Smarty Catz

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  If you want a bar with cheap, strong drinks, a little dance floor, funky music, and a pretty casual crowd, Smarty Catz is the bar for you.
  
  It's a no-frills place that often spins music from the 90s or early 2000s, where you can get a vodka and sprite for a few bucks that has more vodka than sprite, and dance your little heart out to R. Kelly. There's no cover and it makes for a pretty fun night if you bring a group of people. It's not the best place to mingle, the crowd is kind of ecclectic and the bar area itself is small, but it's a good place to enjoy friends' company and listen to nostalgic mixes of terrible music from your middle school years. It's quirky, casual, and just a good, divey time.

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  Posted on 05.24.13 Birdie J.

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  The pros;
  1. No cover
  2. DJ
  
  The cons;
  1. Overpriced
  2. Poorly made mixed drinks
  3. No class (there's a stripper pole in the dining area)
  4. Bar staff seems to be untrained / incompetent
  5. Strange atmosphere / vibe
  
  "...A perfect representation of what Ypsi is"?  I hope not.

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  Posted on 11.30.12 John Norman C.

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  Well, I'm mostly writing this because there seem to be more than the usual number of bad reviews regarding Smarty Catz.  Why?  It is a perfectly acceptable drinking spot, to my well-seasoned bar-sitting fanny.  The bar itself only seats 6-10 people...I forget exactly...but it's short and I think that's kind of cute.  There is an adjacent room with space for many to mill about.
  
  I went in early in the evening on a Saturday night, and there were only four people in the whole place.  Everyone was friendly, and a little conversation started up between us, as if we were all in a living room or something.  In this capacity, I am far preferring Smarty Catz to Sidetrack, as the bar clientele can be quite clique-ish/snobbish there.  Beer selection was fine, nothing special.  A DJ was setting up in the next room, and I was advised that the place "can get a little wild" later on in the evening.  
  
  I had avoided the place previously because I'd heard a rumor early on that the female waitstaff wore bikinis as their uniforms....that would just be embarrassing for everyone concerned.  But the bartender assured me that this had not been a bar policy for a long time, and the staff made their own stylistic decisions.  Works for me. I'll be back occasionally, I'm sure.

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  Posted on 04.04.12 L. H.

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  This place has a very friendly atmosphere and the staff are great.  Went there on st. patty's and had alot of fun.  I was planning to head downtown detroit and stopped here for some predrinking.  Never made it downtown and spent the rest of my night here.

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  Posted on 03.19.12 Jamed E.

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  I love me some hole in the wall dives, but this place is so low on the bar it's pure skank. In fact the name should be changed to Skanky Catz.
  A walkin, sit down, look around is all it took to stand up and run for the door.
  Next time I will take Dionne Warwick's advice when she sang " Walk On By".
  
  Footnotes:
  
  "skanky the act of looking cheap, dirty and nasty. " definition/Urban Dictionary
  
  Merriam Webster Definition of SKANKY. 1. slang: repugnantly filthy or squalid . 2. slang: of low or sleazy character

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  Posted on 02.04.12 Janis C.

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  This place has a $10 minimum to pay with a credit card... What?

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  Posted on 02.28.11 Jordan C.

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  I was excited when I saw that something was happening in this prime Ypsi space. Um, nevermind.
  
  I stepped inside the other day to see if they served lunch. There were no other customers in sight. The bartender was annihilating her hair with tons of hairspray, BEHIND THE BAR. I glanced at the menu before making my escape: fried, fried, burger, fried. OK, peace. Not my style. Good luck.
  
  The interior space is cool and dimly lit with lots of potential. The ladies who work here sometimes play with hula hoops on the sidewalk out front.

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  Posted on 06.22.10 Dan R.

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  The front on this establishment has been around for months. I'd pull on the door during open hours, but found it locked. However, they opened about three weeks ago. The just started their Grand Opening.
  
  The most positive thing I can say about this place is the attentiveness given by the staff. We went in when just one waitperson was there, but she made sure we were well taken care of. At shift change, our new waitress continued with the same high level of service. The cook even came out to talk to us about what he made.
  
  The food is nothing spectacular, at least as far as choice goes. Typical bar food with some upgrading. The feature stuffed hamburgers, though we went with some very good appetizers. They make their own spinach and artichoke dip and one can tell that by the nice flavor. I liked the quesadillas, too.
  
  The reason I did not give this place 5 stars was the beer selection. It's mostly mundane with Newcastle being the premium selection. They are considering bringing in some of the local micro brews. The range itself was just 3 stars, but the prices garnered this watering hole an additional star. The prices they charge are at or near most other places happy hours. These are there normal prices and that I can appreciate. Also included in their affordability are their mixed drinks. I believe their premium blends top out at $7 for a rather sizable serving.
  
  It looks like they have some DJing going on at times. There were soundboards set up with rather large (for the size of the place) speakers. The background music was very audible when we came in and was glad when the staff turned it down to a more appreciable level. FM Rock was the style.
  
  To sum up, great service, good food and well priced drinks. Add some better beer and this places gets 5 stars.

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  Posted on 06.18.10 Michael S.

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