended with.