First time trying this place and was very let down. The music was decent but the music requests that they could perform was very limited. We were shocked to discover how expensive the drinks were once we got our bill...my 'usual drink' at other bars, was quite literally double the price at this place. wont be going back read more

Overall, we had a good time at the Piano Bar in Royal Oak. We went out for my friend's birthday and received good service throughout the night, which I appreciated. However, the live music wasn't quite what we expected. We even paid to request a song, but unfortunately it was never performed, which was disappointing. I also ordered the Caesar salad (pictured), and it came with a surprising amount of tomatoes. I've never had tomatoes in a Caesar before, and the slanted bowl made it awkward to eat. This place has a fun concept and good energy, but there are definitely a few areas that could be improved. read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

The ambience was that of a dive bar. The food was ok. With the highlight being the caprese sticks. The wings were simply bad. The cover charge was absolute BS and not advertised anyplace. The service was ok. The pianists ran out of music to play. Definitely would not made another trip back. read more

Party of 6 made a reservation for 7pm on a Saturday night. The front charged a $5 cover charge regardless of having a reservation and they are cash only but you're welcome to pay a huge fee to use the ATM in the lobby. That's the first yikes. That's really bad way to initially engage your customer but the money grab continued from there. The drink and food were expensive but poor quality. I got the 53oz margarita for $40 and couldn't catch a buzz from the whole thing?! Right. The food options were fine but don't go here to eat. It's a little better than bar food. The waitress was great. She was really attentive. What was questionable is when it's time to checkout, there's no bill to review, just her with the handheld machine quoting your total. The 'dueling pianos' are two performers with a drummer in the middle singing songs by request. There's no show or entertainment, just singing along. Oh and all the 'requests' by Venmo require tips of course. So 4 people food and drinks was about $360 not including tip, or the tips to the performers to play songs. I highly doubt they would have missed that $5 cover at the door. What BS. There was a hard spot at 10pm and the crew flipped the room for the DJ to start and it officially became Tequila Blue. We had to move to a high top in the back of the room but stayed to dance awhile. DJ was good, however this establishment clearly didn't have a dress code. Girls in PJs, weirdos harassing women...smh. I thought this place was better. All and all we made the best of it but we definitely wouldn't go back again. We'll spend our money elsewhere. read more

Hudson provided outstanding service -- friendly, engaging, and attentive without being intrusive. The beef tips were cooked perfectly and full of flavor, and our drinks were prepared just right. A great overall experience. read more

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The only reason this is even a three is because of the music. The music is phenomenal. Fun and entertaining. We sat there 10-15 minutes before someone even came over to welcome us and take a drink order. I had to go over to the host to let them know that no one has been over. The food was mediocre at best. The steak bites we ordered medium come well done and burnt. The pizza and garlic flatbread had potential but there was no reach taste to it. Just the concept of what it SHOULD taste like. The burger and fries were decent. We waited a good bit for our drinks and even longer for our food. The drinks were good. I would recommend espresso martini. The Bourbon Sour was just ok. Not bad, but just ok. I wouldn't order it again. I couldn't complain if I wanted to because the server only came over like twice in 2 hours. The other two times I had to flag her down. All the tables are high tops. Not ok with older people or those with accessibility issues. On top of slow service we had to pay a cover of $15. $10 for men, $5 for women. The shining star is the dueling pianos. The artists are so talented. Tempted to give them another chance. Without the music I wouldn't. read more

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New to the area! We had an absolute wonderful time. We didn't have a reservation but the staff was able to find us a great spot! The staff was incredibly attentive, our drinks were always refilled and the bussing staff kept our tables clean. Food had great taste and got a shareable portion. The musicians were lively and so entertaining. The entire crowd was engaged and enjoying themselves. We will be back and will bring our family/ friends with us! read more

Love the performers. Love the food. Bartenders need a little training on how to make drinks lol. But they all have great personalities.

