Bloated Goat Saloon

Not a good idea if you’re hungry or a foodie. I had incredibly high hopes for this place and was super excited about trying it. It had a decent star rating and a really fun name. Walking in I still had high hopes. It’s a dive bar and I LOVE those! They usually have the best food. Plus, there is a goat head on the wall, just like you would see a mounted deer head.
Being in town for a local event, I expected that we would have a longer then normal wait time as the number or restaurants are limited. What I didn’t expect was an hour and a half wait for 3 burgers. Or that every table including including 3 that sat and ordered 20+ minutes after us would be served first.
Basically the «kitchen» lost our order. And instead of admitting and apologizing for that when we started asking about the status of our order (an hour after placing it BTW) we were told that our food was coming right up. We stopped our waitress about every 10 minutes asking about out order and received the same answer. «It’s coming right up.» And «we have a very small grill.» At one point during our wait, the other waitress stopped by asking if she could take our condiments caddy because she thought we were finished. As she had sat us and got our drink over an hour ago.
At the hour and a half mark (not a guess, I was paying attention) and after I watched the third table that sat after us receive their food, I asked that our order be cancelled and for the bill for our drinks. Again the waitress attempted to give me the same excuses. I pointed out the three tables that ordered after us, one eating the other two finished. She then told us that the food was ready. Which is something she discerned by magic as she hadn’t left our table. She then ran to the grill counter and returned 3 minutes later with the wrong order. As the mistakes were minor in regards to how well the burgers were done and condiments we attempted to eat them anyway.
They weren’t even edible. Per-​formed bulk food supplier, hockey pucks.
Save your time and money. And try someplace else. Anywhere else.

One of my favorite destinations on the motorcycle. Very biker friendly but don’t let that scare you off or you’ll miss one of THE best bar burgers in Michigan (try the olive burger my personal favorite). Drinks are great and the staff are always friendly and very attentive!

Best burger in central Michigan. How do I know? I’m 400 lbs. I’ve had them all. Olive burger is insane. No bs place. Just good food. Under staffed. They don’t seem to mind. Waitress is also the cook and the cashier and the bartender and the bus boy. If your looking for some bs burger in a bun with ketchup and mustard go to Burger King. If you want the perfect burger. This would be the spot.

Awesome burger and beer. Staff is very friendly.
Great experiance.
Burger was cooked perfect added fries and slaw!
Walked out burgers and beer for 2 $ 25
Perfection

Great place to eat and just hang out

Beautiful night for a cycle ride so we decided to do a short trip before the predicted rain storm hit. Ended up at the Bloated Goat. Before we even got in the door, another patron came out to have a smoke & we starting talking cycles. Friendly place even before you walk through the door.
Sat at the bar near the cook area & ordered burgers & fries. Nothing fancy but the meat was cooked exactly as we ordered them and juicy beyond belief. Fries could have been a bit browner but they tasted good & were piping hot.
If you are looking for a casual place with great burgers, visit the Goat. Don’t expect girls dressed in bikinis just good ‘olé fashioned bar ladies who have been doing this for years. They work hard yet are friendly & the prices are extremely reasonable.
For burgers, fries & 4 mixed drinks, our bill was $ 30.00 + change.
Yes, we will be going back & try their grilled ham & cheese which we saw the cook make. It looked scrumptious.

Great service at a good price. Good people watching! Had the chicken sandwich. Recommend.

Great place to go for a beer and a burger when you are your way to Michigan Stadium or the Crisler Center! GO BLUE and Go Goat!!!

Took a stop on a whim due to the intriguing name. Three of us each had a sandwich and two summer shandy’s for $ 13 a piece. Grill is out front and in the open which can be deterring at first. However food was very pleasing as well as quick and friendly service. Started our road trip out on the right foot.

Still Amazing as ever! This will be an after work spot for years to come!

Cheap frozen food that they over charge for. All they do is fry up something from the freezer in the fryer or on the grill. We went there on a busy Friday night and they only had two people working. One behind the bar and one on the floor. We were in the back playing pool and very rarely got service back there. While we were back there some very intoxicated men (regulars I would assume) were harassing us over the pool tables. Put a quarter down and wait to play the winner, that’s how we have always played. There was nobody there to regulate the over boisterous regulars who harass the once in a whiles who go in there. We had to go up to the bar and order our watered down drinks. The owner was there but all he did was sit on the bar stool and watch the overworked waitresses run around. Fowlerville is not a bad place, The Goat just makes it seem like it. This is a bar to go to when you don’t wanna do your hair or makeup or dress up or look nice. I will not be going back to this place.

I am a Spartan! Every once in a while, I would skip the highway and opt for the scenic route to MSU along Grand River Ave. I would always pass by two little hole in the wall divey bars, that I yearned to check out… The Bloated Goat and The Shady Lady… with genius names like that you had me! Sadly, I missed the boat on The Shady Lady, as they have closed their doors. I did, however, get to check out the Goat! And yes, there is a goat mounted on the wall! This is your typical goat themed bar, you know every town has one… just kidding! It is your typical small town bar, dimly lit, sports on the boob tube, cheap beer, mixed drinks, jukebox and bar food… I think every Spartan should check it out!

