I was more of a Royal Oak gal growing up in suburban Detroit than a Berkley gal. But today I discovered Berkley anew, while visiting my family here. I generally thought of Berkeley’s business district as being along Coolidge road but turn the corner heading north on 12 mile and there is some interesting entrepreneurial stuff going on, the kind I associated with Royal Oak.
We had a charcuterie board at The Rind, therestaurant in the shop Mongers (as in cheese mongers), which also has excellent fresh soups (tomato, mushroom) and sandwiches (grilled cheese with bacon; a hefty muffuletta). The gourmet food area next to the dining area has lots of well-chosen cheeses (Pleasant ridge!), cured meats, chocolates etc. The cheese monger world is tight knit. The Monger owner told me he’s hung out with other cheese mongers I know including my cousin in Great Barrington, MA (@ Rubiner’scheesemongers) and in Des Moines (TheCheeseshop).
Next door we found a gift store I first visited in Ann Arbor, Catching Fireflies, which turned out to be the original store, in Berkley for some 20 years. Who knew?
Dinner was hearty Italian food at the old school Cafe Cortina in Farmington which has been around since the 1970s, I believe.
We made such good time on our drive from Chicago to Detroit – and the weather was suddenly sunny and a balmy 57 degrees- that we had time to stop en route for lunch at zingerman’s in Ann Arbor. I wisely called ahead to order our sandwich (lean corned beef, coleslaw, emmenthaler cheese, Russian dressing on hardy bread) so it was waiting when we arrived. Otherwise the wait time was one hour for a sandwich. I also got some outstanding chopped liver (from Amish chickens, supposedly.)
We had fun looking at all the cheeses, including Lively Run, a Finger Lakes fav (NY) and cured meats and Michigan products including American spoon (red haven peach preserves) and CherryRepublic.
We explored a farmers market across the street and Catching Fireflies, a fun shop with Michigan gifts. We were apparently in the Kerrytown Shopping area, with historic 19th- century buildings from lumber and agriculture purveyors in this town best known for the University of Michigan.
Whistlestop
On a dreary rainy Sunday we went to the Emagine (yes, E not I) theater to see the new Bob Dylan bio pic, which was excellent. This was our second movie theater outing since 2020 (pre-pandemic). We sat in snazzy fake leather recliners, reserved in advance, row D not too close to the giant screen. The sound was loud but fortunately the movie was full of music not noisy battles from some blockbuster action movie.
We had a pleasant late lunch/brunch (good eggs, sausage, blt) at The Whistlestop cafe in Birmingham and dinner (upscale Mediterranean/middle eastern) earlier at Phoenicia in Birmingham.
By the end of this busy day in southwest Michigan, we had a car full of bike shirts, democratic candidate fliers, apples, cider and pumpkins, which reflects the dual nature of the day. We spent much of it canvassing for democratic candidates in New Buffalo, volunteering on behalf of the Michigan Dems – visiting streets completely off the tourist path in New Buffalo, which was interesting. We encountered a mix of friendly Dems and sometimes hostile Trumpers. One woman slammed the door in my face after declaring she’d never vote for “that woman,” i.e. Kamala Harris. Other republicans were more pleasant.
More fun with skeletons
We also were in the area for the annual Apple Cider Bike Ride that happens tomorrow. We went to the registration in a Catholic church in Three Oaks, where there was also a very good sale on bikeshirts in a nearby tent. Later in the day, after canvassing, we returned to Three Oaks for the bike ride’s “ice cream social” which was fun. We lined up for free ice cream (Michigan pothole, my new fav, was an option) and popcorn which we ate in a little park in town where a blues band played in a gazebo.
Apple Cider Ride ice cream social
We took the backroad Cleveland (the name of our street in Chicago) to the Twin Maples apple orchard north of Galien (pronounced Ga-leen, home of Ray and Al’s cafe, which remains on my must-try list). (UPDATE: The cafe opened an offshoot in THREE OAKS — Commune+Market, a new coffee shop and expansive event space, is set to open its doors in the heart of downtown Three Oaks at 105 North Elm St. Source: Harbor Country News https://search.app/38eUeVg2UJQ85qfp8)
We picked up some Jonathan apples (uncommonly huge and red) for applesauce-making, plus some mutsu apples and honeycrisps for eating and some cider. We had a pretty drive further north (marred only by too many Trump signs) through Baroda, stopping outside st. Joseph at devries farm to pick up some pumpkins and unusual gourds.
Houndstooth fare: poke with avocado in blackberry ponzu sauce and Japanese milk bread with black garlic and chives.
