Ashley's, an Ann Arbor staple and home to one of the most varied beers on tap in the area, is perhaps the best example of the neighborhood bar in washtenaw county. And while the burgers, beer and the architecture are top notch, it's the people that work there that are the real stars. Kayla, the bartender of all bartenders, resides over her kingdom and slangs drinks and laughs with magnanimous intent. She is the best reason to stop in for a beer, and while a lot of bars have great choices of beer on tap, they don't have a Kayla. read more

This review is for the annual Lobster dinner. Let's get the BS out of the way first. Parking is bad. Ann Arbor Summer Festival is going on, along with the Mayor's Green Art Fair down on Main. Not to mention that 25% of the roads in the area a closed for construction. Parking sucks. 18% gratuity is automatically added to the bill, therefore, the servers have no incentive to provide good service. This wasn't specified anywhere that I saw when making the reservation with my credit card on Opentable, nor on their Facebook posts. Maybe it was but I didn't see it. Included gratuity just means the servers can ignore you and get away with it because their tip is guaranteed anyway. Our server was ALLERGIC TO SHELL FISH so couldn't clear anything from our tiny two-top, and was clearly too busy servicing the four-tops. I finished with my first lobster, and was waiting for him to return, watched him take the next table's reorder, and they FINISHED theirs and put in a reorder before I could flag him down to get in my second order. I sat there with nothing in front of me for 10 mins, finished for 15. The guy with the clean-up bucket was on top of turning over tables but our waiter sucked. Time is important since you only have 90 mins for a two person reservation, which should have been plenty of time since I was only getting two. I completely understand the time constraint since people will sit and eat all night if they can. We weren't in a hurry and I was happy to drink my beer and be patient, but when other tables are being serviced and he was clearly ignoring ours, that was too much. The icing on shit-cupcake was when he came to our table as we are taking the first bites of dessert and started in about the next reservation for our table was due....We were sharing a dessert...meaning we were almost finished. What kind of BS is that!? and after ignoring us for almost 30 mins. The booth next to us sat empty for an hour and he's pushing us out the door. We were billed for the double lobster dinner and my husband's meal (he doesn't eat lobster but thankfully the regular menu was available) dessert, 3 beers and left. Total with grat was ~$105. The lobster was fantastic. Super hot and cooked perfectly. Kudos to the kitchen! The kitchen staff was fast! They'd put in an order and food runners would have it at your table in minutes. The beer list is impressive and I was looking forward to a couple of them, but settled on the recommended Gose and stuck to it. The coleslaw I skipped. Couple of red skins on the side was a nice touch. They had place mats that gave instructions on how to eat lobsters, for newbies. Bibs, wet naps and all the essential tools were supplied. My husband ordered the fish and chips. He also ended up getting poutine with bacon, but was hesitant to get it at first because the fish came with fries. Or so he thought. But when the bill came, we were charged an extra $3 for fries, plus the poutine. So the fries were extra. Whatever. Again, the service sucked. We order the toll-house cookie sundae for dessert. It took awhile to come out because they baked the cookies fresh. They didn't bake this one long enough. It was still raw in the middle but neatly concealed with a dollop of ice cream. Not a scoop or two, just a soup spoon dollop with whipped cream dotted around. Oy The Lobster was great, and too the beer the selection. The service was awful. I don't know that we would try it again next year. We weren't in a hurry, the house was and made for a very poor experience, except for the lobster. read more

Ashleys is as good as a pub gets in my opinion. You may want to have a look at their on-line menu before coming in, I brought some out of town friends and they were completely overwhelmed by the beer menu, I think over 70 beers to choose from all around the world not to mention there scotch and whiskey selections. Most of us pretty much know what kind of food to expect at bars or pubs, but this place has excellent food. Their spinach artichoke one of the best I have had, thai quesadialias very good as well, served with mango salsa. Their thin sliced pizza's are very good as well as their fish and chips. All in all can not go wrong here. read more

