This place came recommended by the wait staff/bartenders at Left Foot Charley and Traverse City Whiskey Co. Our waitress Cassie was extremely pleasant and gave exceptional service. The food was great. I had the rack of lamb and my husband had the lobster tail and prime rib. The drinks were a good pour and the homemade cherry cheesecake was a great finale. Highly recommended. Covid precautions in place. read more

If you want a good steak, DO NOT go here!! I ordered medium well and my steak was well beyond well done. The shrimp are really good and the drinks are made RIGHT, but this place is grossly over priced! read more

This place was recommended by someone that was staying and the same winery that we were staying at this weekend. We had high hopes but was pretty disappointed. I had the 12oz new York strip which was extremely flavorless. About the same quality as Ponderosa. My wife had the "fresh" scallops that were clearly frozen before. They had a funny flavor. It was all just flavorless and bland. The best thing I had with my meal was the salad. Good salad bar selections and the blue cheese dressing was tasty. The garlic peppercorn sirloin was recommended to us and I passed it up. If I ever go back I'd try that as it may have some flavor. read more

Okay. Weird ambiance, more of a local thing. But the food... yes. Baked scallops with bread crumbs, Parmesan, and garlic butter... sign me up! I was skeptical but I've been changed. Never judge a book by its cover. read more

Great finding! You should come if you are looking for a tasty steak. We had appetizers which were great and BBQ ribs also delicious. We came back the day after since food was very good. Highly recommended!!! read more

Mode's seems to have turned a corner, downhill. Preface by stating that I've dined at Mode's probably 50+ times over 20 or so years, you go back for good food and good service...they always delivered. Every place is bound to eventually have an off night that should go without noting but this was beyond ignoring. Our server set the tone with clearly making us feel as we were a burden somehow. The tone and expressions were evident. Should be no surprise that I've never seen this waitress at Mode's before, nor did I recognize any of the staff, something seems to have changed...unfortunately for the worse. The food that followed was sub par to Modes standards, fried to hell miniature perch on a bed of wilted and stinky kale....I'll leave it at that. To bad, really. read more

As long as your expectations are set accordingly, this is a great place! This is not a "fancy Traverse City" kind of place. Older decor. Description of casual/divey very accurate. However, food is GREAT! Seems to be a local favorite. I had prime rib, husband had ribs. They have a simple salad bar (weekends only) with most major fixings that we enjoyed. Large portions (pretty sure that my steak was larger than I ordered). Friendly service. We will come here again!! read more

Mode's Bum Steer - American Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

I'm going to split this review in half: the service and the food. The service was terrible. Our waitress walked away while we were in the middle of ordering because we started discussing what we wanted. She came back five minutes later. Our salad bar plates were taken away right after we had our salad. We weren't asked if we were done. Near the end when she noticed a change in our attitude, she started calling my dad honey/hun (I know it's normal in the midwest, but this had a sarcastic/condescending tone). I think she started worrying about her tip, especially since our bill was over $100, so she tried fixing her attitude. Next: the food. It's okay. Wasn't amazing, but the portions were large. Considering how much it cost, I'd say you can get the same meals somewhere else for cheaper, and it may even taste better. The salad bar was tiny, and like I mentioned above, you barely get a chance to enjoy it before your plates are taken away. The jalapeño mozzarella sticks were pretty good, the chicken wings were average, I'd rather have B-Dubs' wings though. The restaurant is cramped, and I definitely wouldn't take kids there, they don't have a child-friendly menu. I saw some people complaining about the decor, I didn't mind it. The chairs were comfy! read more

This place doesn't deserves any stars we walked on waited and watched the hostess walk by and not even acknowledge us standing there, then finally said i will seat u ladies in a moment, we go downstairs and the waitress literally had the worst attitude ever she slammed our drinks down, we ordered wedge salad and she slammed those on the table barely came by the table filled my water once. She got super nice when bills were brought. Food was not worth 21 for chicken and my lobster tail was rubbery. Will never dine at this joke of a restaurant read more

As previous service industry staff we are usually understanding... but this was bad. The server was rude. The food was rubbery and cold. The best thing I had was the iceberg wedge.... And it's a wedge of iceberg. TC has some incredible restaurants and this is not one of them. read more

Our yearly or two stop for over 20 years until 2020 which was Covid's fault. Best prime rib around. Amazing potato salad! Dinner is always prepared as ordered. Not a bad thing to say about this little gem. Staff has always been friendly and welcoming. So glad to hear they are weathering the Covid storm. read more

