West Coast of Michigan

I'm planning a weekend getaway/road trip for some leaf peeping in western Michigan with my husband. We've never been up that way and we might get as far as Traverse Bay. Our hopping off point will probably be Grand Haven/Muskegon or Grand Rapids.

Any food places worth stopping at?

I highly recommend Journeyman's Cafe in Fennville. So a search on this forum and you'll see some great write-ups. It's about 10 minutes southwest of Saugatuck and well worth the trip.

Jonah

I would definitely second Journeyman as a fine dining option in the area. Fennville is about an hour short of Grand Rapids, though, and a little off the
beaten path- a ten minute drive off the highway. My favorite spot in GR would probably be Little Africa, a vegetarian Ethiopian place. The wat dishes at this place have complexity and depth of spice that surpasses most of its kind that I have had in Chicago. You won't miss the meat.
They are closed Mondays.

Little Africa
956 E Fulton St
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
(616) 222-1169

Here is the thread on the Journeyman:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... eyman+cafe

Journeyman was just listed in Gourmet for one of the best off-the-beaten path farm-to-table restaurants. It was the only restaurant in Michigan to make the list. I don't know when you are going, but you might want to check out their website. Next weekend, they are featuring Porkapalooza!, a celebration of the pig, which includes a barn dinner on one night, and a nose-to-tail dinner on another.

In the Saugatuck/Douglas area, I also recommend:

Everyday People Cafe
11 Center Street
Douglas, MI
269-857-4240

Not a place where you would eat, but there is a huge pumpkin "patch" on the corner of M-89 & 62nd Street in Fennville. I haven't been yet, but last year, it featured a huge variety of pumpkins and gourds.

If you have kids, Crane's Orchards has a corn maze.

Crane's Orchards
6054 124th Street (M-89)
Fennville, MI
269-561-8651

Wow, the Journeyman sounds like the place to be. Thanks for all the encouraging responses -- it is a reason this forum is such a treasure.

Just got back from a trip to Gaylord,Michigan and we ate at Su Casa in Fennville on the way back.Mighty tasty!

Su Casa in Fennville, where I first sampled the torta, de milanesa. As a teen visiting my dad's best friend at his shack in Glenn we would catch boy's day out lunches here. It was also my first salsa verde- and still one of my faves- blended with fresh tomatillo and avocado for a bright creaminess and very similar to the stuff served with carnitas in Michoacan. The owners are from Guerrero and Oaxaca. I have enjoyed a professional relationship with them in my adult years as a local chef with a deep appreciation of Mexican cuisine. Their shop provides essential Mexican ingredients to not only aspiring gringos like me, but a surprisingly large Mexican community in the area. They offer an amazing variety of ingredients, many imported from Chicago- El Milagro tortillas and Supremo brand dairy products as well as eccentricities like huitlacoche, house cured cesina, and fresh epazote. They have been undergoing a two year rebuilding project and will move into an adjacent newly built mexi-mega-plex that is a true testament to the niche they fill in an odd town stuck between a booming tourist mecca and small town agriculture- based community. Hats off. Now to address the food that has attracted such a diverse demographic- they've built the empire on wet burritos. They have to. They make a solid carne en chile, great tortas, exceptional salsa verde. But unfortunately the menu largely caters to the American palette. On a junk food binge I can find great pleasure in the "Quesadillas Su Casa"- stuffed with shrimp, bell peppers, and cheap cheddar. But the real reason why I return to Su Casa is the hard to find ingredients in a sometime cultural vacuum and for the spirit of a family-run success story.

I'm interested in the fact that many (most?) SWMi Mexican Americans seem to have roots in Oaxaca or the Yucatan. Any info on this (connections to specific towns, eg) would be much appreciated.

i do not really know .there are also a lot from michoacan in the area. i would imagine like many ethnic groups a few from one area settle and bring in their cousins,neighbors etc etc. most that came were migrant workers for the fruit farms and some just ended up staying.
like i said i like su casa but was wondering if anyone knows of a place that doesnt cater to the wet burrito,chimichanga ,frozen margarita crowd in sw michigan/northern indiana area.the worst example of that is the hacienda chain in the south bend area .

