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CITY OF MACKINAC ISLAND
POINTS OF INTEREST
Fort Mackinac. Built in 1780 by the British and fortified by 4-foot-thick walls in places, the fort offers cannon firing, fife and drum music, fascinating historical exhibits, and great village views from blockhouses and from a tea room with delicious food ...
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Grand Hotel. Explore a living Victorian resort hotel, from its famous front porch with fine Straits view and its splendid gardens to an exhibit of top American Impressionist paintiings. ...
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Mackinac Island Carriage Tours. Get an island overview without walking, and find out about Mackinac's fascinating horse culture ...
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Doc Crain's natural and human history tours by foot and bike. Doc's entertaining, authoritative tours illuminate the island's Indian mythology, natural and human history, wildflowers in bloom. He works for tips ...
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Island hub by the Arnold Dock/ Main St. between Astor and Fort. The nexus of myriad useful things: an information kiosk, carriage tours, bike rentals, a grocery, a drug store, a visitor center ...
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Market Street, 1820s fur trade center. At the 1820s center of John Jacob Astor's Great Lakes fur trade, see period cooking and spinning in a French-Canadian house; a blacksmith shop; and the reconstructed store where the permanent hole in a voyageur's stomach led to understanding digestion ...
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Downtown shops and amusements. Among downtown's souvenir, gift, and fudge shops are unusual businesses featuring good flying toys, a haunted house, magic and gags, artists creating expressionist landscapes and scrimshaw engravings, art and accessories, and good books. ...
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An eastside walk to Mission Point. A half-mile eastside walk to Mission Point passes lots of history, with stops at two of Michigan's oldest churches at Ste. Anne's and Mission churches and possibly the Mackinac Island Butterfly House. ...
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An East Bluff Walk to Robinson's Folly. This blufftop walk past impressive cottages affords a good view of Lake Huron, and a return view down on the village. ...
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Ste. Anne's Catholic Church. The parish goes back to 1700 and before. Parishoners have included French-Canadian and Native American traders, Irish fishing families, and the late Senator Phil Hart, among others. It has a small museum and charming garden ...
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West shore walk. Views of the Round Island Lighthouse and the gorgeous sunset behind the Mackinac Bridge make this a favoritie evening walk ...
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Governor's Summer Residence. See where governors since Soapy Williams have spent summer vacations, networking as well as relaxing ...
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Somewhere in Time movie locations. Fans of this Christopher Reeve/Jane Seymour cult classic can get a map and visit its filming locations. Hundreds come for October's SIT weekend; thousands are in its fan club. ...
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West Bluff walk to Hubbard's Annex. A stroll past 16 grand and ornate summer "cottages" from the 1880s and 1890s, leads into another cottage area and ends in Lovers' Leap scenic overlook ...
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City of Mackinac Island Restaurants
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Our choices are weighted not just for food quality and value, but also for setting and live entertainment, a big thing on the island. More entertainment notes are at www.mackinacisland.com See the weekly Mackinac Town Crier newspaper for specifics. The famous Pink Pony Bar & Grill (906-847-6494) at the Chippewa Hotel books well-known acoustic acts. Comedian Stu Stuart's popular standup act draws on his experience as an island porter and his travels across the U.P. (He also writes for the Porcupine Press, the U.P.'s most Yooper publication. He appears some nights at 9 p.m. at The Lilac Tree Hotel (906-847-6575). $15, $12 for students and seniors. Suitable for children.
Many of our selections are less expensive family spots. Don't forget, up in Fort Mackinac, the Tea Room by the state's oldest building (1780, with walls three feet thick), where you can enjoy food from the Grand Hotel on a terrace overlooking the harbor and village of Michigan's most historic and picturesque town. This year the tea room is open until 7:30 p.m. in summer.
Don't get carried away with drink just because there's no car to drive. "Bartenders can and will cut off the overly inebriated, and the Mackinac Island Police will certainly enforce laws regarding public intoxication," visitors are warned. Drunken bike riding is also dangerous to the bicyclist and others.
Restaurants are arranged from west (at the Grand and by the Star Dock) to east. Expect a crowd in season. Get reservations if possible.
GRAND HOTEL
(906) 847-8300
All Grand Hotel restaurants are open to the general public. The $10 admission fee to the hotel building is needed only from 9 to 5. After that, anyone can come for dinner or drinks - provided that they are dressed for the occasion: men in coat and tie, ladies "at their loveliest" - now interpreted as dresses or pantsuits, but ladies are cut a little more slack than men, and pants with a dressy top should do. The Grand's food is almost always good and surprisingly cutting edge. (Just who thought of teaming collards with truffles?)
Sample menus are under "dining" on the Grand Hotel web site. Add an 18% gratuity to all prices.
