Burke’s Waterfront
2403 Sunnyside DriveWe really didn’t have to stay in Interlochen Saturday night.
This was supposed to be a big mini vacation but J came down with COVID the day we were supposed to leave. L and I went ahead with the trip to Traverse City for her ice skating competition but we really didn’t do anything outside of that. I suggested ice cream. I suggested hiking. I suggested the beach. She didn’t want to do any of that with me.
We headed back to the cabin in Interlochen after our team meal at The Little Fleet in downtown Traverse City. L asked if we could just go home but I had already paid for this AirBnB and really, I thought J could use one more night by herself to recover without us being home.
We had to be out of the cabin by 10 AM Sunday morning. L wanted to get back to Kalamazoo for open skate at Wings West anyway so I set my alarm for 8:30, cleaned up, got her up and we got on the road.
We both had a slice of leftover pizza from our Friday night pizza stop at Cicero’s Pizza but that was all we had for breakfast. I didn’t do much planning. I figured if we were going to stop, we’d find something along the way.
It wasn’t until we got back to Cadillac until I saw a restaurant…and it looked packed so I kept going hoping I’d run into another one. Sure enough, I did.
I interrupted L who was doing something on her phone in the backseat with her earbuds in. I asked if she was hungry and she said she was just about to say something after seeing a McDonalds. I asked if she wanted to stop for breakfast and I got an enthusiastic yes.
We stopped at Burke’s Waterfront on Sunnyside Drive on the southwest side of the city. The address says Sunnyside Drive but you pass it on M-55 just north of the interchange with US-131 between Lake Cadillac and Lake Mitchell.
Read more…The Little Fleet
448 E. Front StreetWe did it.
L and I managed a figure skating competition without J.
Our planned family mini-vacation didn’t happen. J came down with COVID. The rest of us somehow avoided it. The kids had just gotten their booster shots and I was in Mackinac Island all week for work.
Figure skating competitions are hard for dads. There’s hair. There’s makeup. There’s dresses. I managed it all somehow. I got L’s hair in to a pretty tight bun and the two of us did the best we could with the makeup. We had a dress mishap and some blood on the tights when L somehow cut herself with her toe pick but we managed. Overall, it was a really successful day. L walked away with two first place medals and had a lot of fun with her teammates and coaches.
L was the last skater for a while for her coach so the coaches asked the group if we all wanted to go to dinner together. They usually try to make reservations but the suggested restaurant from the parents group wasn’t open for dine-in.
J has a friend in Traverse City and she suggested a food truck park downtown. We figured there would be something that everyone would eat and we wouldn’t have to worry about getting a big enough table.
The Little Fleet is pretty awesome. It’s a food truck park on the corner of Front Street and Wellington on the east side of Traverse City’s downtown. The lot has four food trucks and a permanent building with a bar and a taco stand. The park has been open for almost ten years now taking over what used to be a liquor store parking lot.
Read more…Cicero’s Pizza (Interlochen)
Welp. It took two years, but it finally happened.
L had a figure skating competition in Traverse City a few weeks ago. It was supposed to be a family trip. We had rented an AirbNb and we were going to stay a few nights and enjoy Northern Michigan.
That was the plan anyway.
I spent the week in Mackinac Island for work. Thursday morning, J texted. She didn’t feel well and the COVID test came back positive. She isolated as much as she could from the kids, wore a KN95 around the house and cleaned everything.
Obviously, the trip to Traverse City was a no-go for her but I was gone all week and the kids had just got their booster shots two weeks prior so we were hopeful the rest of us could avoid it. We tested L every morning and no one else showed any symptoms.
We had made the plan that I would still take the kids and keep testing them. We really didn’t want L to miss this competition.
J’s mom ended up asking if we’d like to leave B with them. That way he could still go to his T-Ball game. I didn’t mind taking him but he’d have more fun with Nana and Grandpa at the lake. We told him he could take his Switch so he could play Fortnite so he was on board with that too.
