Restaurant, Retail Openings On Deck For Spring

Just in time for the warmer weather, several new restaurants are set to open across the region, retail and food-and-beverage changes are coming to downtown Traverse City, and shake-ups are coming to area shopping centers in The Ticker’s latest look at local restaurant and retail news.

Regional Restaurants
As part of a planned campus expansion at its Glen Arbor headquarters, Cherry Republic will open a new year-round restaurant and brewery called Cherry Public House this month.

Located in the former Cherry Republic Grand Café on Lake Street, the establishment will include a full-service restaurant, the new Cherry Republic Brewing Company, and an ice cream/bakery counter. The building has been “completely transformed,” according to Communications Director Mary Winowiecki, offering a natural wood interior, expansive windows, and vaulted ceilings. Cherry Public House will feature 40 seats indoor and an additional 150 seats in an outdoor patio/lawn area. The company is partnering with Short’s Brewing Company to offer 12 dedicated Cherry Republic beer taps, including four cherry-themed beers, an IPA, a light lager, a brown ale, a fruity ale, a seasonal beer, and three ciders. An expanded food menu will feature new dinner entrees including steaks, ribs, pork chops, whitefish, pasta, and more.

Cherry Public House is planned to launch by Memorial Day in a soft opening, with a grand opening party planned for June 16 from 4-10pm. That event – a fundraiser for Leelanau Conservancy’s Palmer Woods Bike Trail – will feature a block party with the street closed off and live musical acts including Joshua Davis and May Erlewine. Once open, the pub will operate daily from 8am until last call at 10pm.

In other regional restaurant news, two new restaurants are set to open in the Frankfort area later this month. Nick and Natalie Crawford have purchased the former Bayview Grille building on Main Street and are aiming for a May 19 opening of Birch & Maple. The couple, who have Michigan ties, spent several years working for others opening restaurants in Colorado before setting their sights on launching their own restaurant here. According to Nick, the Crawfords have “completely renovated” the Bayview building, adding new furniture, décor, bar areas, and a redesigned interior, as well as a three-season dining patio with outdoor fireplaces. Billed as offering breakfast, lunch, and happy hour, Birch & Maple will be open seven days a week. 

Over on Crystal Drive, the new Rock’s Landing restaurant is set to open at Chimney Corners Resort on the shores of Crystal Lake. The independently owned restaurant operated by partners Steve Tebo and Paul Danes will offer casual lunch fare and a la carte-style small plates for dinner, according to a company representative, and will be open to resort guests and the public. The restaurant is shooting for a Memorial Day weekend opening.

Downtown Traverse City
Several retail and restaurant changes are coming to downtown Traverse City this summer.

Black Star Farms will open a new tasting room inside the M22 store on Front Street as soon as June, according to winemaker Lee Lutes. The two companies have a long-standing partnership, with Black Star producing a special M22 line of wines currently sold only in the retailer’s Glen Arbor store. The new initiative will allow Black Star’s M22 wines to also be sold downtown. Lutes emphasizes that tasting events will be only be offered on a limited basis – such as for product launches or at Friday Night Live – instead of daily. “It’s more about having the wines available for sale…we’re not looking to interfere or compete with other food-and-beverage options downtown,” Lutes says.

After announcing in March that craft house Olives and Wine was closing on the corner of Front and Cass streets, the establishment’s owners have since announced the shuttering of the company has been delayed. In a written statement to The Ticker, co-owner Chien Nowland – who runs the business with partner Ari Mokdad – said that “as of right now we are not closed.” Nowland continued: “We are in the process of selling the business to someone currently. We will have the doors open until that sale is final.” The wine bar opened its doors downtown in 2016.

On the retail front, Traverse Beauty Bar has vacated its storefront location in the 101 North Park building and relocated to new digs within Cosmetic Skin & Laser Center, the beauty bar’s parent company located at 3529 West Front Street. Around the corner at 113 Park Street (Suite 101A), Metal Arts & Home Décor is aiming for a May 18 grand opening in the new Radio Centre III building next to Tap Root Cider. Owned by Carolyn Weeks, the store will specialize in metal wall art, custom fireplace screens, home decorative accessories, and customized pieces.

Finally, those looking to shop and dine can now do both at modern general store Millie and Pepper at 120 South Union Street. The store has launched a new kitchen and crêperie in the back of its retail space offering both savory and sweet crepes. The company also plans to offer coffee drinks and has added a handful of outdoor seats for guests.

In other business news…
Changes are also afoot at the Logan’s Landing shopping center on South Airport Road. Father-son duo Rick and Brandon Gamelin, who opened the gourmet good store Now You're Cooking last May, announced the company’s closure in the property’s pyramid building at the end of March.  Also at Logan’s Landing, Hectic Escape Challenge opened earlier this month, offering two themed escape rooms for groups ranging in size from three to eight people. A third family-friend room is also in the works, according to the company. Reservations are available online, with walk-ins accepted Thursday 3pm-9pm, Friday 3pm-10pm, Saturday 11am-10pm, and Sunday 1pm-7pm.

Finally, anchor tenant Younkers is closing its doors at the Cherryland Center on South Airport Road. Parent company Bon-Ton Stores filed for bankruptcy earlier this year and announcing it was closing stores across the country by August, including the Traverse City location. The company began going-out-of-business sales in late April and has announced the closing process could last 10-12 weeks for most stores. The closing is the second major anchor loss for the Cherryland Center in a year after Kmart also announced its closing last June.

Pictured: Rendering of the new bar area inside Cherry Public House. Photo credit: Houtteman Interiors.