Beer Bar Cøllect Heads to the East Side With Gatorade on Draft

Detroit beer bar Cøllect, which since 2018 has been offering hard-to-find brews and chill rooftop vibes in Eastern Market, is ready for its next chapter. The bar is set to open its doors in a new location at 9301 Kercheval Avenue within an arts hub developed by the folks behind the Library Street Collective. Co-owner Kyle Hunt tells Eater that he hopes to open sometime this week, pending confirmation from the state of Michigan that the bar’s liquor license has been successfully transferred from its old Eastern Market location. Cøllect moved out of its original spot in June after its lease ended, but plans had been in motion since early 2024 to move to its new home, Lantern, a 22,300-square-foot former commercial bakery situated in Detroit’s East Village neighborhood. The venue serves as the headquarters for two nonprofits, Signal Return and the Progressive Arts Studio Collective. Hunt and business partner/wife Lea first flung open the doors to the beer bar in 2018. Hunt tells Eater that during this transition period, staffers employed at Cøllect’s Eastern Market location were able to continue working from the Hunts’ other establishments, Two Birds, Huddle, and the Hunts’ latest project, Easy Peasy. Lantern was designed by New York-based firm OMA. Occupying 1,400 square feet of the site, Cøllect maintains a similar minimalist aesthetic that it had in its previous space, as well as sky lighting and a basketball hoop that visitors can use. There’s seating for about 50, including 10 at the bar and table tops for parties of up to eight, while two large doors open up to a sprawling outdoor courtyard that seats 40. “We’re trying to make it feel like [the] inside [and] outside [are] kind of all the same in the warmer months,” says Kyle Hunt. As for drink offerings, the bar features nine beers on tap, a selection of wine, ciders, non-alcoholic beverages, and pours of Four Roses bourbon. In addition to offering beer on tap, Hunt tells Eater that the bar is also offering Gatorade on draft for those who might be in need of electrolytes after a couple of beers or from shooting hoops.