Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill

1 09 2008
  • 281 Heinlein Strasse
  • Frankenmuth, MI 48724
  • (989) 652-6060
  • Website
  • Menu
Sullivans Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill in Frankenmuth, MI

Sullivan's Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill in Frankenmuth, MI

My parents have been to Lansing several times since I moved here from Central Illinois.  On I-94 going through Indiana, they always see a billboard for Bronner’s CHRISTmas Wonderland.  Christmas is a big deal in my family and this year it’s even more special. My brother and his wife are expecting my parents first grandchild.  My mom, dad, and aunt decided to come north for Labor Day and I suggested we drive over to Frankenmuth to check out the town.  I heard it was pretty touristy and it was.

Before we did the tourist thing, we needed to find something for lunch.  My parents had been on the road since 8:00 AM CST and we arrived in Frankenmuth at about 2:00 EST.  Everyone kept saying, “Go to Zehnder’s” or “You have to eat at the Bavarian Inn.”  I did a little research and noticed the chicken dinners everyone raved about were $20/person, so that was out.  Seems pretty expensive…even for an all-you-can-eat.  I mean, really, it’s just chicken.  I didn’t get a whole lot of suggestions when I asked for one on Chowhound, but I ended up stumbling across a website for the Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill.

We ended up finding Black Forest right across the street from Bronner’s. My family was marveling at just how big the Christmas store was when I turned in the driveway for Black Forest.  They all turned around and said the same thing about the big, castle looking building we were now sitting in front of.   We hit up the brew pub during off peak hours.  It wasn’t quite lunch nor was it quite dinner.  We were right in between so there weren’t a whole lot of people in the restaurant at the time.  We were met at the door and show to a table in the dining area to the left of the bar.  Besides the bar area and the dining room, there was a four seasons patio not far from where we sitting.  Upstairs, there were big banquet rooms.  The dining room and bar area is realy spacious.  There are high exposed ceilings and lots of seating.  There is a big room enclosed in glass where the distillers sit.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Brew Pub, Burgers, Frankenmuth, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Redamak’s Tavern

25 08 2008
  • 616 E. Buffalo St.
  • New Buffalo, MI 49117
  • (269) 469-4522
  • Website
  • Menu
Redamaks Tavern in New Buffalo, MI

Redamak's Tavern in New Buffalo, MI

I had heard about a little bar in New Buffalo that may have the best hamburgers in the state.  In fact, I read that in a book at Barnes and Noble.  I don’t remember the name of the book, but the premise was the best hamburgers in each state.  In Michigan, there was Blimpy Burger in Ann Arbor (review HERE), Red Coat Tavern in Royal Oak (review HERE) another place I don’t remember and Redamak’s Tavern in New Buffalo.  For quite some time now, I’ve been wanting to stop at Redamak’s on our way home from Chicago.  After a three day weekend at my parents in Iroquois County, we finally got the chance, but not before a brief stop at Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets in Michigan City, IN.

We took a detour off of I-94 into Michigan City just because J had never been there and it had been years since I had.  We walked around, bought some candles at Yankee Candle and moved on.  Redamak’s is about 10 miles from Lighthouse Place and Blue Chip Casino.  Our GPS didn’t take us back to the Interstate, but instead took us on a two lane state highway through New Buffalo.  The tavern is located right on that busy highway.  We started turning into the parking lot and wondered if this was a good idea.  It was packed.   We went inside and again, had doubts about getting dinner.  There were quite a few people sitting down waiting to be seated.  We made our way up to the hostess stand and she asked the usual questions.  Smoking or non (damn Michigan) and then if we wanted to sit in the main dining room or the four seasons patio.  We said non-smoking preferably and we didn’t care.  Whichever would get us seated fastest.  To our surprise, she grabbed a couple menus right away and told us to follow.  We ended up sitting in the main dining room in a booth for two.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Burgers, Local Flavor, Michigan, New Buffalo, Restaurant, Reviews

