Traverse City, MI

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Crinkle

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I'm taking my family for Traverse City, MI in June for a few days. Can anyone tell me the best brewpubs or even best places to eat while we are there?
Also looking for a good liquor store to pick up some Michigan beer.
Has anyone ever tried the whiskey from Grand Traverse Distillery? Is it any good? Have you ever bought the barrels for aging?
Thanks for the tips.
I'll be traveling with my wife and 6 year old son, so try to keep that in mind when suggesting places. Thanks!
 
Right brain is always one of my favorite stops in Traverse city.

North peak may be worth a stop. Good food and they have a couple brews that are drinkable.

Slabtown Burgers on Front st. is also another favorite stop. If you are hungry this place rocks.
 
Look up 7 monks taproom. The filling station. Shorts brewery(bellaire).

The beverage company has a good selection of local beers.

Take a drive on the old mission pen. and see some of the vineyards.

Take the tour at GT Distilery.
 
FYI Right Brain is moving to a new location, so you can't go there unless your visit is after June 15th...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f28/right-brain-brewing-closed-today-move-331806/

I've heard Shorts is a great place to visit but I haven't been up there yet.
Jolly Pumpkin is up there I think, but I haven't been to that one either.
I would have suggested Right Brain except for the moving thing.
Otherwise, North Peak is just OK. Food is better than the beer IMO
Mackinaw Brewing is fine. Nothing exciting IMO.

We usually go to North Peak or Mackinaw for the food because my wife doesn't care for beer, but the food is good. I will press for Shorts next time we go up that way (Maybe soon since we want to start shopping for a cheap car for my daughter.)
 
The Beverage Company for the liquor store, for sure. They've got just about everything in that place. Ditto North Peak on the food, the beer is ok. Shorts is in Bellaire, MI, but definitely not that far. Jolly Pumpkin is out on Old Mission Peninsula, again, not that far. The Blue Tractor Cookshop has tons of Michigan Beers available and pretty good food.
 
yeah if you have a car while you're there Short's is where I would recommend going... My favorite brew pub. mmm.
 
What about a good local pizza place (preferably one that will deliver to the hotel, or have a good pizza buffet?
 
The words "good" and "pizza" cannot be used in a sentence in that area of the state as the possibility of finding good pizza is as likely as finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. :mug:
 
The words "good" and "pizza" cannot be used in a sentence in that area of the state as the possibility of finding good pizza is as likely as finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. :mug:

Why not? Is there some law that restricts the production of quality pizza in that geographical region? Perhaps a magical pizza-ruining force field in effect there?
 
The wife and I go up to TC a couple times a year. I agree with all the input people have given above. If you can make the trip, Short's is in Bellaire which about a half hour from TC. It's well worth the ride. They have a ton of beers on tap ranging from the typical styles to wild stuff like their award-winning Key Lime Pie Beer, PB&J, or Carrot Cake. Go for a flight and sample away. Send them an email in advance and you will likely be able to score a tour of the brew pub's brewery.

Jolly Pumpkin is on the Mission Peninsula (about 10 min from TC). They specialize in farmhouse style beers. They also have fantastic food in their pub. If you go, don't miss the truffle oil fries *drool*.

If you're at all into wine, there are a TON of wineries in the area and they almost all have tasting rooms. You can get a printed wine tour map pretty much anywhere that outlines where they're all located. If you'd like more info on wineries let me know. Some of them have more than just wine, like Black Star Farms which has Brandy and fantastic cheese.
 
Personally I would look at other cuisine while in TC. There really isn't anything great in the pizza world. You might try The Filling Station. It's brand a new brewery/ pizza place in the old train depot. Mancinos is my go to for pizza and sandwiches for lunch. But the restaurant business is quite diverse in town.
 
Why not? Is there some law that restricts the production of quality pizza in that geographical region? Perhaps a magical pizza-ruining force field in effect there?

