JW's Music Factory‎

JW's Music Factory‎dress:Removal requested ()Restore requested

617 South Dort Highway
Flint, MI 48503

(810) 234-0020

Nights to go: Every night is karaoke
Nights not to go: When the theater students show-up
Waterfall: Yes
Stage: Yes
Glowing Greek Columns: Yes
Living Room: Yes
Follow Karaoke Rules: No
Kids sing Karaoke: Yes, one day a week

To dudes (Erroll and Chase) were singing sad old country songs when we walked in. It was nice going in here and hearing normal people singing instead of the next American Idol contestants that seem to frequent this place. Since the last time I was in JW's they had added a living room. I wanted to drink there but we wouldn't be able to see the stage well. This is one of the few bars in in Flint with a mildly unique interior.

Karaoke here is good. The sound is fair but you get a stage, lights, and a large library of songs to make up for it. I've been here on nights when the place is absolutely packed and there is no room to move. Go on a Saturday or Friday if you dig that. We were there on a Wednesday and it was a great level of not-so-busy. I'll probably come back but, the service was not so good and the DJ skipped my friend three times in the rotation. That pissed me off but, not until after I sang my songs.



Karaoke Rules for Singers and DJ's
For Singer's:

1. Sing. The words are on the screen. It's easy.
   
2. Don't sing in groups unless there is a part for each person, like a duet or Bohemian Rhapsody.
3. Don't sing Bohemian Rhapsody.
4. Clap and yell and High-5 when people finish singing.
5. Songs to not: "Black Velvet," "Me and Bobby McGee," "You Outta Know," "Picture," "Ice Ice Baby," "Baby Got Back." Some of these are karaoke cliche. Some are hard to sing. They all suck. Very few people do a great job. You know who you are. Most people do a terrible job. Thats probably you.
   
6. If your friend is singing pay attention to him/her.
7. If your husband is singing don't start a conversation with someone at the table about what Kenny Loggins songs were on what movie soundtracks because he's trying to sing a damn love song to you.
8. Jumping in on someone's song is a jerk move. Everyone in the bar likes you a little bit less now. And the singer thinks you should be shot with pig guts.
   
9. Buy the DJ a drink.
10. Be cool.

For DJ's

1. Don't announce "After Jenny is Rob" and then after Jenny say "We need Angie to come up here now."
2. Don't sing every other song. Sure the regulars love it, but you're making a lot of other people not your regulars.
3. If a wedding party comes in and the bride wants to sing a song, let her, don't made the maiden of honor bribe you.
4. Have songbooks by artist and songbooks by song. Have more by the artist than song.
5. Replace broken mics. Sure they are a lot of money, but a broken mic at a karaoke bar is pointless.
6. Don't skip a person in three times in rotation.
7. Be cool.

Terri's Lounge

Terri's Lounge

2605 Fenton Rd

Flint, MI 48507

(810) 235-8941

Overheard: Dude looking for a ride home because he was fresh out of jail for beating ex-wife's friend's ex-boyfriend: "Yeah I got dropped off here after they let me outta jail. I'm gonna need a ride home."
Fascinating fact: Terri is owner's ex daughter-in-law
Spell check: YES!
Bartendress has beautiful white teeth: affirmative
Bicycle parking inside: Yes (but you may need to be VIP)
Need to run from parking lot to building: Which one?
The one on the other side of the street behind the closed-up building: Medium
And the one behind Terri's?: Medium



Even with the bit of amazing jail time eavesdropping we may have gone on a boring night. I've driven by this place a million times and it seems to always be busy. It was between pool leagues and business was slow. We caught it on an off night. Kim the bartender was really nice and tried to recruit us into the pool league. I am a terrible pool player and can't even think of the last time I held a pool stick. Burgers were inexpensive and not to bad. Comparable to a Halo burger 10 minutes before close. Jukebox was loud and had AC/DC and Celine Dion (rad). Think I'll come again on a busier night and see if it gets better. Right now this place is so-so but deserving of a second interview.

