Two months after announcing that the Wolfgang Puck Grille would cease taking reservations, the MGM Grand Casino fleshed out plans for a new upscale sports pub, TAP.
“TAP promises to be unlike any other sports pub,” said Steve Zanella, general manager of MGM Grand Detroit, in a release. “It will be a comfortable place to enjoy inspired menu offerings and high-quality beer, and capture the passion of a great sports town where people love and support their teams. TAP will remind metro Detroiters of the city’s early days, yet still have 21st century appeal.”
TAP, located in the old Wolfgang Puck space, will offer 50 beers, including locally sourced brands, and a specialty drink menu. The 9,500 sq. ft. restaurant and bar will have pressed tin ceilings, wine barrel tables and accents of wood and concrete.
Lest that sound too fancy for sports fans, rest assured they can watch every iteration of the big game on TAP's 30 flat-screen televisions.
Overseeing the transition are architect Rainy Hamilton, and interior designer Richard McCormick of Michigan-based design firm Hamilton Anderson Associates. The Michigan-based firm designed the MGM Casino, as well as local projects like the Detroit School of the Arts, downtown Detroit's Washington Boulevard streetscape, New Center's Youthville Detroit rec center and the upcoming Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge Getaway in Trenton.
The TAP restaurant will feature a large bar area, a main dining room seating 292 offering views of the kitchen and a private dining room with 100-person capacity.
Without Wolfgang Puck Grille, the MGM Grand Casino still has two fine dining restaurants: Bourbon Steak and SaltWater.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story identified Hamilton Anderson Associates as designers of Motor City Casino, not the MGM Grand Casino.