GRAND HOTEL MAIN DINING ROOM
Dining on a grand Victorian scale, served by elite Jamaican waiters, includes the possibility of Victorian-style gross over-indulgence. But "most of our guests would never do that," a key Grand staffer told us. Vegetarians can always eat well at the Grand Hotel.
Breakfast ($30) is from 7:30 to 9:30. Fresh fruits and juices, pastries, sides, plus entrées like asparagus and tomato pie, or New York strip steak with apple fritters, or whitefish with spinach. From 9:30 to 11 many breakfast items are served in the adjacent Geranium Bar.
Grand Buffet at lunch ($45, with $10 credit from general admission). Two hundred feet of beautifully presented salads, hot meats and seafoods, and pastries. (This is not part of the modified American plan included with rooms for hotel guests.)
Dinner ($75) consists of five courses followed by demitasse in the Grand Parlor. On this year's menu, among the appetizers are porcini-eggplant ravioli, and lamb carpaccio with arugula, pine nuts, and horseradish oil. Some entrées are grilled duck breast on black truffle grits, and beef tenderloin medallions with shrimp sauté and bordelaise sauce. A sommelier is on hand to assist with wine selections.
AFTERNOON TEA in the PARLOR ($25 for guests and non-guests alike). Teas, sherry, and champagne with finger sandwiches, scones, and pastries - accompanied by chamber music.
CARLETON'S TEA STORE on the Grand Hotel carriage level is open for lunch. It serves beer, wine, and sandwiches like a roast turkey and swiss croissant with potato salad ($10), soups, and salads like chicken-avocado Cobb ($12). Soup and half a sandwich is $9.
•The JOCKEY CLUB is the Grand's casual spot for lunch, dinner, drinks, and snacks. It's by the first tee of the Jewel Front Nine across Cadotte Avenue from the Grand Hotel side entrance. Local people, including one man who runs a respected island restaurant, mention it as a favorite. The foot-long hot dog ($6), whitefish and chips ($12), and BBQ chicken and red onion marmalade bruschetta ($9.50) are popular at lunch. There are also soups, salads, and appetizers like hummus and olive plate ($7.50) or potato gnocchi with wild mushrooms and watercress sauce ($8). Dinner plates can be herb-crusted rack of lamb with roasted turnips and eggplant caviar ($29), broiled whitefish with potatoes and spinach ($19), and a skillet half chicken with braised collards and sweet corn pudding ($19). The Grand Pecan Ball with special fudge sauce ($6) is a tradition big enough for two. There's jazz piano many evenings. WOODS RESTAURANT and BOBBY'S BAR
(906) 847-3699
Woods is the Grand Hotel restaurant back by the Jewel golf course's "Woods Nine," a bike or carriage ride from town. It is similar to the Jockey Club in menu and price, but not the same. The German hunting lodge setting, with interior designed by Carleton Varney, isn't at all like a German restaurant in Frankenmuth (or in most of the U.S.), but will be quite familiar to travelers in Germany: checked tablecloth, lots of antlers and stenciling, and a comfortable, casual ambiance. The food's not German. Evenings bring jazz piano solos. An extra bonus at Bobby's Bar: you can bowl what's thought to be the nation's oldest duckpin alley. WINDERMERE DOG HOUSE
(906) 847-6586
This prime waterfront spot at Windemere Point just west of downtown has picnic tables, umbrellas, and a great view of the Round Island Light. It's open only to Windermere Hotel guests and patrons of its hot dog stand. Koegel's hot dogs (plain, Polish, bratwurst) are from around $2.75 to $3.25, 50¢ extra for kraut or chil. Also available: pop, iced tea, and soft-serve ice cream.
Open from Memorial Day weekend thru Sept. at least, at 11 a.m. Closing around 6, depending on business. For fall weekend hours call (906) 847-6586.. Wheelchair accessible. HOTEL IROQUOIS
(906) 847-3321
Many discriminating island residents regard the Iroquois Hotel restaurant as ther favorite place to splurge. The setting is luxurious and intimate, with a Straits view on 3 sides looking at the Round Island Lighthouse. Service is outstanding. And the ingredients, changing with seasonal availibility, are the best available, amost always organic.
Breakfast entrées are $10 to $15, dinner entrées with seasonal accompaniments from $25 to $40. It's famous forwhitefish, caught daily, filleted here. It's around $10 as a lunch sandwich with parmesan fries, around $25 at dinner. A staff favorite is divers scallops with lemongrass and leek (about $30). Sample menus with prices are on the Iroquois web site.
A limited menu (desserts abut $8.50, soups $6, appetizers, some sandwiches and large salads) is served on the veranda. Jalapeno mayo and avocado are on the "best BLT." Signature dessert: pastry shell with ice cream and fudge sauce. There are an extensive wine list and nightly piano music.