The Peanut Barrel

19 08 2008
  • 521 E. Grand River Ave.
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-0608
  • Website
  • Menu
The Peanut Barrel on Grand River Ave. in East Lansing across the street from Michigan State University

The Peanut Barrel on Grand River Ave. in East Lansing across the street from Michigan State University

The Peanut Barrel is one of the restaurants that have been our list since we moved here.  One of our first weekends in Lansing, we went to check out East Lansing and MSU.  We walked by the Peanut Barrel and the patio area was full with a long wait, so we didn’t stop.  Every other time we’ve been down that way, the situation was the same, so we’ve always passed.  Those times were always weekends which makes sense.  Lots of students with families in town.  We finally made it to East Lansing on a Tuesday morning right before lunch and thought it would be the perfect time to try to get a seat outside. 

My girlfriend needed to go to the Secretary of State’s Office.  I asked her which one and she just said one near a restaurant we haven’t been to.  The Mason branch is the closest, but there’s not a lot of restaurants around there.  I thought I remembered seeing a branch in East Lansing and there are still a ton of restaurants in that area that we haven’t been to, so that’s where I went.  Like all trips to the SOS office, it never goes smoothly.  We had to drive all the way back home to get something and go back.  Same thing happened to me last time I went.  Why do they have to make it so damn hard? Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Downtown, East Lansing, Michigan, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews

Culver’s of Stevensville

10 08 2008
  • 4537 Red Arrow Highway
  • Stevensville, MI 49127
  • (269) 408-1780
  • Website
  • Menu
Culvers of Stevensville

Culver's of Stevensville

I love Culver’s custard.  There was always a debate at the place I used to work.  I prefered to go to Culver’s for “ice cream” but most of my co-workers wanted to go to Cold Stone Creamery.  I know they’re not the same thing or even close to the same thing, but given the choice, I would always choose Culver’s.  Things got really bad when I moved to an apartment that was within walking distance of one.  My girlfriend and I would walk over every now and then for a post-dinner snack.

We were on our way home from Chicago and were going to stop for a bathroom break anyway.  I noticed a sign for Culver’s along the highway and asked J if she wanted to take our bathroom break there.  Of course, she loved the idea, so we pulled into Stevensville and drove by the Dairy Queen all for some frozen custard. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Chains, Fast Food, Ice Cream, Restaurant, Reviews, stevensville

The State Room

7 08 2008
  • 55 S. Harrison Rd.
  • East Lansing, MI 48824
  • (517) 432-4000
  • Website
  • Menu
The State Room located inside the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center near MSU

The State Room located inside the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center near MSU

This week marks the one year of anniversary of the date I finally grew a pair and asked my girlfriend out.  The anniversary is actually Saturday, but we’re going to be in Chicago for a wedding, so there won’t be a chance to have a anniversary dinner out somewhere.  Instead, I decided to ask her out to dinner tonight.  Our first date was also on a Thursday night (last year, the 9th was on Thursday).  That first date was pretty casual at a new spot along the Peoria riverfront.  I wanted to do things a little different tonight, so I chose The State Room.

The State Room is located inside the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center on the campus of Michigan State University.  There’s no surface parking around the hotel, but there is a parking deck just off the side of the building.  The restaurant validates, so there is no charge to park as long as you eat dinner.  The parking structure is connected to the hotel by a skywalk which brings you into the conference area.  Down the long hallway and past the reception area, the State Room sits on the left side which would be closest to the corner of Michigan and Harrison. 

We were met at the door by a Maitre’d who asked if we had reservations.  I started sweating a little bit when he asked that.  I didn’t figure we’d need a reservation on a Thursday night.  I said no and he fiddled around a little bit looking at his table list.  He finally showed us to a table near the back of the room sort of near the kitchen and right on the wheelchair ramp that leads to the lower dining room. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, East Lansing, Fine Dining, Restaurant, Reviews

Jimmy’s Pub

5 08 2008
  • 16804 Chandler Rd
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 324-7100
  • Website
  • Menu
Jimmys Pub on Chandler Road in East Lansing.

Jimmy's Pub on Chandler Road in East Lansing.

