HopCat – East Lansing
300 Grove StreetI love work trips to Lansing. Anything outside of the Kalamazoo-Battle Creek-Grand Rapids area means the company pays for our meals.
Late last week, a co-worker and I got sent to Lansing late in the day. We had a scheduled appointment downtown at 7:00. We were finished up by a little after 7:30 and wanted to find something to eat.
When I lived in Lansing and wrote Mid-Michigan Dining, I constantly complained about downtown Lansing. I worked for a summer at Oldsmobile Park, so I spent a good number of summer nights downtown…and it sucked. Everything closes at 7:00. There are a couple of bars that stay open, but any of the quick service sandwich shops are closed well before the sun goes down.
Co-Worker wasn’t really impressed with anything in downtown Lansing, so I started thinking outside of downtown. I was about to suggest Leo’s Outpost, but then he came up with a better idea. HopCat.
I love HopCat in Grand Rapids and even though we didn’t have time to actually sit down and eat, I suggested carry-out. We still had some things to do in Lansing later on in the evening and ordering carry-out would give us time to run to East Lansing and get back.
East Lansing’s Hopcat is in the highly visible, well-traveled downtown area right on the edge of Michigan State University’s campus. The restaurant is on Grove Street a block off of Grand River Avenue. I don’t remember that building being there when I lived in the area, so I’m guessing it’s pretty new. Read more…
Earth Fare/Westnedge Kitchen – Portage
5070 S. Westnedge AvenueIs it just me or are grocery stores really changing. On the way out are the stores that just sell you groceries and maybe some salads from the deli. All these new stores popping up have cafe areas that will rival almost any restaurant alongside their aisles and aisles of gourmet, fresh, or organic foods.
The newest entry into the Kalamazoo market is Earth Fare. J has been super excited about this place for months as we watched the building being constructed in front of the Lowes on the corner of South Westnedge and Kilgore in Portage. I always like variety and Earth Fare offers something a lot of it’s competitors don’t. They don’t sell any products with high-fructose corn syrup, artificial fats or artificial transfats, artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, or sweetners.
Earth Fare has 33 locations throughout the Southeast and Midwest. The Portage store is the only one in Michigan at the moment. The doors to that store opened at the end of February and people were excited to see what was inside.
My first attempt at checking out Earth Fare was two days after it opened. The parking lot was full and the first two rows in the Lowes parking lot were full as well. I was about to give up when a spot opened up, so I zipped in before anyone else could. I didn’t realize the carts were on the outside of the store, so I was lost when I got in. I had L with me and the store was pretty crowded, so I picked her up. I didn’t really get to see anything on that trip because there were so many people it was hard to move. I tried to get to the cafe to get a sandwich, but gave up and decided to come back another time.
The following Sunday, L’s preschool performed at a church service, so for the first time in many, many years, we went to church to watch her sing. Afterwards, we were fairly close to Earth Fare and J suggested stopping for lunch. We sort of hit the same problem as we did my first attempt. No parking again. Once again, just as I was about to give up, a spot opened up right in front of me.
J has been going in the morning to get breakfast and that’s worked out much better for her. She’s able to get a smoothie and a sandwich plus have time to browse the store before it gets crazy. She was not expecting the mad crush of people that were waiting inside the doors after we got L in a cart and got inside. Read more…
Smokehouse 52
125 S. Main StreetOnce we finished our afternoon at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, we needed to run by the Briarwood Mall to run a few more errands. L and I went to the play area so she could blow off whatever steam she had left and J could do some shopping on her own.
I had hoped to make a stop in to Zingerman’s Deli, but we would have had to go back across town and I-94 was so close. Instead of getting delicious deli meat, we hopped back on the Interstate and started heading towards home.
J asked if there was any place on the way home we could stop for dinner. On the way to Ann Arbor, I was reminded of a suggestion J got from a co-worker quite a while ago as we passed the Chelsea exit.
Smokehouse 52 is in downtown Chelsea on the corner of South Main and Park Street. The old, two story building is hard to miss with the word “BBQ” on the side and a pig hanging off of it.
Parking was a little tougher than we figured it would be. There’s street parking all around the main business district. There’s also a municipal lot behind the row of buildings on Main Street. That lot was full. It was only 4:30 and already we were worried about getting a table.
After finally finding a street spot a block away, we made a quick walk down the street to the roadhouse style BBQ joint on the corner. Read more…
Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum
220 E. Ann Street- Ann Arbor, MI 48014
- (734) 995-5439
- Website
You all get it. It’s been a loooooooong couple of months with the never-ending snow and cold. Like many people in Michigan, we were starting to get a little bit of cabin fever and needed to get out of the house.
While looking for something to do last weekend, I stumbled across a website for the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum. It’s been a while since J and I took a trip to Ann Arbor…and L has never been there. The sun was out and the drive would be pleasant, so we decided to take our first day trip in several months.
The Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum opened in 1982 inside a historic firehouse. The building is in downtown Ann Arbor on Ann Street between 4th and 5th Avenues. The downtown location makes parking pretty tricky. They have some handicap spots right in front of the museum, but after that, it’s kind of a free-for-all. They suggest parking in a ramp a block and a half from the museum. Not a problem in the summer, but even though the sun was out, it was bout 5 degrees on the day we visited. A block and a half is an eternity with a slow walking 3 year old. We drove around the block several times looking for something closer before finding a Washtenaw County lot that is free and open to the public on weekends. That got us a little closer, but we still had about a half a block walk.
I’m pretty sure all of Southeast Michigan had the same idea to get out of the house because the museum was pretty packed when we got there just before 1:00. J was actually trying to time it a typical toddler nap time hoping some of the morning crowd would be leaving and the afternoon crowd wouldn’t be there yet. It actually looks like she was on to something because by the time we left at 3:00, it was almost impossible to move around the building. There were so many people there and so many more waiting to get in.
The admission cost is $12 for anyone over the age of 2. It really comes out to $36 for our child to play because you know J and I are just standing around watching. I want to play, but there were so many kids, I didn’t want to get in the way or take anything from them. Read more…
Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery
311 S. Main StreetIt’s been a long winter…but seriously, I don’t need to tell you that. Getting out of the house has been difficult. J and I spend so much time on the road in bad weather at work that when the weekend rolls around, we want nothing to do with crappy weather.
That cabin fever has really been settling in over the last few weeks. We’ve been trying really, really hard to get out of the house for a while.
Last Saturday, after catching a kids music show at Old Dog Tavern, we wanted to find something to do in the afternoon. We eventually settled on trying ice skating at Millennium Park, but during the search for something to do, I cam across the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum. It was too late in the day for a road trip at that point, but we put it on the radar for this past weekend.
A trip to Ann Arbor also meant a trip for delicious eats. There are so many great restaurants in Ann Arbor that it can be hard choosing just one. I, of course, chose one of the breweries and one that we have had great luck at in the past.
Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery is right in downtown Ann Arbor on Main Street. This location is about fifteen minutes from the brewery and taproom in Dexter and one of three Jolly Pumpkin restaurants. The three of us at ate the Jolly Pumpkin Restaurant, Brewery, Distillery near Traverse City when we went up that way this past fall. The third location will be in Detroit where they are opening a pizzeria and brewery.
We walked in to the building just before noon on a Saturday. They have both an upstairs area as well as the main floor. At this time, only the main floor was open, so we headed back to the host station. We were taken to a booth/table combo near the back of the space. The area we were sitting in is actually a four top with two-tops on either side that share the same bench. Luckily it was not that crowded. That’s really not my favorite type of seating arrangement, but it does allow for more guests during peak times.
I grabbed the beer menu and found a cider for J right away. Just like the restaurant in Traverse City, they had Nomad from North Peak which is a dry hard cider. The cider is brewed in Traverse City , on Old Mission Peninsula using locally grown apples. I don’t drink a ton of cider, but I tend to go for the sweeter varieties. This cider is much, much drier than I’m used to drinking, but J seems to like it and I only end up finishing what she has left anyway. Read more…
Wing Kingz – S. Division
3648 S. Division AvenueI was craving wings last weekend. LIke, really craving wings. Unfortunately, there aren’t really any good places in Kalamazoo. As a backup, we tried to go to Buffalo Wild Wings but there was already a line out the door at 4:30 on Saturday night. We ended up walking next door to Bilbo’s instead where I was able to get some delicious smoked wings, but I was still really, really craving wings the next day.
The next day, I was at work and not really doing anything, so I started looking for a wing place open in Grand Rapids on a Sunday. There are a couple really good wing chains in the area, so I had some choices.
The place I settled on was the Wing Kingz on South Division Avenue just south of 36th Street in Wyoming. The small shop is a carry-out place only. I’m not even sure they have an “inside.” It looks like all they really have is a drive-through window on the side of the building.
Before the building was a Wing Kingz, it was a Wing Heaven. As I mention every time I write an entry on either Wing Kingz or Wing Heaven, I really want to know what’s going on with these two chains. They’re practically the same. Practically the same menu and every thing. Oh, and a lot of the Wing Kingz locations are old Wing Heaven locations and Wing Heaven locations are popping up in new places. Read more…
G & L Chili Dogs – Sternberg Road
1133 Sternberg RoadWorking alone is not one of my favorite things to do. I enjoy the company of another person on some of the long drives and, more importantly sometimes, I don’t like doing my co-workers job. It’s not that I can’t do it, I just don’t like it. That’s why I chose the job I did, but sometimes, it happens and I just have to deal with it and do the best I can. Fortunately, I usually get an easier version of my co-workers job than they would get, so it isn’t all bad.
