Best salmon ever!!!!! Thank you. I stop everytime near Duluth. Service is exceptional too.read more

My own personal mistake should not be a ding against the excellence that is Russ Kendall's Smoke…read moreHouse. Those who listen to my cautionary tale may end up fairing better for themselves should you decide to make the trek and find yourself at this magnificent smoked seafood counter. But first, for the love of god, if you are here you are a stone's throw from Lake Superior which is perhaps one of the best places for fish in the country. You may like salmon. Russ Kendall may do a great job with salmon. But don't sleep on those fish that were plucked from these frigid waters. This mindset had me eyeing the walleye and the jumbo whitefish sections. I wanted to buy both, but this was just one of many smoked fish destinations on my list for the week. I hate wasting food, and there is only so much my family can eat. Despite what others may suggest, I am not about to freeze beautiful smoked fish. My hope was that pieces in the case might be able to be cut down. But those hopes were dashed. I get it. That's fine. Policy. Mess. Time. Workflow. Yadda yadda yadda. The walleye pieces were big, but the helpful clerk found a smaller one just for me. Now, as the fish selection process was happening, more and more people were funneling into the shop. My wife was getting antsy. She wanted me to make up my mind and leave. And she had a point. However, that smaller piece was from the meaty and lean tail end of the fish. In a panic I gave the piece a thumbs up, and the clerk wrapped it up for me. This was my one great regret. Not just of this shopping trip, but of my whole vacation. I should have opted for a larger piece that was fat and juicy. That same helpful clerk did indeed find me a gorgeous hunk of lake whitefish that was delightfully fatty, and eating it made me smile with delight. Of course, different people can prefer different pieces of fish. Just like there are some chicken wing lovers who prefer the drummette and others who prefer the flat. If everyone liked the same thing, the world would be a pretty dull place. I guess what I'm saying is don't panic. Know in advance the cuts in the case are the cuts that are available for sale. Find the pieces that call you. If it ends up being a little more fish than you wanted, so be it. This stuff is so good you'll find a way to get it down without denigrating it to the freezer. For those who need crackers, like my wife and kid, there are sleeves for sale. As far as I'm concerned, those crackers are just taking up space in my belly that could be used for more fish. One last thing. Okay, maybe a few last things. Let's call it a lightning round: This isn't a restaurant. It's a takeaway smoked fish shop. It's small. It's busy. It's efficient. It's a regional treasure. Get there. Eat local smoked fish. Salmon isn't local to Minnesota. Get it fatty. Do not fear heads, or skin, or bones. The good stuff takes a little extra work, but it's worth it! You've got this. Now eat well.

If you have a passion for cheese, or if you are randomly in rural northern Wisconsin and looking…read morefor something to do, definitely check out this cheese shop. You may or may not see a sign for it on the highway, and you may wonder where you're headed turning down rural roads into farm territory, but when you make it there you'll be surrounded by all the cheese in its most glorious form and in its natural setting, (close to some cows). A wide variety of cheeses...I want to say too many...but there's no such thing as too many cheeses...but if there were... Lots of local goods of both the grocery and souvenir variety. Cheese samples. Lots of cheese samples. Super friendly ladies who will give you cheese samples. Don't pass this up. Did I mention the cheese samples? I sincerely believe that if you dropped this place in the middle of a major city, that everyone would line up around the building to witness and then devour its cheesy goodness. If you drive past it you're making a mistake. Don't think twice. Just go.

We were looking for a quintessential Wisconsin cheese shop experience, and this was not it…read more Completely under whelmed by our visit. Zero customer service. Not worth the detour.

We had breakfast nearby & loved the local breakfast sausage made here at Jim's Meat Market. So…read morenaturally, we had to come here (and spend over $55-but well worth every penny). Locally sourced & made meat products. Excellent service! You can ask them about their products because they make them! Try the Landjager-you won't be disappointed! Pssssst...the secret ingredient for the breakfast sausage is mustard seed. So we had to buy breakfast sausage frozen for our home use!

