Schnauzers Bar & Grill
205 N. Grand StreetWhen J got off work tomorrow, we had to head out to Schoolcraft for an appointment. We decided to take a look at our auto insurance and found out we were paying way too much. After switching insurance and saving $1000/year (not a typo), we headed downtown for lunch.
I was looking up places last night because I have only been to Schoolcraft one other time and I ate at a BBQ place that is now closed. I found a bar that looked good, but I didn’t write down the address. I figured I could just find it, but didn’t have any luck, so we had to pull over and look it up…but I couldn’t remember the name.
After a few minutes, I found it on my phone and started driving the wrong direction. I finally figured that out and turned around to head back to the same spot where we pulled over. Stupid me. We were sitting right in front of it and didn’t even realize it.
Schnauzers Bar & Grill is in downtown Schoolcraft on a very busy US-131 which goes by the name Grand Street through town. It’s an old building that shares walls with the buildings on either side. From the street, all you see if a red awning with the name on it. I actually missed it on the second drive by, but J noticed, so I went up to the next block to turn around and park in front of the building on the street.
The bar is set up like you would imagine most neighborhood eateries were in the archaic days before the smoking ban. There is a dining room off to the right when you walk in and the bar is off to the left. They are separated by a wall and are two complete, separate rooms.
We were looking for lunch mid-afternoon, so there weren’t a whole lot of people in the restaurant, but there were more than I would have expected for 2:00 in the afternoon on a Wednesday. We took a seat in the bar area near the door.
There was one waitress working the tables and the bar and I could see her bringing food out to another table. She noticed us sit down and came over with menus. I instinctively ordered a Coke without looking at the menu. Apparently, they have both Coke and Pepsi products and I would have rather had the Pepsi. J ordered a Diet.
When the waitress came back with our drinks, we had both made our meal decisions. The reason I chose Schnauzers is the burger menu, so that’s what I went with. I got the Blaze’n Burger which is a half pound fresh burger patty with jalapenos, jack cheese, and hot sauce. The burger was actually really good. It’s fresh pattied and char grilled so the meat had a great smokey flavor and it was loosely packed and juicy which made it fall apart in my mouth. When I got the burger, there looked to be a lot of jalapenos, so I had a feeling I was going to scorch my mouth, but it really wasn’t all that bad. The hot sauce came on the side and I wasn’t going to put any on at first just so I didn’t fry my taste buds, but I eventually put a little on the bun and it just brought the whole sandwich together. The hot sauce made the burger just hot enough to feel it, but not so much I couldn’t enjoy the delicious meat patty that it was covering up.
J went with her standby as well. She got the Buffalo Chicken Wrap. It’s a pretty standard wrap with breaded chicken breasts coated in hot sauce, lettuce, tomato, ranch dressing, and mozzarella. She had the option of either mild or hot when it came to the sauce and I pushed her towards the mild. The tortilla is grilled and comes warm which makes the sandwich even better. The chicken strips were large pieces of chicken breast that were covered in hot sauce, but not swimming in it. The cheese was thick slices of mozzarella cheese. It was a well put together wrap and something she really liked.
Both our meals came with fries which were crinkle cut out-of-the-bag fries, but there was enough on the plate that neither of us would leave hungry.
Our bill was just a little over $20. I had a $20 sitting on the table before we actually had the bill so the waitress just took it. She came back and said we were just a little short which I expected. We pulled out a couple more bucks to cover the bill and the tip then we were on our way.
Schnauzers is a really great little restaurant. They have a pretty good dinner menu and run a lot of specials which you can find on their websites. Schoolcraft isn’t all that far from Kalamazoo and it’s one of those places that could make a great date night destination. For someone who grew up in a small town, I like finding these neighborhood establishments. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but for me, they’re perfect.
Blaze'n Burger w/Fries
Buffalo Chicken Wrap
SW Michigan Dining 