Earlier this week, I got sent to the Muskegon area for a quick task while my co-worker headed to Van Buren County to do something else. The task I was assigned only took about ten minutes and it happened to be right around dinner time, so I decided to make the best of the situation and stop in for a burger at a place I don’t get to often enough.
G & L Chili Dogs is a small chain of Coney Island-style places in the Muskegon area. There are four restaurants total with two in Norton Shores, one in Muskegon Township, and one in Holland. The first time I had ever eaten at a G & L was at the other Norton Shores location last spring. Read more…
The Tamale Guy and Co.
219 W. Cedar Street- Kalamazoo, MI 49007
- (269) 808-8775
- Website
- Sample Menu
In my previous blog post, I promised you another blog post about food. Boatyard Brewing Company on Kalamazoo’s Northside doesn’t have it’s own kitchen, but they take advantage of food trucks and catering companies looking for space. It’s an arrangement that works well for both parties. Boatyard has some tasty food to go along with their tasty beer and this small food vendors have a space to do what they do.
I woke up last Friday morning and checked my Instagram account like I normally do as part of my morning routine. I noticed BBC advertising that The Tamale Guy was going to be doing lunch at their place. When J got home from work, I showed her the menu for the day and asked if she wanted to go grab a couple sandwiches and some delicious beer.
The Tamale Guy and Co. is actually a caterer you can find quite often at Boatyard Brewing. Their set-up is pretty small. They have a couple of tables near the entrance to the brew-pub with their ingredients and a panini press. They typically have four sandwiches, a couple tacos, chips & salsa, a quesadilla, and one or two specials…oh yeah, and tamales.
The first thing we did when walking in to Boatyard was stop by The Tamale Guy’s table and order food. J and I each ordered a sandwich and we got L a quesadilla….although L and J ended up trading because Mommy’s looked better to L and J didn’t really care either way. Read more…
Boatyard Brewing Company
432 E. Paterson StreetI hate that it’s taken me so long to write this review. I don’t mean that I’ve been sitting on it for a while. I mean it has taken me a really, really long time to get to this brewery. I hate that.
Boatyard Brewing Company has been active on social media promoting their growing business for a couple of years. They just opened their taproom on Paterson Street just to the west of Riverview Drive and the Kalamazoo River last summer. In the nine months since then, I have been telling myself, “I’m gonna go tomorrow night. I’m gonna go tomorrow night.” Yeah, that never happened. I always made some excuse (usually it’s I’m too tired) and kept putting it off.
The thing that really kept J and I away is that they don’t have a kitchen. We don’t mind taking L to breweries or bars as long as their is food. When there’s no food, it just feels weird having a toddler in a bar, so we’ve never even discussed going for a drink.
They don’t have their own kitchen, but they do have several food trucks that will occasionally serve lunch or dinner. It was finally one of those options that finally got us in to Boatyard Brewing for lunch.
The building that houses the brewing is the old Standard Oil Fuel Depot. The very industrialized building is the perfect setting for a craft brewer. They kept a lot of the existing features from the floors, walls, and ceilings, then added a large bar and some tables in what has become the taproom.
The first thing we did is hit up The Tamale Guy and Co. for food…but I’ll blog about that in a separate post. This one is just focusing on the brewery since that’s what Boatyard Brewing really is.
Once I placed the food order at the make-shift kitchen near the door, J and L found a table while I headed to the bar for drinks. I immediately selected the Scuttlebutt IPA and damn, did I make a good choice. You really better like hoppy beers if you pick this one. It’s a combination of a British and American IPA and it’s dry hopped with Citra hops which give it that really great citrus-y, pine-y hop flavor. As I sit here four days later writing, my mouth is starting to water. I really should go back and get a growler. Yeah….it was that good. Read more…
The Blind Squirrel Tavern
I don’t get to the City of Fremont all that often. In fact, I’ve only been there twice…and both times, I’ve been with the same co-worker who has talked me in to dinner.
Last time, we stopped at a little sandwich shop called The Lunch Pail. Unfortunately, they have gone out of business since last winter, so we had to find something new. As we were driving through downtown, we passed a little bar that actually triggered something with my co-worker, so we turned around and headed back to find something eat.
The Blind Squirrel is on West Main Street in downtown Fremont. There is an entrance off the street side, but it seems like most people used a parking lot in the back. We didn’t know any better and found street parking, so we went in through the front.
The dining room and bar area is all the way to the back of the building. I’m not exactly sure what the front of the building is used for as it’s really just a big empty room. We just made our way down the hallway past the kitchen to the bar area. We were looking to do carry-out, so we actually grabbed a couple of seats at the bar while looking over the menu.
The menu is nothing at all like what I was expecting. They have a really great line up of specialty burgers, sandwiches, and dinner entrees. I had a really hard time deciding on just one thing. I’m pretty sure I could have thrown a dart at the menu to pick what I was going to eat and I would have been happy no matter where it landed. Read more…
SW Michigan Dining 