In Numbers:

• 78: Days since last shooting (as of 02/25/09)
• 1: Burgers you get for free after buying 1
  
• 12: Pool tables with green felt
• 5: People on a pool team
  
• 0: Pool tables with red felt
• 2: Beers on tap
• 1.50: Dollars (American) it takes to buy domestic bottles on Sunday and Thursday
• 1: Bucket you get when you buy a bucket of Budweiser Light cans
• 6: Number of cans are put into a bucket
• ~400: Ice cubes in bucket
• 0: Ice Cube drinking at Terri's
• 1: Lights Emily almost broke
• 5: Family's favorite alcoholic drinks
• 1 in 4.23: Chance I had to win the 7 spot Club Keno game
• 0: Dollars (American) I won
  

Timothy's Pub

Timothy's Pub
2890 Robert T. Longway Blvd Flint,
MI 48506

(810) 239-0972

Nights not to go: Night before you're performing surgery
in the morning
Nights to go: Monday Men's Night/Wednesday Karaoke
Cute Waitresses: Yes
Bartender wearing a vest: Yes
Need to run from car to building: Low
Fireplace: Hell yes!

Avg Age: 55

If your grandparents are up from Florida and miss playing cards at the club house they should come out to Timothy's. We were there on a Monday night and it was Euchre league night. I've never played Euchre at a bar and I don't know if that is really common. And I didn't see one idiot with sunglasses, a baseball cap, and a welders mask, trying to hide his tells.

Zach (or Zac or Zak?) is a damn good bartender. He said one time, way before he was a bartender there, he punched his uncle in this very same bar (which doesn't mean what you think it does).

Men's Night is also on Mondays. Andy's wife (sorry ladies) said in the past she never knew were to find many eligible bachelors in one place (I totally paraphrased that and she said it much funnier). Which makes me think its not so much for the ladies to go find men, but, for the men to not be found by their ladies. IN-FRIGGIN-GENIUS

In the end, a certain side of me loves Timothy's Pub. Its feels like going to a relatives house on Thanksgiving, if all of your relatives were drunk, they mostly left you alone, and they charged you for dinner. The beer is just left of free, there seems to be a lot going on every night of the week, and it was a comfy place to chug some swill.

• Fact: Timothy's Pub has no graffiti on their bathrooms walls
• Fact: You can get breakfast anytime of the day
  
• Fact: Timothy's Pub is largest consumer of Miller Lite in Genesee County
• Fact: The best night to go is Monday night.
• Fact: The best night to go is Wednesday according to the the waitress that works on Wednesday
• Fact: I hate taking photos in a bar.
• Fact: They have Buzztime trivia and the Texas Hold'em
  
• Fact: You will hear cowbell on a Monday night
• Fact: Even though there is a Men's night, there is too much wood trim and wooden decoration for this to be a gay bar
• Fact: Their website is crap but just informative enough for intrigue
• Fact: Zach recommends the Steak and Onion Sandwich
• Fact: Beer was so cheap that when my wife told me not to spend too much money or get too drunk, I was only able to do one of those.
• Fact: Our generation won't be able to retire and move to Florida. Timothy's Pub will have to do.
• Fact: Leprechauns have giant packages and even bigger fingers.

Soggy Bottom Bar

Soggy Bottom Bar
613 Martin Luther King Ave.
Flint, Michigan 48502

810.239.8058

Nights not to go: Fridays its College Night.
Night to go: Wednesday Karaoke
Cute Bartendress: Yes
Handsome Bartender: Shoot, I don't know
Need to run from car to building: Medium-low

It isn't any coincidence that Soggy Bottom is next to a fancy men's clothing store and a men's hat shoppe. The Soggy Bottom Bar is a classy establishment. They even have a dry erase board in the bathroom so the next guy can improve your dirty jokes and booby pictures. It's the kind of bar that makes you feel like you're not in Flint anymore (hardly any broken stuff). It's got a lot of dark wood, stained glass lamps and a small but stellar draft beer selection. The night we were there they had Bud, Bud Light, Killian's, Guinness, Bud American Ale, Heineken, Bass, and Goose Island 312. They used to have live music on the weekends with a cover charge, too many people packed into tight quarters, and the music was so loud it prevented conversation with the dude trying to hustle you at the pool table. NOTE: They no longer have live music with cover charge.

We recommend that you go in the early part of the week when you can hang out in mostly dark recesses of the bar with the regulars. Although we've avoided this place in the past, on our most recent visit Courtney convinced us (partially by playing the 90's channel on satellite radio) that we have to come back more often. Al B. Sure! to come back.



Drink at Soggy Bottom to:

• Be in cool looking bar.
• Drink from looks-like-more-than-a-pint pints
• Choose from a choice beer selection
• Pay a good price
• Chat up a good looking bartender lady (beer wench is archaic, right?)
• Sit in 98% matching chairs
• Not notice any broken stuff
• Enjoy live entertainment on the weekends
• Enjoy karaoke!
  