I'm only going to say this once: seventy beers on tap. If you need to know more than that, you don't like beer enough to bother with Ashley's. They don't make their own, but they have a heck of a selection of beers from around the globe and micro-brews from all over the U.S. (Check out the pictures.) Lots of tables, plus booths in the back. There's a jukebox, but no room to dance, so don't get any ideas. Oh, umm, they also have single malt scotch, mixed drinks and light food. Yadda, yadda. Seventy beers on tap read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Ashley's beer taps. - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

The food was good however the preparation took much longer than anticipated. I believe we waited an upwards of close to 40 mins to receive our food and that ruined the experience a bit. I would highly recommend the bay chowder if you are big into clam chowders. There were nice pieces of clams in there and even bay leaves for you to pick out of the soup! The salad was crispy and well dressed, chicken was fresh and well seasoned. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Chicken Caesar Salad and Bay Chowder - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

We stopped by Ashley's this weekend to try out some of their special brews. Since the restaurant portion was jam packed (obviously, for a 10pm on a Saturday), we headed to the basement. I felt oddly comfortable in the seedy, typical college town, party style basement. The tap selection in the basement was not as expansive as the upstairs, but it was still pretty damn good. Plus, they had a solid bottle section. I'm really excited I got to try the Bell's Ashley's 30th Anniversary beer. Soo Good! Expert Tip: They have cheddar gold fish on the menu for $1.50. Bar win! read more

Great food, lots of beer options, plenty of specials. In a college town, this is a place to go. My roommates and I stopped here and enjoyed dinner one night. Each of us had multiple drinks and food and spent less than $20. The food was really tasty and had plenty of flavors. The mixed drinks are strong too. This place also has plenty of TVs and tables, so it's a good place to go if you want to watch some football. read more

Most amazing beer list around. Tons of great brews on tap. This is known - what I didn't know was that the food here is actually quite tasty. I had excellent Korean short ribs taco it was a little spicy But It truly just made me want to eat more of it. My friends had hamburgers that are very tasty and the fries were perfect. We also had the flash fried brussels sprouts that were pretty good but needed maybe a little salt. Great bar atmosphere. read more

Smashly's! No question, Ashley's is an awesome destination for the beer connoisseur. The beer list is more aptly described as a beer booklet. The servers and bartenders are great resources for more information and recommendations, too. I particularly recommend ordering one of the beer samplers if you're interested in trying several choices around a theme (I like Michigan microbrews). So why only three stars? I guess I'm not a fan of waiting in a huge line* to crowd in a dingy room and pair my awesome beer with shitty food**. But hey, that's me. *Fridays and Saturday nights, mostly. Afternoon and weeknight drinking preferred. **Seriously. read more

I ordered delivery for the curry chicken fries, mac and cheese, Korean tacos and grilled cheese sandwich. All the food containers had a terrible stench to it.The fries smelled of rotten oil and everything was cold and disgusting. None of the food was edible and I trashed it within 10 minutes of arrival. Waste of money and definitely do not recommend this place. read more

Not much in the way of outdoor seating. The staff rarely come to check on you. Food options are not that great but drink options are.

Enjoyed the Wittekerke white wheat beer...nice bar nice location I ate chicken wings and my friend had fish tacos. Good service and bar ambience read more

Ashley's Restaurant - I tried number 3 but a great selection for the beer drinker - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Came here post-dinner as I'm a non-beer drinker (yes, it's true. I'm used to the reaction. Get over it) and my friend really thought I'd like the chocolate beer. You have to know, I DO try every single beer my friends get when I go out, just in case it turns out to be that "one" that turns me onto the beer-loving world. Upstairs was really crowded, with a wait, but we were able to bypass that and go downstairs, where it's much more of a dive bar. Really casual, people just hanging out - reminds me of my college days. Limited beer list though (they have an extensive one on the main floor). I tried: Two Hearted - not bad, good full flavor. Chocolate - not as chocolate-y as my friend made it out to be! Weird aftertaste too. And the diagnosis: still not a beer drinker. Sorry =(. read more

