Bastone

April 29, 2008
This very slick looking place in downtown royal oak is not for the beer geek... this place is not for you. But what it is is an overhipped place seems to believe that that micros are cool. The ambiance and atmosphere are you know cool nightlife sort of place. The beers - which are all strickly Bastone product, with no guest taps - take a backseat and are definitely unremarkable.

September 17, 2006 [ Updated April 14, 2007 ]
Cool place in the middle of hip, young Royal Oak. White tiled, Belgian-feeling bistro with micro-brews on tap. Beers are pretty good. I actually like their higher alcohol Belgian on tap. Downstairs is a club and next door is a wine bar, and in back is a Cuban restaurant. All are decent. Be prepared for lines... Food is pretty good if not a bit salty and greasy. Also, not a huge bar/waiting area. Cool spot, though.

August 10, 2006
Nice spot. Wide open feel, medium to upscale feel for sure. Food was really really good. Wide selection of decent house Belgian style beer with a couple rising above and being quite good. Solid service. I’d go back again just for lunch, to heck with the ratings. A nice surprise.

July 23, 2006
Fairly nice atmosphere, on the high end of the medium upscale. Food was pretty nice, I had a turkey sandwich on some really nice bread with cheddar. Beers were pretty decent with only the Blonde being a real disappointment. Won’t knock your socks off but pretty solid. Service was quite friendly and reasonably attentive. Definitely a fantastic spot to stop for lunch.

July 7, 2006
To address Sammy’s comment about being crowded and smoky at night: It’s not so bad. My wife and I frequent this place, mostly for the food. The beers are all adequate, but suffer from the common microbrew problem of all tasting very similar. Don’t get me wrong, you can obviously tell the difference between them, but they all seem to have a common base hidden beneath all the differences. It’s a little difficult to describe, but a number of friends have agreed with me after tasting the brews. If you go here, I would definitely recommend the Dubbel, especially if they have it on cask.

June 27, 2006
Very nice at lunchtime with big and modern outside patio.Staff: Heather and Rockne the new brewmaster since November, and another waitress, were all very friendly and made me at home, even before they saw I was taking notes. This is on a very nice street for Detroit, in my opinion. It’s quite walkable. Parking in the day was reasonable. I am told that it gets very busy, smokey, crowded at night. This restaurant is part of a physical group of 4 at he site, including a rock club downstairs. The beer on tap is only their own.

May 16, 2006
I heard about Bastones beers from a friend and had to try them for myself. I ordered the sampler with all the sesonals and they were TERRIFIC! Some of the best beers I’ve had in a long time. The best brewery in Royal Oak. Great job on all the beers. I’ll be returning soon with some of my friends.

May 8, 2006
I was excited to try a Belgian Brew Pub! I liked the menu, shame the beer was well below average. 5 beer sampler with 2 seasonals (that they don’t serve as part of the sampler - which bugs me). Great food though.

June 23, 2005
Ate here yesterday with my father. Place offers a variety of Belgain Entrees ranging from $12-$20, sandwiches $7-$10, and hamburgers for $12. Also have their own brewery with 5 standards (Wit, Dubbel, Blond, Pilsner, one other) and usually 1 or 2 seasonals. Gets pretty crowded weekdays around 6 O’Clock.

June 21, 2005
Less than a year old, Royal Oak now has a Belgian themed brewpub. The beers need a bit of tweaking though. Downstairs has a club and there’s a Cuban restaurant attached as well. Six house beers are on tap and the Tripel is ok. Make sure you ask for a warm glass or you will get a chilled Imperial pint glass.