I have only eaten here twice and for good reason, food isn't really what you come here for. It's the dueling piano that you come here for. It's a decent spot, gets the crowd animated some, but I have definitely been to better Dueling piano bars that really draw a crowd and engaged the crowd more than I have ever experiences here. Not a an easy gig, the pianist had to be able to play every song possible and entertain and be engaging and fun too. read more

The food here was OK. The options were fine, but nothing super exciting. The service was friendly, but really quite slow. The overall restaurant had a good vibe and seemed well kept, and pretty on the inside. read more

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My husband and I came in for drinks to celebrate our anniversary and his birthday. The drinks were very good. The service was great. Jennifer and Kiwan were amazing bartenders and took great care of us all night. The entertainment was great and the place overall was fantastic. We will def be back! read more

Went to a Christmas party and it was so much fun. The atmosphere was loud but gives you energy!!! With the large crowds they did have a pretty quick turn around with drink and food service. I had their Caprese Kabobs and they were awesome. We had already eaten so it was just a light appetizer. read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - Giant mule - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

HIGHLY recommend the Piano bar for any large party /event you may have. Everyone was amazing and made everything so easy. Literally from the door guys, wait staff, mangers, and entertainment. Super accommodating, friendly and fun. Everyone in my group commented on how great the food, drinks and people were and had such a great time!!! Not always the case with a large group. read more

‍ OMG tonight's house band is terrible! I feel like I walked into live band karaoke with the worst singers! I can't believe people are willingly paying for songs to keep these knuckleheads mic'd up! read more

I can't speak to their regular menu, but I would highly advise everyone to avoid this place for special "buffet" events. I would be angry if someone recommended this place to me for a special event. (Again, I can't speak to regular menu and entertainment. I just hope it's not as bad as we experienced at this event.) The food was worse than food you'd get from a wholesale warehouse. In fact, I'm sure the cookie-cutter pancakes, the breakfast pastries, the bacon and the sausage were from a box. The eggs may have been powdered. My family paid a lot of money (over $200) to treat me to a special 2023 Mother's Day event at 526 Main and we were all so frustrated and disappointed. I was excited to experience this all-you-can-eat buffet any spend time with family. We were shocked by the grossness of it all and mostly made faces with each plate of food that was delivered. I reached out to management, but didn't get a response, I suspect they knew the food was bad. Yes, I'm still mad after all these months and don't want another family to pay for such poor quality food. And, a promise of two hours of entertainment started 45 minutes late. While one of the piano players had a fabulous voice, the other couldn't carry a tune to save his life. Sheesh! read more

Came here on a Friday night with a reservation for a birthday party. Coke products for soda. Food was quick out of the back even with a packed house. Agree with other reviews on volume (super loud) but it was expected. Tons of Bachelorette parties so be prepared for tons of Taylor Swift/Bieber and millennial pop favorites. Waitress was attentive and sweet. 10/10 she was lovely. Got Steak (husband got a burger). Steak was advertised with Au Jus, but the seasoning wasn't very well balanced and ended up being too salty as a whole. The potatoes were great texture-wise but the seasoning was heavy and not complementary to the rest of the meal. Best part was the colorful green beans, but they needed the salt from the steak. Sister agreed that Steak was too salty. Husband liked his burger, advertised as wagyu but survey said probably not. Wish.com wagyu per husband. Great place if you like energetic crowds and kudos to the pianists, they switch between drums and the two pianos. Awesome talents!! read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - Stage and brides. Everywhere. They're everywhere. - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

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A great spot for a date night or to bring the whole group. We got in quickly with our reservations, seated promptly and the staff was exceptional. Hannah was our server for our party of 6 and got us everything we needed without missing a beat. The music was great and had us entertained and singing along. We ordered different kinds of food, all tasting great and exceeding our expectations. Try this place out! read more

