After a poor experience at another restaurant, I wasn't sure what to expect. Luckily, my mood improved once I got to Boonedocks. There was a 15-minute wait, but after 5 minutes, I was quickly seated. I enjoyed sitting outside under the shade while looking at the menu. Our server was very friendly, if not a bit stretched thin. She was running all over the place and was very apologetic, so it didn't bother me too much. She at least tried her best and came over several times to check in. Our orders were taken and the food took a bit, but again, it was very busy. The food was good. Prices were a bit much, but this is Glen Arbor. I left satisfied and would come back again if I were in the area. read more

This could be the greatest place in Traverse City area. But, it just drops the ball so many times. First, service is pretty good - Zack (4 stars). Great ambiance with live music, out side seating, with a great breeze. But the food just doesn't bring it! I ordered a simple burger Med Rare. Server said it may come out med. I said ok as long as it is not dry! Well it came out very dry. When I told Zack he apologized and said he would take it off the bill - We had 8 people drinking, so we had a big bill - but it was not taken off. I know only mention the burger but, the chips and guacamole the chips were old. Noone at table was excited about food. So, if you have patience and can live with mediocre food this is the place. read more

Good service. Sat at the bar which is outdoors for a drink. No frills kind of place. We were visiting in off season. I bet it's packed in July. Good assortment of draft beer and nice tequila options for my margarita. read more

Boonedocks - American Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Still the same ole Boonies. The staff is just as angry - but the overall average age has surely dropped. Same short hours.... The Long Island maker retired, so I heard. This could be the beginning of the end!!! read more

I'm shocked by all these negative reviews. As someone who uses Yelp a lot, when I see low stars and a lot of negative reviews I tend to not even want to eat there. My grandma insisted it was good and can't make grandma upset so we ate here haha. I think a lot of the bad reviews are so silly. Yes this place is busy, you will wait for a table. We waited about 25 mins to be seated. We just walked the shops it wasn't a bad wait. The bad reviews on service is funny to me. This place is busy in the summer, but the service wasn't bad. Your waiter or waitress just has a lot of tables. We didn't wait crazy long for anything. Sit and enjoy the live band, your family, or the weather. Relax haha have some patience. The food was good. Was it the best thing I've ever ate? No. But was it so awful I needed to make a one star review? No haha. I tried everyone's dish to have a good idea of food quality. My grandma got the Something Fishy sandwich. It was good, it wasn't greasy or bland. It was what I'd expect for a Michigan fish sandwich. My husband got the Pesto Burger. I really liked it. I kept stealing bites from him. I got the Chicken Tender Basket. It was what you'd expect. Nothing crazy, but not bad. My daughter got mini corn dogs. She really liked them. My dad got onion rings and it was a hit at the table. Nothing was bad like these reviews say. I'd say take the reviews with a grain of salt and make your own opinion. If it wasn't for my grandma insisting I would have not eaten here. The live music was fun and the patio was great in the summer. Our waitress was busy but never forgot anything for us. read more

Boonedocks - Pesto Burger - American Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

See all

Today a group of 8 of us stopped for a late lunch. As we started telling our waitress how the checks were to be divided we were informed "their system only allows one check, but they could do 2 cards. (I guess it states that on the menu). Our visit was after Labor Day and they were not busy. We asked to speak to a manager and there was none available. We left without ordering. They did not appear to care that they lost business. If we had sat at 4 different tables, they could have processed our orders. Seems like a costly decision on their part. read more

Wonderful food, amazing local featurs, best beer I've had in a long time Great outdoor eating, the deck is huge. No football and we preferred that. Recommend the perch and the cheese curls. The m43 ipa is amazing read more

Boonedocks - a beer and a glass on a table - American Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Not sure why there are so many bad reviews... we were quite happy. We biked from Sleeping Bear Dunes to the restaurant and got a shady seat on the deck right away. Their lemon ale shandy beer was really good. We had the fish and chips and Michigan cherry salad--both very tasty. Sure, our young waiter was busy (it's summertime!) but he came to check on us often. read more

Good service, friendly staff. Michigan salad had brown leaves. Looked like a grocery salad bag that was on sale. Very few dried cherries and tomatoes. Dressing was not house made. It came in a packet. read more

