Food Eats Around Harbor Springs?
My boyfriend and I are thinking about doing a trip up to Harbor Springs over 4th of July weekend. We will have a car and are willing to drive around and make short day trips.
Any suggestions for good eats around Harbor Springs? Breakfast, lunch and dinner are appreciated.
We also are looking into hotels/b&bs (if you have any suggestions of B&Bs with cozy atmosphere, affordable price, and nice breakfasts that would be great as well) Saugutuck or Traverse City. So recommendations there would be helpful as well.
Thanks!
By Elyssa
on May 26, 2009 08:34 AM
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If you expect to find much in Harbor Springs at an "affordable" price you may well be disapointed. There are not many hotels in Harbor Springs. You should look at separate threads for TC or Saugatuck as there are several. There are several Inn's located in the greater Petoskey area. Staffords on the water or The Perry Hotel in Petoskey. Both have nice dining options as well. There is also a new Holiday Inn Express in Petoskey. If you do not have reservations at this late date the HI may well be your only option.
Not far from Petoskey is The Walloon Lake Inn which may be just what you are looking for. Another option might be to search for B&B's in Bay View. North of Harbor Springs on M-119 you will find Legg's Inn. People from far and wide rave about this place. It's more of a bar with Polish food but most seem to love it.
In Harbor Springs you will find Turkey's Pizza, Staffords Pier, juilleret's which is more casual and The New York . Most of these have been around a very long time with good reason. In Petoskey you will find Mighty fine Pizza , Andante for a great fine dining option and Jesperson's for breakfast or lunch.
Bay Harbor has a few high end restaurants as well. It would be a lot easier to help if you tried to pare down what you were looking for by cost or food type. ;)
http://www.staffords.com/
http://www.legsinn.com/
http://www.walloonlakeinn.com/map.html
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We are open to all food types although stay away from pork and fried foods.
I think our price range varies. We would love to find some great cheap eats but are willing to spend anywhere from $50-$150 for a dinner. I think keeping it under $100 for dinners would be prefered of course.
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If you skip the alcahol you can eat well at most places listed on this thread for $100 or less for two. Andante would be the exception.
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Sadly, Juilleret's closed in 2007. Stafford's Pier is still a good choice and very tasty planked whitefish. Petoskey has some nice B&B's and it's a great town for walking and shopping. Nice park on the bay for watching sunsets.
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I know of one B & B in HS. It is on the right side of 119 as you enter town. However, I know nothing about it. The Bay View Inn is a wonderful victorian inn on the bay in Bay View, which is between Petoskey and Harbor Springs. My favorite breakfast place in HS is Mary Ellen's Place which is an old fashioned diner/ice cream parlor with good omelets. Dinners in the area tend to get pricey but lately we have noticed a lot of bargains, e.g., The New York has an early bird deal if you order before 6:00 you get the second entree free. We also like the Crow's Nest which is north of HS toward Cross Village and they were offering a $15 perch or whitefish dinner and both were good. Legs Inn is definitely worth the drive and if you can eat outside it has a fabulous lake view and incredible sunsets. There is a store called Toski Sands on 119 which makes great soups and sandwiches for take out. Also, Gurney's in HS can equip you for a picnic. Enjoy your trip. The area is fantastic and I could go on and on. Let us know if you want anything else. If you can be more specific it will help us guide you.
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I second the rec of the Crow's Nest. You should also at least walk through Legg's Inn in Cross Village.
My favorite place in Cross Village isn't cheap, but I love the food and view - the Pier.
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Correction - You meant Harbor Springs for the Pier. Can't go wrong with any of Stafford"s properties.
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Was just in Petoskey/Harbor last week and the weather was beautiful! Just a note about the Pier. If you enter on the N side of the building you will be in the Chart Room. Same food-same kitchen, just 40-50% less because there's no waterview. Get a cone @ Kilwin's after Dinner and walk around the pier looking at the beautiful boats. A great experience for 1/2 the $.
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Agree that Leggs Inn is worth a stop. The food is Polish, OK but a bit pricey IMO, but...on a nice day sit outside and enjoy the view of Lake Michigan. Worth every penny.
We ate at Stafford's in HS last fall and I very much enjoyed the whitefish.
We might try that Crows Nest late next month, as we're going up to St Ignace for the car show and plan on driving back via HS/Traverse.
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The Crows Nest is on State Road East of HS (passes Boyne Highlands and Nubs Nob) so if you go you really wind up missing the drive on M-119. Teddy Griffins Road House is on that route as well.
Have you ever tried The Douglas Lake Bar?
http://www.crowsnest-harborsprings.com/
http://www.teddygriffins.com/
http://www.douglaslakebar.com/
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They all sound good, fritter. I think we will have to see where the road takes us :)
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I'll second The Bay View Inn as a B&B. Their brunch is one of the best in the area. The location in Bay View puts you close to downtown Petoskey where there are several dining options. If you're planning on bringing bikes, there's a great bike path along the bay right in front of the Inn. This is a Stafford's property, so you will find on the link posted by Fritter above.
I think all of the restaurants in Harbor Springs have already been mentioned (!). I don't really understand the Legs Inn thing. It has a unique history and I think if you're specifically looking for Polish food or somewhere a little 'different', it would be fun. Everyone seems to love the place, though - depends on what you're looking for, I guess. However, the drive from H.S. to Cross Village along M-119 is beautiful and it wouldn't hurt to stop in and take a look once you're in Cross Village. Another fun stop on that route is Pond Hill Farm, which has a farmer's market and store.
www.pondhill.com
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If you are looking for a store with picnic supplies don't miss Symons general store in petoskey. It's been voted one of the best "wine experiences" in the US. The extra benefit is that it's just a few doors down hill from American Spoon foods and their Gelato shop. There is also a nice bakery and bread shop in the plaza with Toski sands. When I was a kid Toski sands used to make the most awesome perch to go but I don't think they have done that in years.
http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/americas-50-most-amazing-wine-experiences
http://www.spoon.com/
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Ooo thanks...this is exactly the type of places we like to check out.
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Not Harbor Springs, but Hermann's European Bistro in Cadillac is an outstanding
restaurant. They've also got a small 5(?) room B&B operation.
http://www.chefhermann.com/
For breakfast in Cadillac, I recommend the Blue Heron restaurant.
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Love Turkey's, Legs Inn in Cross Villageand Mitchell Street Pub in Petoskey
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