Grand Traverse Is A Year-Round Playground
By Loren Shaum
Guest Columnist
TRAVERSE CITY, MICH. — According to the Traverse City Historical Society, the earliest occupants in the area around what is now Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay were Chippewa and Ottawa Indians. The current town of Peshawbetown on the Leelanau Peninsula was one of the original encampments and remains today as the headquarters for the Grand Traverse Band of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians.
French fur traders arrived in the 1600’s to feast on the area’s bounty. That’s when the term La Grand Traverse came into play. Meaning “long crossing,” it describes the canoe crossing at the mouth of Grand Traverse Bay.
The earliest permanent white settlers arrived in 1839 at the tip of Old Mission Peninsula where today sits the village of Old Mission. Many of the original structures are still in use.
Soon, logging became the main industry bringing lumberjacks from afar. By 1852, the town of Traverse City was established. Because it was only accessible by water, the Old Mission Lighthouse was constructed in 1870 at the tip to warn ships of the rock shoals populating the point.
In 1891, the Opera House opened, then in 1893, city founder, Perry Hannah built the fabulous Hannah House. Both remain tourist attractions today.
After the lumber boom, the region relied primarily on agriculture. To take advantage of the eco-system around the bay, fruit farming became popular. Today, Traverse City is known as the Cherry Capitol of the World (also claimed by Door County Wis., which has a similar ecosystem on the other side of Lake Michigan).
Food Scene Is Next To None
After an overnighter in Holland to visit one of my favorite restaurants in the area, Butch’s Dry Dock, we proceeded north.
Traverse City is home to the Great Lakes Culinary Institute at Northwestern Michigan College and largely contributes to making the area a major foodie destination. Some chefs have migrated from Chicago and Detroit, but there are also many institute graduates that don’t leave the area. Now, several have their own restaurants.
First stop: Apache Trout Grill nestled on the west side of Grand Traverse Bay, the restaurant is adorned with hewn redwood beams and a large stone fireplace. It places you comfortably in a hunting lodge setting. Curiously, the restaurant was named after a nearly extinct trout species from streams in Arizona’s White Mountains on the Apache Indian reservation.
Owner Jeff Lobdell and staff serve-up dishes using seasonal local ingredients. Featured are fresh local fish, seafood, steaks and their signature shrimp and lobster bisque. The latter is stellar with lumps of lobster and shrimp in a creamy, rich stock. With a hint of sherry, it’s a perfect start.
On this visit, we had to go with a local favorite, whitefish. Served as a sandwich for lunch, there are two large, panko-crusted slabs stuffed into a brioche bun with the house tartar sauce and served with garnishes of choice. I chose the house slaw as a side and both were a home run!
After an afternoon of shopping, we decided on a restaurant that is open only for dinner, has an eclectic menu, great scenery and a nice wine list. Enter the Boathouse Restaurant on Old Mission Peninsula, directly on Grand Traverse Bay and 15 minutes from Traverse City.
For me, the choice was easy. Elk tenderloin was on the menu.
Local chef, Jim Morse, a graduate and now part-time instructor at the institute, features local ingredients, many from the Boathouse Farm. He heads a staff in a quaint, waterfront cottage, and upon arriving, the courteous staff seated us nearly over the water and perfect for an enjoyable evening of food, conversation and a sunset.
The menu is seasonal and offers interesting dishes like foie gras, charcuterie and features Kobe beef. To start, we settled on a Pinot Grigio from Bowers Harbor Vineyard just up the hill from the restaurant. That wine paired quite well with fresh-shucked, Atlantic oysters. We slammed both!
Then we settled on the highly-acclaimed morel-Chanterelle bisque. This signature soup was rich with a cognac infused, chanterelle-flavored cream base, lumps of morels and finished with a drizzle of white truffle oil. This bisque was simply spectacular!
An entrée addition was grilled Alaskan halibut that arrived that day. Served with roasted cherry tomatoes, a pickled cabbage-lima bean mash, snap peas, squash and pea coulis’s and topped with a split morel, the dish was something to behold! The fish was done perfectly and was devoured.
This fall, we checked-out the Artisan Restaurant in the new Delamar Hotel. It’s right on the south tip of Grand Traverse Bay with extraordinary views, and their bloody Mary is excellent.
Wineries Are Plentiful
There is a vineyard on nearly every south facing slope on the peninsulas jutting-out into Grand Traverse Bay, and the varietals remind you of the Finger Lakes Region in New York. Within 20 miles of Traverse City, there are some 40 wineries and some are top-shelf. High on the list are Shady Lane, Bowers Harbor and Brengman Brothers. Besides the Pinot Grigio, Shady Lane’s Franc ‘n’ Franc is outstanding. For lunch, I had a Pinot Noir from Brengman Brothers that compared favorably with pinots from California. It was a great pairing with the whitefish sandwich.
Northern Latitudes Distillery
I know of no other place where you can get horseradish infused vodka, except at this obscure location in Lake Leelanau midway up the Leelanau Peninsula. Having captured a sampling of this creative concoction years ago, we found this spirit makes the meanest Bloody Mary! So, whenever in the area, capturing a stash is essential. Beware, his concoction is potent!
Another awesome hooch discovered at NLD is Deer Camp Whiskey (surprisingly made in southern Indiana). This smooth elixir is perfect with an ice cube and makes for great sipping in front of a blazing fire. It warms your cockles quickly!
If You Go
Most wineries don’t open until May.
Northern Latitudes Distillery: 112 E. Philip St., Lake Leelanau. Check the hours before embarking. They don’t ship.
Apache Trout Grill: 13671 SW Bay Shore Drive, Traverse City.
The Boathouse: 14039 Peninsula Dr., Traverse City. Reservations are recommended.
Artisan: 615 E. Front St., Traverse City.
For shopping, Front Sreet is loaded with boutique shops. A must is the American Spoon store. This Petoskey-based company’s dark chocolate covered cherries are addictive. Also, check out the Grand Traverse Whiskey tasting room. Their Ole George Rye Whiskey is outstanding.
Hotels are plentiful, but make reservations early as warm weather nears.