The porch and atmosphere is great. The food was terrible and over priced. The jerk chicken was a piece of chicken with barbecue sauce poured over the top. Avoid. read more

What appeared to be a very inviting atmosphere, turned out to be quite distasteful. Our server, Brandy, was a true delight. She was very friendly and very efficient. However, I would suggest that the owners take a good look at their general manager, Bob. He has zero self awareness and caused our party of six to leave abruptly due to his attitude. He really should reconsider his approach. read more

Clean. Friendly staff. Solid cocktails. Games on. Just what we were looking for today as we make our way downstate on M22 cruise. Can't speak to food this trip. There was an electric Jeep out back. WTH?! First time seeing one of those. read more

Boonedocks - Electric Jeep - American Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Pricing was normal for a tourist town. Had the Turkey and a cheese sandwich which was fresh and tasty. Enjoyed the great outdoor deck atmosphere. Server was friendly. read more

First time here and the seating was outdoors with live music. I had the BBQ ribs and was not disappointed! Flavorful and tender. The place was packed and the staff was pleasant and tried to get to us frequently. Be Pathan's you will enjoy a good meal. read more

See all

Service was good and fish and ribs delicious. Family restaurant with a great atmosphere

The food was excellent!! No complaints. Large portions, hot, and tasty. The waitress was friendly and helpful with suggestions. The only negative was the "host" who greeted us. He had an attitude, didn't welcome us and seemed annoyed and arrogant. A host should be friendly and welcoming. This guy was far from it. He needs training and an attitude adjustment. read more

First time the perch was awful - overcooked until it was nearly inedible. Fries weren't hot. I don't like Kraft tartar sauce all that much either. I did try to get the attention of our waitress but couldn't. Should've tried harder and sent it back. read more

Read the reviews! Restaurant was half empty and the server walked past us several times. Brought us water said she would be back. Waited on tables beside us and behind us and was simply not interested in waiting on us. Don't bother. read more

Terrible service and management. Food is just as bad. The establishment is dirty and poorly run. Avoid at all cost.

I love whitefish. Not after today. It was a large tasteless piece of fish. And so expensive. Save your money and get a sandwich somewhere else. It is a tourist trap for sure. White fish sandwich, a cup of wine. ( they don't use glasses). A pina colada and an other fish sandwich totaled 69.99 before the tip. I will say our server was excellent. read more

Amazing everything! from the servers (we had Fisher-A+), drinks (even the margarita), food (must have cheese curds) and perch! Ask for Josie and get to know some local history! Cheers! read more

Was ignored for 15 minutes in a less than half filled restaurant. Waitress waited on the tables on either side and bullshitted with one of the tables. Made eye contact with us but continued to ignore. We should have paid attention to previous reviews. read more

A really good place to eat! We ate out on the deck and listened to live music while enjoying some of the best barbecue ribs that I've had in a long time. The meat was tender, juicy, and flavorful. The barbecue sauce was delicious. A definite winner! read more

I got the steak and it was amazing but there were a bunch of flys so I had to move inside

Food was okay, nothing great nothing inedible. A little pricy for what it is. Our group ordered a variety of items and one of them felt sick after eating the chicken tenders and fries, possibly from the oil. read more

This place has the most inviting atmosphere but the food is awful. The patio with constant live music and large outdoor bar is its only appeal. So go and enjoy their competitive priced drinks and listen to some old classics. Skip the meal here and enjoy the local taste at many other near by establishments. read more

I came here on my first day at Glen Harbor with a group of friends for lunch. It's a chill area and our server was great! I ordered the BBQ pulled pork sandwich and it was alright, but it didn't leave a lasting impression. My friends that ordered other meals echoed the same sentiment. Our friend that was staying over there for the summer admitted that this isn't the best place to go to for food, but it was convenient and just a cool spot to chill out at. It's worth checking out if you're nearby and want to avoid a potential long wait to be seated somewhere, but just be aware that the food is just okay. read more

Same old situation. Annual visit. Pulled pork was ice cold, sent it back nibbled on wife's wings and listened to mediocre music on a beautiful evening. Chicken Wings, cauliflower bites and 2 drinks - $75 Ouch. Midtown Manhattan style pricing. read more

Went today for the first time in a few years. The food was terrible, and the service wasn't much better. Very disappointed!

