Every time I've gone here this place is packed, the only drawback is the hours of operation, I wish they were open more! Even when busy the service is good once you get a seat, and don't sit outside in the summer there isn't much shade on the deck. I'm personally not a fan of deep fried veggies normally but their mushrooms and cauliflower are awesome! Sadly they took the chili burger off the menu, but you can still order it, it just wont be quite as heavily covered as it used to be. Don't miss out on this place if you are in town and looking for food. read more

5 STARS! The food sizing was perfect giving you enough to even maybe take home. We had plenty to order from the boneless wings to the bone in wings to the burger to the grilled chicken and the appetizers were so good. The onion rings are awesome l, make sure to order those. We ate upstairs during Covid and had plenty of space in between where it was safe and the atmosphere was nice the staff is very nice. Enjoy! read more

Awesome burgers. Great view. Watch the sun set from the balcony! Super service!! I'll come back often!! read more

The Brown Bear - Brown Bear - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

We eat here every time we are in Pentwater! They took some of my favorites off the menu :( but we still love the Brown Bear!!

I grew up north of Pentwater and while visiting this summer was told of the huge "Wimpy" burger. Challenge accepted. They were pretty busy, so the upsatirs was open. They have a balcony that you could sit on, but if the sun is out, and its warm, forget it (sweat city). I noticed several people sitting there at first, and then moving inside. Great staff, a little wait on getting our drinks was ok as they were running to keep up. The burger was huge, piled high with everything but the kitchen sink (although I would have loved it more if they had avacados on it too). I ate every bit and downed a Sam Adams. Only improvement I would reccomend is having the other specialty burgers in "Wimpy" size would be great! I will be back. read more

The Brown Bear - The Brown Bear Supreme - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

Like the place, need to change their online hours, drove from ludington today bc we thought they were opening at 11, but their sign in the window said 4 when we got there. Even this app says it's open right now but the bear never came through read more

You have to go in here with realistic expectations. Meaning you need to be okay with very informal dining. If that's what you're looking for then you're good to go. There are 6 TVs on the first floor, most with different stations on, all with the volume on. Louder than that is music, but we could still hear each other ok if you can block it all out. Appetizers were served on paper plates. I noticed they use styrofoam to-go containers which is horrible for the environment. Water glasses are huge and were frequently refilled which is a big plus to me. The service was extremely attentive. My Chicken salad was fine, sweet potato fries are good and I'm told the big bear burger was very good. read more

The Brown Bear - Huge water glasses - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

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Terrible food and service. We waited one and a half hours. Their attitude was: we don't care we don't have to.

The olive burger and chicken strips were great! Got take out and it was ready quickly.

Good staff, burger is average, limited beer selection on tap, decent prices, decent atmosphere. Best tv in the house right there by the barrel! read more

The Brown Bear - the front of the building - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

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I was alittle worried with some of the reviews but we are here for Labor Day weekend and decided to try it out. I can say, this did not disappoint!!! We are big foodies and everything we had was great!! Traditional wings, super crunchy and delish. Spinach and artichoke was just ok. I had the prime rib sandwich with onion rings, which I highly recommend except, I should have had the onion rings on a separate because the au jus was on the plate causing a very, very small part of the onion ring to become soggy. Nonetheless, it was still extremely good and I'm just being very picky! $15 sirloin steak special my hubby had, was amazing!! The seasoning and cook was perfect! My son and nephew had the fish and chips, my son liked them a lot but my nephew said, they were good but alittle too bland. Kids had burger and chicken tenders, burger was big and cooked to a medium rare perfection and chicken tenders are chicken tenders lol read more

The Brown Bear's inside definitely needs a little work but the food is good and the staff are very nice. I had an overall good experience from the many times I have eaten there and I would recommend it. read more

My wife and I enjoy coming here in the winter time, as most of them are usually warm and friendly and the food is good.

It's kind of divey and kind of dirty so of course I loved this place! Pentwater is a stinking cute small town and the Brown Bear fits in perfectly. They are know for their huge ass one pound burgers. They have several versions of them and they are indeed huge! I had the Cubano sammie and liked it. Great bread that held everything together. Friendly crowd. I think bikers may hang here in the summer time which is good thing for bad boy loving chicks. My husband was impressed with the beer offerings. Don't come here for wine, it's not their thing. Stick with beer and a burger and you will like it here. Oh, and if you are clean freak, you will not like it here. The place could use a little bit of cleaning but after enough beers you won't care. read more

This is a fantastic bar! After a terrible night down the street, The Brown Bear totally saved our night. Belinda, Kelli, and Barbie made our night fun! Atmosphere was great, food was great, and cocktails were fantastic. The Brown Bear is a "must" on your list in beautiful Pentwater. read more

Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see? I see a solid base but much room for improvement. Our server Barbie saved The Brown Bear from a 2 star review. We were served cold fries, given a dirty extra plate with bits of food on it for splitting our food, offered chips instead of the fries we ordered, and served cold grilled mushrooms on the burger. Barbie was clearly a bit frustrated with the kitchen, and advocated for us. We ended up with a two full orders of hot fries, a clean plate, and a hot burger with toppings, all fixed quickly. Thanks, Barbie! Overall, though, yelpers, I don't think this place deserves the high rating it has (the high rating prompted us to drive here from a nearby town). The upstairs has thin, drab carpet, where we found a pile of chips ground into the carpet when we walked in--and they were still there when we left. Decor is mismatched. The outdoor balcony seating is nice, but tiny, so you can't count on getting a seat here. Burgers were tasty, however, and cooked perfectly to order. My brother got the chicken strips, and he liked those as well. read more

Upper outdoor balcony seating sealed the deal for me when picking where we'd eat for lunch on our first Pentwater visit. Our meals were all very delicious and brought to us without any add ons or take offs that we didn't request (we are very picky eaters and always customize!). We all had different variations of burgers. I liked the slight charred taste and interior juiciness, probably one of the better beef burgers I've had in a long time. We split the fried pickle spears which were amazing! The batter was so crispy and had a little kick to it. The menu is a little on the small side, serving mostly burgers, sandwiches, wings, but it seems like they've really perfected those choices. The only issue I had was that the red bull & vodka drink I ordered came out tasting anything but. I felt nauseas after one sip - it was truly disgusting. I had one of my tablemates try it and they also nearly puked. It was like old non carbonated something (not red bull, maybe seltzer water?). I've never sent a drink back before, but the waitress took care of it without fuss and offered to bring out something else. My replacement, a basic rum and coke, was just fine! read more

Unique little pub in the heart of Pentwater. Great location. Small upper enclosed deck. Food is ok. Good tap selections. Bathrooms could use some love and a good cleaning or updating....in general the whole place could use a really good overhaul on cleaning. . Service was great despite the server being sat the entire deck right when they opened. He handled it with ease and was friendly. I give him 6 stars! Glad we stopped in but I wouldn't go again. Food was just ok - had the "famous" burger but I'm not sure what makes it famous. read more

My family and I have been eating at the two area locations for years and have always walked away impressed with the food and completely stuffed. At times there can be a small wait but service is usually prompt. 1 year update: My family and I are back in town on vacation. We were all very disappointed to see the brown bear doesn't open until 4p. Ended up at Gull Landing a few steps away which had pretty tasteless eats. read more

This small town resturant is a great place to eat and enjoy. I have a feeling i would have loved the upper outside seating given the weather. Food is really good. The atmosphere can seem quite tight, so if you are looking for group space, maybe try upstairs or eleswhere. read more

Blazing saddle burger... Yum and first bite is a sensation of satisfaction. My wife got regular bear burger and it was delicious... Only complaint was the bun was a bit small for size of the burger. Home made potato chips crunchy fresh and really a great accompaniment read more

The Brown Bear - Yummy - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

Burgers were huge and average. The fried pickles were not worth it. It was basically heated pickles with some in flavorful coating wrapped around it. Definitely don't recommend getting that. Although, the burgers were fulfilling. read more

We sat on the upper balcony and had a wonderful view of the lake and town. The waitress was friendly and service was fairly timely. The menu was mainly limited to burgers and sandwiches. Crab bisque soup was listed as a special, but was not available. My husband got the huge burger which was good. I got the cuban which had too much bread. The food was decent, but not outstanding. The view was the best part. read more

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I am pretty much copying my review for the Antler Bar, because these two establishments were our favorite places to eat while we vacationed in Pentwater. It seems that most of the local restaurants employ high school/college kids who are clearly just around for a summer job, so it was refreshing to have a server who knew the art of waiting tables We ate here twice, and both times the food was excellent and the service was very attentive. I got the Spicy Jack burger the first time and it was so good almost everyone in our party ordered it on our second visit. It's a pretty busy place, so I suggest getting lunch as soon as they open or taking a late lunch after 1:30. We stopped by a couple of times between noon and 1 and the waiting list for a table was way too long. read more

The best burger I've ever had honestly. Eating the bear burger is a yearly tradition of mine!