We had eaten here a couple of times years ago, couldn't quite remember what we'd had, though didn't remember it being bad, so we decided to try Ashley's again when we got a taste for fish and chips recently. After all, Yelpers swore by it. By and large they were right. The batter was crisp, the fish tender and mild. The fries also were crispy, and the only complaint I can have about the meal was that it was a little cool by the time we got it. Hot from the fryer, this would have been first rate. The piquant, crunchy, non-creamy coleslaw on the side was also standout. We did get a little confused with the beer menu and didn't get a suitable accompaniment for the F&C. We saw the selection of rotating drafts chalked on a board when we entered and assumed those were the beers on offer. Most were on the strong side and didn't sound like something that would complement the meal. Opted for the Arcadia Whitsun, only to learn they were out (flashback to our earlier visits...on each, they were out of at least two beers we ordered). . We ended up with a barrel aged IPA which was nice as a sipper, only to see the larger array of taps behind the bar. Next time... If there is a next time. I'd like to try some of the other things on the menu, but was really put off by the noise level (and Yelp gets that right too...LOUD!). I suppose we asked for it...dinner hour on a Friday night at a bar and grill next to a campus....all the same, didn't make for a very enjoyable meal. Which probably shows my age more than anything else. If you're a twentysomething and/or feeling a little boisterous, this may be a great place for a sandwich (or, of course, fish and chips). Otherwise, a late lunch on a weekday might be the best way to appreciate Ashley's. read more

I have never in my life been treated so poorly at a restaurant. We walked in at 11:15 to meet a group and we're yelled at multiple times for standing. When we asked to sit down for a drink at one of the several open tables at 11:20, we were told there were no open tables and they couldn't seat us for health code reasons. When we tried to move out of the way or find a solution, we were rudely yelled at and repeatedly disrespected. Embarrassment of an Ann Arbor institution. This experience so greatly ruined our evening - while celebrating a friends birthday. Hugely disappointed. read more

I've lived in or near Ann Arbor for nearly 9 years and have been going to Ashley's the entire time. It's really one of my favorite places to grab a beer in Ann Arbor. The bar has a very cool laid back vibe and and the beer and food options are outstanding. Pretty sure they have over 70 beers in tap and countless whiskeys and other liquors from around the world. The bartenders and staff are always very knowledgeable about their boozy products and eager to help you with your choice in their giant menu of brews and spirits. I typically grab a local Michigan IPA or an old fashioned and an order of the waffle fries. Their fry game is so strong! With options like pesto fries and bacon cheddar fries, it's hard to find a more satisfying plate of fries anywhere. Go to Ashley's, its great read more

After attending the Folk Festival @ Hill Auditorium, I was dying for a beer. Found Ashley's on here and walked the 2 blocks. Restaurang was comfortably full at 11:30pm and I found a seat at the bar. Excellent beer selection and I loved the pre designed flights! I got the Michigan Dark Beer flight, which was a perfect mix of some of Michigan's top beer contenders. Needing a snack, I opted for the fried cheese curds - cooked perfectly! A 4 from me means I thoroughly enjoyed myself and service was spot on. Didn't care for the music playing (too much sublime, 311, etc.) and wished the curds came with marinara. Over all, a great find in Ann Arbor! read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Michigan dark flight with fried cheese curds @ the bar - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

The service is the best thing about it. I got the poutine fries but they were not as good as real Canadian poutine. Get the curry chicken fries they are bomb. My waiter kicked ass he recommended really good craft beer. Trivia night was fun but we lost miserably. Team Canadian Poutine didn't do so hot tonight. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Trivia! - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Good selection of beer, but I'm not that big of a beer fan, so I stick to the food. It's decent but nothing to write home about. Service is meh. The happy hour deals on appetizers are great though. I order the cheddar ale dip ($3.49 during happy hour) and shoestring fries ($1.49) because I prefer to dip them in the dip rather than the chips it comes with. It's a lot of food and really unhealthy, so I recommend that you share it... but the last time I was here, I cleared all the plates myself. No regrets. read more

