Archive for the ‘Petoskey’ Category

I get comments on my web site all the time, and periodically, I receive suggestions on places to visit. The Side Door Saloon has come up a couple of times. I usually take my readers advice and check them out. I have driven passed the Side Door Saloon, in Petoskey, many times. Although, I was uncertain, weather or not, I wanted to dine there, I have to tell you that I was very impressed. The Side Door Saloon has an unpretentious, laid back kind of atmosphere, with solid wood tables, and upholstered wood chairs. The large, full service bar provides about fifty different kinds of beer. The walls are decorated with antiques, and crazy things to look at while you dine. They even have a separate section with a few couches, coffee tables and lounging chairs with a large flat screen TV.

Upon arrival we were seated immediately. Our server was at our table shortly after we sat down to take our order. We ordered the blackened whitefish, and the olive mushroom bacon burger. Before we knew it, our order was brought out. I was completely amazed with the kitchen on how fast they knocked out our order, considering how packed the place was.

The whitefish had just the right amount of Cajon seasoning, although not to spicy at all. Moist and flakey and tasted extremely fresh, topped with Pico de Gallo, a great marriage of flavors. The baked potato was hot but not over cooked, and the veggies were a nice blend of broccoli, cauliflower, and snap peas, served with warm French bread.

And now the Meat of the matter. The burger was D E L I C I O U S! Thick and juicy, cooked to order, hot and juicy just the way I like ‘em. There was PLENTY of flavor in the meat, the sautéed mushrooms were well cooked, tender but not soggy, and the bacon (a nice portion) was actually crispy, adding a great crunch to the burger. The olive mayo complemented it, making it a complete masterpiece. I’m no burger novice, so it takes something extraordinary to make me sit up and take notice, and this is one burger that has it. It’s no wonder, the Side Door Saloon has the right to boast about winning the 2009 Best Eats award by the Traverse City Magazine

Frank Gotts the owner and operator, is right on point with their menu. Loaded with some good old comfort food, and some very unique items. For starters you can get, white fish nachos, loaded with smoked white fish, jack and cheddar cheese, lettuce, and Pico de Gallo $8.99. Smoked white fish quesadilla with herb cream cheese, cheddar jack cheese, Pico de Gallo, with seasoned sour cream $8.99. They also have several salads to choose from like Southwest salad or Mandarin sunset salad, along with homemade soup’s and chowders. If it’s wraps or sandwiches your craving, they have many to offer. Check these out; Ruski wrap, loaded with chicken salad made with pineapple, dried cherries, dill and romaine, wrapped up on a flour tortilla at $6.99. Smoked BBQ chicken wrap also at $6.99. The portabella mushroom sandwich is a popular one, a large portabella cap, marinated and grilled with onion, served on focaccia bread, with pesto mayo, with fresh spinach and tomato $7.49. The side door is most popular for their burgers. Third pound of freshly ground beef served up many different ways, like the Tuscan burger, lettuce, tomato, pesto mayo served on focaccia bread. The craving killer olive, mushroom, bacon burger $6.99. And if your real hungry try the “Big Momma” at $9.49. Many dinner specials are also offered, like the blackened salmon or Mahi Mahi, 8oz filet served on a Caesar or Greek salad with bread, and house veggies $14.99. Seafood pasta is a local favorite, plenty of jumbo shrimp, scallops, crab, bowtie pasta in a creamy lobster sauce.

For dessert you have got to try this, a home made brownie filled with Reese’s peanut butter cups, M&Ms, and Snickers toped with vanilla ice cream $4.99, sinfully delicious. Weekly specials are Mondays- pint of leinenkugel or Labatt’s for $1.50. Twin Tail Tuesdays- steak and lobster for $27.95 or two lobster tails at $32. Thursday is ladies day, Chardonnay $3.50, martinis $5, Bud and Bud lite $2.50 all day. Monday-Thursday Burger, and a pint of beer, or pop $5.50, 9:00 till midnight.

Make sure to visit the Side Door Saloon at 1356 N. US Hwy. 31 for casual dining, family fun, and great eats. Trust me, you’ll be sorry if you don’t give it a try.

A couple weeks ago, one of our readers e-mailed me to let me know how much he also enjoyed the City Park Grill, and to let us know about one of his favorite places. He recommended the Roast & Toast Café on Lake Street in downtown Petoskey. He said, “they have the best soups by item and by selection. They are unrivaled anywhere”. As I was unfamiliar with the Roast & Toast, and intrigued by his comments, we had to experience it first hand.