Looking for dinner late on a Monday night and we have always wanted to try it. You step back in time once you open the door. It's an old school steak house. They pour great drinks and the staff is very friendly. We had the prime rib combo with perch. The perch were little, 1-2 bites and outstanding. Reminded us of our childhood with the all you can eat perch dinners found in MI. I recommend sharing a meal and enjoying a cocktail. We will be back. read more

Old time drinkers bar with excellent seafood and steak. The perch dinner was amazing. Never had that many perch for one dinner. The porterhouse was seasoned nicely. The wedge salad with the homemade dressings were simple yet delicious. read more

Take step back in time. Red swivel chairs, salad bar, steaks. Booze. Late night menu. Even a waitress named Trixie. For us Mode's is always a stop on our annual trip to TC. read more

For me dining is as much about the service as it is the food. Our servers name was Deb, for a place like Mode's she was extremely unprofessional. I cannot even tell you how many times she smacked me I the face with her pony tail, completely callously. As we were banged into numerous times as she barreled through I tried to take into consideration how tightly cramped the tables and chairs are and she was trying to do her job in the best manner she could, however, it was still annoying. When the couple that dimes with is asked about the fries she described them as "skinny cut frozen fries". Again very inappropriate and unprofessional. As far as the meal is concerned... We started with the "seafood" bisque. There was only fake Louis Rich crab type meat in it. I would have considered a high end steak house would take the extra care to put real seafood in their bisque. Very disappointing. Also when the soups arrived at the table it was luke warm. The only saving grace was the steaks. I enjoyed the 12 oz prime rib my husband had the peppercorn sizzler steak. I ordered mine rare and it was... It was colder than I expected. But it was incredibly tender as was my husbands steak. read more

Disappointed....the French dip sandwich was overpowered by the slime grilled onions....very little meat...my friends chicken ceasar salad, where's the chicken. Overpriced, poorly delivered. The '2' is overrated read more

Still killin it at the Bum Steer! The steaks are fantastic...and the drinks are expertly poured. Makes me feel like I'm in an episode of Mad Men without the suit and tie! read more

Great steak, had the Anita steak 12 oz cut. Melt in your mouth, it was burnt on edges. Just delicious. When your hungry for a good steak this is he place to come. It was packed, it's your old fashion decor. Also had shrimp cocktail it was wonderful, big and plump. Love it it will be a place I will come back too!! read more

My fiancé and I stopped in for our anniversary dinner! The atmosphere was old family style and traditional which we loved. We loved the salad bar. The service was good! We both ordered steaks (Filet and T-bone). The temperature was good but the flavor was bland. They were both super tasteless. We had to add a ton of salt which sucked. Their cheesecake on the other hand- AMAZING but super overpriced for the size we got! It was really tiny. Not sure if it was just an off night for the chef or what but probably would never go back for the amount of $$$$ we spent on the quality that we received. Overall we had a really nice time, didn't want to complain because we just wanted to make the best of our night out! read more

The best prime rib I have ever eaten! Great service, reasonable prices. Highly recommend.

Everyone seems to always rave about Mode's, so I finally had to eat here after living in TC for 12 years. I think the main reason I have never gone here is because the outside reminds you of a local tavern and you don't expect it to be anything special, and honestly it really wasn't. The service was great! No complaints there! We went on a Saturday night at 6pm and it was full, besides one table for us. The decor on the inside is definitely dated and needs to be remodeled. The tables are too close together and hard to walk around too, especially when it started getting busy around 7:30. I was really wanting to get a fish entree, but decided against it since everyone always says Mode's is known for their steaks. I ended up getting the 12oz prime rib (only ate half of it because it was so big). With each meal you get to go to the salad bar, which is tiny and reminded me of Ponderosa - wasn't too please with that, especially for the cost of the meal. I ordered my steak medium-rare and it definitely came out well-done and dry. I was very disappointed! You get a large piece of Texas toast and a starch with your meal, was sort of hoping for some veggies too, but no luck. My friend got the roasted duck. He said it was delicious and it looked like a good portion too. There was a great wine selection and list of specials too. We didn't get dessert bc we were both full from dinner bc it was a large portion. Sadly, I didn't think that Mode's lived up to the hype. Would have been nice to get a steak the way I ordered it, especially for the price. Not sure I will go back here, as there are too many good places in town to eat at, but sadly, not many are known for their steaks. read more

Service was wonderful. We liked our steaks, the wedge salad was drenched in ranch. Old school environment which was a nice change from the chain restaurants. read more

The nastiest food I have ever had DO NOT GO HERE I watched her make the food behind the bar without gloves and I took a bite of my steak and I had to spit it out will never go here again the review were really good but it's not so don't fall for it read more

Steak was delicious, lobster tail was very good. Service was exceptional!! Would definitely return for a good steak.

