Usually I find myself visiting restaurants, while traveling, based on Yelp and TripAdvisor reviews…read more However, after backpacking in Voyageurs National Park me and my fiancé were looking for the quickest option that looked halfway appealing. Coming from the Virginia-North Carolina border I'm partial towards NC style (vinegar based bbq) but I'm always looking to try BBQ from other parts of the country to compare. Judging from the sign outside this seemed like just the place and honestly I couldn't have been more pleased. This place blew away my expectations. While they don't lean towards a particular style (vinager, mustard, tomato, etc) they produce a incredibly well smoked and tender pulled pork. Easily some of the best I've ever had. The baked beans were fantastic and had my finances asking for the recipe. On top of all that, the beer selection was by far the best in the area. Due to COVID they had apparently only been open for a couple weeks but judging from the quality of the meal they will be open for years to come. Wanting to be totally honest in my review my girlfriend ordered a Hawaiian Pizza and wasn't super impressed. She compared it to a decent frozen pizza, so if you aren't interested in BBQ or good beer then this may not be your place. However I'm still giving this place 5 stars because if you are a pulled pork or brisket fan then this is a must try!

Menu is small. Food served was cold. Corn tortillas were not even heated. The porketta sandwich was…read moretasty but cold. Said it came with chips but didn't receive any. Waiter was on phone for over 20 minutes while there. Another server that was updating the beer list did step in to help and was nice.

Great pub on the lake! Bartender, Colin, is excellent!…read more Come join the "family" for Sunday Funday!

Loony's Brew is a laid back dive bar / pub located in the quaint village town of Ranier, Minnesota…read more To be more precise about Ranier, MN, it's situated right beside the once bustling industrial town of International Falls, MN...just 3 miles away. And, lol, in the bigger picture of it all, if you're visiting International Falls, MN, you're most likely in this remote part of Northern Minnesota exploring Voyageurs National Park. That's where it started for me. I had just completed time at Voyageurs NP and while speaking with a representative at the International Falls Chamber of Commerce, they recommended stopping here at Loony's Brew. Once in Ranier, parking was difficult, but I found a spot across the train tracks. I didn't mind walking 10 minutes over to Loony's as it gave me insight into what made Ranier unique...definitely a small town/local vibe as if I had stepped back in time. Loony's appearance on the outside reminded me of a simple summerhouse cottage along the waterfront with a dock in the backyard for accessing Rainy Lake. Overall, it's like staying at a lake house in the countryside. Although there's no official sign for customers to know they've arrived at Loony's Brew, there's a wooden post hanging by the entrance with a message stating...."PUB, BEER, FOOD, WINE, GOOD TIMES". Loony's has a playful/old fashioned bar kind of feel. You could sense the owners knew the specific tone they wanted to provide for patrons. The bar has an assortment of homegrown, locally brewed beers on tap....According to their website, they feature - "American, Hoppy, Belgian, Stouts & Porters, Fruits, Gruits, Lagers, NAs, and Barleywines". Loony's is decorated with classic guitars, vintage license plates and loads of symbolic mementos dedicated to their history. There's a back/rear section area featuring a billiards table, jukebox and dartboard. Situated all around are high-top tables and chairs. Plus, there's a small corner for showcasing local bands and musical acts. I ordered a beer, took it outside and walked across the street to the Brew Deck Bar area for enjoying views of Sand Bay beside Rainy Lake. The setting was pleasantly quiet. There's even a little pier where you can walk towards a rustic lighthouse. Overall, Loony's Brew is a worthwhile place to come after your discoveries at Voyageurs National Park. It's a no hassle, no fuss brewery that embodies the blue-collar town of Ranier, MN.

This is a great place to grab a night after exploring voyageurs. Recommend the walleye nuggets but…read moreall their food looked good.

Great friendly service at the bar. All the taxidermy and carvings added to the up-north vibe that…read morewe liked. The walleye sandwiches we all had were delicious!

Everything is over the top great! Food, drinks, service. I highly recommend the prime strips on the…read moreappetizer section...large portion...we share and get a side salad. Always amazing!

Amazing Poor Gary's Pizza and great service as always. It's usually busy which is great as we want…read morelocal businesses to be busy! They have other great choices besides pizza as well!