I wasn't sure whether I should give this place 3 stars or 4 stars, but I'm going to go with 4 because we all had a good time, despite the waitservice. We had a group of about 12 to 15 people yesterday for a friend's birthday. We started our night at Blaze Pizza for dinner then walked over here for the piano show and drinks. I had the Pineapple Upside Down Cake martini, which was delicious, and listed at $10 on the menu but when I got my bill it was $7, which was a nice surprise. The piano players themselves were hilarious and took requests all night. For $20, you can have them make a birthday woman or man come up to the stage, and my friends and I pooled our money to make this happen ... our friend got to sit on the piano and they sang HBD to her and then made up a few dirty jokes, which was funny. No cover charge all night for ladies, too (we went on a Friday), and I think only $2 or $3 for men after 9pm. However, the waitservice here was super, super slow. Weirdly, it picked up in the middle of our time there - he was coming around frequently to refill our water glasses, which I appreciated, and asking if we wanted to order more food or cocktails. By the end of the night, though, we literally only saw him once every half-hour or so. By the time I was ready to leave, we waited about 15-20 minutes for our bills, then after we gave him cash/credit cards, we waited another 20 minutes for them. Unrelated, the handicapped toilet in the ladies room needs to be fixed - when you flush it, it spews water everywhere, making the next person's visit rather wet. Despite all that, 526 Main itself is a really good time - better than I was expecting, actually - and I would definitely come back a second time, hence the 4-star review. read more

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I was here for NYE, and it was crazy. First, there weren't enough seats which is challenging, but people were being very rude about it, next level rude. The manager Charles, and the hostess, Avery, handled it with poise and professionalism. The bartenders and servers were amazingly on point with checking in about drinks, and the drinks were absolutely amazing. Staff - A+ The music was pretty awesome, they had dueling pianos, and the repertoire of the group was great. They knew enough songs to appeal to a crowd of varying ages, which is nice. Music - A The only gripe I had was that they sold more tickets than seats and that problem could've been easily solved by a message on their website, saying that it was limited seating, and they were expecting standing room only. Otherwise, it was an amazing night. We met some amazing people, heard some amazing music, and had a great time. read more

The experience is fun and the piano players were great! The food and drinks were marginal (as expected). The most disappointing thing was that ALL tables are high tops. Our mom had a hard time getting up on a seat and absolutely no one with any mobility issues (temporary or permanent) could even sit here. It would be easy to have a few regular/low tables in front to accommodate ALL. This is an obvious item that all restaurants should consider. read more

The service is most definitely terrible even if you tip the bartender gave me tequila instead of vodka I asked him to fix it he blew me off so then I asked another bartender could they fix it and they did . I then proceeded to ask did I get over charged for the tequila that he made me when I asked for vodka and he the got an attitude yells at me and tells me next time I should speak up then I asked for a manager no one would help me then . I wouldn't ever find my self going into this low class non human establishment and I will not refer any one to go here disgusted. read more

I made a reservation for 2, weeks in advance, for my husband's birthday. We came from upstate. When we arrived, the host led us to the bar. When I questioned her about the reservation I made, she said that is all they had. My reservation confirmation clearly stated a TABLE for 2. Had we sat at the bar, our back would have been to the show. And that was the purpose of coming. So we left. At least the guys at the door gave us our surprise cover charge back. read more

I had been here once years ago and remember it being a good time, so I bought a Groupon to come back for dinner and the piano show. It says you need a reservation, so I went on the Open Table app and made a reservation. To my surprise, when we arrived, we were seated upstairs. I thought upstairs was a completely different establishment, but I guess I was wrong. We told our waitress we had a Groupon and she told us we got $50 off of food and drinks (not that great of a deal considering I paid $45 for the Groupon). I ordered a titos and soda water and it came out in a little dinky plastic cup (which ended up being $9. I do realize this is Royal Oak but seriously? That's just ridiculous). For an app we ordered the crispy fried pickles. Not anything great, and a super small portion for $7, probably wouldn't get them again. For my dinner entree, I got the chicken Caesar salad, because really how can you mess that up, right? Wrong. The dressing didn't even taste like Caesar dressing, the chicken was terrible. My boyfriend got the fajitas, he asked for his steak to be cooked medium rare. When it came out it was very well done. The shrimp on his fajita plate was probably the best tasting thing. We sat and enjoyed the show for a bit, and had a decent time. The bathrooms upstairs are almost impossible to get too, blocked by all the tables. I did not like the atmosphere upstairs at all and we eventually went downstairs but by that time we were ready to leave. If you make a reservation and want to be downstairs, I would make sure to specify that. Overall I definitely would not come back here to eat. I would maybe come back for the show and a drink but that's it. read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - Crispy Fried Pickles* - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

