Stopped at Sparks while visiting Traverse City because my husband and I were craving BBQ --…read moreparticularly BBQ nachos. Unfortunately, Sparks was busier than expected so it took way long to get our food - even though we just ordered the nachos and a side of mac. Our waiter apologized many times due to being short staffed for the holiday weekend, but we were getting soo hangry we devoured our food in 10 minutes by the time we got it. The nachos were pretty good - I expected there to be a lot more meat and toppings for the price - and I wish they had put all of the BBQ sauce on it! We asked for all of their BBQ sauce on the side so we could try all of it. The mac & cheese was also pretty good! I probably would opt for a sandwich if I came back though since I do think the nachos were a bit lackluster.

How does this place get so many stars and good reviews. Whoever been liking this had no ideas what…read morereal BBQ is or they got lucky. This is such a tourist trap. 1. It is overpriced. $25 for 2 meat plate you get little piece of chicken and chop meat. Sides are good but the meat are tiny. 2. It is gross. you know something is wrong when your bbq is drown in sauce. Look at the picture. I never seen a bbq restaurant drown their meat in sauce. It is like they just grilled it or microwave the meat and just dump sauce on them and call it bbq. Also it was cold. Might as well eat at Applebee's if they are serving this. I was going to give 0 star but server was patient and nice. Food was just terrible. Everybody that give good reviews have nachos or macaroni. That's easy to make, but the items that involve technical skills and times, they have no idea how to make barbeque period

The sandwich was fine and the atmosphere is nice. It was pretty expensive $20 for a sandwich chips…read moreand water. I just thought it was going to be more authentic bbq but it's pretty hipster.

I found the server to be brusque in multiple interactions (e.g., the way that she told me to come…read moreto where she could hear me, instead of a friendly "I can help you over here"). But the real problem is the food. The pulled chicken was dry and mealy. The rice and sauce on our Korean-style rice bowl were dull and the vegetables on top did not seem freshly prepared.

Excellent BBQ place!…read more Good atmosphere, great service, and wonderful food! We had the ribs and pork mac and cheese, and both were excellent. I feared the pork would be too salty like many other places, but it turned out just right. The ribs are flavorful and my favorite part is the fries! I have not encountered fries, which excited me, in a while.

This place has always been in TC but I didn't realize how good it was until I just recently went…read moreafter not going for years. We sat at a high top by the bar and the service was amazing and the food was so delicious! I got crispy sweet potato fries, blondie sundae, fried pickle appetizers, and pulled pork mac n cheese! All amazing, especially the pulled pork. Loved this place and will be coming in more often now!

Terrific "local joint".., great feel, great vibe! Wednesday night live jazz band that is…read moreincredible! Food was terrific..."smash burgers" and craft beer...what more could you want! And the service is incredible! Ammie is a "Joy" and absolutely the best! Fun, friendly and attentive and helps you navigate thru the beer menu. A sweetheart..., makes you feel like family...and that is what makes an amazing night into a memorable experience!!!

My girlfriend and I recently returned from a vacation to the area, we spent a day in Traverse City…read more I wasn't impressed with the Workshop in the slightest. Although the wildfire smoke likely kept some people away, we came around mid afternoon in what should be the beginning of prime time hours and the place was empty. Not a good sign. I found it a bit odd that we had to order at the bar, considering only 2 other groups were there. There were like 4 employees just chatting away at the bar as well. At this point I know what I like in craft beers and I usually never have an unpleasant experience trying them, but we liked nothing we ordered on the beer flight! We had put in an order for the BBQ flatbread as an appetizer as well, and the chicken was super dry. I can't blame the sauce for being to spicy since I'm sure it's a popular local brand. That one's on us. We decided to have an actual dinner closer to our cabin.

Wow, so many good, good things; food, service and atmosphere. The BBQ platter was great, the ribs…read morewere suck off the bone tender, the brisket incredible and the pulled pork outstanding. The loaded mac and cheese excellent. Our server Kate H was very good at all things from explaining to service. Thank you worth the stop.

Ordered a recommended appetizer of shrimp and Brussel sprouts for $15 and only got 3 shrimp in the…read morewhole bowl. You have 2 people sharing an appetizer and you give them 3 shrimp? Also ordered the bread, for $5, that didn't come out with the shrimp. Ordered the wedge salad $15, and the BBQ platter $45 plus add on pork belly for $6. Service was mediocre- after saying something about needing to think twice about recommending the shrimp he offered to get the manager. He didn't come back to check on us or bring the bread until after the food came out. All off the food was lacking in flavor, chicken was dry and the ribs were chard black. NOT worth the price we paid. Go to DQ next door.

