Tony M’s Restaurant & Lounge

13 11 2008
  • 3420 S. Creyts Rd.
  • Lansing, MI 48917
  • (517) 322-2069
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Tony Ms Restaurant & Lounge on Creyts Road in Lansing.

Tony M's Restaurant & Lounge on Creyts Road in Lansing.

We do a lot of shopping out in the Delta Township area and finding new places to eat is always hard.  We’ve found some good ones out there, but in our quest to eat at everyplace I keep sniffing out new ones.  I’m not exactly sure where I first heard of Tony M’s.  While J was at her monthly hair appointment, I was running errands.  After picking up a few things at Walmart, I turned on the GPS and started looking for restaurants in the area.  The usual suspects showed up, but Tony M’s also popped up so while I was waiting on J, I went and did a little scouting.  After finding out it was still there, I picked J up and we headed back for lunch.

Tony M’s is located on the corner of Creyts Road and Millet Highway just across the street from the Meijer Distribution Center.  We pulled up a little after 11:00 and found a good number of cars in the parking lot. I figured it was lunch time or something at the Meijer and since this is the only place around, it’s where everyone went.  There are two sections to Tony M’s.  In the back is the restaurant and lounge.  The front of the building is a party store and deli.  The entrances are clearly marked and we made our way to the restaurant for lunch. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Italian, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Auggie’s Grille & Pub

9 11 2008
  • 820 W. Miller Rd. #3
  • Lansing, MI 48911
  • (517) 272-0099
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Auggies Grille & Pub on Miller Road in Lansing.

Auggie's Grille & Pub on Miller Road in Lansing.

I hate writing bad reviews.  I always feel bad, but I’m not going to not write about a place just because it might make me feel bad.  I always look for the good in things because I know a bad review can be bad for business.  If someplace just pisses me off though, I sort of feel like they deserve it. 

Auggie’s Grille & Pub is located in a tiny strip mall on Miller Road.  There’s a party store right next to it and there are signs all over the place saying drinking in the parking lot is illegal.  That should have been a sign.  Auggie’s looked like a nice place, but I’m guessing that it’s not a good area of town.  On Thursday night, I drove by to scout the place out before meeting J at our regular Thursday hang out, Barley’s.  The parking lot was packed so I figured the place was legit.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Pub, Reviews

Goodrich’s Shop-Rite

4 11 2008
  • 940 Trowbridge Rd
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-5820
  • Website
Goodrichs Shop-Rite in Trowbridge Plaze in East Lansing.

Goodrich's Shop-Rite in Trowbridge Plaze in East Lansing.

Another recommendation by regular commenter Corky.  Since we were already at Hobie’s (review HERE), we took a few minutes to walk over the Goodrich’s Shop-Rite to check the place out.  Corky and a few other people have told me they carry Zingerman’s bread so that’s what we went looking for.

Goodrich’s Shop-Rite is in the Trowbridge Plaza near MSU’s campus.  When we walked in, my first impression is that it wasn’t going to be much different than any other grocery store.  We walked quickly through a lot of the GM section looking for the bakery and deli section.  On the way, we made a quick run through the meat department.  The thing I noticed here is that they put signs up letting you know where all their meat came from.  I’ve been noticing that a lot more lately.

We finally made our way to the deli and what a surprise.  I was a little unimpressed up until that point.  Once we turned the corner, my impression changed.  The deli/bakery section is rather large.  There are racks of bread throughout the area.  I didn’t find any Zingerman’s so I didn’t buy anything, but there was a lot of different fresh baked bread.  The deli case was also huge.  Lots of different meats and cheeses. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : East Lansing, Grocery, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Hobie’s Cafe & Pub

3 11 2008
  • 930 Trowbridge Rd.
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-3800
  • Website
  • Menu

Hobie's Cafe and Pub in the Trowbridge Plaza in East Lansing.

I do love me a good sandwich. After reviewing Menna’s Joint (review HERE), frequent commenter Corky suggested we check out Hobie’s in the Trowbridge Plaza in East Lansing.  I got lazy and uninspired when dinner time rolled around.  I e-mailed J to see what she wanted to do and she said we should just go out.  Since it was recommended, looked cheap, and looked good, we decided to check Hobie’s out for ourselves.