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The food might have come out of a sysco bag, $6 to add shrimp to my ceaser salad, i would think they would at least be grilled. The music was ok, predictable for a wedding party venue. The employees were very nice. I find the different prices for entrance fee, $10 for men, $5 for women distasteful. What is this a strip club. But it is was it is i my girlfriend gave the a 3. read more

Had such a blast at 526 Main dueling piano bar over the weekend for a friend's birthday. I've been here a few times before, and I was never particularly impressed before but had a really great time over the weekend. I used to prefer Duel in Novi but I'd say it was just as good and one of the pianists from Duel in Novi, was actually playing at 526 Main. It's usually super crowded here and hard to find a seat. My advice would be to come early or make a reservation if you come later. We arrived at 8:00 pm and it got busier around 9:00-10:00. My friend didn't make a reservation and there was about 17 of us and even though there was a reserved table the staff were super helpful and moved tables around and pushed tables together to accommodate our large group. Service was friendly and prompt and we were checked on several times throughout the night. Most cocktails were around $8-$10. I really liked the Gallagher Smash, the Cocktail Confidential winner, with watermelon, mint, lemon and blueberry. This was my favorite cocktail that I tried. The cherry margarita was also good, a larger drink and tasted a little bit like a cherry Sour Patch Kid. One of my friends ordered the Pineapple Upside Down Cake cocktail and said it was too sweet. They also served food too. The dueling piano show itself was great, very entertaining. You request songs, and leave around a $1 for more likelihood to be played. They played everything from Journey, Bonnie Rait, Ricky Martin, Taylor Swift, Kesha, The Weekend, Elton John, Beck and pretty much any song you can think to request. Some songs, they had two people playing piano and a drummer. Very talented pianists and lots of personality and lively performances to keep all of us singing along and laughing all night long. If you pay them $20, they'll offer a special birthday song for the guest of honor where the birthday girl/boy is brought on stage to sit on the piano while serenaded with a very embarrassing, hilarious, and naughty birthday song. Needless to say we had to pull our money together to bring our friend on stage because it's not your birthday if your friends don't find the most embarrassing way possible to sing happy birthday to you. Overall a really fun way to spend a night out or for a special occasion. I'd definitely recommend it! read more

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Gluten Free Review: prior to coming here for a friend's birthday dinner, I looked up the menu on their website & saw they had a lot of items marked as gluten free. Both the fish & chips and Mac & cheese were marked as gluten free. When I went into the restaurant, they did not have the same gluten free markings on the menu. I asked the waitress if they had a gluten free menu & she said no. I told her how I had seen the Mac & cheese and fish and chips marked as gluten free on the website and she confirmed that they are definitely not gluten free. I ended up going with the gringo tacos and the chips & salsa, which the waitress confirmed are gluten free. The food was okay, typical bar food. Overall, If you are celiac & have issues with cross contamination I would definitely not eat here. They seemed a little unsure of what was gluten free and what was not & seemed bothered whenever I asked questions. As far as the actual piano bar goes, the pianists were okay. I have seen better shows at this specific location, but it's definitely hit & miss. Note: I am not celiac and do not have issues with cross contamination. If you are celiac please speak with your server before ordering. read more