After another day of shopping at Meridian Mall, we decided to head out to Chandler Crossing to get some lunch.  I know it doesn’t make sense, but this blog has been getting a ton of hits for Small Planet.  I noticed on their new website the kitchen is (is going to be?) open at 11:00 am.  Since that’s what a lot of people are coming here for right now, I thought we’d check out the menu and see if it’s worth going during the day.  We found Small Planet and there were people inside, but the doors didn’t open when we got up to them, so we assumed they were closed.

Since we struck out at Small Planet, we needed a new place for lunch.  We’ve seen the commercials for Jimmy’s several times on TV, but didn’t know where it was.  We passed the pub on Chandler Road and the parking lot is actually connected to Chandler Crossing.  It looked like our best bet for a meal, so we headed over to their side of the parking lot.

Jimmy’s has a pretty cool atmosphere.  It’s kind of got a old world street feel going.  When you walk in, you run into the big horseshoe bar.  If you look down, there’s a faux cobblestone street.  Above you is a fake night sky with little twinkling lights that look like stars.  The theme is continued with street lamps used for lighting and street signs hanging in the corners. 

There wasn’t a whole lot of people in the bar, but there were a few there obviously on a business lunch.  We found a pub table in the “pool room” and took a seat.  The menus were already on the table, so we started browsing before our server came over to take drink orders.  When she came back with our Pepsi’s, we were ready to order.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, East Lansing, Pub, Reviews, Sandwiches

Mike’s Village Restaurant

30 07 2008
  • 115 N. Bridge St.
  • Dimondale, MI 48821
  • (517) 646-6804
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Mikes Village Restaurant in downtown Dimondale

Mike's Village Restaurant in downtown Dimondale

I’m not sure how I first heard about Mike’s.  I’m pretty sure I saw a recommendation posted a couple years ago on Chowhound.  When we were at the farmer’s market at the State Capitol last week, I heard a lady advertising the Dimondale Farmer’s Market.  When someone asked her where it was, she said, “Across from the restaurant.  You know, Mike’s.”  From that comment, it sounded like it’s one of those places that everyone in the area knows about. 

We made our weekly trip to Horrock’s and Wal-Mart.  Like most of the trips, it was around lunchtime.  Dimondale is sort of on the way home so we started heading that way.  I didn’t grab an address, but I told my girlfriend to put the city center of Dimondal in the GPS.  I had a sneaking suspicion that it would get us to the right place.  Once we turned on Bridge St., we actually found quite a few restaurants which was a little surprising for such a small town.

Mike’s Village Restaurant wasn’t quite what I was expecting.  What I was expecting was a fairly good size family restaurant.  What we found was a somewhat small family diner.  The green awning out front let us know we were in the right place.  Mike’s is probably a turn of the century store front.  The entry way is up a couple steps and has an old, heavy, wooden door that pushes in to open. I tried to pull and couldn’t figure out why it wouldn’t open.  Once I figured it out, I went in first and went to pass the weight of the door back to my girlfriend.  Instead, it closed in a hurry and almost smashed her.  Neither of us were expecting that and now I feel bad.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Dimondale, Diner, Downtown, Local Flavor, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Red Coat Tavern

27 07 2008
  • 31542 Woodward Ave.
  • Royal Oak, MI 48073
  • (248 ) 549-0300
  • No Known Website
  • No Menu Online
The entrance to Red Coat Tavern in Royal Oak near Detroit.

The entrance to Red Coat Tavern in Royal Oak near Detroit.

I know.  I said I didn’t want to go into the suburbs for dinner and honestly, that wasn’t the plan.  We were going to take Corky and Amy’s advice and eat at Union Street Saloon.  We found the place across from the Detroit Medical Center and parked the car.  After dodging the homeless guy sleeping on the sidewalk, we got to the front door and found out they don’t open until 4:00.  It was only 3:00, so we didn’t want to stick around that neighborhood for very long and the only other place I could remember a name for was the Red Coat Tavern, so we put it in the GPS and headed back out of town.

