New Coffeehouse Coming to Downtown Lansing

27 07 2008
The Great Lakes Coffee and Chocolate Company building in Ann Arbor.

The Great Lakes Coffee and Chocolate Company building in Ann Arbor.

I noticed this a while ago while walking in front of the Stadium District building on Michigan Ave., but it didn’t click until I saw a job posting on craigslist this afternoon.  Next month, the Great Lakes Chocolate and Coffee Company will open their third store in downtown Lansing.  The shop got it’s start in Sturgis, MI and they’ve expanded to Ann Arbor and now Lansing.

They do three things.  Coffee, Chocolate, and Teas.  It’s nice to see some businesses starting to move into the Stadium District.  Even better that it’s a small, Michigan-based company…and it’s not a Starbucks.


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Categories : Coffee, Downtown, Food News, Lansing

Spotted Dog Cafe

24 07 2008
  • 221 S. Washington Sq.
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 485-7574
  • Website
  • Menu
The Spotted Dog Cafe on Washington Sq. in Downtown Lansing

The Spotted Dog Cafe on Washington Sq. in Downtown Lansing

As my girlfriend said, the Spotted Dog Cafe is more her kind of place than mine.  We made our way downtown to check out the Farmer’s Market at the State Capitol and decided to stay downtown for lunch.  We were parked on Michigan Ave. just past the roundabout so we left the car and went for a walk.  We’ve walked by Spotted Dog before, but usually on a Saturday when they’re not open.  I wasn’t in the mood for a burger or anything heavy and I figured a deli sandwich would be much better.

We walked in right about opening time so the place was pretty empty.  There were a couple people behind the counter.  The first asked what my girlfriend wanted.  She went with the summer salad which she said reminded her of the two years she spent in Idaho.  The mixed greens were topped with dried cherries, blueberries, shredded cheese, walnuts, and apples with a peppercorn dressing.  She it was refreshing and tasted like it came right out of the garden.  The large salad was more than enough for her. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Cafe, Downtown, Lansing, Reviews, Sandwiches

Press Release – Jimmy Johns to Celebrate Grand Opening Downtown

17 07 2008

Got a press release from the Mayor’s office announcing the grand opening of a new Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches on Washington Square in downtown Lansing.  It’ll be the first in Lansing proper, but the fourth in the metro area. 

Jimmy John’s is another chain that got it’s start in Illinois near the University of Illinois in Champaign.  The expansion took place in central Illinois where I lived so I’ve been around them from almost the beginning.  Never been much of fan.  In my opinion, they don’t do anything that Subway doesn’t do better.  Some people love Jimmy John’s, but I’m not one of them.

 

(LANSING) – Representatives of Mayor Virg Bernero’s office and the Lansing Economic Development Corporation will be on hand tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. for the grand opening of the new Jimmy Johns Sandwich Shop located at 134 South Washington Square in downtown Lansing. The grand opening event will include special $1 sandwiches and a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

WHO: Lansing City Officials and Jimmy Johns Sandwich Shop Representatives

WHAT: Jimmy Johns Sandwich Shop Grand Opening

WHERE: 134 S. Washington Square

WHEN: Friday, July 18 from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.


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Categories : Chains, Downtown, Food News, Lansing

Mr. B’s Rustic Tavern

5 07 2008
  • 101 W. Grand Ave
  • Howell, MI 48843
  • (517) 548-5500
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Mr. B\'s Rustic Tavern

Mr. B's Rustic Tavern - View from across Grand River Ave.

We came to the corner of Grand River and Michigan Ave. and there was this old building with a neon sign that wrapped around the building that said “Mr. B’s Rustic Tavern.”  There were tables outside that were full which is usually a good sign.  We found street parking about a block away then walked back.  Since the outside tables were full, we had to sit inside which really wasn’t a bad thing.  The inside of the tavern is divided into smoking and non-smoking with the bar in the smoking area.  Of course, the little half wall that divides the two areas does nothing to stop the smoke.  They certaintly didn’t falsely advertise with the name of the place.  The whole inside does have that rustic feel.  The floor is old, creaky hardwood and the walls and support beams look like had seen better days.  It gave a really neat, unique feel to the place.  Along one wall was a row of pictures depicting the history of downtown.  Along the ceiling beams were orange neon tube lights.  There were booths along with walls with tables filling the rest of the space.  Near the back of the space was another room with video games.  Plasma TV’s were hung over the bar and in the smoking section of the dining room. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Downtown, Howell, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Having Trouble Navigating Downtown?

26 06 2008

I am.  Being new to town, the whole CSO project makes it really hard to get to whre I’m going.  I’ll put an address in my GPS and when I get downtown Daniel (that’s what we call our Garmin because we use the programed British voice) freaks out then I freak out at him.  According to WLAJ, businesses are feeling the effects of people not being able to get to them.

