Best Nightclubs
If you’re looking for a late-night entertainment venue with a high-energy party atmosphere, start with The B.O.B. – a Big Old Building featuring a restaurant, brewery, cocktail lounge, live-music venue, comedy club and dance club under one roof. Head to The BackForty Saloon for line dancing to DJs and live country bands. Mojo’s offers dueling pianos downstairs and DJs and dancing upstairs. Rumors is a welcoming LGBTQIA+ nightspot with an open dance floor, drag shows, amateur cabaret and more. Rosa Parks Circle, an outdoor public square, transforms into a giant dance floor every Tuesday evening from May through October, courtesy of the Grand Rapids Original Swing Society. Discover more local dance floors – around downtown and throughout the region.
Best Live Music
You’ll find something for every musical taste in Grand Rapids, at 100+ live-music venues ranging from massive arenas and rollicking nightclubs to intimate coffeehouses and unique outdoor settings. Downtown offers more places to listen to live music than any other city neighborhood, starting with Van Andel Arena and the outdoor Acrisure Amphitheater, both of which accommodate 12,000+ people for concerts by the biggest touring names in music. DeVos Performance Hall, The Big Room at Silva, GLC Live at 20 Monroe, The Intersection, Midtown, The Pyramid Scheme and St. Cecilia Music Center – with capacities ranging from 200-2,500 audience members – welcome national and regional musicians across virtually all music genres. Numerous downtown bars, breweries and restaurants also offer live music performances on a regular basis, usually without a cover charge. Explore more live music venues around town. Want to make your own kind of music? The Apartment Lounge, The B.O.B., Chicago Beef Joint and Z’s Bar & Restaurant host regular karaoke nights – and K-ROK Korean BBQ rents private karaoke rooms five nights a week.
Best Stage Shows
Downtown Grand Rapids is a great place for dinner and a show, thanks to 170+ restaurants and more performing arts options than virtually any other city our size. Broadway Grand Rapids brings in the nation’s hottest touring plays and musicals, Grand Rapids Civic Theatre is celebrating 100 years of crowd-pleasing productions in the 2026-2027 season, Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids is the place for thought-provoking, off Broadway-style material and Jewish Theatre Grand Rapids explores a range of universal human conditions through the lens of the Jewish experience. Downtown’s DeVos Performance Hall hosts performances by Grand Rapids Ballet, Michigan’s only professional ballet company, Opera Grand Rapids, the state’s longest running professional opera company, and Grand Rapids Symphony, a Grammy Award-nominated orchestra presenting more than 400 shows each year. Dr. Grins at The B.O.B. welcomes touring comedians and Sunday Night Funnies at Chicago Beef Joint is a free stand-up comedy show featuring talent from across the Midwest.
Best Games
You can indulge in all sorts of friendly competitions in downtown Grand Rapids. Compete against friends, family and strangers in an authentic game show experience at Grand Rapids Game Show. Enjoy craft beverages while you play board games at House Rules Lounge, virtual golf at Gimme’s Par & Grill or indoor mini golf at Big Mini Putt Club. Play classic arcade games at Stella’s Lounge and The Pyramid Scheme. Prefer to watch? Cheer on the Grand Rapids Griffins hockey team from Oct-April, the Grand Rapids Gold basketball team from Nov-April and the Grand Rapids Rise female volleyball team from Jan-April – all three pro teams play in downtown’s Van Andel Arena. Coming in spring 2027 – our new MLS Next Pro soccer team (Athletic Club Grand Rapids) will begin play in the new Amway Stadium.
Late Night Food & Drink
Got the late-night munchies? Grand Coney, an all-American diner in downtown GR’s Medical Mile neighborhood, is open 24 hours a day. Vito’s Pizza stays open until 3am or 4am every day. Birch Lodge, Bridge Street Bar and Firebird Bar GR welcome customers ‘til 2am daily, and many other restaurants keep the lights on into the wee hours on weekends. Need a late-night/early-morning caffeine fix? The Bitter End Coffeehouse is open 24/7. Hours are subject to change, check with your destination before you go.
Beyond Downtown
There are many other nightlife options outside downtown. Scroll down to our search function to find them – just click the region(s) you want to explore at the left of the screen. You can also check out our guides to local cocktail bars, comedy clubs, rooftop bars, sports bars, themed bars and restaurants and wine bars.
Visit our Events Calendar to find events and activities for the dates of your Grand Rapids visit. Click Nightlife under Categories on the left-hand side of your screen to narrow your search.