Excellent meal with a beautiful view of the lake. Probably the best French Dip I've ever enjoyed…read more The wild rice soup was very good. Highly recommend.

We popped in for a celebratory beverage and had a great experience. The bugs were too bad to sit…read moreoutdoors so we grabbed a seat at the bar. The gentleman who served us was super knowledgeable and fun to watch prepare our cocktails. All fresh fruit syrups made in house - the cocktails were amazing. I loved the Lime Tea. An excellent experience and we'll 100% be back the next time we visit!

This place should be a gold mine. Not sure what happened, the service was horrible. When a place is…read morebusy, the servers shouldn't be standing behind the bar laughing and joking. The 3 times we went this week, 2 of the 3 the service was a joke. As someone who worked in the food industry in a busy restaurant, this is not how servers should be.

Don't give them your business, they don't want it. Spent a month on the phone with the owner…read moreorganizing a big buffet dinner for 30+ people then on the day of the event, the servers knew nothing about a buffet, the owner refused to answer his phone and take accountability, and the servers refused to serve us because "they had boats coming in." They want nothing to do with locals, they falsified a reservation so we had to scramble and make last minUte arrangements-- all very unprofessional. Don't give them your business, they don't want it.

Delicious food! Great service, very clean. I like that you could get a drink from the bar too!read more

The food is surprisingly good for bar food. Pizzas are great! Atmosphere is just a bar, but…read moresomehow you just don't care! It's great.

We decided on Thunderbird Lodge for lunch after our Grand Tour of Voyageurs National Park. We…read moreweren't originally planning on visiting, but this place was one of the closest restaurants to the Rainy Lake Visitor Center. We were starving since it was almost 1 PM and we hadn't eaten at all since the previous night. The place wasn't busy at all, and with a thunderstorm rolling in and the skies darkening, we took a seat inside and got our food within 10 minutes. Walleye Sandwich ($22) - First I have to say that I love how this is served. All the veggies (a couple of slices of pickle, some lettuce, and tomato) are all placed underneath the bread and fried fish in order to keep things fresh and crisp. A lot of times when a restaurant pre-assembles sandwiches with veggies, the moisture soaks into the bread and/or fried food. The fish, in this case fried walleye, is nicely flaky and mostly tender, not drying out too overly much from the fry. It has mild flavor, fresh not fishy, and the breading, evenly applied all around, stays completely adhered. The breading isn't too heavy of a layer so the taste of the fish still comes through. The bread is a normal commercial bun, toasted until kind of crinkly and crumbly. Watch out for bones inside the fillet - I found three still embedded. The sandwich comes with some thin commercial battered fries. There's not much else to say other than there was no problems with the level of fry. (4/5) Chicken Wild Rice Bowl ($8) - This is a relatively creamy stew-like soup, with a mire poix mix that includes tender carrot, but crunchy celery. Clearly an indication that it's home made. There are chicken chunks that don't seem to be home made though - the chunks seem like cubed chicken from a can or vacuum packed and cubed. There's extra umami and saltiness from crumbled bacon - in fact, the soup as a whole is perhaps too salty for my tastes. There's a decent amount of cultivated broken soup-grade wild rice included, some pieces are longer and curly, most are short and straight. They still give that nice bitey, springy, snappy texture though. (4/5) I found Thunderbird Lodge to serve some pretty decent food, especially given the real dearth of quality restaurants in general around International Falls. I wish we had eaten there on a sunnier day so we could take in the full view of Rainy Lake while eating on the patio! Bathrooms - Larger ones in the hotel Food: [4/5] Service: [ ] Other: [ ] Final Rating: 4/5

Yet another wonderful meal at The Thunderbird. Walleye can't be beat. The chicken n wild rice soup…read morewas so good too. The view is worth the trip for sure.

Food and service were absolutely amazing! All the 5 sta ratings are true. The onion rings, fries…read moreand sweet potato fries were cooked perfectly crispy! The best I've ever had from a restaurant. I had the loaded prime rib burger and easily one of the top 5 burgers I've had in my life. My husband had the boony burger and he thought it great!

Surprisingly good pizza! Got our online order in right before closing. The sausage on the pizza was…read morereally good, as were the cheese curds.

Buffet available certain days. None of the food was very good. Nothing particularly good but was…read morefine. Decent sized parking lot.