Hobie’s is in a pretty interesting location.  It’s sandwiched between Goodrich’s Shop-Rite and a Subway.  We made our way inside and found a huge menu chalkboard right away.  After deciding on sandwiches, we walked up to the “Place Orders Here” sign.  It didnt’ really look right, but we did what the sign said anyway.  After a few minutes, a very hesitant employee came over to take our orders.  My guess is he is pretty new.  He didn’t seem to sure of himself taking our orders. 

J ordered the Chicken Breast which came with their special “South of the Border” sauce, cheddar cheese, lettuce, and tomato on wheat bread.  She asked to keep the tomato off, but they put it on anyway.  She loved the sandwich.  Neither of us could really pinpoint what was in the sauce, but she said it was delicious.  Getting the tomato on the sandwich is a little disappointing, but not that big of a deal.  They were small enough that they didn’t leave a lot of residue on the sandwich. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : East Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Big Ten Holt Party Store

3 11 2008
  • 2005 Eifert Rd.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-8632
  • Website
The Big Ten Holt Party Store on Eifert Road in Holt.

The Big Ten Holt Party Store on Eifert Road in Holt.

Why are they called “party stores” in this town?  Again, just curious.  I guess it sounds better than liquor store, but why not call a spade a spade?  After leaving Brower with just my Pepsi, I headed down to the Big Ten Holt Party Store.  I’ve seen a couple of these around town, but never been into one of the Big Ten locations.  I was a little bit curious because they all say “deli” along with the usual suspects.

The Big Ten Holt store is on the corner of Holt and Eifert Roads.  Just like the other stores in the small, local chain, they are painted in the colors of the hometown Spartans.  The building isn’t that big, but there are two parking lots.  One of the Eifert Rd side and one on the Holt Rd side.  I parked on the Holt Road side and made my way in.  I was still looking for a small bottle of tequila.  I thought a party store would put them out on display.   I was wrong.

The inside of the store was really cramped.  There were a couple aisles of items and the back wall was all coolers of beer.  The wine was out on display, but the hard liquor was once again behind the counter.  I gave it a quick look, but didn’t really see what I was looking for.

As for the deli, there was some pizza and a deli case of something.  I didn’t really look.  I do like that they had pizza by the slice that looked to be homemade.  Other than that, I wasn’t really impressed.  There wasn’t much I couldn’t find at a grocery store…maybe a few more selections of micro brews, but nothing great.

I don’t frequent liquor stores often, so I’m not really an expert, but I do know when I pick a liquor or “party store” over a supermarket, I’m looking for a better selection.  I didn’t really get that at the Big Ten Holt Party Store.


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Categories : Grocery, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Brower Food & Hardware

3 11 2008
  • 2102 Aurelius Rd.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-0531
  • No Known Website
Brower Food & Hardware on Aurelius Rd. in Holt, MI

Brower Food & Hardware on Aurelius Rd. in Holt, MI

I have been stopping by Brower Food & Hardware for several months now after seeing a review for a deli located inside the little grocery store.  Each time I’ve tried to stop at Big T Deli & Grill, I’ve come up disappointed.  I dont’ know if they stopped doing the deli or what.

This time, I wasn’t looking so much for lunch as I was a small bottle of tequila.  Brower Food & Hardware sits on Aurelius Road near the Holt Plaza.  There’s a very small parking lot in front of the store.  Inside, there’s not a whole lot.  There are a few pantry items, pop, and of course, liquor.  I went to the pop cooler first to grab a Pepsi then headed over to the liquor.  I’m not a big fan of places that keep their hard liquor behind the counter because I always feel so rushed to make a decision and I can’t really see the prices.  That’s how Brower is set up.  The wine is out on shelves and the beer is in coolers.  I didn’t see what I was really looking for so I just paid for my Pepsi and got out. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Grocery, Holt, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Hometown Diner

22 10 2008
  • 1040 S. Pennsylvania Ave.
  • Lansing, MI 48912
  • (517) 372-5535
  • No Known Website
  • No Online Menu
Hometown Diner on Pennsylvania near I-474 in Lansing

Hometown Diner on Pennsylvania near I-496 in Lansing

J took one more day off after we got back in Michigan just so we could relax after a long weekend of traveling.  We were woke up fairly early for us by a phone call and neither of us could fall back asleep.  After going to the Potter Park Zoo during the “Be A Tourist In Your Own Hometown Event” we kept saying we needed to walk the River Trail.  We noticed it from the zoo, but we never made an effort to actually go for a walk.  Since we had such a bad weekend eating (I had four pizzas), I suggested we go for a walk.  Since it was about lunch time, J said we should eat first.