You can’t miss the sign, just look for the coffee cup mosaic surrounding the entrance. I was pleasantly surprised by this little café. It is what you would expect in a street side bistro, with some unexpected twists. The café has an eclectic décor, and is heartwarming to both young and old. Upon entering you will notice the wall mount chalk boards featuring their menu, daily soup specials, and an endless array of flavored coffee, cappucino, and espresso. Over fifty types of coffee and espresso are freshly roasted on site, with roasted coffee beans available for purchase. The wonderful aroma envelopes you with a warm and cozy feeling, perfect for lingering over a homemade meal on a chilly afternoon.

The menu offers eighteen different sandwiches, like their local favorite Chicken Club, with sliced chicken breast, blue cheese, pesto mayo, prosciutto, red onion, lettuce and tomato. All sandwiches are served on thick slices of fresh baked whole wheat, rye, sourdough, or vegetable bread. The Roast & Toast serves over one hundred different homemade soups on an alternating basis. Many specialty salads, wraps, soup combinations, and even a breakfast menu with egg wraps, French toast pancakes, bagels, and more. The very tempting baked fresh goodies like granola, sweet loaves, cookies, brownies, and glazed cinnamon rolls all look absolutely scrumptious.

We enjoyed the chicken corn chowder, and potato leek soup which were hearty and fabulous. We can also recommend the turkey avocado club, and the chicken salad sandwiches, also perfectly delicious. The piping hot turtle mocha is to die for. Also unique is the Ghiradelli hot chocolate, Chai tea, fresh squeezed lemonade, and iced Italian sodas. The Roast & Toast Café definitely does not disappoint, so make a point to stop in for breakfast, lunch or dinner for something really terrific anytime. We raise a toast and thank our reader for the suggestion, as you were spot on.

CJ. Ray

When you drive by a restaurant time and time again, and it’s always busy, you have to wonder if it’s just a popular local hangout, good prices, or just good food. My curiosity got the best of me, and I had to see why.  The place I’m referring to is the Northwood’s Restaurant in Conway. About five miles north of Petoskey. The Northwood’s is neat, and clean inside and out. It has a hometown kind of feel, with a subtle nautical charm.  We arrived at 6:30, and had about a twenty minute wait. We decided to sit in the bar, and enjoy a drink, while we waited. The manager stopped by to inform us that our table was ready, and we were promptly seated. The menu at the Northwood’s has an extensive variety of seafood; sea scallops, shrimp, salmon, walleye, perch and Alaskan Halibut. On the land side, you can find steaks, ribs, burgers, chicken & pasta, starting at $6.99. All entrees include choice of potato or rice, vegetables, salad or seafood chowder.  My wife ordered the perch at $16.99, baked potato and salad. The delicate fillets of perch were lightly battered, deep fried to a golden brown, and served piping hot. Excellent flavor, and not the least bit greasy, just perfect.   I decided on the popular fresh walleye at $18.99, with long grain wild rice and the seafood chowder. I always thought I made the best chowder. . . until now. The Northwood’s homemade seafood chowder is simply fantastic. It’s chock full of sea scallops, shrimp, and large chunks of white fish, and a few other hidden secrets. It is a must have, it’s really that delicious. Walleye is a staple found on most Northern Michigan menus, and I have eaten it prepared in many different ways. I thoroughly enjoyed the Northwood’s walleye with Italian breading, sautéed to a golden brown, moist and flaky on the inside. Our entire meal was excellent, beginning with the salad, soup and warm rolls, to our main course with large portions of fish. The service was excellent from our waitress to the general manager who actually brought our entrees to the table.

The Northwood’s is one of those places with little fanfare, as their friendly service, and tasty food does all the talking. Definitely a new favorite. If you want to try something new, especially if you’ve got a taste for seafood, take the short drive to the Northwood’s, you won’t be disappointed.

C.J. Ray

When you get that craving for a thick, juicy burger, and fast food just won’t cut it, go to the Mitchell Street Pub, downtown Petoskey, for some good old comfort food.  The Mitchell Street Pub is Petoskey’s first, and only, true pub. They have been serving up local favorites for the past 35 years, with a full service bar that includes over fifty different kinds of beer.  They have a complete menu, everything you would expect in a pub, like a Chicago style hot dog, or a patty melt at $7.95. The local favorite, a grilled cheese with three kinds of cheese, tomato, onion, on a Ciabatta artesian bread $6.95, and probably the best Rubin you will find anywhere. Lots of appetizers to start off with, and several different kinds of salads to choose from. White chicken chili, and nachos are another local favorite, or choose one of the homemade soups prepared daily.  The atmosphere here is laid back, fun, and comfortable. A place where you get a basket of complementary peanuts, and you’re expected to toss the shells on the floor. Mitchell Street Pub serves up, an unbelievable, four tons of peanuts a year!