Great burger, drinks and prices. Goat burger is to die for.

«The Goat» is on the way to E. Lansing where the BF’s parents live and I’ve been wanting to explore places in between there and our homebase for awhile now. Of course, I had to swing by to see what lay beyond the name (and I imagine it’s probably ½ the reason why they get new customers).
This is no T.G.I.Friday’s. It’s pretty much your standard, dark, small town bar on the inside. So much so a bar that I can’t imagine bringing a kid here to eat (like a previous review did) without feeling like a bad parent. Perhaps only WAY early in the afternoon when there are just a handle of people in attendance like when we went. Mostly an older crowd (40’s-60’s). It was definitely cool to see the stuffed, encased head+ of The Goat up on the wall watching over the place. I noted a jukebox and a singular pool table towards the back. There were about 5 or 6 tables to the front right across from the bar. They had the door open to let some air and sunlight in and it was still pretty dark inside. I think it would be a scary endeavor to get drunk and attempt to pick someone up here when the sun goes down.
There were about 6 beers on tap. Mostly of standard stuff with 2 mug size options. I got the bigger tall or Brutus-​sized Summer Shandy ($ 4.25). It was a lot of beer and I wondered if I would be able to finish the whole thing. Good thing I am a drinking professional at this point. :-) BF had a Coke (free refills) and fries and I went with the Bacon Cheeseburger ($ 5.25) loaded with lettuce, tomato, pickle and onion (a flat extra $.50 for toppings). I chose Swiss cheese and upgraded the chips the burger comes with to the premium side of french fries and coleslaw (+$ 1.50). I should’ve stuck with the chips. The BF’s order of just fries was plentiful. Although, he and I agreed that the fries, while hot and thick, did not have much taste at all. At one point I thought I dumped too much salt on them and it still wasn’t enough. I ate most of mine though because I arrived insanely hungry. The coleslaw was just okay. The burger, however, was a solid B or B+. Although the toppings were slopped on, and there was quite the hunk of slice onion on there, it was a large ¹⁄₃ lb., well-​seasoned piece of beef that was juicy and quite good. I was actually thinking about how nice it would be to have another one the very next day. Always a good sign. Our bill after tax and before tip was $ 16.59. Credit cards are accepted.
The barmaid was marginally friendly and provided decent service. I think she was the one doing the cooking too as I believe the cook top was in the bar area and there was no one else but her manning the place. There were about 4 TV’s by the bar/​table area and women’s soccer was on every single one. None of the other patrons looked like soccer fans in the least so that was a little weird.
Side note: The Goat is easily accessible from the I-​96/​Fowlerville exit. However, when trying to get back onto I-​96 follow the direction of the FIRST white/​black sign (if heading west) that says «Truck Route». Otherwise, when you hit the next official I-​96/​Truck Route signs, they’re going to direct right back into town from where you started from a side road. That was pretty flipping annoying.
I will definitely be back to The Goat for another burger and to sit a spell for a beer or three. I may even walk the buzz off by checking out their tiny downtown area. I saw some signs announcing a big annual fair coming up later this month as well as a tractor-​pull in August and soybean festival in September, if any of those types of things float your boat. If they do, just don’t forget to swing by The Goat while you’re in town.

If you have ever been to Fowlerville you will quickly realize that there’s about 2 options if you want to grab food and a beer. I went to the Goat with 2 kids and 3 other adults for burgers and beer. Burgers are frozen, cooked on a flat top, and seasoned great. Food, in general, is cheap. Great place to hang out with friends and play some pool, darts, vids, or even watch the game. Looks like there are relatively new flat screens which we enjoyed watching a Tigers win on. This is a dive bar and the lighting is a bit dim for my liking. Everyone enjoyed their food as you should for a 2 bar town. I will be back for sure!

Bloated Goat is a true classic. I am writing this review to honor my beloved Michigan State Spartans (Class of ’85, 8 goalposts under my belt in post-​game riots during my career)
Anyway– first and only time I was at the Goat was with my brother in law Philsta, who flew out to Michigan from California with me to see the annual grudge match between Sparty and the Wolverines. In fact– it was like fifteen years ago when both teams were ranked and undefeated– just like now…
Anyhow– it’s around 7am, and we are travel weary– yet the 70+ year old cigarrette smoking bartender yells at us, «You flew all the way out here to see the game? WELL GET FIRED UP!» So, of course, we ordered shots and beers and got our game faces on. Epic dive bar of legendary proportions, still referred to by my kinfolk today. I insist that you visit the Bloated Goat whenever you are road tripping in to East Lansing for a game.
Oh yeah, and GO STATE!

Can’t say too much about this place other than the name rocks and it always provides a great time. Good times, jukebox, food etc. Oh yeah, the name rocks.