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I was in town for the weekend and I enjoy going to piano bars. This was my first piano bar visit out of California and it was so much fun. I really liked the fact that they had a woman musician up the night I went. I am used to just men singing on the pianos. But I like the variety of instruments they played that night. I came here on a Saturday night and it was packed. I was lucky to get a spot by the bar, but throughout the night it just became more packed as the night went on and it was hard to manuever to other places. I am not sure how seating here works. But I would check beforehand to see if you can get a reservation. This was a fun place to visit during my stay in Michigan, and I hope to return the next time I visit. read more

We didn't come for the food or the drink - the dueling piano show with Tommy, Sasha, and John was INCREDIBLE! So fun to sing along to allll kinds of music. The musicians rely heavily on song requests and some songs get extra zeal with a tip, also songs such as Bohemian Rhapsody and Don't Stop Believin' require $20 (can be pooled by the crowd) tip. The show started at 8 and we had to call it quits at 10:45 but they were still going at midnight when I went back for a credit card left behind (oops!). They do parties and groups really well here - I can't wait to bring some more friends in the future. Drinks were on the pricey side but not terrible. My friend and I snacked on the guac and chips which I wouldn't recommend (bland guac, super oily and bland chips). No matter, check this place out! Plan to pay for parking in nearby lots (right alongside and across from the club). read more

Music was great as well as the service. Food was average, but the main attraction are the dueling pianos, and they were great!

This was a cool place to experience and we really enjoyed the live music! It was super loud, so not the best place if you want to have conversation at the table. However, it was extremely cold so definitely dress warm if you are watching the live music. I would definitely like to come back with a group of friends though! read more

Attended a family Birthday party for my niece's 21st...Was initially disappointed by the "Dueling Pianos" venue, given my past experience with the usual Karaoke type atmosphere of dueling pianos. This was not what you normally expect with "Dueling Pianos"..This entertainment was off the hook! The addition of drums and 4 members rotating throughout the sets..These guys were spot on! Food and Drink service was very slow but we were one of at least three large parties going on, so I'm giving them a break. Would definitely return for drinks and entertainment! read more

Very Loud Gong Show The people playing the piano(s) charge for every song and amp audience up by competing them to out bid the previous song. They challenge the diners to pay money to stop a song. The more they drink the louder it gets. The louder it gets the more money they request. The Food is very misleading as it's described on menu. They ruined easy items like a chicken quesadilla. The chicken tastes like it's from a can and it's a funny orange color. Not good! Shrimp Fajitas are not hot or sizzling or delicious. There's no grilled skillet, grilled onions, grilled peppers or grilled shrimp. It's not even hot. This item is a whole $18 rip off. I truly believe the LOUD atmosphere is a distraction from the expensive drinks in small glasses full of ice. So many better options for dinner and entertainment in DETROIT. read more

I love 526...Charles is the man...foods great Would I ever. Go back, yes i would. Wish the upstairs were bigger Drinks were fab. read more

I'm not sure if I'm glad we missed the a-hole bouncers that everyone has been talking about lately, because the hostesses were rude and snotty that we didn't have a reservation. Once we were upstairs, the waitress was very nice, although she had to hunt for drink and beer menus. That's where your staff makes their money, make sure they have enough to go around... We ordered the California Club, a flatbread pizza, and the iguana eggs. All of the food was very good and came out quickly. Drinks were good too, we had beers, long islands, and a few electric blue lemonades among our party of four. Dueling piano show was okay. Things got weird later in the night. Apparently, they move the tables in the middle of the room against the wall to transition to a club feel after a certain time. Okay. So our waitress says our table will "disappear" around 9pm. So we ask if we can take our chairs to the bar to sit and hang with our friends. Yes. So we move, but the bouncer (who was very nice) told us we couldn't sit there. So back to our table we went. They ended up moving the table against the wall a little while later. It got really loud, we paid our tab and went to Starbucks so we could hear each other the rest of the evening. read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - Electric blue lemonade matches my sweater. - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