Food was great and service was excellent bit more pricey then expected. Place is a little out dated but a great hole in the wall place to eat read more

My group and I went here for lunch and looked at the menu and realized there wasn't anything we wanted. So we decided to just get a drink to be polite, considering my group was the only one in at the time. The waitress was very rude and impolite while telling us about the drinks they served. When she took our order she rolled her eyes multiple times. Later we heard the waitress and chef talking trash about us in the kitchen. They said "well it is idiot hour". I haven't been treated with such disrespect in any other restaurant in traverse city. Just to mention we have been to over half the restaurants here in traverse city. read more

Not exactly a "hip and happening" place. Average age of their customers is probably about 45. Hit or miss for the high price and quality of food. Prime rib is an absolute bargain for the quality and quantity. read more

Mode's Bum Steer - American Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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We love this place and visit every time In TC. They have the best homemade blue cheese dressing and you can order some to take home. Everything I have tried has been great! It's a classic gem this place is! read more

Cool old school vibe. It's more Michigan than traverse city. Great value. Good food. Not pretentious. What is not to like?

Best steak in town, especially the filet. Great pulled pork sandwich. Food is great, service is great, ambience is fine. Expensive, but worth it. read more

So we decided to come here after the huge disappointed at Bistro Foufou and boy am I glad! we were greeted at the door by our amazing waitress. I got a bottle of wine that was chilled at the table side and the waitress kept my glass full. the escargot was incredible and full of flavor. I also enjoyed the wedge salad. I got the special Perch with N.Y. strip. the perch was light and flaky and cooked perfectly. My N.Y. strip came medium rare like I ordered and very tender. The whole dinner was amazing plus the service was impeccable. My husband and I will definitely be back soon! read more

The service was good. The cocktails perfect. The food was mediocre. I had pork chops that were bread with what seemed to be a shake n bake type coating. Really would have liked some vegetables but that did not seem to be an option. Dessert was good - cheesecake. The meal overall was ok. Probably will not go back read more

So glad this was the first place at which I dined upon arriving in Traverse City. Very nondescript looking place (think diner), but the steak I had was amazing! Very friendly service. I went back there for lunch a couple of days later! Awesome experience! read more

First time here and it was fun and amazing!!! This place was set back in time and the menus haven't changed a bit. This place is or and the real deal. Salad bar great and the steak was amazing, cooked to perfection!! The staff was very engaging and attentive to all our needs. I will for sure go back. read more

Fantastic steakhouse at reasonable prices! I eat there everytime I am in Traverse City. Great atmosphere with a large bar, full salad bar, leather seats, and excellent service. I typically order a NY strip with mushrooms, which comes with a potato and salad. It is always done as ordered, medium for me, and is a great cut of meat. Tip: They don't take reservations, so get there before 6pm for no wait. read more

So I finally made a trip to Modes with my husband to scout some places inTraverse for a friends rehersal dinner. We will not be back....ever. Our server Amanda was AMAZING and we have nothing bad to say about her or about the food itself. We actually had a horrible experience with the owner. My husbands steak was ordered medium rare and came out a bit on the medium side. The owner just happened to walk past as we were cutting into our steaks and he signaled her over. When he explained to her it was a bit too done for him, she shook her head and said that's how they do it there and "sorry". We asked our waitress when she came by if there was anything they could do and she said she didn't think the owner would allow her to do anything. At this point my husband was pretty upset and his friend and I were VERY EMBARRASSED. He finally just asked for it to be taken off our tab. A few moments later Amanda came back and said the owner would not allow her to take the steak off the bill. This all ended with the owner and my husband walking out of the establishment and her laughing in his face reminding him the steak was cooked to their standards. She finally did agree to take it off the bill but still charged us for the salad and baked potato that came with his dinner. I have never been treated like this in my life and cannot believe that an owner of a highly recommended restaurant would not try and please her patrons. It's really sad that she is that worried about a steak and not her customers. Obviously we will not be back ,nor would our friend have his dinner there. read more

If your looking for great steak and fish and where the locals go, then head to Mode's. I always get the filet and pearch combo, which isn't in the menu but just ask. Also try the rootbeer that is on tap! read more

I'm a local and have come here 20+ years. Without a doubt the best prime rib in T.C. Great atmosphere (crowded but that's part of the fun) and service. My server Debbie is here every time I come in and she is exceptional. read more

70's style steakhouse from the menu to the decor. Steaks, burgers, and scallops are the best in Traverse City. Always stop in when I am in town. read more

I had the onion soup and the Polish sausage platter. Both were very good. My wife had the chicken wrap and said it was excellent. Limited wine list,but adequate read more