As soon as L got home from school on Friday, her and I jumped in the car and started driving north. I had already booked a cabin in Interlochen when I thought it was all four of us and since it couldn’t be cancelled, she and I headed that way.
We got to Grand Traverse County around 7:30. L was in the backseat with her earbuds in not paying attention to me when I asked if she was hungry. I didn’t care what she thought anyway. I was hungry and I pulled off the road to look up pizza places near Interlochen.
I found a couple and since we were about a half hour away, I called the one closest to our cabin in hopes it would be ready when we got there.
My choice was Cicero’s Pizza right on the southside of this small unincorporated community. The restaurant is a standalone building on M-137 (J. Maddy Parkway) just north of Railroad Street. M-137 is still a pretty fast road and I almost missed it, but there’s a sign out front and a pretty large parking lot next to the building that caught my attention.
Read more…Mighty Mac Hamburgers
7315 Main StreetI don’t typically eat on Mackinac Island unless I’m staying on the Island. Restaurants are a little more expensive on the Island and I’m typically running to a ferry trying to get back to the City at a decent time.
I had some rare downtown on my last day working on the Island this spring. I’m typically pretty busy from the time I get off the ferry to the time I get back on, but this day was different.
I haven’t actually walked around Mackinac Island in quite a while. J and I went over a decade ago right after we moved to Michigan and that’s the only time I’ve been there for pleasure. I’ve stayed on the Island a couple times for work but I’m usually too exhausted to do any exploring once I get back to whatever hotel I’m staying at.
I was working at the Grand Hotel so I walked down to Main Street just before noon. I kind of had an idea of where I wanted to go. I was looking for quick and as cheap as I could find on the Island.
I picked Mighty Mac Hamburgers on Main Street (Lake Shore Drive/M-185) right at the intersection with Astor Street in downtown Mackinac Island.
Read more…Hoppie’s Landing
1395 US-31All I wanted for dinner was a pizza.
I thought that would be pretty easy. There are two pizza places in Mackinaw City, Mama Mia and BC Pizza.
My plan was to put in an order while I was on the ferry heading back across the Straits of Mackinac but as I sat down and did a Google search, both places were closed.
Well, crap. It’s not like there are a lot of places around Mackinaw City and there really aren’t a lot of places that are open past 9:00. It was already 7:30 and I knew I was going to have to drive somewhere.
I quickly did a Google search on my way back and found Hoppie’s Landing in Pellston. They do online ordering and it was only about 20 minutes so if I left as soon as I got back to my hotel, I would make it with plenty of time to spare.
Hoppie’s has locations in Cheboygan (Hoppie’s Tavern) and Pellston (Hoppie’s Landing). I picked the Pellston location which is actually at the Pellston Regional Airport on US-31 just north of Pellston.
Read more…Bridgeview Diner
110 W. Central AvenueWorld’s Best Burger. That’s quite a claim. I hope you can back that up.
My second night in Mackinaw City was a long one. I got back on the ferry from Mackinac Island at 8:00 after working up at the Grand Hotel most of the day. There’s not a lot of good food options in Mackinaw City that are open past 9:00 PM so I had been saving the one I knew of for the day I got back to the mainland pretty late.
I typically stay at the Best Western Dockside when I travel to Mackinac Island for work. The hotel is close enough to Shepler’s Ferry that I can walk in the morning so I don’t have to pay to park my car at the dock.
I headed back to the hotel after getting off the ferry to drop my stuff off then grabbed my car to go grab a burger.
I picked Bridgeview Diner this night for a couple of reasons. They’re open until 11:00 and they have a sign out front claiming to be the “Home of the World’s Best Burger.”
Bridgeview Diner is just outside of downtown Mackinaw City on Central Avenue. The restaurant is just past the overpass for I-75 and, as the name implies, within view of the Mackinac Bridge. If the large sign out front doesn’t catch your attention, the red and yellow paint scheme definitely will.