I had been reading reviews about a diner on Pennsylvania near the Zoo so that’s where I decided to to go for lunch.

The Hometown Diner sits on Pennsylvania across from the BWL in an old Sparty’s Coney Island.  It shares a building and parking lot with a Mexican grocery store.  We parked near the back of the lot and walked in to find a small diner with seating for just over a hundred.  We showed ourselves to a table in the middle of the room.  The layout is pretty common for small diners.  Booths line the walls with tables in the middle.  There’s a lunch counter near the front of the space and the kitchen is open so you can see the cook preparing your meal.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Diner, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Lumes Pancake House – Palos Heights, IL

19 10 2008
  • 12401 S. Harlem Ave.
  • Palos Heights, IL 60463
  • (708) 361-7744
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Lumes Pancake House in Palos Heights, IL

Lumes Pancake House in Palos Heights, IL

I know I say this every time I do a breakfast review, but I am not a breakfast person.  My girlfriend’s parents, however, are.  Day two of J’s vacation started bright and early (for me anyway) with breakfast at a popular destination in downtown Palos Heights. 

Lumes Pancake House is situated on Harlem Avenue just past downtown Palos Heights.  When we pulled up around 10:30, the parking lot was packed.  We debated not stopping, but J jumped out of the car to go put our names on the list and see what the wait was.  I went with her and when she got to the doors, I started to wonder if this was a good idea.  There were a lot of people inside.  J got a number and came back out and said the wait was around twenty minutes.  We decided to stay.  Turns out the wait wasn’t all that long and by the time we were seated, things started to calm down a little bit. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : breakfast, Illinois, Local Flavor, Palos Heights, Restaurant, Reviews

Palermo’s 95th – Oak Lawn, IL

18 10 2008
  • 4849 W. 95th St.
  • Oak Lawn, IL 60435
  • (708) 425-6262
  • Website
  • Menu

Palermo's 95th in Oak Lawn, IL

This is a review I’ve been holding for a couple months.  Honestly, I forgot about it.  When I was in town for a job earlier in the year, my girlfriend’s parents took us out to dinner the night before.  We drove home this weekend to see my niece and whenever we head to my parents, we stop at J’s parents on the way.  We came in to Oak Lawn late Friday night and drove past Palermo’s 95th.  I remembered I never did a review so I got out and snapped a few pictures.

J has always said Palermo’s ruined her on pizza.  Nothing she’s had anywhere else has even come close to living up to the standard Palermo’s 95th set.  I thought she was being dramatic, but I’d give her the benefit of the doubt.  When her parents suggested we go to Palermo’s for dinner, I was up for the challenge.

Palermo’s is on 95th Street in Oak Lawn.  There’s parking behind the building, but if you’re not there early, good luck.  We stopped in for a late dinner on Saturday night.  We thought maybe we’d be ok since it was after 8:00, but we were wrong.  The wait was only about 15 minutes so it wasn’t bad.  Had we been earlier, we could have waited up to two hours for a table. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicago, Illinois, Italian, Local Flavor, Oak Lawn, Restaurant, Reviews

Travelers Club International Restaurant and Tuba Museum

13 10 2008
  • 2138 Hamilton Rd.
  • Okemos, MI 48864
  • (517) 349-1701
  • Website
  • Menu
The Travelers Club International Restaurant and Tuba Museum in Okemos

The Travelers Club International Restaurant and Tuba Museum in Okemos

I had no idea what to expect dining at a tuba museum.  The Travelers Club is one of the first places that jumped out at us when we moved to Mid-Michigan.  It just sounded and looked like an interesting place.  We kept putting off dining there because we don’t make it to Okemos very often.  Now that Younkers is done remodeling, that may change. 

The Travelers Club is at the intersection of Hamilton Road and Okemos Road.  It’s hard to miss on your way to Meridan Mall.  The little corner building doesn’t look like a very big restaurant from the outside.  We found parking along Hamilton Road and walked to the red doors that open into quaint dining room with a row of booths and an number or tables crammed into the space.  When we walked in, we heard a voice from somewhere in the back tell us to find a seat wherever we liked.  We made our way to the back of the dining room where we took a table along the back wall.  For being a Sunday afternoon at three o’clock, the Travelers Club was doing pretty good business.  All the booths were full and there were quite a few tables being used as well. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Local Flavor, Michigan, Okemos, Restaurant, Reviews

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