Excellent, excellent beer selection. They have a try-all-the-beers card and you get rewards based on the number you've had. The food is all right. Great place to watch games. read more

Great gathering place for beer drinkers and alternative takes on bar food. This isn't you're PBR or lite beer kind of establishment, they have an expansive menu and rotating taps of MI-brewed beer available at a good price. The food is pretty good. I've had everything from cheese curds and curry fries to a buffalo chicken wrap to a shrimp trio platter during lent. All decent portions. They also have a good late night menu that's just a smallee version of their regular one. Service is usually good, strangely enough I've only had a male waiter there but they've always been knowledgeable about beer. The bouncer/bus boy is pretty intimidating, just stay out of the way, don't mingle around the bar and you'll avoid any strange encounters. read more

Maybe it was an off night. Here's the good. They have 70 beers on tap. That's awesome. That's why it's a 2 star and not 1. Hers the bad. Place is loud. I mean really loud. Like people seeing a club loud. Shouting to have conversation loud. Food. Mediocre at best. Got a burger. It fell apart while I was eating it. Fries were small portion in the little tin cup. People I was with got another burger and chicken fingers. They too were mediocre at best. Service. The server was nice. Kept forgetting the Splenda for ice tea we asked for 3x. Only checked on us 1x. No refills of ice tea. No offer of water. She looked stressed. Felt bad but, her personality did not make up for the lack of service. My other issues is value. Our bill was pretty expensive for the little bad food we got. I value food quality to cost. If I am paying 9.99 for chicken strips they should be pretty epic when you only get 4 and no fries or anything with it. If I'm ever back in Ann Arbor. Never going here! ------------------------------------ We went during the Art Fair. Saturday night. read more

Superb beer selection with great bar food. Date of Visit: 9/13/15 Ann Arbor was our last Michigan road trip stop, and a few people mentioned that Ashley's was the best beer selection in the area. It's a very old school joint, with a lot of wood finishes and a very pub-like atmosphere. They have a great beer list, with both local MI beers and some funky brews you're not likely to find elsewhere. For food, we started with the Poutine and Fried Cheese Curds; both were ok but left a little to be desired in the flavor department. That said, 5/6 of us got the Fish & Chips (cod filet in Gulden Draak Ale batter), and I don't think there was a single morsel left on any plate; it was that good. All in all, if you're looking for a great beer list in a laid-back setting, Ashley's is the go-to spot. read more

Ashley's is a mixed bag for me. Pros: Usually no wait for a table. Large rotating drink selection, even for someone like me who doesn't actually like beer. (Sangria beer? Yes, please.) Not to mention the fantastic happy hour deals. (Brussel sprouts, mmmm.) Cons: Well, really the only con is the one jerk who served our table on my birthday. Was rude as heck and pretty consistently gave off an annoyed vibe, as if everything we did was an inconvenience. And that one hugely negative experience was all it took to color the rest of my usually happy evenings at Ashley's. Now I dread going back. Peace. read more

Ashley's strength is generally in their draft list, I think. They always have a really good selection of craft beers-- my last two visits they had one of my favorites, Witch's Hat Blueberry Lemonade Gose, which tends to be a little tough to find. They've always got a large and varied selection, I don't think I've ever had a hard time finding a beer I really liked here. Other than that, it's pretty standard bar fare. The burgers and appetizers aren't going to blow you away, but they're solid. I'd recommend the Greek Burger, I think it's the best item on the menu (especially worth it during happy hour). The mac n' cheese is a standout too. I will say my experience with the service has been pretty mixed, but nothing out of the ordinary. Also worth noting they've got fun trivia nights on Mondays and Thursdays. All in all Ashley's is a good campus bar, no surprises here but the location's great so if you're on campus there's no reason not to check it out. read more