They tell us it’s been a rough year for them.  With higher gas prices people are already spending less, and nowconstruction is detoring customers away from their stores. Read the rest of this entry »


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Michigan Brewing Company – Coming Soon! – UPDATED!

25 06 2008

Michigan Brewing CompanyI was in downtown Lansing tonight and noticed that sign you see off to the right.  This seems to be a search engine search that brings a lot of people this site, so I figured some of you might be interested in seeing that work is happening at the building located at 402 S Washington Sq.  I’ve sent an e-mail to the folks at the Michigan Brewing Company in Webberville to see if there’s any progress and when they are expectin to open.  If and when I get a reply, I’ll let you know.

UPDATE – I got an e-mail back from Stan Thornbury who is the marketing manager for the Michigan Brewing Company.  He said the store is progressing slowly because they are waiting on state licensing.  They’re hoping for an opening in the third or fourth quarter of this year.

Michigan Brewing Company


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Categories : Brew Pub, Food News, Lansing, Michigan

Troppo

25 06 2008
  • 101 S. Washington Sq.Troppo
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 371-4000
  • Website
  • Menu

My girlfriend had a meeting at City Hall this morning and I tagged along to help her out.  The meeting ended just before one o’clock and both of us were hungry, so we decided to try another downtown place.  After two bad experiences, we finally had a good one with The Firm (review HERE), so why not try again.  From City Hall, I could see the sign for Troppo and that’s been on my list of places to try.  We moved the car a little farther down Michigan Avenue and made our way in for lunch.

Troppo can be kind of intimidating for the casual diner.  There’s a massive sign on the upscale building on the corner of Michigan and Washington Sq clearly marking the establishment.  You walk into a lobby area before you run into the hostess.  Beyond the hostess stand and thru a curtain, you enter the main dining room.  The space is gorgeaus.  Red fabrics and a deep brown wood are highlighted by vintage photos of Lansing and small chandeliers.  We were seated near the windows which look out to the terrace which has a beautiful view of the Capitol.  From our table, the view was the roundabout and the Comerica Bank Building.  Interesting thing about that building is the writing carved into the stone.  It looks like it used to be the City National Bank and there’s a huge inscription claiming to be the oldest bank in Lansing. Read the rest of this entry »


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

The Firm Food & Spirits

23 06 2008
  • The Firm227 S. Washington Sq.
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 487-3663
  • Website
  • Menu

Finally!  In our third attempt at eating at a downtown restaurant, we finally had a pleasurable experience.  Last week at the BWL Chili Cook-Off, we grabbed a $5-off coupon from The Firm’s booth.  It’s been a couple weeks since we’ve been grocery shopping, so there’s not a whole lot of food left in our cupboards.  Instead of shopping this morning, we decided to just head out for dinner.  When I got in my truck, I noticed the coupon still sitting in the console, so that’s where we went.

The Firm is located on Washington Sq in downtown Lansing.  We stopped in on a Monday night for dinner.  The place was deserted.  There was a sign that said wait to be seated.  The bartender noticed us and seated us at a booth in the dining room.  The dining room is a pretty good size with a row of u-shaped booths along the walls with tables in the middle.  There’s a cut-out in the wall that lets you see into the bar.  I spent most of the meal watching the two LCD TV’s above the bar that were showing the College World Series. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Downtown, Fine Dining, Lansing, Local Flavor, Restaurant, Reviews

Kelly’s Downtown

31 05 2008
  • 203 S. Washington Sq.Kelly's Downtown
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 484-5007
  • Website
  • Menu

My girlfriend and I were checking out the city courtesy of the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitor’s Bureau “Be a Tourist in Your Own Town” (which is an incredible event and I would definately recommend you check it out next year.)  Around lunch time, we made it downtown and decided to hit up Washington Square for lunch.  At first, we stopped into Tavern on the Square, but the menu kind of sucked.  There were no sandwiches and it was pretty expensive.  We were just looking for a quick lunch so we could keep touring the town.

Across the street sat Kelly’s.  So we got up and left Tavern on the Square and crossed the street.  There was a patio outside, but we chose to go inside and found a table near the front of the shop.  There’s a huge bar in the middle of the space with seating all the way around.  We sat down and waited five to ten minutes for the lone waitress/bartender to even acknowledge us.  She yelled across the bar to get our drink orders then a bus boy actually brought them out.  After a few more minutes, she yelled across the bar to take our order as well.

My girlfriend got Kelly’s Thatsa Wrap which is listed as vegetarian, but offers options to add grilled chicken which she did.  The wrap comes standard with tomatos, cucumbers, peppers, onions, and mushrooms inside a flour tortilla.  Besides the chicken, she got ranch on the side and added fries to her order.  She seemed to really like the wrap and had some fries left over for me.  She said the cucumbers were a good addition changing the texture and the flavor of what you usually expect in a wrap like this.

