I am not really sure what is up with this place. Â I have been here twice and have not been able to get a burger because I was told the kitchen was closed. Â The first time was about 3 years ago and we got there around 430PM and we were told they would not start cooking until later. Â Yesterday we got there a little after 6PM (on a Tuesday) and we were told they stop serving at 6PM. Â So what timeframe do you need to get there to get a burger?
Review Source:I am a huge fan of dive bars and this one takes the cake! I try to make it to Howell's at least once a week. The staff is friendly and the drinks are cheap! Not to mention the patrons, they're pretty cool people as well.
Cheap drinks, good people and a friendly staff is not common for the Michigan Avenue strip and this place has it! The only complaint I will ever have
This is definitely a late night stop and gets a late night rush, and it is ALOT easier to sit at the bar there so go on in a bit early and get yourself a seat :)
I love this place. There's no other place I've been to in Dearborn that can  literally feel so divey  with such friendly people... Though I still have not checked out Miller's yet... Yeah I know I'm awful.
I'm not a big burger person, but from all my friends that have had the burgers there, Â they said it's fantastic. Though I will say that the food service is rather slow sometimes so if you're starving this may not be the place to go for a quick lunch.
Drinks are relatively cheap. It gets really busy as the evening creeps on and can at times be hard to find a seat. There's a really mixed crowd, but I'm in my late 20s and feel rather young when I'm there. :-) This is a fun place to meet people and be a barfly and watch people. I would never recommend to take a date here though.
The staff  are really nice and makes good drinks. My only problem with the place is that the bathrooms are rather small... Hell the whole place is rather small so when it gets really busy you can barely walk and I mean you were squeezing around people and tables like crazy.
Overall, very neighborhood-y bar with great burgers!
Well, Howell's, I'd love to say you have great burgers, but I can't. Because I ordered a burger at 5:55pm on a slow Saturday night and come 6:50pm, I never got my food. Screw that noise, I just got up and left.
You'll only come here if you're a masochist. You can get a great burger at Miller's or Biergarten without the crappy service and bad attitude of "Jimmy", the server/bartender/cook/busboy, that didn't do crap except talk to his friends the entire time I sat without my food. He didn't even start our burgers before we got up and left.
Also, Howell's doesn't accept credit cards (It's 2012... I've had a debit card since 2001, get with the times already) and there are no listed prices for ANYTHING, so you have no idea if you're being charged correctly or how much your bill will be.
You've been warned.
Apparently, if you're not a regular, you're SOL.
Atmosphere was so so. Very much a dive bar, but nothing off-putting. Small place, I could image it being a pain on a busy night. Hell, it was a pain maneuvering around the empty tables.
We sat at the bar and ordered a couple burgers and fries. At first it appeared that there was only one bartender. No way. A one-person staff at 6:30 on a Saturday night? After sitting for a while, I realized it was true. One person acting as griller, bartender, and server. So you'd think that if there was ONE PERSON serving the entire bar, he'd be running around like a maniac. Or at least have a little pep in his step. Nope. This senior citizen spent 80% of his time chatting up his group of senior citizen regulars at the end of the bar, and the other 20% of his time getting more beers for them.
I'll repeat myself and say that we ordered two burgers and one order of fries. Not a complicated order. How long does it take to drop some fries and grill a couple patties? 10-15 minutes? At the 30 minute mark, we got four words as he walked by filling one of his buddy's beer orders... "burgers'll be a minute". At the 50 minute mark, we left two dollar bills on the bartop (to cover the single glass of coke I got) and walked out, stomachs empty.
Also, it's 2012... get a f***ing card machine. Who the hell is still cash only?
Screw this place. I've had great burgers other places. I don't need to be ignored for an hour to have a good burger.
Was in Dearborn for a wedding. Â Since I had business in the area the day before, stayed over Friday night and had no plans on Saturday. Â The father of the bride (my brother) called and asked way we should do for lunch, as the women were asking him to leave while they did their pre-weeding women stuff, whatever that is.
After reading reviews in Yelp and speaking with folks at the front desk of the Dearborn Inn, we decided on Howells. Â What a great decision!
We walked in at about 1pm. Â There were 2 people at the bar and no one behind it. Â After a few minutes, the gentleman appeared. Â Seems that he does it all. Â Cooks, waiter, bartender...all of it.
