J & S Hamburg South Airport
1083 W South Airport RoadFrom Mackinaw City to Traverse City. I didn’t even get a chance to sleep in my own bed.
The kids had a figure skating competition at the Centre Ice Arena in Traverse City. It’s one of our favorite competitions of the year because we also treat it like a vacation. This year, we stayed at the Sugar Beach Resort and hung out with friends when we had downtown.
There are long breaks in figure skating competitions. It’s not unusual to get to the rink at 7 AM for practice, have one event at 9 AM and the next event at 6 PM. That was kind of how our weekend played out.
Both of L’s events were actually pretty early on Friday but B had a evening event. When L was done, we left the rink for a while, got lunch, swam at the hotel, then went back for B’s event.
Getting our kids to eat lunch has gotten really difficult. They won’t eat anything and complain about every restaurant. J and I get tired of fighting and wasting money but we don’t want to eat Chick-Fil-A and Tropical Smoothie for every meal when we’re at these competitions.
The one thing the kids will always eat with very little complaint is breakfast…so that’s what I’ve started looking for when we go to lunch.
I found J & S Hamburg South Airport not too far from the rink and they do all day breakfast.
The airport themed diner is near the Cherry Capitol Airport on West South Airport Road near Garfield Avenue. The small restaurant is part of the larger Colonial Square Shopping Mall. It takes up the two storefronts on the west end of the building. We had a hard time turning in to the shopping center from South Airport Road so I went to the next business to turn back around and make a right hand turn but we noticed there was a pretty worn out path between the two businesses so we were likely not the only ones that gave up on trying to make a left hand turn and just parked at the pet food store next door.
We walked up a little before 1:00 PM and the lunch rush was just finishing up. The waitress pointed out there was a clean table near the kitchen so we headed there. The theme of the place scream airport with a large, bright mural painted on one wall and clocks, propellers, and other aviation related signs covering the rest of the walls.
There’s also a lunch counter along the inside wall and it was packed when we sat down. It’s a good option for the solo diner as all the tables in the dining room are for bigger groups.
The menu is classic diner fare which is exactly what we were looking for. I was able to get a burger. The kids were able to get breakfast.
My burger choice was the Bronco burger. The 1/3 lb. hand pattied burger is topped with bacon, jalapeno cheese, a fried onion ring, and a home made BBQ sauce. The onion ring actually came on the side and I just left it there. Everything else on this sandwich sounded delicious so that’s why I ordered it. And it was a pretty tasty sandwich. The meat was salty and crumbly. The bacon added more saltiness and a crunch. The jalapeno cheese gave it a slight heat. I could have went hotter but it was delicious the way it was. The BBQ sauce was just a thin spread of sweetness. I hesitate ordering burgers with BBQ sauce on them because a lot of times they become a sloppy mess. This one had just the right amount to where the sticky sweetness was there but I wasn’t licking it off my hands the rest of the day. The sandwich came with chips but I upgraded to nothing special fries, but they’re a good addition so I don’t leave hungry.
J’s pick was the BLT. This sandwich is made with home made white bread and filled with bacon, lettuce, and tomato. She’s not a big tomato fan so she pulled those off and made a BL sandwich. She was looking for something on the lighter side and that’s what she got. Her sandwich came with chips and she opted against upgrading to fries.
The kids went straight for the breakfast menu. B ordered the Mickey Mouse pancake with two slices of bacon. His eyes lit up when the huge pancake was set down in front of him. We broke that thing up for him and poured on the syrup. He hate about three quarters of it and we were good with that. It was a huge pancake.
L kind of went a la carte which is her M.O. She started with pancakes and got two of those. They were the same kind of big fluffy pancakes B got but not in Mickey Mouse shape.
She also got a side of bacon and toast. She doesn’t eat a whole lot of meat but she could live off bacon. The bacon was just how she likes it. Super crispy. She kept it simple and just got white toast which is their home made white bread.
Our bill for breakfast/lunch was right around $50. The bill is paid at a cash register right next to the kitchen in the back of the space.
J & S Hamburg South Airport was the perfect spot for us. J and I got a delicious lunch and the kids were able to get the simple breakfast staples they love. We realized after stopping at Leo’s Coney Island after a competition in Ann Arbor this is the way to go, so we’ll continue to seek out great diners like this with all day breakfast when we travel.
SW Michigan Dining 