After getting stuck in traffic on I-75, we got back to Woodward Ave. After a 10 minute or so drive downt the busy commercial street, we came up to the Red Coat.  Actually, I missed it the first time.  There is so much commercial along that stretch of Woodward the signs all block each other so by the time you get to the one you want, you’re right on top of it before you realize it.  I turned into the next parking lot which was connected to the Red Coat and backtracked to find a spot just under the huge awning leading to the front door. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Detroit, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Olde Peninsula Brew Pub

20 07 2008
  • 200 E. Michigan Ave.
  • Kalamazoo, MI 49007
  • (269) 343-2739
  • Website
  • Menu
The sign for Olde Peninsula Brew Pub in downtown Kalamazoo

The sign for Olde Peninsula Brew Pub in downtown Kalamazoo

After a weekend in Chicago, I had to drop my girlfriend off in Kalamazoo for work.  Before we parted ways for the afternoon, we thought it’d be nice to check out what Kalamazoo has to offer in terms of restaurants.  I saw a recommendation for Olde Peninsula on chow.com, so that’s what I went looking for.

Olde Peninsula is located on the corner of Michigan and Portage in what used to be known as the Big Corner.  The first brew pub opened on St. Patrick’s day in 1896.  The current incarnation opened after the 1980 tornado that almost destroyed the building.  We walked into the building and found the hostess station near the door as an extension of the bar.  The building is divided into two dining rooms.  The smoking section also has the bar.  The distillers are visible through a glass wall opposite the bar.  The non-smoking section is divided by a wall that serves as the bar’s back wall.  We were seated in a booth which was on a raised platform on this back wall.

The waitress came over for drinks and we stopped her from leaving to place our order right away.  While there were several options that looked good, we were both in the mood for our usual sandwiches.  I went with the Olde Smokey burger.  The 1/2 lb burger was topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato and a bbq sauce.  The sandwich is served with a side of beer-battered fries.  The sandwich was big.  I had a hard time getting it in my mouth.  The bacon was nice and crispy and the burger was just slightly pink which lended itself to a good flavor.  I didn’t really notice the bbq sauce until the last couple bites where it had soaked into the bun.  The fries were interesting.  Beer-batterd fries aren’t usually my favorite, but the breading was not overpowering which made these better than normal. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Brew Pub, Burgers, Downtown, Kalamazoo, Local Flavor, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews

Country Market Restaurant and Buffet- LaSalle, IL

20 07 2008
  • 343 N. 30th Rd
  • LaSalle, IL 61301
  • (815) 220-0622
  • Website
  • Menu
Country Market Restaurant and Buffet located inside the Flying J Truckstop in La Salle, IL

Country Market Restaurant and Buffet located inside the Flying J Truckstop in La Salle, IL

Country Market is located at the Flying J Truckstop just off of I-80 near LaSalle.  I was in the area for a concert at the Cedar Point Sportsmen Club where Sugarland was playing a charity concert.  I was with my girlfriend and my parents.  My mom has some friends over in that area and they suggested we all meet at the truck stop before the show.

The Country Market is a staple at Flying J’s around the country.  I’ve passed many times, but never stopped.  We were shown to a table near the back of the restaurant past the buffet by a hostess.  While we were rearranging the tables, a waitress came to get drink orders.  Waitressing 101 tells you that you shouldn’t have to ask people what they ordered when you bring it back, but even with drinks, our waitress couldn’t remember who ordered what and I had to ask.  There were six of us so it took a while.  By the time she got done, we weren’t quite ready to order so she left and came back when we were.

My girlfriend and I had just eaten lunch at Portillo’s (review HERE) a couple hours earlier, so we weren’t really hungry.  I went with a chicken tender appetizer.  The four definately out of a bag chicken tenders came with a side of BBQ dipping sauce.  Like I said, I wasn’t super hungry, so I didn’t want a whole lot.  This was just about the right amount for how I was feeling.  The chicken and the BBQ were canned, so nothing special, but not bad either. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Big Ten Tour, breakfast, Burgers, Illinois, Restaurant, Reviews, Truck Stop

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