First impression says a lot.. the guy at the desk said "if you sit in here and you don't order dinner, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave"... all we wanted was a beer after a long bike ride. The outdoor bar was fun and inviting. But if you didn't get food, you were fenced off from the remaining guests. read more

Boonedocks has never been good. After waiting for over an hour for a table this guy had a snarky remark to us about how "I don't know what to tell you. people are eating" in a very rude manor. We were told by several people it would be one hour for us to be seated, but we weren't seated for an hour and a half or more. The poor server we had was trying her very best but was serving so many people that it was impossible to nail our order. The kids were playing with the condiments that look like they have been out in the sun all day. Gross. Flies were biting our ankles from under the table. The food was absolutely mediocre for the prices they were charging. Food felt old and refried. Be prepared to bring your own silverware because everything is plastic. Even the sauces come in a black plastic container. The guacamole and salsa left us with canker sore. It felt like it was scraped from many guests plates into a sad little bowl. The chips even tasted like table turnover bleach spray. The jerk chicken was disgusting and mealy. I don't know what inclined them to include this in their menu but I'd recommend they take it off because it's morning like any jerk chicken I've ever had and no. It's not just the "taverns take" The kids running this place are working so hard but it's unfortunately coming off more so as a mediocre spot than a go to. The music was rather sad and dated potentially sentimental. The drinks were okay not the best. Don't try something new on the drink menu it will taste like windex. Stick to microwave dinners, it's the same food but cheaper. read more

Positives: Really nice service, food was delicious and came out relatively quick considering they had some new cooks (pretty big portion sizes, the side salad was practically a meal but more bang for your buck!) Outdoor and indoor seating, fun decorations, and we all enjoyed the live music. Downsides: Everything was served in plastic (including wine) and prices added up fast (fries were four dollars to go with your meal) read more

Great service. Great food. Great atmosphere. Will return as often as possible. My family loved the place.

Our server was amazing! We just stopped in for a beer and some appetizers. The food was good but the service was fabulous! Our server was honest about what NOT to order which was so refreshing, I get sick of servers that tip toe around that subject. Our server pretty much told us that two dishes didn't look all that good today...it definitely helped me decide what to order. We sat out on the deck. Fun atmosphere! read more

Boonedocks - Outdoor bar - American Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Great service. Susie is the best. Very relaxing atmosphere. Yummy key lime Pina colada drinks. read more

I never leave negative reviews. My family and I returned to Leelanau for our annual summer vacation. We decided to visit Boonedocks on a rainy day for an indoor lunch to escape the inclement weather. While we were waiting for our food another customer calmly approached a staff member who was cleaning the table next to ours. The customer discreetly attempted to report a large amount of hair in her meal. This was met with the staff member calling over the manager and pointing out the "huge clump of hair" while discussing the spectacle in earshot of other customers. Needles to say our appetites were ruined and we left after paying over $130 for a meal that was untouched (excluding beverages and appetizer). The experience was unfortunate at best. read more

Get the perch sandwich and cheese curds. All and any complaints invalid if you go that route! Great outdoor bar setup and cold drafts. Not sure where the negs come from - except for some confusion on whom was serving us, it was a great stop after the Dunes. And, service was great once we were attended to. read more

5 stars just for the ambiance and cool vibe. Loved the live music. Food was slightly above average. Service was a bit slow, but they were slammed. Cool place to spend an evening. read more

If you can sit outside in the summer it's really nice because you can hear the band playing. Wish there were more options that were healthier. And more salad options. Split the salad and perch dinner. Perch dinner is always very good and a nice portion. Comes with fries and coleslaw. My friend liked his burger and fries. They have a new policy that only one bill and one credit card is allowed. No splitting it up. We were okay with that and understand but some bigger groups may not love that. Service is always good. read more

I am so disappointed with the way we were treated tonight. Our waiter was great. Food was fine. But after only 1.5 hours of being at our table, we were not asked if we wanted dessert or even a second round of drinks. We were told another group was waiting and if we wanted to we could sit in the bar area. Having been in the service industry, I just couldn't believe it. Turns out, this has happened to friends of mine there too. What kind of restaurant tells it's paying customers they need to leave after 1.5 hours?! We will not be going back:( read more