August 6, 2009
An ordinary town, although some eccentric names of stores. A retail store with many of the regular classics. The bar itself is fine as long as you get here before 4 pm, when people must line up to get beer. A great patio, but you carry beer, in big plastic cups over. A good selection of beers on tap, although I was not crazy about the carbonation, which was Enoz salty. Some of the classics, I think, are better in the bottle. Pretty friendly though. Bartendress went through some training. I would like more details about the beers in the literature available to us. I was expecting more.

August 4, 2009
Interesting place, nice atmosphere, awesome patio, but I could definitely see how it would be a college bar. It was decently busy at around 6pm on a Tuesday, but not hoppin’. You ask for a beer, pay for it, and go drink it. Not my favorite service style, but it works. Beer selection is decent, but dissapointing. This place is definitely not geared toward beer geeks. It is more of the average beer drinker and college student.

July 26, 2009
Completely populated by Bell’s unbottled beers plus Oberon... at least while I was there. Prices are awesome! $3.25 for most beers, and the most expensive is the Rye Barleywine at $4.25 a pour. Oh, darn. The ambiance is more like a cafeteria, and very exclusive. One bartender when the place was kind of full, but it was ok. Took a while to get food or beer. Pretty cool.

July 17, 2009
I could write a term paper on our experience at Bells. We were on a beer tour the entire weekend of Michigan Breweries and had a great time at Founders and New Holland earlier in the day. We got to Bells and the atmosphere was just..well...different. Instead of a brew-pub atmosphere, this place is definitely more of a glorified college bar. The patio and lawn outside are amazing -- one of the cooler beer-drinking atmospheres I’ve ever seen, but there was no where to sit and we weren’t about to stand around for hours. All of this combined with the fact that they charged us a $6 cover to get in (the only cover we paid on the entire weekend), the kitchen was closed by 9:30, and the service wasn’t very good either. I love Bells beer, but this place doesn’t do their brand justice. Larry Bell should come in, blow the whole thing up and start over.

June 15, 2009
Stopped at Eccentric for the first time this weekend on a detour to Founders (A way out of the way detour i might add). We only had time for one beer so I had the Kal-Haven Ale. The setup is nice here, there is an upper level, that has a few seats, also an outdoor section that was closed off for the day. The main portion is fairly open, but broken up by a partial wall. Overall I would still consider it open. Atmosphere was good here, and they had a decent selection of beers on tap. Many of which I have yet to try. I’ll probably stop here again before too long. Maybe on a day when I can spend some more time. Oh, I also stopped at the store. It has tons of Bells merch, most of it Oberon based. As well as their beers for about as cheap as you can find them anywhere. I picked up some singles I hadn’t tried yet.

June 8, 2009 [ Updated June 10, 2009 ]
Visited for lunch on 06/07/09. The third and final stop during a trip to some of the Midwest’s most essential breweries. Bell’s makes some of most readily available, consistently delicious craft beers in the country. Although their actual brewery is not open to the public, Bell’s Eccentric Café and General Store is great place to drink some tasty brews, eat some good food, and buy Bell’s beer and merchandise. The café is medium-sized with a bar, a stage for music acts, and cool little upper level. There are typically a dozen beers on tap, several of which are Eccentric Café exclusives. I tried the Kal-Haven and drank the Kalamazoo Stout, while my wife tried the Wedding Ale (which she loved). The food was also good. Bell’s general store is wonderful. They have lots of Bell’s clothing, take out beer, and a wealth of homebrew ingredients. Overall, Bell’s Eccentric Café is a fantastic beer destination.

June 2, 2009
Crazy place, but I really enjoyed it. Very relaxed atmosphere, folk music playing in the background, friendly staff, and eclectic things adorning the walls. They only take cash, and you have to order your food at a small window that looks into the kitchen. Prices are outstanding, and the food was very good. The only downside is that it is located in kind of an industrial neighborhood, but that doesn’t detract much. If you are a beer lover, this is one place that you should definitely put on your list of "must visit" places.

May 21, 2009
Cool place. It was a beautiful Michigan day, so sitting outside was nice. The bartender was friendly, but busy. The food is actually quite good, by Michigan standards AND brewpub standards. Had an excellent Jambalaya. Prices are great too. Highly recommended.

May 5, 2009
This is now located at the edge of the area the city is slowly reclaiming. The old brick building has been renovated with nice wood, glass, artwork and local paraphenalia like old maps. Many tables with checkers/chess boards built in. Beer garden has a cement slab area with benches, then an open grass area where you could sit with a blanket or whatever. Good bluegrass/laid back music at times. This place used to REALLY be a hippie hangout, now maybe 75% hippie hangout. The food kind of reflects that. They have a grill outside that they walk out and grill burgers(blackbean?)on. Service has always been hit or miss. Cash only is extreamly odd, to me this is being done on purpose to keep what I like to call the "Phish" vibe going on or something. The only complaint in my opinion is that you really have to hit the right time to get something unique. You’re pretty much just going to get their bottled beer offerings. They need to keep more of their special offerings at home like other brewers seem

May 1, 2009
Usually a good selection of taps including specials that are never bottled. They also have a small fridge behind the bar which occasionally has special bottles for sale that cannot be bought anywhere else. The General Store is right next door too which sells lots of various singles including specials when they come out. The inside is a little on the small side, eclectic (of course) decor, but very clean, warm and friendly. Friendly staff. You have to order beer and food yourself and it is cash only. In warmer months there is a huge patio and backyard with a big stage for bands.