To the owner: Your server is a liar or you're making this up to save face. We didn't use foul language with him. I did have choice words walking out the door, that I'll admit. Your sorry excuse for a server ignored us for 45 minutes and had a major attitude that the bartender knew he was the culprit. He not only didn't apologize he had me repeat our order three times and then asked if we were sure. You obviously need to learn a thing or two about service recovery. And perhaps a remedial class in hiring competent staff. read more

Super good college bar! It was loud, but that's to be expected. I was super thrilled with the drink options they have for people who aren't quite as fond of beer. I ended up with a super tasty orange martini! We got the spinach and artichoke dip to share. It was surprisingly spicy! I was super grateful that it was covered in tomatoes, cause those really cut through the heat. Super good! For dinner I got the badger burger and pesto fries. The burger was massive, almost to the point where it was just too much. It's a small thing, but they also don't toast their buns, which I think makes a big difference on a burger. It was honestly a pretty average burger - nothing special. Overall a good experience. The food isn't spectacular, but it is just a college bar so you can only expect so much. It has a nice vibe, the service was great, and hey, they even have trivia twice a week! read more

See all

I was told this is a "must go to" in Ann Arbor, especially when visiting the campus. So I came in early on a Friday night. It was a bit more sit-down restauranty than I had expected for a bar. I did NOT know there was a downstairs until I was about to leave, so that may be the stand around bar area. I got the pulled pork nachos, no pork. I was upset they didn't have any beans or anything to substitute the meat, especially since I got charged full price even though I was missing the main staple of the dish. I think the whole dish in general could have been fresher. The guacamole didn't seem fresh, the lettuce didn't seem fresh. It was good for drunk college kid nachos, I'll give them that. The salt had to be brushed off because it was so caked on. But hey, when you're drunk, that's where it's at right? As for my drink, it was strong and straight. I enjoyed that part of the experience. The bartender was experienced and well maintained. I was actually impressed watching him make some of the drinks. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Nachos - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

See all

Hands down the best bar in Ann Arbor. With tons of beer on tap ranging from crafts and specialty imports to labatt blue. The food is incredible and the service is always great. Stop in when it's dead and get to chat with one of their friendly bartenders! read more

Ordered to go and they couldn't even remember to make my sandwich plain. People have allergies and the food is expensive, now I have an entire $15 fried chicken sandwich I can't eat. read more

Couldn't be a worse bar!!! OMG horrible service and doesn't have half a dozen beers listen on untapped!! Avoid Ashley's at all costs!!!! Worst bar in USA!!! The food sucks, the service sucks, the beer is limited and this bar smells like a sweaty gym bag. No joke out of 2000 bars in 50 states this is the worst bar I have ever been to! read more

I love going to Ashely's and enjoying a cider sangria! I enjoy sitting outside on the main street and just enjoying some people watching during the nice weather! read more

Ashley's has some of the best fries in town! I've tried the pesto, bacon & cheddar, and curry fries and I can't pick a favorite because they're all delicious (and they have waffle fries)! The portions are fairly large, so I generally get an order of the fries to share with a friend, which makes it roughly $5-6 per person which is a pretty sweet deal. Although the fries all taste amazing, the cheddar bacon fries are very standard so I would probably recommend trying either the pesto or curry, as those are more special. I've also gotten their pretzel sticks, which were good but sort of pricey and not as filling as the fries. Summary: get the fries. read more

See all

I love beer and I love to try different beers, so I love Ashleys. I have never tried the food, so I can't speak at all for that. The people watching in there is also usually excellent. I've been there during different times of the day and I've never had a problem getting a seat at the bar for myself and those I'm there with. My only complaint about the place is that it smells kind of funny inside. This has been the case every time I've been there, so it must just be the ambient smell there. It's still not enough to keep me away. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Specialty Sampler - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