There is so much to look at. You will find yourself mesmerized by the craziest ,off the wall collection, of stuff hanging on walls and from the ceiling. Antiques, photos, memorabilia, a bear rug, musical instruments, a miniature saddle riding atop a bomb from WWII , and many, many more. It is so incredibly interesting, you can sit and look at at everything throughout your meal.  We ordered the buffalo chicken sandwich and the pub burger. I love buffalo chicken sandwiches, I’ve had some of the best, and some of the worst. This tasty, spicy chicken sandwich rates at the top of my list. A tender breast of chicken drenched in buffalo sauce, with blue cheese, lettuce, tomato, served on a soft Kaiser bun, with unpeeled French fries, or hand dipped onion rings. I couldn’t decide, so I got both. The onion rings are fantastic, some of the best we have had. The burger was cooked perfectly and delivered hot, and juicy with lettuce, tomato and onion, on a nice soft Kaiser bun, with piping hot fries. The food was excellent, and definitely satisfied our craving for hearty, pub cuisine.  Desert beyond reason, deep chocolate cake with layers of smooth chocolate mousse toped with white chocolate mousse, and a sprinkle of cocoa on top at $4.95.  Clean spacious restrooms, and plenty of parking in the back make the Mitchell Street Pub easily accessible, and a fun, enjoyable place to eat.  A separate non smoking dining area is also available.

Looking for a romantic place to take that special someone, a business associate, or a nice upscale place to take the family?The Sage inside the Odawa Casino and Resort in Petoskey is a fantastic place to go. With a beautiful, quiet bar on one side, and a sophisticated, elegant dining area on the other. White table linens, and candlelight serves as the setting for an evening of spectacular food, and superior service from an exceptional, well dressed staff.  A beautifully designed restaurant, with a baby grand piano, playing relaxing music adding to the ambiance, making the evening memorable.  Saturday night we went to the Sage. Even though we had to battle the snow storm that blanketed our area with over a foot of snow, it was so worth it.  This was our first experience at the Sage, and I sincerely, wholeheartedly recommend it to you. They have a very impressive wine list of over 100 different labels from around the world, and over twenty five different martinis. The elegant menu offers many appetizers, and entrees that sound so delicious it’s actually very difficult to choose.  A few appetizers offered are calamari, crab cakes, and escargot.  A few entres include Bourbon incrusted lamb, baby back ribs, sautéed scallops, and New Orleans style BBQ shrimp at $20.00.  For soup starters they offer maple pumpkin bisque or shrimp clam chowder, both are made to order. Their salads are excellent and include a ceasar, or the Sage wolldorf, with apple, dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries, goat cheese, pecans, and cider rosemary vinaigrette.

After enjoying our cocktail our server returned, as we hadn’t decided on our entree’s, our waiter brought us our first course, amuse-gueule with Boursin cheese, topped with smoked salmon. (Excellent). The chef creates a different one every night.

We selected the grilled salmon, and the mustard encrusted pork tenderloin, both dinners priced at $25.00. The pork tenderloin was succulent, and oh so tender. Roasted peppers & grilled red onions, wilted Swiss Chard, and a cheddar & chive “Twice Baked Potato”
Roasted Shallot Jus. The grilled salmon, right up their with the best we have ever had. The salmon was moist, and flavorful, with roasted broccoli, cauliflower, fennel, butternut squash and parsnips potato Horseradish Mousseline. Let me tell you, everything was completely “of the chart”.  After our meal our server brought us a couple of sweet enticements, pumpkin seed brittle, fudge, and a blueberry gum drop, all made in house.  They also have an extensive dessert menu that will repress any sweet tooth. We ordered the chocolate raspberry tort with chocolate cream anglaisen, and house made ice cream that is simply out of this world.  The Sage is non smoking, however, you can easily step out into the casino and there is a comfortable seating area for your indulgence.   Big kudos to Chef Rob Sergeant, a creative genius.

After dinning we went over to the Ozone nightclub. An awesome seven piece band from Lansing was playing music from the 70’s, and 80’s. The ozone in a unique place, it reminds me of some of the clubs in Vegas. Very clean, white leather, state of the art interior, with two full service bars to serve you. The band is set up on stage right behind, and above, one of the bars. Fifteen TV’s, and private pods you can rent for the evening. After 11:30 DJ Fade takes over for the rest of the evening. We felt very comfortable, and had an excellent time at the ozone. It was a mixed crowd of all ages relaxing, and dancing.  Come party with us for New Years Eve at the Ozone, we’ll be there with bells on.