• See some dudes get a pizza delivered to the pool table
• To get a lot of head on your mustache

Don't drink at Soggy Bottom if:

• You need to sit more than 4 to a table
• Huge awesome murals with a scary lady freak you out
• You get offended when no one offers you a slice of pizza
• Drinking draft Busch Light was your plan
• Paying a cover is lame to you
  
• You were hoping to get shanked in the parking lot (Durant Hotel is getting renovated and the homeless moved across the street)
• You are afraid of anything north of the river (even if its just 2 blocks)
• You're afraid of monkeys
  

First Legal Beer

Before moving to the factory town of Flint, I lived in the bustling village of Bancroft, Michigan. On my 21st birthday my girlfriend (I'll just go by the initials WT for her) was kind enough to take me out to the Teddy Bear/Bancroft Tavern as a licensed drinker.

The Teddy Bear was pretty normal local bar, a lot of rope lights, old and new beer signs, a lot domestic beers, few common imports. That night I didn't really care what the selection was, I was just hoping someone else was buying. Besides me and WT, there was the bartender, a stranger playing pool alone, and a older dude that I recognized from around town.

WT was nine days older than me and bought my very first beer. I had a Coors Light (that's what my brother always drank). Damn a legal beer tasted great. It was like a treat. And like that beer and all first beers after it, it went down really fast. The friendly recognizable gentleman bought me another Coors and a Canadian Club.

I was drinking and wasn't in a dorm or in a field, I was inside drinking with adults! The guy I recognized, socialized at the same mechanic's shop as my Dad. He was a genuine grown-up. I was doing my best to play it cool and be adult. So I slammed my Canadian Club on the rocks like an idiot while Recognizable Dude tells me "that is to sip, son."

I asked Recognizable Dude what he does for a living. He was laid-off. And your wife? Divorcing. Sometimes small talk is tough. He made a joke about still having his health, just no health insurance. I remember laughing, the bartender laughing really hard, and WT laughing. He wasn't laughing so much. But it's a birthday! So the bar bought me another beer! WT and I moved to the huge window in front and shared a pizza (beer and pizza is way better than Coca Cola and pizza).

It was nice evening, I was fairly uncomfortable at first because, I felt like I was doing something I still shouldn't. I was really hoping none of my friends parents came in.

It's still the same bar only now it's The Pirates Cove. Sometimes the decor is hard to handle but, it's a fun spot for a few cold ones with old friends parents, and the patty melt is damn good.

I thought of going back there on my 31st birthday. I decided not to because WT broke up with me a few days after my 21st birthday and it turns out Recognizable Dude is a sex offender.

Thanks Flint Expatriates!

I'd like to thank Flint Expatriates for the kind words of support and challenge that dare us to press on with our task!

Some of you may be skeptical of our goal or our credentials. Here is a quick introduction to our team and methods.

Andy, Jason and I have known each other for about 10 years and all went to college at University of Michigan-Flint. We all live and work in Flint even though we have been accused by some of being suburbanite wannabees. Some may call us hipsters, some may call us drunks. We hope you read along and decide for yourselves.

This operation is basically an extension of our normal activities. We like to seek out new bars all the time. We'll be documenting all these bars with pretty low tech equipment. Like pencils and bar napkins. There may be a digital camera involved occasionally, but we may also use cell phones. This is gonna be as organic as we can get away with.

And for those worried about our safety. We drink early and we'll be watching for people hanging out in parking lots with screwdrivers...

What makes a bar a home?

What makes a house a home? It's not the nice cabinet knobs, or the 2 car garage. It's not the 47 inch plasma screen TV or the finished basement with a workout room. Home can be a trailer park. Home can be a tiny hut in the forest surrounded by hungry bears.

What makes a bar a good bar? It's the same unmeasurable quality that gives a home it's... home-i-ness. The Deville Lounge lacks many of the amenities of nicer bar. They don't have many beers on tap, the floors are cold concrete, the food is served on paper plates, but everything in the place is strangely familiar; the bartender unusually accommodating; the booths inexplicably comfortable.

I'm not usually one to recommend a bar with only 2 beers on tap, but The Deville Lounge is the perfect bar for a laid back evening. If you want to avoid the crowds and relax, or you just don't want to change out of your pajama pants before leaving the house, the Deville Lounge is the place you want to be.