My friends and I had a great night out for a birthday. Our server was great, the food was good. My only complaint was that we had no clue there was a cover charge. It makes sense that there is one, but nowhere on their website does it say anything about a cover. And nowhere throughout the reservation process does it indicate there's a cover. There is an atm to use if you don't have the cash because you weren't expecting a cover, but the atm fee is over $3. Please give your customers more of a heads up. read more

The good: Great location, dollar beers weeknights, friendly polite service. The okay: The bar isn't sure what it wants to be, is a pub, a sports bar, a piano bar, or a tequila bar? It flops from one to the other. The bad: Goes from dead to overly crowded. read more

My favorite piano bar in Michigan! Dueling pianos every Thursday thru Saturday. The performers take your requests. You write down what you want to hear and put it up on the pianos. If you leave them some $$ they usually play those ones first. You can sing along and dance along Food is good, staff is friendly! Definitely make a reservation for a Friday or Saturday night as the place does get packed. read more

526 Main Dueling Piano Bar - John Charles Weston & Sasha Evans getting a Saturday night started off! #duelingpianos every Wedn-Sat nights #royaloak #michigan #nightlife - American Near Me - Royal Oak, Michigan

My review is for 526 Main piano bar. We didn't eat here, just enjoyed the music and drinks. My group of 15 came here for my bachelorette party. We made reservations a few weeks in advance. None of us had been here before. But, what a great time we all had! We loved the main guy (glasses) and a younger guy. Oh man, that younger guy had a great voice and was singing my some of my old jams. About half way through another guy with glasses came up and the younger guy left. Kinda went downhill from there, so we headed upstairs and that was just a mistake! But, there was no going back downstairs to enjoy the piano bar. We couldn't get up fast enough from our reserved seats for the crowd standing around waiting for a table to open up. I cannot believe how rude people are sometimes. I am sure if we would have said something to the nice waitress it would have been fine, but the nerve of some people! I would definitely go back to the piano bar and maybe try some of their food beforehand. Would make a great date night. read more

It all started with a Groupon for a dueling piano bar. My friend had made a reservation for a Friday night. We get there and there is no host to check in with for a reservation. There were no dueling pianos. There was a jazz band playing. Their own website states they have dueling pianos every Friday and Saturday. After standing around for several minutes trying to figure out if we were in the right place, the manager finally came up and told us we could take a seat anywhere. The server then brought me a water that had a cherry stem in the bottom of the cup. Fast forward to dinner, the kitchen had only made one of the entrees. The manager came up to let us know and that my meal would be out soon. He apologized and said he would "take care of it." I got my fish and chips and the batter was doughy. My friend was not please with her meal, either. When the bill came, my entree was still on the bill. The manager stated that the Groupon was only for food items, so it didn't really matter because it was covered. I work in the food industry. I would never had made a big deal about my food being late or expected anything for free because I know stuff happens. The manager is the one that made it an issue and then didn't deliver on his promise. In the words of Dr. Janosz Poha, "Everything you are doing is bad. I want you to know this." At least my friend got a refund from Groupon. read more

There's a reason why on Mondays and Tuesdays food is half-off. It's pretty dead, which is understandable since, other than its imposing presence of two floors, blends in with the crowd. Their catch is the tequila and the dueling pianos, and we weren't there for either. (I'm sure it's happening on the weekends though, not that I'm exactly jumping at the chance to come back for that.) Still, we had OK service -- no drink refills throughout our meals, yet came back rather quickly when the waters shifted to alcohol. And there isn't much to complain about when you get three chicken tacos with all the usual fixings (the cheese is Muenster!) for 5 bucks (shrimp, steak and Mahi Mahi also offered for $1 more). One underrated thing about the place that I did appreciate was that the sound on the television wasn't at a concert-level sound, but at a level where you can listen to the game if you want and also tune it out easily if you're not interested. read more