Dreary Dining In Door County

Working in Door County for ten days, I decided to try some dinner places other than my usual standbys. Now I realize why I have usual standbys. Without delving into too many painful details, I’ll just say I had the worst fish fry of my life at the Harbor Fish Market and Grille in Bailey’s Harbor. The perch filets were tiny, tough, overcooked and oversalted. Oh, and overpriced. This surprised me, as I've eaten some nice breakfasts there.
The Northern Grill in Sister Bay featured a special--a quarter of a fried chicken and a third of a slab of ribs for ten bucks. The chicken was decently fried, but the ribs were par-boiled to meat-jello, and slathered with a gloppy-sweet sauce. My companion’s spaghetti went mostly uneaten.
The menu at the Shoreline Restaurant in Gill’s Rock looked promising. But in keeping with the theme of the week, my whitefish was dry, the rice pilaf came from a box and the vegetables were cooked to death. The cherry pie, which was packed with fruit, was homemade, if a bit over-thickened.
On a happier note, I enjoyed delicious, beautifully prepared fried Walleye at the Viking Grill in Ellison Bay. Accompanying the three (!) huge filets were some of the most perfect, crisp and tender hash browns I've ever eaten.

BTW, there are two terrific newish coffee/pastry places—Espresso Lane in Bailey’s Harbor, and Base Camp in Sister Bay. It’s nice finally to have great coffee in Door County. I’ll try to do a bit of a report on them when I go back up in a couple of weeks.

Viking Grill
12029 State Highway 42
Ellison Bay 920-854-2998

And don't say I didn't warn you:

The Shoreline Restaurant
12747 State Rd 42
Gills Rock 920-854-2950.

Harbor Fish Market & Grille
8080 State Highway 57
Baileys Harbor 920-839-9999

Northern Grill & Pizza
321 Country Walk Ln.
Sister Bay 920 854-9590

Sister Bay Bowl (tasty ribs) & Mission Grill were winners for me. I went on a girls weekend for my sister's birthday. White Gull Inn was OK for lunch. The next time you go there stop by Door County Bakery for a chunk of their famous "Corsica Bread" it's sold by the pound. They bake it in tons of olive oil (ok I didn't say it was healthy!).