The Harvey House

• 125 Water Street
• Constantine, MI 49042
• (269) 228-6977
• Website
• Menu

Fall is my favorite time of year. I pick up a lot of overtime at work doing something I really like doing. Most of that overtime comes on Friday nights. I work my normal shift then usually go on a short road trip somewhere to pick up a few extra hours.

Last week, I ended up in Constantine. I had a little bit of time before my overtime assignment actually began so I decided I needed dinner.

There’s a new brewery in town and a pretty good pizza place right in downtown but there’s another place I’ve wanted to go for a long time….just because I always thought it looked cool from the road.

The Harvey House has quite a history in downtown Constantine. The building dating back to the 1845 sits on the corner of Water Street and Washington Street (BL-131) right along the St. Joseph River. The building was owned by John Stuart Barry who was twice the Governor of Michigan. The building was originally a warehouse but it was moved in 1862. The building was then used as a store. The Barry family kept the building long after his death before selling it in 1904 where it became a The Hotel Harvey. Over the next 100 years, several business called the hotel home. In the early 2000’s, the hotel was bought and the Harvey House restaurant became the main focus of the building. The building was sold again in 2018 and again in 2022. That’s the iteration of the Harvey House we have today. (Source for all that history)

I pulled off the road in Three Rivers on my way down to Constantine from Kalamazoo. I was going to call in an order when I realized they had online ordering. That made my life so much easier. I put in an order for the Bacon Harvey Cheeseburger and an order of fries.

I got to the Harvey House right about the time the Internets told me my food was going to be ready. The entrance that’s in use today is actually on Water Street towards the back of the building. This brings you right in to the bar area. This space has those gorgeous wood floors with a matching chair rail and bar. The barstools are the traditional backless leather bar stools that just add to the ambiance of the place.

There’s also some tables spread throughout the space and an area for live bands. I was a little surprised to see someone actually playing when I stopped in just before 6:00. There were a couple of large tables of people enjoying some beers and live music to get their weekend started.

The bartender told me they were just boxing up my meal so I took a seat at the bar while I was waiting for it to come out.

I may as well have just sat at the bar and ate. I ended up going back to my car and popping open the Styrofoam container immediately. I could smell the food and couldn’t wait to dig in.

I started with the fries like I usually do when I eat out. These were frozen steak fries with not much seasoning on them. They were way better than the usual restaurant style fries though and there was quite a bit there which really helped fill me up before an evening a exerting a lot of energy.

The burger was good. Like really good.

The sandwich is a brioche bun with a thick, juicy patty, American cheese and crispy bacon. The online ordering portal was a little confusing so I didn’t know all that came on it. It was a section for “NO” then clearing lists things that aren’t put on it. I clicked off all the things I assumed would be on it except pickles. That’s fine. I like pickles and they actually made this already solid burger solider.

The cost for my meal was just over $23. There was a $4 surcharge for ordering online that I didn’t notice until I was ready to hit submit and by that time I was committed.

The Harvey House is a great small town restaurant. They have a patio along the river too which looked like a great place to enjoy a meal on a summer evening. the place has the best of both worlds. It’s a great spot to meet up with friends and drink some cheap beer while shooting pool but they also have some really delicious food.