MACKINAC ISLAND, MI – For many visitors, just roaming Mackinac Island’s downtown streets, exploring Fort Mackinac and taking in Grand Hotel’s iconic front porch have all the makings of a great vacation. But for those willing to travel a little farther into the island’s forested canopy, dinner at Woods Restaurant might be just the special touch that pushes it over the top of any mainland destination.
The adventure starts when you step into a horse-drawn carriage for a 10-minute trip deep into the island’s realm of West Bluff estates, overlooking the Straits of Mackinac. Once you arrive and get a glimpse of the colorful Bavarian-themed lodge, you might be surprised to find you’ll be dining in a century-old building that was initially designed as a children’s playhouse for the Stonecliffe mansion next door.
Woods is one of a handful of Grand Hotel restaurants, and its out-of-the-way location and history make it the most unique spot on that list. If you’re looking forward to trying it – or eager to make a return trip – Grand Hotel is offering a special Celebrate Michigan package on more than a dozen dates in September and October. (See below for details)
Rich colors and dark wood decor plays up the hunting lodge theme at Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island. Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel.
A Treat Tucked Into the Trees
Woods is the culinary version of a nesting doll for Grand Hotel – a little treat tucked inside a resort already well-known for its dining options. The multi-course dinners Grand Hotel serves in its main dining room each night are an established draw, as are its elegant Afternoon Teas, which are open to hotel guests and non-guests alike. The same is true for Woods, which sees some of its reservations come from Grand Hotel guests – who can use a dining credit there – but actually has more of its seats filled by island visitors who treat it like a dining destination. Some guests even come from the mainland – first taking a ferry, then a carriage – and create a long-distance night out.
Neil Cargill, Woods’ manager for 17 years, understands that once people reach the restaurant’s front steps, they’ve made an effort to arrive. They’ve bypassed the busy downtown restaurant and bar spots and traveled through the trees to sample Woods’ surf-and-turf, spoon up some of its famous goulash, or order a drink at the quaint little Bobby’s Bar. Cargill wants to make sure his team rewards those efforts.
“The ambience here is different than a city restaurant,” Cargill said of Woods’ opulent hunting lodge air. He gestured to the mix of richly-colored décor jockeying for space on the walls with taxidermy mounts. “We know it costs them more to come out here, in time and travel expense. We give them a warm Woods welcome. We want to make sure they think it’s worth it, and we want them to know we appreciate them.”
Outside seating is available on a tree-shaded back patio at Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island.
Cargill’s staff seats about 200 diners each evening, late spring through early fall. Like most of the island’s restaurants, Woods got a late start this season because of coronavirus and the state’s stay-home orders. New safety and cleaning protocols in place mean the inside dining room tables are spaced farther apart, and shaded back patio tables beckon guests into the fresh air. Dining chairs are sanitized between each seating, and a silver bowl full of face masks await guests in the front lobby, just in case they’ve forgotten theirs.
Guests who have been to Woods before tend to have some favorites, like the basket of Bavarian pretzels or Austrian Steak Soup on the appetizer menu, or the Lobster Claw Macaroni & Cheese and Classic Wiener Schnitzel on the dinner lineup. There’s also a daily luncheon, with boxed lunches and grilled hot dogs also available. And no reservations are needed to drop by Bobby’s Bar, which is named after an award-winning show dog. You can find his regal portrait hanging on one of the bar’s dark wood walls.
Cargill, who returns home to Jamaica each fall for the off-season, manages his island staff like a tight-knit family. Known for his graciousness and professionalism, this manner carries over to his staff interactions, but there can be a bit of steel in that, too, when he’s managing a busy evening of reservations. He wears a path between the front lobby, kitchen and dining room areas, making sure things are being done efficiently. If there are no private events scheduled, adjacent rooms are quickly reset to accommodate more dinner guests.
He talks about the pride he takes in his work. And how each night, he sets aside a few minutes to reflect on the day’s events – what went well and what could have been done better. This helps him make the most of the next day.
Neil Cargill, manager of Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island. Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel.
Fascinating History
The restaurant, constructed 102 years ago, has seen its share of eyebrow-raising incarnations. For most of its history it was part of the sprawling Stonecliffe estate next door. The first summer cottage on that estate – so opulent it was deemed a “mansion” at the time – was built in 1904 for Michael Cudahy, an Irish native who rose through the ranks of Chicago slaughterhouse jobs to become the owner of the Cudahy Packing Company, a giant among pre-Depression era meat-packing businesses.
In 1915, Stonecliffe was purchased by the Hert family, whose fortune was built on the creosote-soaked wooden railroad ties that were expanding train travel across the U.S. A few years later, they built the current Woods site as a playhouse for their children. But before you envision wealthy toddler heirs and their nannies, think again. This “playhouse” was actually designed for the Herts’ older children. It was outfitted with a card room, a barbershop and other amenities, creating an area where they could hang out close to home without having to endure the vices of town in that era, whatever those may have been.
“It was a way for them to be entertained while they were on the island,” explained Bob Tagatz, Grand Hotel’s historian.
A water buffalo mount, one of several pieces of taxidermy featured on the walls at Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island. Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel.
As the Stonecliffe property changed hands over the years, the Woods site saw a string of uses, including church services and its first brush as a restaurant. In the early 1990s, the Musser family who used to own Grand Hotel purchased it as part of an agreement that included the nearby golf course – which has become the back nine of The Jewel, the resort’s award-winning course. Woods opened as a Grand Hotel restaurant in 1993.
While its interior was professionally designed, many guests and islanders have played a part in filling its walls with professional taxidermy. Tagatz recounted one group of hunters in particular with island connections who’d gone big game hunting in Africa. The prizes from that hunt – including a water buffalo and a zebra – now hang on the wall at Woods while a special dinner was held to mark the occasion, with wild game from that hunt on the menu.
These days, Woods is known for a tamer bit of sport: duckpin bowling. The restaurant has one of these few remaining bowling alleys left in the U.S. Some people travel to Woods just to see it, Cargill said. It’s played with 10 slender pins and a small bowling-type ball. Back in the day, the kids of socialites visiting the island would stand near the alley’s pins, charging bowlers a quarter to re-set them, he said.
“All over the island, people would come here to bowl,” Cargill said, noting the pins are tucked away for now to encourage social distancing.
The popular duckpin bowling alley at Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island. Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel.
Celebrate Michigan Package Details
This special package features Grand Hotel’s lowest rates on select dates in September and October. Prices are $159 per person, per night in September, and $149 per person, per night in October.
Package Includes:
· Accommodations (package room only)
· Breakfast and dinner daily
· Free golf greens fees (cart fee required)
· Free admission to Fort Mackinac (open limited dates and hours in October)
· 25% off lunch at any Grand Hotel restaurant
· Special discount on ferry tickets
Dates: September 23, 24, 27, 28, 29 and 30. October 1, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27 and 28.
For reservations call 1-855-885-4107
One of the chef-prepared dishes at Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island. Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel.
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