Gipper’s Bar & Grill

Came in here last night and had a good experience. I can’t comment on much other than the service and atmosphere. I did not eat while I was here. I sat at the bar and the bartender was very friendly and attentive. She had a pretty full bar and did a great job of making her rounds and being friendly with all of her patrons.
There was an open mic night. Some people were good. Some were not. Typical of most open mics I would think. The bar has two distinct areas. I did not venture into the back area, but it did seem like more of a bar hangout area than the restaurant area that was on the side where I was sitting.
I dig the peanuts and being able to throw your shells on the floor. Prices were very reasonable. Quite cheap actually. Overall, I could see myself killing a few hours here from time to time.

No dick, no service… seriously. Sat here for 30 mins and not one of the ‘Women’ would make eye contact.

Gipper’s, I’ll admit, I should probably give a second chance when I’m drinking again. Because, the restaurant side of things here is severely lacking.
I notice many other reviews point out the dive bar atmosphere here. To some extent, I get it, I understand. I respectfully disagree however. It has characteristics of a dive bar, but when I think of a dive, I think of a place with real, genuine character. Think something like Applebee’s with all the crazy shit on the walls but not forced or mandated like Applebee’s. It just is there. Gipper’s is lacking that, unless having Jack Daniel’s emblazoned on everything is people’s idea of character these days. It’s not mine though.
Space here seems to be tight, man. Prepare to navigate your way through a crowd, even if it’s not all that busy. And, even when it’s not busy, good luck finding a spot in the parking lot. What’s up with that? We got in, pushed our way through the crowd, just managed to snag a table and sat down. Let’s get down to business.
Hey! It only took the waiter 10 minutes to come take our drink order. That’s… neat. Even if I was drinking, I have a feeling that would be a bit off. Do it up though. Get me my Shirley Temple. He’ll come back in «just a second» to get our food orders. Just a second turns into another 10 minutes. I really do want to give this place the benefit of the doubt at this point so I order something that’s hard to muck up — fettuccine alfredo with some chicken. Let’s see how this goes.
The food comes out surprising quickly. I’d say it took, you guessed it!, 10 minutes. The dish looks pretty decent for what I was expecting and it definitely smells amazing. The garlic bread even seems on point. I crunch into that bread first and am pretty happy — good texture, toasted nicely, and super garlicky. I dig it. But, don’t make out with anyone after having this. The pasta, on the other hand, was an extreme let down. The alfredo sauce was bland to the point I was wondering if they ordered it from Fazoli’s. It basically tasted like thick, white water. The chicken was incredibly underseasoned if it was even seasoned at all. And, while the pasta and sauce was warm, the chicken was somehow pretty cold.
Gipper’s was a disappointment, but I have an odd feeling it’s a kick-​ass establishment to show up and get shitfaced at. Or maybe show up here when you’re already shitfaced. For that, I’m tacking on an extra star. As for the menu, food, and service… eh, I’d pass on it if given the choice. Maybe the appetizers here are decent, but I’m skeptical on that too considering I thought fettuccine would be an easy enough of a dish. In short, come here after you’ve already eat and just need some more drinks to drown your sorrows — otherwise, just keep cruising somewhere else.

If you are looking for a dive bar with really reasonable prices this is the place for you. If you are a local you will probably run into someone you went to high school with 10 years ago locally in that part of Grand Rapids if not longer. Haha. The service is pretty fast and you can eat peanuts and throw the shells on the floor. Shell away!
Gippers is split into two areas. The restaurant and the bar. I have only experienced the bar side (which is off to the right when you walk in). The patio is very big and is where the most people will be at weather permitting.

Love the food here and most of the servers are great! Try the buffalo chicken sandwich!

The atmosphere here is very nice. It kind of reminds me of a smaller town bar. Lots of wood and very inviting. The staff is very friendly.
I ordered a ½ order of house made boneless bbq wings. Followed by Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and onion rings. The wings were extremely good and plentiful. The Meatloaf was very tender and juicy, and wrapped in bacon. It was very good, better than most I’ve had. The mashed potatoes were good but nothing special and the onion rings were very underwhelming.
My drink refills were fast and friendly. Overall I was very happy. Probably 4 ½ stars. In this case it deserves a round up not a round down. There is no doubt in my mind that I will be back!

Went in. First time. Sign in front stated: please seat yourself. Sat myself in a booth with my dining companion. Waited. Waited. Waited. Bartender saw us. Waited. Waited. Waited. Waited. Waited. Waited. Waited. Waited. Left.
Not overly busy. Not understaffed. Sure it could be good. Just not patient enough to wait 10 minutes or more for someone to greet us. Didn’t have one staff member approach us. Disappointed.