I have been meaning to post a tour of Holland, Michigan's great mercado/taqueria spots, but unfortunately I am not in the area any longer. There are quite a few surprising little spots, not unlike corner mercados in Chicago like Carniceria Leon- now I am not going to go as far as to say that any of these Holland places can touch the charred glory of CL, but for western Michigan, they are sources for dynamite authentic tacos. I do not know specific names for these places and can only relate approximations of their locations. The two that I have tried have a wide range of tacos and were very close in consistency- great carne asada and al pastor, varied success with slower cooked items like suadero, barbacoa, and carnitas. The first one I tried is at the northern end of South Shore Drive near Lake Macatawa, sharing a storefront with a collectible knives and swords business. The second one is a mercado in the historic part of town on Pine street near 16th, I believe. They have an outdoor picnic table, which is a nice spot to enjoy a taco in the summertime. Their menu was a bit more expansive than the first place, offering variety meats like lengua and sesos. The place that I haven't tried is another mercado where River becomes Michigan Ave. Looks like similar fare from the hand-painted signs out front. I cannot really comment on whether any of these places serve specific regional styles, as carnitas are from Michoacan, the barbacoa could be in the style of any number of regions- the first place had barbacoa de res, if that signifies a more northern cuisine, and pastor I believe is native to DF. Good stuff, though, maybe the best food in Ottawa county.
Further south I stopped at a supermercado on Pipestone Road in Benton Harbor, which had sensational carnitas. Tacos that could rival stuff in Chicago. Pretty close off the highway too...
Seems like I oughta post a full blown report next time I get up to the region. Anyone else out there explored these hidden gems?

Bruce and I have mentioned the small (3 store?) la Perla chain of mercados in the Benton Harbor/St. Joe's/Dowagiac triangle. Likely the place on Pipestone, I think.

Yes, very good stuff. I have noted elsewhere that these shops have a number of Yucateca products (Seville orange, achiote-based sauces and pastes) that are tough to find even in Chicago.

JeffB wrote:Bruce and I have mentioned the small (3 store?) la Perla chain of mercados in the Benton Harbor/St. Joe's/Dowagiac triangle. Likely the place on Pipestone, I think.
.

I'm sure you're right Jeff. I can't think of any other places on Pipestone that would even come close to deserving discussing here.

Jefe wrote:Anyone else out there explored these hidden gems?

No, but you're killing me. Please post more detail when you get the chance.

Jefe wrote:I have been meaning to post a tour of Holland, Michigan's great mercado/taqueria spots, but unfortunately I am not in the area any longer. There are quite a few surprising little spots, not unlike corner mercados in Chicago like Carniceria Leon- now I am not going to go as far as to say that any of these Holland places can touch the charred glory of CL, but for western Michigan, they are sources for dynamite authentic tacos.

I was driving around Saturday, and was also very surprised by how extensive the Mexican community is in this area. There's another La Perla at the corner of E. Napier Ave & M-140. The Carniceria Leon analogy is perfect for this one too, in back is the meat counter and kitchen where they have a big platter of glorious freshly cooked carnitas sitting out on display. Their English is as good as my Spanish (not) so you might as well be in Mexico when you come in here and order. It's pretty crazy finding something like this in the hinterlands of Michigan. An excellent taco with carnitas, onions, cilantro and fiery salsa verde runs you a grand total of $1.30 - that's some deal for breakfast. And I suspect this pork is raised locally, the meat is a deep, rich brown and has some real flavor - not that milky white faux-chicken you get in the chain grocery stores.

Driving north up M-140 toward South Haven, we saw at least three other ramshackle mercados on the highway. Then up by the town of Covert there appears to be a black community. There's a tidy little rib shack right on the highway that had the tell-tale plumes of smoke billowing out of it, signage promising ribs and hot links. If we hadn't just eaten I would've slammed on the brakes and popped in here too. It's a small cinder block place on the west side of the highway, freshly painted white with red painted trim, you can't miss it.

We went up to the Holland Farmer's Market, which was outstanding. Given all the great produce grown in this area, I've always lamented the lack of a really good farmer's market around Harbor Country. Turns out you have to go all the way up to Holland to find a market that does justice to this bounty. The market is about two city blocks long, and bustling with business. There were at least forty vendors displaying their wares, a lot of them offering samples. A long with the expected fruits and vegetables, you have a cheesemongers, bakers, and a sausagemaker. It's great that a town of this size can support this big a market. I didn't have time to take up Jefe's suggestions, but that gives me an excuse to return sooner rather than later.

Seeing all this great food at the market builds quite an appetite, so we headed straight to Journeyman Cafe after shopping. Fennville's about a twenty minute drive straight south of Holland. And to be honest Journeyman was quite a letdown. After seeing all this huge, billowy piles of cauliflower at the market, my wife had to have the cauliflower soup. And this was really disappointing, it tasted like they boiled the cauli in plain water and then just pureed it. No stock, minimal if any seasoning, it just tasted totally flat and blah. And the portion size was about a teacup's worth for $5.

I had a salad of greens and beets, which was also disappointing. A handful of greens, and instead of getting the expected robust slices of roasted beets there instead were maybe two or three tablespoons of finely chopped beets scattered around the rim of the plate like a garnish. And this sets you back $8.

