The Blue Bird Is Back

New digs, new eats, and a new vibe for the Leland staple

Skip Telgard is resting a little easier these days—literally.

It’s not that his work in the brand-new version of Leland’s beloved Blue Bird restaurant is done. Far from it. It will be a few more months, at least, before all of the loose ends are tied up and the space is to his liking.

But getting paying customers through the door in mid-October was a huge hurdle to clear, and Telgard is awash in relief to get to this point after a somewhat arduous buildout.

“This has been a long journey. So many things in the construction process went slow or got derailed for various reasons, and it was kind of a nonstop thing that was eating at me all the time. I wasn’t sleeping that well,” he says. “I have to say that as soon as we opened, that changed.”

The restaurant is now open from 4-11pm on Wednesday through Saturday, though Telgard hopes to get lunch back in the rotation soon. During the dinner service, he has been overjoyed to speak with customers who have come in to support the new chapter.

“I hear stories from everybody when they come in. I stop and talk to virtually all the tables, and there’s been so many familiar faces,” Telgard says. “It’s just been really exciting [because] it means so much to them. Of course it means a tremendous amount to me. The community support has been 1,000 percent.”

New Spaces, Familiar Faces

Skip and his wife, Lynn, are the third-generation owners of “The Bird,” as it is often known. The Leland restaurant was founded by Skip’s grandparents, Martin and Leone Telgard, in 1927. They closed after the 2022 season with plans to demolish the old structure and rebuild it on the same site.

These plans were driven in large part by a desire to modernize (and right-size) operations, but also to better embrace the Leland River, which previously ran largely unnoticed behind the restaurant. The new version faces the river, with big windows and a very large patio just feet from the water.

“It’s all about the river here,” Teglard says. “That was our whole mantra.”

Building a new restaurant from scratch means a chance to build it exactly how you want it to be, and the Telgards took advantage. Aside from the river-facing orientation, the new restaurant is designed to operate far more efficiently than the old version, which had been continuously added, retrofitted, and renovated over the decades.

“The kitchen is ergonomically much more logical than the old Blue Bird kitchen. That kitchen grew over the years out of necessity, whereas we had a lot of chance for forethought in this kitchen,” he says. “We designed it so that it makes more sense and we can operate it with fewer people.”

Also of note is that many materials were brought over from the old building, including chairs, lights, wood used in accents and more. “The old Blue Bird wasn’t anything special architecturally, but it did have little things that were important,” Telgard says.

The new location has far more windows than the old, allowing ample natural light and a good look at the hustle and bustle of Main Street.

“I’m loving just seeing the town in action,” Telgard says. “It’s a big, beautiful view.”

But getting settled into the new space also comes with learning curves and unexpected problems that need to be addressed.

“One main thing that we’ve run into…is the room is louder than we expected it to be. We have a lot of glass. And you get this much glass, you get a lot of reflective sound,” Telgard says, so he is exploring methods to help dampen the sound.

What to Order

The new, slightly slimmed down menu has a “core of Blue Bird staples” like whitefish (when available fresh), walleye, and pizza. Telgard used the restaurant’s down time as an opportunity to seek out some new suppliers, and he’s got a few home runs so far.

“We found some tremendous perch that we are so thrilled about. It's not farm raised perch—this is wild-caught Michigan perch,” he says. “And we’re so happy to get it at a price we can live with and actually sell it. And customers are loving it. People are just flipping out.”

It’s a welcome addition to a menu that has long featured a bounty from the lakes.

“Fish is one of our big things, of course. It always has been at the Blue Bird,” Telgard says. “We’re getting out of whitefish season now, so it’s a little more difficult to come by, but our walleye and perch are really fantastic.”

The pizzas are and always have been in high demand, both for dine in and take out. Options include classics like Supreme, Veggie, and Caprese, with more creative editions available such as the Bird Pie (pepperoni, spinach, bacon, garlic, and tomato). There’s nothing overly radical about them, Telgard says, other than good ingredients and a consistent process.

“We make our crust every day, and we have a system for making our pizzas that is very, very consistent. And we use really good ingredients,” he says. “So it’s just a great pizza.”

Other local favorites include a brisket sandwich (“We smoke our own meats, so we have a brisket sandwich that is absolutely amazing,” Telgard says), hearty burgers, and a crispy chicken sandwich.
And while pub fare is all well and good, the new Blue Bird strives for more. New head chef Phil Murray (who owned and operated the famous Windows on Grand Traverse Bay for many years) plans to add several more upscale selections to the menu.

“Phil is…more of what I call a true chef,” Telgard says. “The former Blue Bird items from the old restaurant are classics that people ask for and they want, and we’re thrilled to put those out there, but Phil definitely brings another dimension to our cooking.”

Telgard says Murray is already at work creating new dishes that have been well received.

“He is extremely good on the sauté line. And his pastas are really, really delicious pasta dishes,” Telgard says. “He loves to work with ocean fish. So we’ve had a really good red snapper on the menu for a couple of weeks. He’s going to be switching over probably next week to several new fish dishes.”

Dessert and Drinks

And don’t forget to indulge your sweet tooth.

“Phil’s desserts are without peer. They’re just absolutely amazing,” Telgard says. “He’s a real chocolate guy, so his chocolates are great, but all of his desserts in general are really outstanding.”

Blue Bird has a full bar, including a Blue Bird Crib Light (named after the lighthouse in the Manitou Passage) made especially for them by Telgard’s friends at Arbor Brewing.

“It’s a lighter blonde beer, slightly cloudy, but really easy to drink with lower alcohol,” he says. “So it’s very friendly, very enjoyable, really an everyday beer.”

Telgard also has an impressive wine selection.

“I’m just pulling my list together with some of the things that we had at the old Blue Bird cellar. We had a pretty renowned cellar at the Blue Bird in the old building. And those wines I took and stored in a temperature controlled environment when I pulled them out of the old Blue Bird,” he says. “I have some… really nice older Italian wines that are really coming into their own right now.”

Find the Blue Bird at 102 East River St. in Leland. (231) 256-9081; bluebirdleland.com

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