On the water and Main St. at the west end of downtown, on Windermere point. Open from week before Mem. Day into Oct.: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. in season. No breakfast until mid-June and after Labor Day. No lunch 'til a week after opening and a week before closing. Children's menu. Handicap access: call. 6 steps. MARY'S BISTRO
(906) 847-9911
Mackinac's newest restaurant is owned and operated by the Island House hotel. It has an intimate, comfortable fine-dining atmosphere (more relaxing than many downtown restaurants) with a good wine list and wide selection of alcoholic beverages from Europe as well as the U.S. The rear patio is quite close to the harbor. Wood-grilled chicken ($18 with mashed potatoes and vegetables) is its signature dish. Appetizeers are good, too. nFor a quick lunch there are changing soups ($4/bowl), burgers ($8), and chicken Caesar salad ($10). Occasional acoustic music concerts.
The west end of Main Street between the Star dock and the Iroquois Hotel. Open mid-May thru mid-Oct. at 11 a.m. Kitchen closes at 10, bar open 'til whenever. Handicap-accessible. VILLAGE INN
(906) 847-3542
A local institution considered by many the best Northern Michigan restaurant, the Village Inn is famous for whitefish, planked or as a sandwich. They serve certified Angus beef, far more delicious than ordinary Angus. The bar is quite a gathering place, but the V.I. is also a big family spot. Booths are in the adjacent dining room. Extensive wine list.
On Hoban off Main near the Shepler Dock. HORN'S GASLIGHT BAR & RESTAURANT
(906) 847-6154
Here since 1933, Horn's serves a mainstream lunch menu of burgers, salads, soups. Known for nachos and Margaritas. Southwestern dinner appetizers and entrées. Children's menu available. Live entertainment nightly. Wednesday DJs, music and light shows. College bands, too. A great place for dancing.
On Main Street just west of City Park across from the Arnold dock. Open 10:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. PATRICK SINCLAIR'S IRISH PUB
(906) 847-6454
Not surprisingly, the theme here is Irish, with corned beef sandwiches, potato soup, shepherd's pie, and Irish whiskeys. Also cedar shake salmon, burgers, hand cut fries, and European beers on tap. Children's menu. Weekend entertainment. Mary McGuire at the chamber notes the “traditional Irish sing-a-longs, complete with humorous insults aimed at the crowd, on weekends. Contemporary acoustic musicians may be heard singing Great Lakes ballads on weeknights. On Sunday nights, the tables are pushed away and the dance floor gets sizzling when the Island's international workforce shakes in true Jamaican fashion.”
On Main between City Park and Astor. Open for lunch and dinner year round. ICE HOUSE Bar & Grill
(906) 847-3347; theislandhouse.com
Soups, burgers and sandwiches, and salads, popularly priced and conceived with flair, are served inside or under umbrellas outside. With its hidden garden, this is a favorite little corner of town in summer. Wide selection of beers. Children's menu. Wi-fi internet and a computer for complimentary use by patrons to check e-mail. March, 2008
Soups, burgers and sandwiches, and salads, popularly priced and conceived with flair, are served inside or under umbrellas outside. With its hidden garden, this is a favorite little corner of town in summer. Wide selection of beers. Children's menu. Wi-fi internet and a computer for complimentary use by patrons to check e-mail.
Just east of Marquette Park and the Indian Dormitory, tucked away up the driveway east of Island House hotel. Open mid-May thru 1st week of Oct. noon-8 p.m. Handicap-accessible. J.L. BEANERY COFFEEHOUSE
(906) 847-6533
This charming, friendly coffeehouse has a fabulous view of the marina, harbor, and Round Island lighthouse. It's reasonably priced — a blessing, especially for families, on this expensive island. There are breakfast sandwiches and burritos, oatmeal, and granola along with muffins, light pastries, and turnovers. with soups and sandwiches for lunch or supper. Also for sale: coffee beans, mugs, coffee pots, tea pots and such.
From Main Street by the marina, east of Marquette Park, go back behind Bay View B&B. Open from mid May into late Oct. Summer hours 7-5. Otherwise 8-5. May have longer hours. Wheelchair-accessible. ROUND ISLAND BAR & GRILL AT EURO GARDEN CAFE
(906) 847-3312
Each of these moderately priced, casual lunch and dinner spots at Mission Point looks out at Round Island and offers a good look at freighters passing between Lake Michigan and the St. Marys River at Detour, headed for the Soo Locks and Lake Superior. The views are so fine, that one downtown restaurant manager comes here to unwind. The Round Island Bar is up higher, so the view is better, but smokier. Tables are by the windows. Its menu is basic American. There's evening entertainment. The Euro Garden Café, on the ground level, has a mainstream menu with German or Swiss touches like goulash, schnitzel, bratwurst, and more, served inside or on a very pleasant terrace. There's acoustic music on the terrace, weather permitting. Sample menus are on Mission Point's web site, but hard to find at the moment. Go from Home to Resort Attractions, then find “fine dining” in small print and click for individual restaurants and menus.
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