Gull Lake Distilling Company (Battle Creek)
80 W. Michigan AvenueWe don’t get to Battle Creek often enough to hit up all the restaurants I want to try. Sure, I get over there for work quite a bit but I don’t usually have the time to do a full service, sit down restaurant and even if I would, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy a drink with my meal.
We were in Battle Creek Friday night because the kids were skating at The Rink. Wings Event Center was hosting the MHSAA wrestling team finals so we had to find some different ice.
The kids were done for the night around 6:30. Earlier in the night, L said she didn’t feel well and just wanted to go home. When we got in the car, I asked what the plan was. Were we going home or trying to find some place for dinner. To my surprise, not only did L say she wanted to find dinner but she wanted to go sit down somewhere as a family.
There are a few places in downtown Battle Creek that I’ve been wanting to go to so I just had to take my pick.
I picked Gull Lake Distilling Company. This is the second location for the small distillery based in Galesburg. The Battle Creek location is on West Michigan Avenue north of McCamly Street. The restaurant takes up a large street level space underneath the parking ramp across from the old Arcadia Ales building. This spot has been a restaurant for as long as I can remember. It was Pastrami Joe’s for several years before becoming the second location for Torti Taco. Gull Lake Distilling came in after Torti Taco closed and opened up last fall.
There are some parking spots in front of the building but those were all full. Fortunately, the restaurant is literally in a parking ramp and that ramp has three free hours of parking. We just pulled in to the ramp and made the short walk to the front door.
The restaurant has kind of an odd shape. It’s a long, narrow room with seating on either wall. The space is kind of set up as a cross between a restaurant and a bar. One side has the traditional four top tables while there’s a standing rail with pub chairs looking out the windows at Michigan Avenue.
There are two bars in the space but only one was open the night we were in there. I was a little surprised to see the place kind of empty on a Friday night but it was still early. The bar that was open had a few people watching the Michigan hockey game while enjoying one of Gull Lake’s delicious cocktails.
We have been to the Galesburg distillery a couple of times but it was before they started serving food in house. The times we were there, they had food trucks so we had never had their food before. We have had their drinks and that’s what we were really looking forward to.
I picked the Old Fashioned and had it smoked. The drink is a classic old fashioned with bourbon, bitters, orange, two bourbon infused cherries, and simple syrup. The glass comes covered with a coaster to hold that smoke in until it gets to the table which makes for a fun presentation. Lifting the coaster off, you can see the smoke rise from the glass, The smell hits your nose before taking the first sip which enhances the experience.
J ordered the Blue Note. This drink is bourbon, blueberry pomegranate, bitters, orange, brown sugar, and blueberries. The first thing she said was why are bourbon drinks from distilleries so easy drinking. I told her $50/bottle bourbon is way smoother than a $20/bottle Jim Beam. She was back and forth on a couple of drinks but really glad she picked this one.
There were a lot of delicious sounding options on the menu and we couldn’t wait to dig in.
I ordered the Cubano. This sandwich is ham, pulled pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and beer mustard on a Hoagie Roll. There is a lot of meat smashed between the two pieces of bread. The Hoagie Roll had a hard time holding everything together because the pork was juicy. The flavor was right on point for a Cuban but the bread needed a little help. This was a delicious sandwich and I was sad when it was gone. I upgraded my side to fries. These were battered frozen fries with a heavy salt and pepper seasoning. The plate was pretty full so I was pretty stuffed by the time I got done with it.
J ordered the GLDC Mac and added pulled pork. This plate came with a large serving of cavatappi pasted covered in an Apple Brandy Smoked Gouda. The added pulled pork was on top. The meat was covered in a delicious, sticky sauce from being braised in Cola. Once word got out, both L and I were reaching across the table trying to steal what little bits we could. This was a delicious Mac ‘n Cheese on it’s own…L might have had a bit of FOMO for not ordering it. The pulled pork just elevated this dish to something else.
L ordered the BLT Wrap….without the T…or the mayo. The wrap is a typical bacon, lettuce, tomato with a Lemon Basil Aioli. L made it pretty much a Bacon and lettuce wrap which she usually does with BLT’s. Even without the tomato, this was a large wrap, grilled on both sides, and exactly what she was looking for when said she wanted to go out for dinner. She also upgraded to the fries and when it was all said and done, there wasn’t a crumb left on her plate.
We were not offered a kid’s meal for B but it was fine because they had a cheeseburger on the menu. We just did the Build-Your-Own burger option for him and added bacon. He was surprised when he got a double cheeseburger. His eyes lit up. I don’t think he’s ever had a double before. He picked the sandwich up and started in on it getting about 3/4 of the way through the burger before admitting defeat. I didn’t order a burger because I assumed I’d end up eating part of his. It was a really tasty, juicy cheeseburger. We didn’t upgrade his side because he doesn’t eat fries. We stuck with the house made chips for him and I think L and I both rethought our decision to order the fries. The chips were deliciously crispy and slightly salty. We all snacked off his plate and left about half of them for J to take home with her leftover Mac for another meal.
The bill for our meal was $102 before tip. Very pricy but J and I both had cocktails and all four of us loved our meals.
Obviously, at that price, this is not an every week meal for us. This was a special night out because we don’t do nights out like this anymore. Our lives are consumed with ice rinks and fast food. I had a Friday night off and we were done with ice skating early in a city we don’t get to often. It was really nice to go out to dinner as a family, no one complained (too loudly), and everyone ate their meal. It was a fabulous evening out with a really great dinner. Gull Lake Distilling Company is exactly what we were looking for that night.
SW Michigan Dining 