But the duck rillette and the salumi platter were very good, especially the rillette. And you can get a La Fin du Monde beer for $5, which was the only bargain of the day. My wife's burger was ok too. But all in all I'd say this place has Chicago prices while he's paying rents maybe a tenth of what they charge in the city. And his portions are miserly compared to what you get in the city. The tab for lunch was a stunning $90 after tip (bad scatterbrained service on top of everything). Especially after I'd had a magnificent taco for $1.30 the gouging stood in stark contrast, if I'm up here again I'll take up Jefe's advise and hunt up some of these mercados in Holland. I sure won't be rushing back to the Journeyman anytime soon.

Holland Farmer's Market
http://www.cityofholland.com/Brix?pageID=421

Fast Eddie wrote:The tab for lunch was a stunning $90 after tip

SCUBAchef wrote:

Fast Eddie wrote:The tab for lunch was a stunning $90 after tip

As Count Floyd would say, Ah-wooooooo! Dat's scary kids!

.... not so crazy to find Mexican communities in the hinterlands of Michigan or any other agricultural areas around the country. Many migrant workers staff the vineyards and orchards, just like in N. California where the taco trucks run out of Santa Rosa servicing the vineyards are legendary. There's another fine Mexican grocery/taqueria further east on Napier, Mercado, I believe. Look for the house-made requeson. Orange building near the Meyer supermarket. As a regular at La Perla on Napier and C. Leon, I agree about the similarities. That La Perla is the place I noted has several Yucatan ingredients.

Well, having spent thirty years travelling all around the state of Michigan, it was jarring finding a complete barrio in the middle of nowhere. You're much more likely to run into Michigan militia in camouflage when you wander the backroads. In California, AZ, New Mexico, Texas, Pilsen, La Villita - no, not surprising. Here, surprising. Which is great, I'd much rather stumble across some carnitas than a gummy pasty.

Eddie, my experience is more recent, but right around that La Perla you will see many barracks-like housing units for the vineyard and orchard workers. My understanding is that they have been coming seasonally for many, many years. La Perla is pretty old. That said, there are many more permanent Mexican residents these days. Note that La Perla gets at least 3 brands of Chicago tortillas delivered at least once a day, plus some great norteno flour tortillas from Las Brazas in K'Zoo or Grand Rapids, can't remember which.

See this thread for recommendations around Traverse City. A few other places I have been meaning to post on are the Roadfood-endorsed Don's Drive-In for cherry (good but sweeeet) or raspberry (better) milk shakes, and The Boathouse on the Old Mission Penninsula for truly fine dining. Oriana Natural Foods is a very nice independent coop and grocery that has a sandwich and latte bar in the back. It's a good stop for families with little kids who need to run around a bit and has a wide variety of local organic products. Oriana also offers well-made entrees for heating up. It is on a residential street a few blocks south of the bay, so ask directions, as it's a bit hard to find.

In Ludington, there is a micro-brewery near the ferry, but far better (if you don't want a beer) is a fifties-themed soda-fountain and burger spot called House of Flavors, where they serve a large number (more than 31 flavors) of unusual ice creams including one called Wedding Cake. It tastes just like a boxed cake mix in ice cream form. They also have turkeys roasting on spits behind glass and serve a turkey dinner with all the trimmings that is pretty darn good, (even if the stuffing isn't made with Bess Truman's recipe like my grandmother's stuffing).

If you drive north from the center of Ludington past the public beach, there is a beautiful stretch of dunes. This coastline is uninterrupted by beach houses, and there are places to park along the road. Most likely, you will have the whole expanse of beach--a few miles long--all to yourselves. At the end of the road is a state park, but I have not explored that. Try to see the dunes around sunset. It can be spectacular. The last time I was there, I watched the sunset while listening to a WWII-era broadcast of Lena Horne. Every trip should have moments like these. And ice cream, of course.

<<<<UPDATE: Thali Bistro and Unkh's are closed>>>>

This may be too late, but Thali Bistro in Grand Haven is great for spicy Sri Lankan. There are many more options in my older posts for Grand Rapids, Holland, Grand Haven, etc, copied below. Our fav place in Traverse City is Poppycocks on the main drag downtown. Happy leaf lookin'!


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My wife and I took a nice trip along the western coast of Michigan a couple of years ago. There's a travel guide book that we picked up at Barnes/Noble that basically had all the maps and attractions on the way from Chicago to Mackinac. I think it was a Frommers or Fodors?

Anyway, in there, they had a suggestion for Driers Meat Market in Three Oaks. I would recommend stopping at this place and grabbing some sausage on the way back. It's family run and a nice quaint place. Here's the info (you can google map it as well):

Drier's Meat Market
14 S Elm St, Three Oaks, MI
(269) 756-3101