Vernales Set for Second Summer

March 29, 2015

Timing is everything. Just ask Joe Guthrie and Keith Lynch. When a vacant restaurant on M-119 between Petoskey and Harbor Springs was for sale about 15 years ago, the two long-time friends and restaurant/ hospitality veterans joked about buying it. Still, they knew the time wasn’t right.

Then, a few years ago, Guthrie found himself touring the same building. Tapperooney’s Restaurant & Lounge had closed several years before and the building was for sale once again.

"I walked in and looked around, walked out and called Keith and said, "˜Dude, we’ve got to figure this out,’" said Guthrie.

Lynch didn’t need much persuading. He was, and remains, an owner and partner at Goodfellows on Mackinac Island, but the appeal of a place just a few miles from where he lived was irresistible.

The result is Vernales, a combination sports bar, chop house and wine cellar/Italian restaurant.

THE SCENE

The two friends met years prior when working in the same area and had stayed in touch. Lynch headed kitchens across the country, from Michigan to Florida.

"I’ve been doing this for 26 years," he says, taking a break from prepping for the evening’s meals.

When Guthrie phoned, Lynch was all in.

"We talked [about opening a restaurant] for 12 years," says Lynch.

Guthrie says the building itself was in good shape.

"It was screaming at me, "˜Buy me and bring me back to life!’ It was perfect for what we wanted to do," says Guthrie.

New plumbing, electrical, HVAC and a new kitchen were installed. The building has been remodeled to create three separate sections, which enables them to host private events. With the patio open, Vernales can accommodate up to nearly 300 people.

"We started here in December [2013] and opened May 14 last year," Lynch says.

THE MENU

"It’s really a multi-concept: a chop house, wine cellar and sports bar," says Guthrie. So, the menu hits all those sweet spots.

Pub favorites like garlic cheese bread, spinach artichoke and whitefish dips, prime rib sliders, and calamari start things out. Featured salads are Caprese, Caesar, wedge and garden. Burgers come six ways and other sandwiches include perch, chicken, turkey Reuben, and both eggplant and chicken Parm. Vernales also offers pizza and flatbreads.

On the chop house side, they offer a host of aged beef cuts, including both a 6-ounce and 12-ounce filet and a New York strip. Fish and seafood include shrimp, halibut, scallops and whitefish.

Vernales also boasts a complete pasta and Italian specialties menu featuring chicken scallopini, baked cavatappi with Italian meats and four cheeses, lasagna, and lobster mac and cheese, with fresh lobster, red peppers, onions and truffle oil.

THE BEST

For the absolute best, Guthrie says look no further than the cowboy steak. It’s an 18-ounce bone-in steak that Guthrie says is aged to perfection with a distinctive taste and tenderness.

"Most steaks are aged 21 days. This one is aged an additional 28 days in a dry aging room with a wall of special Himalayan salt," he says.

Guthrie says the two most popular items in the sports bar are the burgers and flatbreads.

"Our burgers use some of the Himalayan salt dry-aged trimmings," says Guthrie. "They’re extremely popular."

Among the fish and seafood selections, Guthrie says the winner is the sautéed perch.

"We have all our fish within two days of being caught. We do have lobster and giant jumbo Alaskan king crab, but perch is number one," he says.

Top choice among the Italian specialties is the sausage tortellini a la vodka, with roasted peppers and onions in a vodka cream sauce.

THE REST OF THE STORY

Guthrie and Lynch are thrilled with the reception Vernales has received.

"The community has embraced it. People were so happy something went into this space," he says.

"This is the first address when you come to Harbor Springs. I didn’t even realize how many people live within two miles of this place. Those people were so happy."

The name Vernales is derived from Lynch’s grandfather’s family name. When Lynch suggested it, Guthrie wrote it out in script, looked at it and said, "That’s it."

Vernales offers entertainment in the sports bar on Friday and Saturday nights, moving it to the patio in the summer. Guthrie and Lynch are also looking forward to expanding their catering business as warm weather returns.

THE SKINNY

Appetizers start at $6.99, salads at $7.99.

Burgers and sandwiches start at $9.99, flatbreads at $10.99. Italian specialties and pasta start at $18.99, while steaks start at $26.99 and seafood at $23.99.

Vernales Restaurant is open daily at 11am and the kitchen is open until 10. It’s located at 3018 M-119 between Petoskey and Harbor Springs. Visit Vernales.com or its Facebook page, as well as Twitter and Instagram, or call (231) 242-4777.