I got the Bear Burger.  It was a 1/3 lb sirloin burger with crumbled bleu cheese and bacon.  The burger was obviously a frozen patty.  It was really greasy.  I picked the sandwich up and it was wet.  At first, I was afraid it wasn’t done.  There was a puddle of grease on the bottom that I almost mistook for blood.  I bit into it anyway and it was done, but it was really greasy.  Fortunately, the bleu cheese covered most of that up.  I did a double check just to make sure there was bacon on there.  It kind of got lost in all the wetness.

After the initial delay in getting to us, the waitress did a much better job.  Our drinks never got empty and she got the check to us pretty quickly.  For the two of us, it was about $20, but we ended up spending more time in the restaurant than we really wanted to.  Really it was only about forty minutes, so it’s not terrible and normally I wouldn’t complain.  I’ve read a lot of good reveiws about this place, but it didn’t do anything for me.  My burger wasn’t very good and places like this I usually expect more.  I just haven’t had much luck with the downtown restaurants yet.  I’m still looking for that place near the Capitol that is worth getting in the car and paying parking for.   Kelly’s would probably be a great night spot, but for lunch, it just didn’t do anything for me.


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Categories : Burgers, Dive Bar, Irish Bar, Lansing, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Bonnie’s Place

14 05 2008
  • 415 E. Saginaw St.Bonnie's Place
  • Lansing, MI 48906
  • (517) 372-1559
  • No Known Website
  • Menu

After winning practically every category in the Lansing City Pulse Best of…., I figured it was time to give Bonnie’s Place a try.  We had passed the quaint little bar on Saginaw a few times as we were trying to find our way to Old Town through the construction plagued streets of downtown Lansing.  Bonnie’s sits on the corner of Saginaw and Cedar Sts. just off of downtown.  We pulled into the parking lot on a pretty rainy day in Mid-Michigan and found a spot right up front.  We got there about one o’clock.  The lunch rush was just finishing up.  We were shown to a table in the non-smoking section of the bar….but I really don’t think it mattered.  The inside of Bonnie’s is pretty tiny.  There’s a bar on one side and on the other side of a half wall are two rows of booths.  My girlfriend described the dining room part of Bonnie’s as a little diner. 

The waitress came back for drink orders and we were ready to order.  Since Bonnie’s had been voted “Best Burger” I had to try the burger.  I got the Bonnie Burger.  A 1/2 lb burger was topped with 1/4 lb of shaved ham, Swiss and American cheese.  The sandwich was served in a plastic basket with a pickle spear and an order of fresh cut fries came in another basket.  Now remember, these burgers were voted best in Lansing.  My burger was huge.  The ham added a salty layer to the sandwich.  Could I call it the best burger in Lansing?  Well, that depends on the criteria for best burger.  The extra’s on the burge were unique and creative.  The actual burger patty wasn’t anything to write home about.  The sandwich as a whole was definately the best burger I’ve had since moving to Lansing, but like every other burger I’ve had, the meat didn’t stand out on it’s own.

Bonnie's PlaceMy girlfriend got the Buffalo Chicken Wrap.  The tortilla for the wrap was the really interesting thing about this sandwich.  It looked like it may have been toasted after the wrap was put together…almost pressed.  The wrap came filled with spicy buffalo chicken pieces, lettuce, tomatos, and a mayo.  The wrap only came with a pickle spear on the side, so she got an order of fries as well.  The spicyness was definately there.  On the car ride home, she was still talking about the heat.  Half of the sandwich is sitting in our fridge right now so she has lunch tomorrow.  The size of the wrap was overwhelming and more than enough for one meal.  Usually, she’ll pick most of the tomatos out of a wrap like this, but with this one, I only noticed a few pieces on her plate so the wrap must have been put together real well.

The fries were also voted best in Lansing.  We both had an order with our meal and I think we both agreed they were good.  She said many times that the fries were good.  With fresh cut fries, she feels most places under cook them.  Not the case with these fries.  They were golden brown and crispy.  I felt they needed a little something to make them the best in town.  I’ve been to a few places that have served fresh cut fries and they were all about the same.  Some kind of unique season was needed to make them stand out.

As an overall review, I loved Bonnie’s.  The small atmosphere was comfortable and the menu offered some unique, interesting items.  I would definately call Bonnie’s the best when it comes to burger combinations.  I would say they may even have the best overall burgers when you consider the condiments and add-ons.  The actual burger patty is nothing special though.  It’s the kind of place that I would love to take my parents.  The food is comforting and not so far out there that they’d be afraid to try something new.  Bonnie’s is absolutely a recommendation for dining out in Lansing.


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Categories : Burgers, Lansing, Local Flavor, Pub, Reviews

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