Food
Upping the Ante at Room 94 Taps and Bourbon
Odawa Casino bets on a different kind of customer with their newest restaurant
By Greg Tasker | April 20, 2024
For gamblers and non-gamblers alike, the dining options at many casinos are often lackluster—a sandwich shop, small café, or a standard all-you-can-eat buffet. Odawa Casino in Petoskey is out to change that dynamic. The casino is upping its food and drink game with a new venture, Room 94 Taps and Bourbon. Located in the casino’s former buffet space, Room 94 exudes an inviting, welcoming vibe with an eclectic menu, a solid selection ... Read More >>
Common Good's Whipped Ricotta Toast
Tastemaker
April 20, 2024
This week’s Tastemaker came in as a recommendation from a reader, and we just want to say please, please send us more of your foodie faves. We take our jobs investigating the tastiest dishes of northern Michigan seriously, including sampling the Whipped Ricotta Toast at Common Good Restaurant of Traverse City. (That’s the Eighth Street location of the bakery.) Found on the “Toasts & Tartines” portion of the menu, the Whipped Ricotta ... Read More >>
The Blue Goat's Cocktail Bundles
Bottoms Up
By Anna Faller | April 20, 2024
With patio season well on the way, sipping on a tasty tonic at home has never sounded better—especially if you don’t have to buy full-sized bottles of booze! Enter: The Blue Goat’s new Cocktail Bundles. Mixed up just in time to pack in picnic baskets and boat-day coolers, these single-portion drink kits come complete with two nip-sized spirit bottles (about one standard shot each) and mixers to craft one of four classic ... Read More >>
Where the Panini Reigns Supreme
Lunch at Traverse City’s Chubby Unicorn
By Karl Klockars | April 13, 2024
Even when he was running the kitchen at Bubba’s in Traverse City, Justin Chouinard had his eye on the little restaurant space across the street. For years, 439 East Front has housed restaurants like Patisserie Amie, Cook’s House, 9 Bean Rows, Sparks BBQ, and most recently, Zest Kitchen. Today, chef Chouinard holds the keys to that cozy little kitchen as the proprietor of Chubby Unicorn, the sandwich-focused lunch destination inspired by his ... Read More >>
The Munchies
Where to go in NoMi for your post-cannabis cravings
By Anna Faller | April 13, 2024
It’s a tale as old as time…weed brings on the munchies. It’s hard to achieve canna-bliss when you’re hungry, so we asked seven dispensaries throughout northwest Michigan for the restaurants, cafés, and coffee shops they recommend to their customers. (It’s always 4:20 somewhere, right?) Lume Cannabis Co. Petoskey, Honor, and Gaylord (plus other locations)With a staggering 38 storefronts and counting, you’re never far from Michigan’s first adult-use dispensary, Lume Cannabis Co.—and that ... Read More >>
Hive Coffee Co.'s Strawberry Matcha
Bottoms Up
April 13, 2024
You know the classic adage: April showers bring May (or early June) strawberries. (Yeah, yeah, we know it doesn’t rhyme, but it’s true!) If you’re craving that red fruit fix, Hive Coffee Co. of Suttons Bay has you covered. A standout on their seasonal menu is the Strawberry Matcha, which features your favorite super green tea alongside a sweet and spicy blend of ginger, molasses, and strawberry syrup. To finish, the whole ... Read More >>
Spoonful of Granola's Cinnamon Roll Granola
Tastemaker
By Anna Faller | April 13, 2024
For those in search of the ultimate snack, we raise you: Spoonful of Granola’s Cinnamon Roll Granola. Rolled out just in time for spring, this not-too-sweet treat packs all the cinnamon-y goodness of its namesake pastry into a handful of key natural ingredients: old fashioned oats, honey, and cinnamon. Each hand-crafted batch is drizzled in olive oil, baked until golden, and finished with a hearty sprinkle of Ghirardelli white chocolate chip “icing.” ... Read More >>
Spring Into the Kitchen
Inside the Ingredients
By Nora Rae Pearl | April 6, 2024
As the daffodils start to pop up and the crocuses bloom, let’s bring that same sense of renewal into our kitchens. The first of the harvest is just arriving, giving us a sneak preview of what awaits us in the season ahead. For these recipes, we are embracing some of the greatest hits of spring: asparagus, rhubarb, and strawberries. For a spring-inspired brunch, stalk down some asparagus at Norconk Farm in Honor ... Read More >>
Stafford's Weathervane's Colossal Pretzel
Tastemaker
April 6, 2024
Charlevoix residents are counting down the days until May 23, aka the planned completion of the seven-month bascule bridge project. With the bulk of the work and a few March closures in the rearview, now’s the time to drive over the blue bridge to visit Stafford’s Weathervane. While the menu has plenty of tempting entrees (plus daily specials like Taco Tuesday), no visit is complete without the Colossal Pretzel ($15). This big ... Read More >>
Left Foot Charley's Tepache
Bottoms Up
By Anna Faller | April 6, 2024
Warm weather is finally on the horizon, and we can’t think of a better way to welcome it than Left Foot Charley’s Tepache hard cider. Inspired by Tepache, a traditional Mexican fermented beverage, this dry and highly-sessionable cider (which clocks in at around 5 percent ABV) begins with an apple base fermented with whole pineapples and Piloncillo cane sugar, before a final steep with warming clove and cinnamon. The result is a ... Read More >>
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