Dinner at Houndstooth in Benton Harbor did not disappoint. It helped that the clerk at an outfitters shop (wanderlust) in St. Joes excitedly recommended what we should order, down to the drink (WaffleHouse, an odd name for what tasted and looked like elegant lemonade). The Japanese milk bread was fabulous (which I would not have thought to order had the clerk not recommended).
She also recommended the passion fruit panne cotta with little pieces of meringue for desert which was as delicious as it was beautiful to look at. Looked like mini birch tree branches in a creamy bright yellow sea. We sat on the patio which fortunately was not deserted but next time I’d like to try the dining room which was hopping. Strange to find such life inside a building on otherwise lifeless streets but I’m guessing affordable rents in this struggling town made it possible for a talented chef to set up shop.
We danced the night away at my niece’s wedding, held at White Oak Farm in the countryside near Michigan City, Indiana, only 12 minutes from New Buffalo, Michigan, but one time zone away.The weather was dry (amen) and in the 80s, with some intense sunshine during the early part of the outdoor service on a stone patio between two barns – not the old rustic barns but new fancy barns, one with chandeliers, designed not for livestock but for events including weddings. Great people, service, food, dj, dancing.
The “barn”
The morning after, my sibs and I checked out of our respective airbnbs at 10 am (a bit challenging when you’ve gone to bed at 1:30 am) and met at Issa Vibe Cafe, a cheerful easygoing spot with large breakfast paninis (request mayo/aioli on the side; consider sharing) and coffee drinks. It was a good place to hangout and a perfect way to end our family gathering.
Noah, D and I did stop for some Michigan pothole ice cream at Oinks on the way out of New Buffalo. We’re talking very chocolate ice cream with oreo cookie crumbs and mini-peanut butter cups, so not suitable for our lab Millie, who was with us. Amazingly, another customer came over to our table with a little dish of vanilla ice cream for Millie. How kind was that?
The weather turned oddly cold and moody, but thankfully no rain. Still, not a beach day so we drive along scenic M22, stopping at a small gallery with ceramics, Good Harbor Gallery, at a rural intersection north of Maple City where I found a wedding gift! we drive through traffic and tourist clogged Leland and it’s famous fishtown to the pretty village of Northport, where a farmers market along the lake was concluding.
Back south, we met up with the grandsons and parents for the annual port Oneida fair at six historic farms, offering lots of old timey kid friendly farm and craft activities, although the kids favorite was an earlier outing to feed alpacas in Frankfurt. In one farmhouse, the 70s cult novel Jonathan Livingston seagull was allegedly written. (I thought it was an east coast ocean seagull.)
Also happened to learn from an old friend about my family’s rabbinical and yenta roots in Traverse City!
We finally made an effort to find the Elberta Beach, which is a keeper…a perfect stretch of sand that you reach by walking along a path in the dune grass. nice view of the Frankfort light house and dock innthe distance.
Elberta Beach
In Arcadia, we hiked through the woods a half mile to yet another gorgeous dune bluff view. After visiting the local old-fashioned ice cream shoppe, we drove into the town which turned out to be lovely with a pristine 19th century Lutheran church and several lovely white wood frame 19th century houses with tidy gardens and, I was pleased to see, pro-choice signs. No Trump signs like elsewhere up here, especially around Maple city. We saw two Robert F. Kennedy Jr, signs on the bike trail leading into Frankfort. go figure. Near Arcadia, we checked out the Watervale Inn, an old fashioned resort with summer cottages and a little beach. Unfortunately no dogs allowed, last I checked.
Arcadia house
Dinner into evening was at the perfect beach house of my friend from age 13, PJWK, in Glen Arbor, with a gorgeous view of a Manitou island in the distance and another mainland point. The old tiny Glen Haven. The night sky was full of stars.
When the young baker at the farmer’s market in the tiny village of Honor told me she was returning to school soon, I almost asked which college. Turns out she’s a first grade teacher…who makes a mean cinnamon roll. She was one of the few food vendors at the Tuesday market. The rest were selling low key crafts. We did buy some red haven peaches and tomatoes from what appeared to be native Americans.
Henna vendor at Honor farmers market
We rode our bikes twice on the Betsie River trail along Crystal Lake, which was a different series of colors each day, ranging from coral blue to navy blue.
The trail is about 18 miles round trip and very pleasant, mostly flat with a variety of surfaces and terrains, starting with crunchy crushed gravel as we peddled past waterfront cottages with pretty gardens and the lake, then pavement through the woods, dotted with the occasional white birch (my favorite), then through a marsh wetlands/Betsey Lake past Elberta into the tourist town of Frankfort, with its restaurants, T-shirt shops, and occasional classy decor/gift shops. There is also a L’chaim sandwich shop in Frankfort, where we shared a hearty Ruben sandwich.
