IDC — Local services in Grand Rapids

While I wouldn't say that I don't care meets all the criteria for a traditional speak easy, it does make a modern effort at the concept with it's hidden location, "secret code", keypad, and unmarked door. Once inside you'll find the styling is light and chic. There's a nice balcony for outdoor seating and a limited amount of indoor seating. They offer a nice selection of original cocktails with fun names, but only bar nuts for snacks, so don't come here hungry. On this visit I sampled the Spicey Sidepiece, Give Me The Tea, The Mistress, and The Spicey Rodeo. Each were good in their own right and had their own distinct flavors. All four drinks were above average for the Grand Rapids area, but were a little pricey. It's worth noting that the spicey drinks were done exceptionally well as they definitely brought the heat, but it was pleasant and only lingered for a short while after the sip. I visited during non-peak hours and staff was sparse as expected, but our server was friendly and never seemed too far away. Overall, while I Don't Care didn't transport me back to the prohibition Era, it did provide a pleasant experience to have some of the better cocktails in the city. It's a secret too good to keep and I would definitely recommend finding your way there, I'll stop back as soon as I...

While visiting Grand Rapids my son wanted to show us this very cool speakeasy vibe bar. We had dinner and wanted to stop for a quick drink. When we entered the code for access, we were told that we would have to wait a couple of minutes for seats to become available. This was about 7:30. There were two ladies ahead of us and they had to wait as well. As we're waiting between 20-30 people left the bar. As we saw workers coming and going we asked why we were still waiting and they said it would only be a couple of minutes more. At about 8:00 the ladies in front of us were allowed in. By that time there was a line of approximately a dozen people. Not even 2 minutes later the ladies came out and said that they now had a $10 cover charge for the DJ. I asked the person that seemed to be in charge and she said that a cover charge starts at 8:00. They kept us waiting until 8:00 so they could charge us a cover. What a scam! I announced very loudly to the the line of people that there is a $10 cover and the line disappeared. When we were asking questions they could have informed us of the cover charge, we weren't there for dancing, just a cocktail and the fact that the dispersed as quickly as it did, the rest of the people weren't aware of the cover...

I usually enjoy this place, but the last few times me/my friends went it's been really bad. The drinks are always good, so points for that. But the last time we went, we waited in line for 45 minutes watching party after party exit. The hostess kept reassuring us that they were "just waiting for more tables to open up" and "it won't be long". So we kept waiting. It was clear that 50% of the bar was gone at this point. After an hour, the hostess finally tells us that the dishwasher is broken. We offered to use the to-go cups if needed, or to run down to the other bars/restaurants in the hotel to get glasses. The hostess said no, and that it wouldn't be long. After 1.5 hours, she finally tells us that a repair man and the manager are working on the dishwasher. But she said she could not guarantee when it would be running. Everyone in line gave up and left.

I understand the hostess is just the messenger, but I think everyone would've appreciated more honest communication. At the very least it would've been nice to hear from the...