Very nice place. CLEAN, friendly and open at 2 in the afternoon in the winter serving good food. Menu is fairly simple but they at least do what they do well. I like the atmosphere. It feels like you might be a little farther north than you are with a comfort you can usually only find in a out of the way small town bar (but cleaner than most). If they can still serve good food with a friendly staff in the middle of a slow afternoon they must be doing most things well. I had a burger and fries with a coffee and all were above average with the highlight being the burger. read more

The Brown Bear - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

The Irish potatoes are great. I don't love the burgers so much. Or the deep fried asparagus as far as the burger I like mine cooked thoroughly(well) but to get that it ends up charred on the outside. Which I don't care for at all. So then went with 'medium well' and it was just not quite done enough on the inside. Maybe I'm to picky but they just aren't my style of burger. I'm a five guys burger girl! read more

The Pine-a-Pena burger is my favorite and I order it every year when in town - never disappoints!! Also during this visit to Pentwater I had the occasion to try the Broasted Chicken that many rave over. Boy was I disappointed as it had NO flavor. Don't know if the cook just missed seasoning or if that is by design. Nonetheless I'll return but only for my favorite burger!! read more

My family had a horrible experience at the Brown Bear this week. We have been eating here for years, and always enjoyed the burgers. After our last experience, we will never return. We arrived around 4:30 in the afternoon, and the bartender said there was about a 90 minute wait, and to put our name on the list along with our phone number, and they would call us when a table was ready. We had 3 kids and two elderly individuals with us, so we decided to walk around town while waiting. About 90 minutes passed, and I went to check back in on the status, and I was told, "we don't take phone numbers, and we called your name and you didn't respond, so you need to wait 2 more hours". When I explained what had happened earlier, the woman at the front began to escalate the situation, and use profanity toward me, and told my family to get the fu$& out of the restaurant. When I asked to speak to a manager, she escalated further, and began to shout at me, and encouraged patrons to do the same. This was a very unfortunate incident, and I hope the owner of this establishment takes the appropriate action with this employee. This is not the welcome I expected to receive from a town that I have been visiting for 47 years. read more

Loved it! Burger was cooked perfectly to Mid-rare as I requested and our sever Kelly was fun and friendly! Great lunch and draft Beer was ICE cold...YUMMMMMM!!!! read more

My parents and I ate dinner here last night in their "off season." We all got food poisoning within 12 hours of eating. This is most disturbing because we all ordered different meals, meaning this is either the chef, food contact surfaces, or temperature regulation equipment which are not being handled or cleaned appropriately. Food Bourne illness is a serious health hazard to the public. The restaurant has been contacted an made aware of the issue, but please proceed with caution for those who are in immunocompromised states, children, or elderly. read more

Brown somethin'! Plain ok ground beef with no seasoning on a very bready sesame bun. Raw onions tomato and mayo. Frozen fries pre salted and undercooked. Basically Dairy Queen for $15. This town needs a McDonalds apparently... read more

Huge burgers at this place. Great location! Good food. Good atmosphere. Nice outdoor deck upstairs. read more

The Brown Bear - Beer Bar Near Me - Pentwater, Michigan

The service sucks. Our party of four waited over an hour to get our food and it wasn't even that great.

The ONLY thing that could make this place better is better buns. Otherwise - love this place!! Great service, cold beer, good burgers!

The single most delicious cheeseburger I've ever had in my entire life. This is worth a serious roadtrip from just about anywhere. I don't know what they use, Lawry's? The best ground beef ever on a well seasoned grill? Whatever it is, these burgers are fantastic. Wait as long as you have to (although it's usually not all that long) and come from wherever you have to. Get this burger. It's available in three sizes- Wimpy, Cub, and Bear. The Bear is a true showstopper. And the Bear with all of the ultimate fixings (including a giant slice of ham!?!) is as big as a dinner plate. Oh man, I'm starting to get a hankering, but make mine Cub sized... read more

Ordered medium rare olive burger, got medium well to well done... um, you guys serve mainly burgers right? But considering how overcooked it was, it wasn't horrible. Rueben was really thin on meat (given the price and that it comes with just some chips -- no pickle even or maybe a little thing of slaw??), but it was fine. My check had a beer on it that no one ordered. Marginally OK experience, but apparently cook & wait staff are trained by monkeys. I'd go to Antler Bar way before going back to BB -- and probably GoodStuffs for the rueben. read more

Pretty good place to grab a drink and some wings/burgers. Nothing out of the norm here, but the selling point is the upstairs bar with the outdoor patio which creates a great view of the downtown strip. Great for people watching and seeing the motorcycles/cars cruise along. read more

We ate lunch here while coming to visit Pentwater while staying at Silver Lake. This place was great, bar atmosshphere, cold inside while hot outside. Service was fast. We visited last year while camping in Ludington too. I got the same thing each time...the olive burger. It was wonderful, would get it again in a heartbeat. read more

LOVE this place. I have to get their deep fried cauliflower!!! I don't know what they use for their ranch, but it is awesome!! All of their food is great! read more