Frankfort
In Empire, we made an obligatory stop at the Grocers Daughter for gelato. Esch beach was calm and packed, with warm water and sunshine on our first outing, then windy and less packed, with frigid water and white caps after a stormy night.
Cottage view, Crystal LakeThe sleeping porch in the afternoonCottage at night
We’ve been here enough that we know the lay of the land, and have our old favorites. While the younger gens did the dune climb at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park, we did a short, more sedate hike north of the village of Empire that landed us at Pyramid Point dune with yet another dazzling view of the lake and manitou island in the distance. We drove a little further on M-22 to near Maple City, which was a reminder of how pretty that area is and might be worth planting ourselves during future visits. Bucolic farmland, historic farmsteads and pretty old country homes.
Glen Arbor was packed with tourists, as was Cherry Republic but it’s got good food (cherry chicken) and good service so worth the one hour wait? The kids played cornhole and other games available on sight while the adults shopped for cherry everything and anything in the shop.
Pyramid Point
We are near the Benzie County Democrats so Noah and I dropped by to see where volunteers are most needed in this battleground state during the upcoming presidential race. The office had just closed but we met a funny and engaging democrat (the lone one on the county commission, she told us). Benzie has a surprisingly robust democratic presence she told us, and is purple. So help is needed. Grand Rapids also needs help from democrat volunteers. She wasn’t sure about the New Buffalo area, which is most convenient to Chicago.
On to Port City Smokehouse for some fresh whitefish and smoked whitefish spread. Nice helpful staff.
We are back in Beulah after a three year hiatus and fortunately our Airbnb (Fred’s view on Crystal drive) is better than the last one. It’s farther from downtown Beulah, high on a ridge overlooking Crystal Lake, but a much less creepy and decrepit cottage. We claimed the sleeping porch, which has a lovely view of the lake in the distance, although we hear the cars from nearby highway 31. So not as serene as the sleeping porch from our early Ithaca stays on Cayuga Lake. But atmospheric with scuffed white wood siding and planked ceiling, a mishmash of wicker furniture and lake kitsch.
Farmhouse
Lunch en route was in Douglas at the farmhouse bakery, which contrary to its websitedoesn’t let you order online or by phone. We waited a half hour for very good sandwiches (mufaletta, tuna,), excellent carrot cake and perfect sourdough bread. Good dog-friendly sitting at wood tables outside in the back.
Empire bluffs
Today we did the easy hike on Empire bluffs Trail for spectacular views of the lake and sleeping Bear dunes, then onto L’chaim deli In beaulah – excellent Rubens, roast beef with Stilton, loaded bagels.
In the later afternoon we went to our favorite dog-friendly, townie beach, Esch Beach, which has soft sandy bottom with a few patches of rocks. Dinner was takeout pizza from very nearby Papano’s. Not bad.
Finally made it back to southwest Michigan’s lake shore as the summer fades. The sky has been overcast but a wretched Midwest heat wave is over, leaving behind pleasantly warm lake water and giant whitecaps which were fun to swim in!
Red arrow roadhouse
We had excellent whitefish at Red Arrow Roadhouse in Union Pier, a fun casual spot. Judith Racht gallery in Harbert, which specializes in “primitive/outsider” art, located in an old school house, was closed for the week. I browsed inside SO (Stockholm objects) which had beautiful and expensive Swedish (and other) clothing and home goods.
On Saturday we took the three dogs for a walk along the beach and, as it turns out, a swim. All three labs love the water and Weko beach has a designated area for dogs south of the main swim area toward Warren Dunes State Park. Lunch was at The local, one of those little trendy touches in a still mostly ordinary small town, except there was one other trendy touch, a pottery gallery with ceramics from all over the world that was crazy expensive.
One pot, I kid you not, from an Australian ceramicist (for this price I’m not calling her/him a potter) was $4,600. You read that right and I did too after double and triple checking. Was it glazed in gold?
We went peach picking at a place in baroda and all decided peach trees are so pretty. The peaches are not yet ripe so here’s hoping. we went on a 17 mile bike ride leaving from Three Oaks, east on Kruger road and at the small town of Galien, we rode south on Cleveland, crossing the scary major highway (12) and then heading back east along very pretty Buffalo road which during the last mile was as A sandy gravel road that led to a dirt road (Avery) back over highway 12. Not a perfect loop but as close as we could get. We picked up an excellent Margherita pizza at patellie’s in Three Oaks.
TakeBetsywithyou 