We ordered 3 beers and he said to get the pitcher, it's cheaper that way. Â We asked what was on the menus and he said burgers and fries or fried fish and fries, so all 3 of us order the burgers. Â He asked how we liked them cooked and we had 3 different orders for doneness. Â
While it took  a little while to cook, it was for good reason.  The burgers are huge, juicy and cooked perfectly.  Fries are hand cut and homemade.  Beer was ice cold and overall quite the little gem. Â
After we ate, a gentleman came up and said that he was "only a customer" but wanted to help the owner by clearing the table. Â It was a great lunch. Â The place started to fill up by the time we left. Â The greatest complement came from my brother who said, "This is as good as Dagwood's" (see Lansing, MI Dive Bar).
Howell's is legendary! Â My dad used to regularly come up here for a couple of beers after work back in 1965 when he was 19. Â While I can't speak to their ID checking ability nowadays, it is a treat to to come to Howell's regardless. Â Great food, great people watching, and an internet jukebox full of songs that the manager will skip regardless of who you are or what you paid to hear (in my defense, I merely thought I was getting the bang for my buck by playing a thirty minute cut off of Sun Ra's "Space is the Place").
Review Source:Grab a seat and get ready for some people watching! This place may be my new favorite dive bar.
The crowd was very mixed; including locals, well dressed business professionals and well, people who spend a lot of time on the street, outdoors.
When the older waitress finally arrived, I asked for a beer menu and she said 'huh?', so I pointed to a picture on the wall and said 'that one'. Then I asked for a food menu. She said they don't have menus, but tonight's selection was burgers and fries. I ordered fries. The waitress then stated the fries would be out when the cook arrived, turned on the fryer, and decided to cook the fries. I had time, and was good with her answer.
When the fries arrived a good 40 minutes later I could barely wait for them to cool down. The huge plates of fresh cut potatoes were some of the best fries ever! Totally worth the wait!! Â After 3 (premium) beers and fries, our bill was a cheap $12. Â I can't wait to return to the Howell Bar!
Dirty tables, we had to wipe them off ourself.  This was at 6:30pm on a Saturday with very few people inside  Extremely SLOOOOW service for the grill. Took 30-45 minutes to make a burger and fry.  Not sure why people rave about this place.  Recommend Miller's down the street on Mich Ave instead.  That said, the burger was pretty good - much larger than Millers... it was just the slow service and overall cleanliness of the bar.  Avoid.
Review Source:Classic dive bar, in the best of ways. Â The crowd is diverse, from the happy hour crowd, to Ford people stopping by after work, to local bar-flies, to older folks, to suburban passersby. Â And the prices are cheap.
The bar food sets it apart, though. Â They have one tiny grill station in the bar area and just one guy cooking (always the same guy), so it might take a little longer than you're expecting to get your food, but it's worth the mouth-watering wait. Â Hand cut fries, and one of the juiciest burgers in Detroit. Â The perfect compliment for some cold brews.
I haven't been there in a while, because it's on the opposite side of town, but it's definitely about time for a return visit.
What else can I say. This place is a dive bar, good food, good friendly service, nice fun clientele, drinks priced good.. The man reason I come here is for the fried chicken meals. you ever hear that saying chicken so good make you wanna smack your momma, well it comes from this place. Â Serious the chicken is so good, I am craving it as I write this comment. Â Also this place has good burgers. by the way order your chicken ahead of time if you do decide to come cause it does take while tomake and place gets busy. Â I think the fried chicken is only served on Thursdays too.
Review Source:Oh, Howell's, there is so much to love. Â The following distinctions are clearly in order, and still I think that I am missing a few: best french fries, most classic bartender, most deliciously fried fish. Â Oh, the delicately browned and puffed batter on those fish sticks puts all other fish and chips attempts to shame. Â There are also the outrageous burgers. Â Lastly, the neighborhood ambience is exactly what you want from your local watering hole, and they'll even share it with you if you're not local. Top it off with a rocking juke box. Â Routed to Dearborn on business? Â Drop in at Howell's, but bring your cash, because they don't take plastic.
Review Source:The best burger period... Â Very sloppy and something you wouldn't want to feed your heart every week, but it's one of a kind... Â
I have read a few reviews complaining about the time it it took... Â This is by both design and necessity. Â This is not a restaurant that you come and eat and leave... This is a bar that you come down to and chill for a while, shoot the s4!t, and enjoy a few beers while you anticipate your burger...