See all

Eclectic crowd -- especially given proximity to Diag. They have delirium tremens on tap! I've only ever seen it in those cool clay bottles. Above average pub food and friendly beer-knowledgeable staff. If you're willing to throw down for some unique beers, it's hard to beat Ashley's. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - So many beers on tap (70?). - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Aweaome tap list here, but a little pricy. They give you a free pizza on your birthday if you join the FOTO club. The pizzas are good so if you're into good (but pricy) craft beer and tasty pizza Ashleys is your place! read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Great pizza! - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Maybe it's just me wanting to be 22 again and back at college having nights out at Ashley's, but I just really love it. Great vibe, great beer list, great waffle fries, great service. Always try to go when I'm back in town. read more

Ashley's is such a typical college bar -- small, loud, good deals, food that's bad for you, and good beer. We came in on a Thursday night for trivia, and the place was PACKED. If you're not interested in doing trivia, I would definitely recommend avoiding this place during those times. Once trivia was over, however, the bar cleared out super quickly, and it seemed like a cool place to hang out into the night. We split a few appetizers -- spinach and artichoke dip, bacon cheeseburger fries, and pesto fries. On Thursdays after 10, if you have your student ID, you can get the fries for $5 (with an additional $5 purchase, but that's just one beer)! The spinach and artichoke dip was super creamy and cheesy, and the chips were so crispy and warm. The whole dish was quite heavenly actually. The fries were actually nice, big waffle fries, with the toppings drizzled over. Both of them were good, and they're definitely a cheat day food! The cheese on the bacon cheese fries is so gooey and warm, and it's amazing especially with the ranch dipping sauce they give you! Overall, the night was great. We had to wait about 20 minutes to get in, but we were able to get a table for 6 on the first floor. The trivia host was good, the atmosphere was poppin', and the food would satisfy any hungry college student. Definitely give this place a try to experience that college lyfe! read more

I'm so grateful for the staff at Ashley's! They did so much more then provide food/drink services. I came in with my friend and we had been followed by a man for most of the night. We were too nervous to send him away due to his anger and the possibly dangerous outcome. When we came in he was sent away and he got very angry. When he left, I informed the waitress/hostess, Amelia, that We were not comfortable with the man and were scared of him. He ended up coming back in and she quickly told me to go downstairs. After taking care of the situation, she came back to find me. This meant so much to me. She genuinely cared about my and my friend's safety and was looking out for us. Then we sat at the bar with, Kayla, who was an absolute delight. I am so thankful for Ashley's staff! The women that work here deserve a raise, they are saints and they genuinely care about the safety of their customers. It is so nice and comforting, as a woman, to go to a bar/restaurant and feel comfortable and not have to worry about creepy men/predators. read more

Ashley's Restaurant - Best cheese & bacon fries ever - American Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

See all

Not really sure what happened tonight...maybe it's because it was trivia night, or maybe they are severely understaffed but I think what really went wrong was a lack of communication between the servers and cooks. Wanted a burger and the silton fries, server says we can only do plain fries with burgers and I ask if I can just get the fries as a separate order and she says no?? Not sure how that makes sense. Then I ask a minute later if she can upgrade my side to the waffle fries, I heard this place is known for the fries and that's why I came, she says sure. I also ordered the Brussels sprout starter. About 20 minutes later I'm brought the burger with potato chips... no fries, no sprouts. The burger was pretty flavorless and the chips had no seasoning. I only ate half the burger because I'd hoped I would get the other sides. Nope, it's about 20 more minutes later when the server comes back and I ask for the check and she says they have the fries and sprouts ready... shouldn't all these things come out at the same time? Why would I eat a burger and then fries and sprouts separately? I feel bad so instead of canceling I say I'll take them to go. Then a couple minutes later another server comes by with the sides! On a plate and everything! At this point I just want to leave so I put everything in a box and pay. It seemed like the tables around me were having the same kinds of issues, I could over hear them asking where their food was too. I also got the cranberry vodka cocktail and it was pretty watered down. I'm disappointed because I was recommended this place by a friend and it was my first stop in town. I would consider taking everything to go if it's really busy, doesn't seem like the place can keep up when it's crowded read more