I have been trying to figure it out for over 20 years and I think you may be on to something. Perhaps a magical pizza ruining force field :) Perhaps an unwritten law similar to the one that prevents the local women from wearing bras :tank:
 
Personally I would look at other cuisine while in TC. There really isn't anything great in the pizza world. You might try The Filling Station. It's brand a new brewery/ pizza place in the old train depot. Mancinos is my go to for pizza and sandwiches for lunch. But the restaurant business is quite diverse in town.

I wondered the same thing. Any time we go to TC we are looking for something interesting to try. They have a lot of different foods available.

And because everyone knows the best pizza is G&D's in Cadillac!
 
Thanks everyone for their replies. We had a great, but way too fast family trip. I didn't get to do half of what I hoped to get done, but had some great food and beer while there. And the guy at the Beverage Center was awesome! He spent 30 minutes with me showing me some of the best brew Michigan has to offer. Everyone should go there and buy their beer from him.
 
What about a good local pizza place (preferably one that will deliver to the hotel, or have a good pizza buffet?

No delivery to a hotel, but Chef Charles Pizza in Elk Rapids is the best. North Peak is pretty darn good as well.

If you're going strictly for beer, Short's, North Peak and RBB are the best bets. For food, Sledder's bar is great, Red Mesa is great (HUGE tequila selection), Pearl's New Orleans Kitchen in Elk Rapids is to die for and if you really want the best beef you've ever had, head out to the Boathouse on Old Mission. Kobe beef. 'nuff said.
 
Bit of a drive - Gaylord MI - Big Bucks.

Great beer and food.


I'm actually from Gaylord. Big Buck just changed its liquor licensing so that they are a distillery and a brewhouse (super expensive, though pretty cool). The sad thing is, while their beer-cheese soup is amazing, their service is atrocious. I've waited 20+ minutes to just get my server to approach our table (with or without water even) and the place is NEVER packed or very busy in general. If you make the drive, make it for the scenery of the place and the bar. Show up not so hungry so that by the time you get service, you actually are hungry and not starving. Have low expectations about service and you'll have a wonderful time.
 
I agree. It's one of the worst breweries in Michigan. Terrible service. Terrible beer. I didn't get a chance to drink their liquor... the 2 times I went. Both times I had to wait over 30 mins to be served. I had a sampler of all the beers each time...followed by a water when asked which one I wanted a whole pint of... I went a second time because I couldn't believe that it was really that bad all the time....sure was.
 
There is a reason many Big Bucks have closed. The beer was okay, the food is greasy and the service is slow. Their "artisan vodka" may have just been a well pour.

The Filing Station was a welcome surprise. The most varied selection of the TC breweries. (Right Brain had 5 IPA's but no dark beers??) Good wood-fired pizza and salad. It's in an old train station with plenty of parking.
 
Rightbrain is really embracing the Cali-hop-heavy style. I'm not sure if their move was before or after I went, but it shares(d) a building with an art warehouse (could kiln your own personalized mug) and one of the best restaurants I've ever eaten at called XYZ. Go to XYZ. It's rather cheap and you can just tell a chef who takes pride in high quality food runs the show. Trust me. Go to XYZ.
 
I'm actually from Gaylord. Big Buck just changed its liquor licensing so that they are a distillery and a brewhouse (super expensive, though pretty cool). The sad thing is, while their beer-cheese soup is amazing, their service is atrocious. I've waited 20+ minutes to just get my server to approach our table (with or without water even) and the place is NEVER packed or very busy in general. If you make the drive, make it for the scenery of the place and the bar. Show up not so hungry so that by the time you get service, you actually are hungry and not starving. Have low expectations about service and you'll have a wonderful time.

Yeah, a coworker and I were there for dinner. They did appear under-staffed - although apologetic - some of the clientele seemed to have pretty high expectations. The parking lot had a lot of new-ish black shiny suburbans and such. I was a little nervous about the atmosphere.

We were just trying to relax and unwind and were not in a hurry.

Somebody dropped my rack of ribs on the way through the kitchen so they remade it. I got a free beer. I don't remember the name of the brew, but it was very good and it was hoppy and well hopped (does that make sense?).

The ribs were wonderful.
 
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