The Fall weather was perfect Saturday morning for a nice breakfast, and a walk around downtown Petoskey. We ate at the Southwoods family Restaurant on Spring Street, Petoskey. The Southwoods was built a few years ago, with contemporary décor, plenty of comfortable seating, and ample, easy parking. You can choose from a booth, or free standing tables, with cushioned chairs, in a large non-smoking dining room, or sit around the large horseshoe shaped bar.

To take the edge off from the precious night of socializing, we started off with the $2 bloody Mary’s from the full service bar. They were mixed perfectly, and tasted absolutely delicious. This full service restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with the breakfast menu available until 4:00pm. Quality and freshness being foremost at the Southwoods, even their coffee is ground fresh before each new pot is brewed.

After looking over the menu, it was difficult to decide whether we would be ordering breakfast or lunch. The menu is loaded with tantalizing items like, blueberry or pecan pancakes at $5.99 for a stack of three. Biscuits & gravy platter, at $6.99, eggs Benedict, wraps, omelets, hand dipped Texas French toast $4.99, and so much more. The lunch menu includes burgers, melts, sandwiches, and hot roast beef, just to name a few. The dinner menu offers chicken, pork chops, steaks, ribs, pasta, fish and seafood. We hear the blue sizzler is popular, a sirloin steak smothered with sautéed onions, and mushrooms topped with melted blue cheese.

As it was still morning, we chose the breakfast menu and ordered two eggs scrambled, sausage links, hash browns, and the country omelete topped with gravy, and cottage fries. Our order arrived quick and hot. The eggs were soft and supple, cooked just right. The hash browns were nicely browned, and moist.

The country omelet was outstanding, loaded with sausage, onions, potatoes, and American cheese, smothered with home made sausage gravy, and sautéed Cottage fries with red pepper and onion. A perfect companion for any omelet.

So get out of the house, get some exercise by walking around the enchanting downtown area, visit the local merchants, and stop in Southwoods Family Restaurant for friendly, quick service, and a quality, moderately priced meal that can‘t be beat.

You can see this review and other northern Michigan reviews at

www.returnguestsspecialists.com

Take a short drive to Petoskey to enjoy the Fall colors, and take in some history at the City Park Grill on East Lake Street. Originally constructed in 1875, called McCarthy Hall, it was a billiards hall that served alcohol. In 1888 an amazing 32 foot mahogany bar was installed, and the Annex, as it was named, began to provide dining and entertainment. Legendary Ernest Hemingway sat at the end of the bar on a regular basis in the early 1900’s. Over the years it changed hands many times, even surviving prohibition, with underground tunnels to export alcohol. In 1997, with new owners, the name changed to what is now known as the City Park Grill, after being fully restored to the original Victorian style in 1986. City Park Grill is definitely rich in history, but the menu provides contemporary fare.

The City Park Grill offers a comfortable, unhurried atmosphere, with beautiful Victorian décor, with a high stamped tin ceiling, truly the essence of days gone by. Spacious seating, white table linens, upholstered wood chairs, with a lively bar area offering extra seating. The menu offers an array of selections with several appetizers starting at $5.95. Many delicious soups, shellfish chowder, creole gumbo, and specialty salads are available. Choose from pasta dishes, pork and poultry, steaks, sandwiches, and seafood, including a grilled prosciutto wrapped salmon, or fresh white fish from John Cross Fishery in Charlevoix. A reasonably priced menu with pasta and poultry from $12.95,

and hand cut steaks such afilet mignon at $21.95, and seafood starting at $11.95.We started out with the shrimp spring rolls They were delicious, cooked to a golden brown, served with a sweet spicy plum sauce. We chose the City Park salad, $4.45 with entrée. The salad was exceptional, mixed greens toasted walnuts red onions, blue cheese, dried cherry’s, all tossed in a mustard herb vinaigrette. My wife ordered one of the dinner specials, the pepito encrusted white fish. This delicate, moist fish, is encrusted with ground pepito, sautéed to a golden brown, and served with their own butternut squash cream sauce. Truly extraordinary, with just a hint of pumpkin, I ordered the hand cut 12oz New York strip. Perfectly grilled, tender, juicy, and flavorful. We both tried the truffle mashed potatoes, and a plentiful amount of fresh, crisp vegetables. For the grand finale, we chose the chef’s pastry, double chocolate layered cake, with a light chocolate moose frosting. It was unbelievable, if you’re a chocolate lover, you simply must try it. Our dining experience was excellent, with a knowledgeable, friendly staff to see to your every need, we will return soon. Visit the City Park Grill for a fabulous dinner and a bit of history to boot.

CJ Ray.

Visit them at. www.cityparkgrill.com