Bought the most amazing beef tenderloin. Cut to perfection! The best pepper stick ever! Will…read morereturn to take things back to Florida!!!

We love smoked fish, and Lake Superior is definitely the place for it. Halverson Fisheries came…read morehighly recommended, and now we know why! You park out front, walk towards the back by the pier towards a green building to the back. As soon as you entered the door, you're greeted with a glass display full of fish, a handwritten whiteboard menu, and folks cleaning fresh catches right behind the counter. We grabbed some trout, including a brown sugar trout filet and chuck, the first time--so good! Not too salty and reasonable prices.

Stopped by here on the way to Bayfield, and it was so good that I stopped by again on the way back…read moreto the Twins. That was the 4th of July, and Halvorson's was open. Very reasonably priced smoked and fresh fish (whitefish, trout, chunk, salmon...) along the South Shore; very close to Meyers Beach and the mainland sea caves- a jawdroppingly gorgeous hike. And yes, did you know our Great Lakes have Pacific salmon in them? Halvorson's even sells whitefish livers, frozen and vacuum packed, or fresh in deli container, both $10/lb. Im fine being the only one excited about this :D Also, whitefish cheeks-- which some call freshwater scallops frozen and vac-packer. Best of all, Geri, who will ring up and pack your fish, is the sweetest sweetheart. We had bread and pickles and such to round out the sweet-n-salty smoked fish, picnicked right at the beach and went for a dip after-

This is the go to place in Two Harbor's by far!…read more Stopped in for breakfast, and was warmly greeted. Ordered a breafast sandwich, which was so good, I had to order it again. The coffee was of good quality (Duluth Coffee Company methinks) and refilled before empty. Upon seein the gnomes, I said, "Oh, no it must be getting near the end of gnome season," but the friendly gentlemen remarked happily, "it's always gnome season." Haha, hard to disagree! Some extremely cool homemade crafts were in abundance within Louise's Place, including gnomes, various knitted pieces, and greeting cards, which I ended up getting, along with some tableclothes (since gifted out, no picture available of those). For the quality of the food, the value was great!

Quaint little tops right nestled in the sleepy little town of Two Harbors, MN where you can find a…read moregreat homemade breakfast for a cheap price We followed the Yelp reviews to Louise's Place to grab a bite to eat before a winter hike. My Husband ordered the meatloaf sandwich and Ingot the two egg omelette with a side of crisply fried bacon and the most amazing cranberry rye bread and butter. The food is delicious and super cheap!The have a wide variety of coffee beverages and a cooler of soft drinks. Just order at the counter and take a number. It's a short wait for your food and you can sip on your caffeine beverage of your choice while you do a little shopping. They have a wide variety of handmade gifts like purses, art, quilts, knit mittens, etc.

If you are looking for fresh, delicious fish you've come to the right place. We stopped here…read morebecause we were craving fresh lake fish and to our surprise there was a local band playing. This made the dockside restaurant quite crowded and left only a short wall for my husband and I to sit and eat. One of the workers came out with a foldable table for us since he saw us struggling to hold the food on our laps. That is what I call service!

If you are near Bayfield, Wisconsin, or visiting the Apostle Islands, Hoop's Fish Market on 707 Old…read moreMilitary Road #13 is a must-visit seafood market. Their smoked trout fillets were exceptional, offering an unparalleled freshness and delectable taste. I returned to the market three times within two days of my visit. Their smoked salmon, smoked whitefish, and fish spread are equally impressive. Amy assisted me on both days, demonstrating exceptional knowledge of the products, unwavering friendliness, and remarkable patience. The prices are remarkably reasonable. I wish their market has online ordering options, as I would likely order their fish monthly. This establishment is highly recommended.

Stopped by here on the way back from boundary waters and was not disappointed. Nice location and…read moreplenty of indoor and outdoor seatings. Staff was nice and lots of different sandwich choices. Parking lot right next to it which was convenient. I got the slamin Gordon and it was good. The greens were a strong would have liked more salmon but the flavoring was good.