Great atmosphere, beers and hospitality!…read more Good selection of food - the pecorino fries are and awesome appetizer.

Service was quick and friendly. I forgot to take pictures of the nachos but they were delicious. We…read moregot the pork belly and Barbacoa. I recommend trying the Barbacoa!

Visited Bubba's when visiting TC for my first time and glad I chose here for lunch!…read more It was a Sunday and the place was packed but was able to find a seat at the bar since I was solo. There are large screens that had a game on and noise wasn't too loud. The bartender was attentive and service was great despite the rush. There was a good selection of beer on tap and other cocktails. I had the Haystack burger with fries and ordered it cooked medium. It was cooked perfect and was very tasty. If visiting Traverse City, make sure to check them out if looking for a great place for a beer and burger!

The atmosphere here very much feels like a tavern. However a tavern with a welcoming feel to it…read more I ordered the Shrek Burger ($22). The 1/2 pound burger is topped with Fried Cheese, Fresh Jalapeño, Pulled Pork, Cole Slaw, Haystack Onions, Bourbon BBQ Sauce. The burger was very good with a few caveats. The pulled pork is very average and doesn't add anything to the burger. The fried cheese was very good and did add to thd burger. The bourbon bbq sauce was meh and didn't add much. However the meat itself is excellent and I think a plainer burger would have been better. The fries that came with the burger were very good. I also ordered a Chocolate Shake and it was fantastic. the service was very good and everyone was very friendly. Overall a solid 4 star review. Would I return? Absolutely. Definitely for the shakes and I very much believe a simpler burger would have been better.

Slabtown Burgers absolutely lived up to the recommendations! This was our first visit to Traverse…read moreCity, and a few Michigan natives told us we needed to stop here. So glad we listened! I ordered the blue burger with a pretzel bun, and that bun upgrade is the move. I'm a bleu cheese lover, so take that for what it's worth, but this was the best bacon and bleu burger I've had. They combine the bleu cheese crumbles with cream cheese, which mellows that stronger flavor without losing the goodness. Even if bleu cheese isn't usually your thing, this one deserves a shot. My advice? Find someone to split a burger with so you have room for fries AND onion rings. No regrets. The service made the whole experience even better. You can tell these folks care about more than serving a great meal -- they want you to enjoy your time in Traverse City, too. An easy 10/10!

My family stopped here while I was on a work trip up there. We'd heard it was a good place to check…read moreout so we made it a point to check it out. The service was fast and they obviously knew what they were doing. The price wasn't bad and the food was fantastic. I would definitely get there early as it started to get packed later on.

We frequent the Cherry Republic in Ann Arbor and wanted to see this one…read more It was really pretty! It has more shirt selections too but the food products seemed to be similar. We purchased a cherry cola. Can't wait to try it!

Very cute store with wine tasting and samples galore. We tried candies, chocolates, pretzels with…read moreartisan mustard and they offered salsas and jams as well. Was great to try all the things I would buy first. Great place. Head on over there if in the area for sure

We enjoyed a dinner after arriving in town on a recent Friday evening. It was quite busy, and there…read morewas a decent wait, but we passed the time in the beer garden. It was a mixed crowd, with lots of families and young children. I had the Northwoods Blueberry Açaí mineral water while I waited and it was SO GOOD. Once we were seated and placed our order at the bar, the food came out fairly quickly.We had the hummus appetizer, the Rocket and the Three Rivers. I loved the Rocket - I love any pizza with goat cheese! This was a great spot to kick off our vacation with the fam after a long day of travel!

Super cool brewery located in at an old train depot with a huge patio for seating!! They specialize…read morein flatbread pizzas and beers. When we got there, the hostess warned us that the pizzas were taking up to an hour to make. I appreciate that they warned us before we committed to dining there! We didn't mind the wait. There are no waiters, so you order everything at the bar then they bring your food to you with a table number. I ordered the raspberry beer and it was really good. I typically don't like beer, but I love fruit flavors. As an appetizer, we got the red pepper hummus and it was meh--I didn't really like it. It was thick and had the texture of cold refried beans and instead of pita, it was served with tortilla chips that tasted like Tostitos brand. For my flatbread pizza, I chose the Wolverine which was topped with pineapple, pepperoni, jalapeños. I've never had pineapple on pizza so I can't really be a good judge, but it was alright. I liked how thin the crust was. For dessert, we got the mini ice cream bars as recommended by the woman sitting near us. They're Ice Box Brand Ice Cream Bars by a Michigan-based company. They sell two sizes: regular and mini. I chose a mini toffee crunch and it was the perfect size. It was really good. I'd love to just buy these ice cream bars to have at home!!