Thursday, October 18, 2012

Traverse City Eats

Just as promised in yesterday's post, today we cover some Traverse City eats!  When I decided to bring the Mr back here, I started doing my restaurant research.  I was looking forward to a week off from cooking and I was looking forward to supporting local restaurants.  One that immediately caught my eye was Patisserie Amie.  We have a great patisserie in our home town so I'm always down with trying new ones.


Patisserie Amie's food was delicious.  Their Belgian hot chocolate was sinful.  Their beignets were pillowy soft inside with a slight crispy shell and a little burst of steam when you cut into them.  The Peasant omelet was my favorite though the Mr's banana nutella waffle was no slouch.

When our pizza craving needed to be appeased, I knew where I wanted to go...Paesano's Pizza.  I read all about their thick crust pizza and given we were about to eat our hands by the time we got there we decided to get some garlic cheese bread (which we hadn't indulged in in quite some time) while we waited for our pizza.   This is also where we discovered Northwoods Soda and I had my first cream soda in probably 10 years.  Yum!


The guy there (owner, I'm assuming) was sooo nice and so passionate in describing the difference in Chicago style and deep dish.  It was great pizza and we took some of both home for later and I can confirm that the pizza tastes just as good cold.  Definitely a must stop for pizza when in town and yes, they have a thinner crust pizza as well.

My favorite place was the Grand Traverse Pie Company.  OH. MY. LORD!  My first introduction was our top left pic which was free on Tuesday because it was in fact, free pie Tuesday which I would like to nominate as a national holiday.  To the right is the pecan pie which was quite yummy as well.


My favorite was the lower left which was the apple crumb.  Oh man, so good.  Then they have these peanut butter cups.  I thought the Mr was going to wreck the car from rolling his eyes back in his head from food bliss on those bad boys.  I'm definitely going to replicate those in smaller sizes.

We hit Slabtown Burgers for lunch one day and satisfied our cravings for some meat...and chili cheese fries.  A rare delicacy in our world.  The Mr got the Pungi Burger (Single stuffed with Jalapeno, Bacon and Cream Cheese inside, topped with Pepper Jack Cheese, Ketchup, Mustard, Pickle, and Onion).  I got the bacon cheeseburger and we split the chili cheese fries.


As the Mr said, these are good, old fashioned burgers.  Nothing fru fru or "gourmet."  Funny thing is when we go back, I'll probably get his and he said he'd probably get mine.  The chili on their cheese fries is perfection.  It's so hard to find good chili for chili cheese fries but they nail it.  A big plus is they are very reasonable so good food that fits into any budget?  I'm there dude!

For the Mr's birthday lunch we were on the road heading toward Point Betsie Lighthouse and we stopped at this cute place called The Cherry Hut.  They had Thanksgiving dinner and I ALWAYS crave it this time of year.  I can't wait until the holiday so this was going to be a nice way to satisfy that itch.


This place could not have been more perfect for the Mr's birthday.  We're high on nostalgia and this place is old fashioned from the food to the plates to the way they serve the butter.  See that bottom left pic?  That's butter done old school in between slips of parchment just like they did back in the day.  We got the dinner version for $16.50 which comes with a ton o' food.  Soup, salad, rolls (both a small dinner and small cinnamon roll), the dinner, your drink and dessert!  For 2 weeks out of the year they have apple pie and we were lucky enough to get some.  Sweet Caroline was that some GOOD pie!  It's nice and spicy just like I like it!  There is a scoop of cinnamon ice cream and a slice of cheddar cheese on the side.  It was a great meal and we're looking forward to going back.

For the Mr's birthday we decided to go to Bourbons 72 for dinner just outside Traverse City in Williamsburg.  It was a good choice!  We got the spinach and artichoke dip with these pita chips.  It was amazing!  I know this is going to sound weird but the pita chips tasted like pizza combos.  (The little cheese stuffed cracker snacky things)  I could've just gnawed on those babies and let the Mr scoop the dip out with his hands.

I got the 6 oz filet mignon with mashed potatoes and green beans.  The Mr loves him some prime rib so he got a small one with a baked tater and green beans.  For dessert (which we weren't going to get but when we mentioned it was his birthday and they said "it's on us" why not?) we split the peanut butter pie with chocolate ice cream.  There was nothing like discovering how awesome it tasted when you'd take a scoop of pie with a bit of the chocolate soft serve.  A really good birthday dinner.  I do wish they had a separate entrance and you didn't have to cut through the chain smoking casino though.

Now to our favorite...Hoxsie's Farm Market in Williamsburg.  Not only does this place have the nicest people you could ever hope to meet, all of their stuff is top notch.  The best honeycrisp apples we had the whole trip, the best sugar cookies I've had in my life, some delicious nutmeggy (yes, that's a word) pumpkin bread which makes for yummy breakfasts and pumpkin donuts that are so soft and fluffy you could swear they were made from clouds baked by fairies riding unicorns.

I might've exaggerated the last part.