Also, Jimmy, prepares each one by hand (with a fresh pair of gloves for every set of burgers). Â Forming them with precision... Â They are so thick, they take about 30 mins to slowly cook to the temp that you want.. Â Want them fast? Go to millers and be one of the cattle...
Hand cut fries and sea salt!!! YUM!!!
I know where his fresh burger comes from and although he probably wouldn't want his secret revealed, (I am not sure it is a secret though), I can tell you that it is the finest quality you can buy...
Thursday nights are Fried Chicken night... Yes you read that right... Fried as in deep fried! Â We have all become so used to broasted chicken that when you eat this chicken, it will bring you back in time to your childhood. Â Although I have to admit broasted chix is awesome, Â a good deep fried chix is a real treat.... Â
Jimmy tells me he goes to eastern market every thursday to get the freshest chix available. Â He has is own mixture of flour/breading that he uses to prepare each order individually with each order..
Each quarter is dipped and placed very deliberately into the fryer and cooked for 22 mins... Perfection....
Then comes the other goodies, potatoe salad, green beans to die for, and a cold veggie medley of corn/cherry tomatoes/okra, that is outstanding... If you don't care for the veggies at first, Â you will think about them later and realize how good they actually were...
The place is a gem and you will not find a bigger music aficionado than jimmy... He loves his music and you can ask him anything, he has the answer ... Â Don't be put off by his gruffness! He is a puppy dog at heart and really appreciates your business...
My family picks a theme every Christmas for gift cards to a place to eat out. There are 10 adults age 48 to 80. This years theme was "Burgers & Beer". So we have 10 places to try this year, we all go together. We have eaten at 8 of those ten choices so far this year. THIS WAS THE BEST!!! I have never eaten such fresh handmade perfectly cook burgers outside of my own kitchen. Plus the hand cut fresh french fries, UMMMMMMMMMMM is all I can say. The bar is a treasure from times gone by. We had several large pitchers of beer ($5) plus burgers and fries for all and our bill was only a bit over $100 bucks. Remember we had 10 people. Jimmy the chef, bartender and waiter extraordinaire was great. He had a handle on what our needs were and delivered. We will be back to try his other day specials. I understand he does a mean Friday fish fry. Thanks Jimmy for making our family night out a great memory.
Review Source:Stopped here for lunch the other day based on the reviews of my fellow Yelpers. Some big words were thrown around at Yelp...burgers better than Miller's Bar?????? So we stopped in, had the burgers and fries, and gotta say the burger was awesome. Good size, juicy, cooked just right. The fries with the sea salt were fantastic.
So basically, I don't have much to add from everyone else, except the price was more than expected. A cheesburger, fries, and a pop was $10 even. WIth tip, over $10. A bit more than I expected. We'll go again, just not quite as often since the place broke my $10 max rule for lunch. :)
Went to this place on everyone's recommendation. Â When I got there, the waitress was busy having a conversation with a couple of patrons so I sat there for about 10 minutes before the chef came over and asked me what I wanted to drink. Â The first thing going for them is they have Schlitz. Â The waitress finally showed herself and I ordered a hamburger with the fries. Â IF everything hadn't been so greasy, the hamburger would have been better - hands down - than Biergarten. Â The fries are home made, not frozen, as are Biergarten's. Â But they were pretty greasy, too. Â Would I go back? Â Now that I see they have other food, I'd try it. Â And if I needed a hamburger fix, I'd order it without the grease. Â Without the grease, it's a really good burger.
UPDATE: Â Need a burger fix Monday night so went here and after feeding the meter of $1.10, found out Howell's doesn't start serving until 7:00 p.m. Â Money wasted!
If anyone reading this happens to be on a quest for the best fried chicken on the face of the earth and it's Thursday, stop now check the adress up above and GO! Howells is the cheers of Dearborn- a little hole in the wall spot where everyone knows everyone and if they don't know everyone they know Jimmy the chef And that's good enough. Jimmy has a different food hook up each day: tacos are I think Tuesday, Cajun blackened catfish with sweet potato fries on Friday (awesome) and thursday oh boy Thursday... Chicken dinner. The dinner comes with either one breast or two leg quarters(not much of a decision gimme that dark meat), potato salad, green beans and corn and okra salad. It also comes with another plate under the first one because you need a landing spot for the chicken to be able to even see the rest of it. That earns big fat kid points with me for some reason as if the pile of food bigger than a taco truck wasnt enough.
If you wanna make fast friends ask Jimmy for his hot sauce collection!