So sad:
I used to go to Gipper’s frequently, but stopped because the food isn’t as good as it used to be in my opinion. However, my husband & I decided to give it another try. We sat on the deck & ordered drinks & food. Once again, drinks were good, but the food was not. Upon ordering, we were asked for our credit card. This surprised me because I have been to Gipper’s many times in the past & have never been asked for my card when ordering. As my husband & I enjoyed our drinks on the deck, we noticed the other couples who came & sat near us were not asked for their card when ordering. I asked a few other couples & NONE of them had been asked for their card. To be fair, there was a large group at a picnic table who said they had been asked but we were the ONLY couple who was asked. Given the fact that my husband was the only black person on the deck, this did not look good.
I asked to speak to the manager. Harley was in charge that day. She was very understanding, kind, & adjusted our bill as we weren’t happy with the food. I questioned her about the credit card situation & she gave me the general manager’s phone number which I called the next day. The general manager was not friendly, professional or kind. In fact, she accused me of being rude. I told her we would not be back. Her reply was «That’s fine with us.»

It’s where the locals go for live music and decent food and possibly a beer or two.
I had the meatloaf (not all of it was fried bar food). It was very good.

Just left this place. Nine people (including me and a co-​worker) sitting at bar. Two bar tenders, waited ten minutes and no one waited on us. Never even made eye contact. One bartender was busying writing in a notebook the other grabbed a beer for someone. That was it. Got up and left to go somewhere else. Poor (meaning non-​existant) service.

I absolutely loved my one and only visit here. The staff is very fast and everyone is friendly. I ordered their wet chicken burrito and I loved it. The food is the best for your buck and prices are quite cheap for the quality that they bring. I will definitely be back again. I would highly recommend anyone that’s within the area to give Gippers a try!

Went here with a large group. The initial service and drinks were good, but the food took a long while and little things like extra napkins and checking on meals were overlooked.
I ordered a burger ($ 9) well done with cheese, sautéed mushrooms, sautéed onions, French fries ($ 2), a side of mayo.
What I got after the long wait was a medium well burger, cheese, sautéed mushrooms and French fries that tasted like the all you can eat fish (perch) they were serving too that night since they no doubt used the same frying oil. No onions and no mayo.
I won’t be back.

Pleasant surprise in Grand Rapids. This sports bar is near my hotel. Seems to be a very popular local place. Good food, generous portions, and great service. I loved the triple pork threat appetizer. Potato skins with bacon, ham, barbecue pork, cheese, and coleslaw. Menu has a lot to offer.

Great place. In from out of town and went by the reviews. Great sandwich great service and a beautiful bartender Paige to go along with it. You will love this place.

Went to Gipper’s way back in the day. Went and tried it when it became Tavern on Kraft. Now it is Gipper’s again… unfortunately same quality of food.
Tried some chicken wings and poppers to help soak up their drink specials. They have the best happy hour here — half off every drink until 7p, every day of the week.
Food was ok for bar food, but love the happy hour! Five stars for drinks, two stars for food.

Food is good. Waitress was rude last time I went. Girlfriend bought a frozen margarita which was overly salty and barely drinkable. Explained this to the waitress and she took the drink and said she would replace it, but then returned saying we would still be charged for it. I find it to be pretty upsetting that they would be too cheap to simply replace the drink and I could continue to be a happy customer. More money was lost on their end, I will not be returning.

It seems that every other restaurant and bar in the immediate area is part of a chain, so I had to try this local diamond in the rough. The ambiance was fun; there was live music, free peanuts and the longest happy hour I’ve yet encountered. The servers were attentive and prompt. They had local beers on tap, which were pretty good. The food was okay; it filled me up, but was a little greasy.

It is difficult to get 5 stars from me. Other posts seem out dated and the negative posts that don’t reflect my experience which was on a Tuesday evening. I sat at the bar, I was acknowledged promptly, ordered a bonecrusher (at half price on happy hour) and ate their free «salted in the shell» peanuts; that convinced me to try a meal. Ordered the special, $ 11.00, chicken, sausage, pasta, sauce, bread, bla bla bla… it was good, served in just over 10 minutes, very hot, and too much to eat. Ordered my 3^rd, bonecrusher, finished and back to the motel. Yes, I would recommend them to a friend. If I stay in Grand Rapids again and don’t have to work the following day I will most likely stay at the motel next door so I can indulge a bit more.

Great little local pub! Kind of place you’d see on Diners, Drive-​ins and Dives. Had a chicken sandwich and fries… the sandwich was huge… served on French bread and I finally gave up trying to fit it in my mouth… resorted to knife and forking it. Very tasty and the fries definitely hit the spot. I also ordered a side salad which was surprisingly large, very tasty and well presented.

The good happy hour specials make up for the sometimes slow service. The staff is always really nice though so I dont mind much.
Looking for an appetizer to split??? Check out the nacho plate– it’s gargantuan! Literally every chip in this massive nacho pile has topping on it.
The downside of Gippers is that parking is a cluster when they are busy. Get creative with your parking spot so you don’t have to park and walk.