Northern Waters Smokehaus is one of the most recommended restaurants in Duluth. Located…read moreconveniently in the center of Canal Park, we stopped by on a sunny Wednesday early afternoon, hoping to score some of the best sandwiches in town. Even though this was well past lunch time at 2PM, the outside patio was packed and there was a line of 10 people or so to contend with to order at the register. Due to how busy it was, our food took about 20 minutes to arrive. The Squealy Dan, Porketta ($16) - Unlike most other restaurants with Iron Range Porketta, Northern Waters slices their porketta thinly instead of pulling the pork apart. It has a pleasant spiced flavor and the texture feels as if it's cured rather than roasted. It's relatively tender, and while they give a decent amount of meat, it's completely overshadowed by the heavy spicy quality of the black pepper and the acidity and vegetalness of the crunchy pepperoncini. There's a bit of melted gooey provolone on top of the porketta. While nice, there's not enough to balance out the peppers. This is all on a crusty almost baguette-like hero roll, toasty and warm. The sandwich is served with a side dip that's essentially black pepper and pepperoncini water. Definitely not needed given how overwhelming those elements are in the sandwich. (3/5) Pastrami Mommy ($19) - I haven't had bison pastrami before. Now I know why it's not very common - it's way too lean and dry compared to beef pastrami. Still, it's nicely spiced and peppery, and there's not much of the bison gamey flavor since it's cooked out from the curing. There's a little bit of mayo underneath and some mustard on top, but it's not enough moisture or fat in my opinion to counteract the leanness of the bison. While there are some slices of provolone above the meat, they are served cold. I feel like melting it with the pastrami on the griddle would do wonders to help develop some more unctuousness. It's also served on cold rye - perhaps toasting with some butter would also help. Otherwise, the sandwich is just too dry and lean for my tastes. (3/5) I feel like I ordered the wrong items. I probably should have gone with some of the seafood sandwiches, but I found it strange they only serve Atlantic salmon rather than local lake fish. In the end, I appreciate that Northern Waters Smokehaus makes most of their meats in house, but after trying their food, I feel like it's more hype than substance. Bathrooms - Larger ones located upstairs, shared with the rest of the businesses in the mini mall. Note: Northern Waters Smokehaus charges a 3% credit card fee. This is disclosed on a sign at the front register. Food: [3/5] Service: [ ] Other: [+] Final Rating: 3/5

We stopped in here to get a dog bone for my pup and had a wonderful intereaction with the employee…read morebehind the counter. I could assume it's the owner, but unsure. We talked about dogs and their habits and his dog loving these bones (which he was right, mine loved it too). The inside was BEAUTIFUL, we popped in on a whim, it smelled amazing and they had a huuge variety of meats. Im really looking forward to stopping by again!

A week or two ago, after a long day at work, I wondered into old world meats. I always liked the…read moreplace but hadn't been there for a long time. I was instantly greeted and asked what I was looking for. It was right about then that my eyes adjusted from the bright outdoors light to the inside light. I realized they were clearly not open for business; the door was just unlocked and there were a few people working inside. I felt a little silly. I apologized and started heading for the exit. A man (I assume the owner) engaged me in conversation and told me that they had closed for a few months during the dead of winter but would be opening in the near future. We had a short, conversation about the meat business, how they had installed a new smoker out back, and other small talk. He then went and got the meat I was looking for out of the freezer and sold it to me despite being closed. It was not an expensive order by any means. Probably hardly worth the time it took him to find it. It's experiences like this that make you want to go out of your way to give a place your business.

Saw the sign on the freeway and decided to check it out since we like meat shops. It did not…read moredisappoint. Even had some produce, cheese and snack and gift items. Great, friendly service. Yummy samples. There was a lot across the street where we parked our RV and also someone selling fresh produce in the lot which made the stop even better.

Good service, reasonable prices, pleasant staff. Always able to receive help when I have any…read morequestions.