We've been coming here for about 3 years now solely for THE BEST CHEESEBURGERs in town (among other food specials they serve occasionally). Â
Yes, it gets really cramped and crowded at times especially Fridays...it is a full service small dive bar afterall with regulars and and yes, it takes time (why I was tempted to put a 4 star rating), but the burgers are always well worth the wait. Â
Jimmy's (the chef) burgers are always perfectly cooked big, juicy, freshly ground beef patties he hand forms himself and are perfectly spiced with the minimalist seasoning of salt and pepper. Â The cheese is always high quality (swiss, cheddar, american, etc)...I have seen him several times in Dearborn's Westborn market searching for ingredients. Â The burgers are served with tomato, lettuce, onions (grilled or raw) and all the fixin's (pickles, mustard, mayo, ketchup) served on the side...Also order the fresh cut fries as these are just as good , however you might want to ask for it unsalted or lightly salted as he tends to have a heavy hand with this.
You can get pitchers of of Labatt's or Blue Moon, and the usual Budweiser products. Â The mixed drinks are inexpensive as well.
There's always a good mix of people so don't be intimidated if a dive bar isn't your scene.
I went to Howell's after trying to complete my burger quest for Metro Detroit. It's like everyone else says, a dive bar owned by some genuinely nice people.
The large, evenly cooked juicy burger is showered with delicious toppings, all crispy and fresh. The bun is toasted and the cheese is just oozing when it hits your table. I really enjoyed it, you can tell that this guy has been doing it for a while. The burger is a steal compared of what I've payed at other places but really the fries shine. They are huge, crisp, tossed with sea salt and  truly delicious. Something reminiscent of my childhood; serious love go into these things.
The only gripe I could say is that, the bartender is the only guy working the place so it took me an hour and fifteen minutes just to get my food. thats 1:15 to eat. Â I can't let myself past that, mind you I killed some time with some on draft Pabst. I just don't see myself coming back here.
No one No where can beat the Burger and Fries served at Howell's! Â Seriously! Clean little corner bar, friendly staff, good prices. Â It takes a while to get your food because each order is prepared just with you in mind. I'm telling you you can't find a better burger and hand cut fries. Just go - but call first because I think certain nights the burgers aren't available boooo!!
Review Source:I've been in search for a good "dive bar" and this place is awesome!
Everyone in this place is friendly and down to earth from the bartender(kathy) chef(jimmy) and the people..
We went for a few beers which turned out to be countless cocktails. Great place and a must if in dearborn.
Note: credit cards are not accepted.. cash only folks..
This small, neighborhood bar is just what a hungry, lonely person needs. Fantastic, hand-formed burgers that are thick & juicy. Hand cut fries are to die for!! Waitresses are fast and friendly. Chicken is "finger-lickin' good." Drinks are reasonably priced. Voted as one of the best burger establishments in the 2009 Wayne County questionnaire. Miller's was #1 but I think the votes should be recounted. Howell's is DEFINITELY #1 in my book. We drive there at least once a week just for a burger & fries. You won't be disappointed.
Review Source:This is a little hole-in-the wall joint off of Michigan in Dearborn.  We went there one Saturday afternoon to have a burger.  There was only one guy holding down the fort.  He was the bartender and cook.  The burger was O.K but unmanageable.  Even after cutting it in half, it fell apart it my hands.  I'm sure this may be a pretty cool after dark hang-out, but for the burger, I wasn't  too impressed.
Review Source:So this one night...
I ended up at Howell's with a bunch of friends. It was my first "official" night out in Dearborn and we had a blast. The jukebox kept the music scene interesting because of the random queue that formed, and the bar was PACKED. Like, good-thing-I showered-today packed. I don't remember more than 3 seconds of time spent not bumping into, or being bumped into. It was all good though, and it made for lots of fun conversation.
I didn't eat here, but people were noshing on the pub grub like it was goin' out of style. I remember that the drinks were really affordable.
I'd gladly spend another night mingling at Howell's. Good times. :)
This is a classic neighborhood dive. The people range from bikers to bankers to barflies yet it's always homey and cool. The food and music will surprise you in a good way. Great burgers, chicken, fish and even brisket and gumbo on occasion. Depending on who's manning the jukebox, you're likely to hear funky old soul and blues classics. Unless some tipsy secretary loads up on Rascal Flatts-and then you're just plain screwed.
Review Source:
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