Some other honorable mentions are Cousin Jenny's Cornish Pasties (hit 'em up after strolling through Wilson Antiques next door), Dish Cafe (the quesadillas are good but I loved the jalapeno chicken soup!) and Pleasanton Brick Oven Bakery (really good ginger cookies).

Fact is, when you're in TC (or anywhere within a 40 mile radius), you're going to eat some taste bud pleasin' eats baby.  Your hips and thighs might be a little more curvy for it but worth every calorie.

Please note:  Some places like The Cherry Hut and Hoxsie's are seasonal so please make sure you check their websites for current hours before going!

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27 comments:

  1. I could go for some of that pie from GT Pie Co again. Their apple crumb pie was like apple crisp just like my Mom used to make and those butter cup things were amazing!

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  2. OMG, I haven't had breakfast yet, and I want ALL OF THIS! My oatmeal isn't gonna cut it today ; ) Thanks for sharing these delicious looking finds!

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  3. and now I'm hungry. I think I gained a couple pounds just reading about these treats.

    I'm glad you hit a pasty shop - those are one of my favorite thins about going to visit my grandma when I was a kid.

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    1. Just be glad they aren't showing up on your scale, just mine. ;)

      It was definitely different. I think I prefer pot pies so the gravy can go inside instead of on top.

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  4. Dang, you do know how to vacation splurge! I'm going on my next vacation with you!

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    1. Yeah unfortunately my big ol' butt pays the price for an extra week or two but I've been back at it since the day after we came back so hoping most of it is water weight!

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  5. Ditto. Pick me up along with Cammy.

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  6. WOW! I'm shoveling my breakfast cereal in my mouth as I'm reading this--but I'd rather have some apple pie, some pecan pie, some turkey dinner, etc. A PERFECT vacation--lots of beautiful FALL scenery and lots of great food. I like to live vicariously through you and the Mr.!

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    1. We like to enjoy all of the local food as much as the attractions. I'd like to say I'm regretful but I'm not. ;) (Though there were a couple of places I wish the calories didn't count since the meals were bad but they can't all be winners I guess)

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  7. OMG - this is a definite food porn post!! Everything looks so delicious! Now I want to go to Traverse City. I'm wondering how many hikes up the sand dune are required to burn off the calories...

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    1. LOL, yes it's a feast for the eyes! Luckily you can hike up a sand dune or two, walk around the bays, walk the city and shop and all kinds of stuff to work off those calories!

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  8. YUM!!!!! those burgers just made my eyes pop out! this baby is craving some burgers, every day!!! That would be heavenly! and I have NEVER indulged in chili fries~I have a feeling that I"m really missing out,huh? LOVE the pics and descriptions. My favorite? The makers of the pumpkin donut-I'm sure you did not exaggerate at all. :)

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    1. The burgers were delicious. Definitely missing out on the chili cheese fries but the trick is finding that perfect chili that YOU like to put on top. Like I don't like thin, runny chili or the Alpo lookin' stuff that seems so prevalent so I was a happy girl at Slabtown! You're right, I didn't exaggerate...I saw the unicorn when we left but was sworn to secrecy. :)

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  9. As a native Michiganer, I can only say, welcome to Michigan where being fat is expected!

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  10. If I wasn't hungry before, I most definitely am salivating now!!! Looks amazingly AWESOME!!! Glad I can't absorb calories just by drooling, erm...looking over your pictures!

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    1. I know, it's making me hungry now too and somehow a turkey sandwich with fruit and veggies just doesn't sounds as good as slamming my face into a slice of apple crumb cake!

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  11. Well, do tell, do tell-- what exactly is the difference between deep dish and Chicago style pizza? :-)

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  12. Well, according to the way they do it at that particular place, the deep dish is their thick crust baked in a deep dish pan with lots of sauce, cheese and pepperoni on top. The Chicago style uses chopped tomatoes as the sauce (GAG!) and everything is buried under the sauce. Well went with deep dish, hands down! :)

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  13. I'm late to the party (natch) but...I love this about you! That you don't mind showing people it's really okay to still enjoy something...to eat something you think sounds wonderful...to actually have taste buds that work- and still manage to rock more than 200 pounds while doing that. Yes, we know it's a pain in the rear (with extra padding after vacation sometimes) to kick it back down the pike. But you do. Period. Love it.

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  14. They should pay you for all the great publicity you've given them! I live across the lake and have heard a lot about Traverse City over the years but have never been there. Your postings make me want to consider a trip!!

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  15. Sounds like a great trip and that all looks wonderful. Happy birthday to the Mr. and thanks for sharing!

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  16. OMG, this is so dangerous. The pie company ships to you. The apple crumb pie is the pie of the month. Their stuff looks so delicious. I wouldn't be able to go to all of those places b/c I don't have the dedication like you guys do to work out when I get back. I was not hungry when I looked at this, but I have greed working against me.

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  17. Oh man, all of those pics made me want to dive right in! If I ever get up that way I'll have to stop in to some of the places you mentioned. Thanks for the pics and reviews!

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