Read more…Courtyard Cinemas
248 S. Huron Street- Mackinaw City, MI 49701
- (231) 436-7890
- Website
Another year, another work trip to Northern Michigan.
It was time for the annual spring conference we go to every year on Mackinac Island. I decided to make the drive up on Memorial Day to avoid an early morning drive on Tuesday to get to the Grand Hotel when the conference opened at noon.
I checked in to my hotel around 4:30, had dinner at Keyhole Bar & Grill, and picked up fudge for the family at Joann’s Fudge.
It was still early and I knew there was a movie theater in town. When I was here in the fall, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Seven Rings was in theaters and I strongly considered going to see it before taking nap. This time, Bob’s Burgers had just hit theaters and I haven’t seen it yet.
I decided seeing a movie was better than sitting in my hotel room all night. I think I made the right choice.
Courtyard Cinema is in the Mackinaw Crossings shopping complex near downtown Mackinaw City. The address is Huron Street but you’ll never find it if you’re looking for it on Huron. The parking lot is on Mackinaw Crossings Drive. You can also enter the shopping center from Central Avenue and just park along the street.
Read more…Joann’s Fudge (Mackinaw City)
303 E. Central AvenueMy kids are catching on. They know I can’t actually go to Mackinac Island without bringing home fudge.
For a long time, I would actually buy the fudge on the Island but I’m always rushing to get back to the ferry. The last couple of times, I’ve bought fudge as soon as I’ve gotten to town in Mackinaw City.
The first thing I did when I got to town was pick up dinner at Keyhole Bar & Grill. After that, I walked around downtown Mackinaw City looking in shops until I found a familiar fudge shop.
Joann’s Fudge has two locations actually on Mackinac Island and one in Mackinaw City. I’ve been one of the Mackinac Island locations. They’re both on Main Street not too far away from each other. This is the first time I’ve been to the Mackinaw City location.
The Mackinaw City Joann’s Fudge is on Central Avenue right in downtown Mackinaw City. The shop is part of a long row of buildings on the very busy main drag through the heart of the city.
Read more…Keyhole Bar & Grill
323 E. Central AvenueBack to Mackinaw City for work. It feels like I was just here. I come up most years in the spring for a conference on Mackinac Island. Last year’s conference was in September due to COVID in the spring. We’re back on regular schedule this year with a spring conference.
I drove up to Mackinaw City on Memorial Day. I didn’t really want to get up at 4 AM on Tuesday if I didn’t have to.
I got in to Mackinaw City around 4:30 and got checked in to my hotel. I purposely didn’t eat on the way up because I had plans once I got to town.
I headed straight downtown to the Keyhole Bar & Grill on Central Avenue. The bar is kind of a dive bar. It’s been a year round staple in downtown Mackinaw City for over 45 years. It’s been suggested to me for years but I always seem to be in Mackinaw City during busy times. I’ve tried stopping in a few times over the years but there’s always a wait for a table.
Read more…Murray Street Brewing Company
57620 Murray StreetI had what I thought was a pretty great idea. Order food from Nonla Burger in Mattawan then head down the street to the brewery for a few beers. J thought it was a good idea too. The kids? They never like my ideas but they don’t really get a choice.
We had plans to go ice skating at Wings West Saturday night. L likes to take advantage of the open skate times because it’s cheaper than club ice. The further we get away from winter, the fewer people show up to Open Skates. That gives L quite a bit of ice to work with.
I asked J if she wanted to grab dinner before we headed to Wings West. I had an idea for burgers and beers. She was on board.
We headed towards Mattawan. I put in an order for Nonla Burger online. We made a quick stop there to pick up food then we headed down the street to Murray Street Brewing Company.
Murray Street Brewing Company isn’t hard to find in downtown Mattawan. The large red barn is located on Murray Street just to the north of front street. Before becoming a brewery, the building was used for an antiques shop called The Livery. I have a hunch this building actually was a livery many years ago.
Read more…
SW Michigan Dining 