Egg Harbor Lodge News

 Last night Mark and I decided to go out for dinner after work.  We like to head down to the the Hof Restaurant in the summer, they have great food.  The dining room has a beautiful view of the water and is one of the few restaurant in the county with a view. On our way into the bar, we noticed they expanded the outside seating and will be offering a limited menu outside this summer… how fun.  The dining room is spacious and well decorated with huge windows that over look Egg Harbor.  Mark ordered the salmon and I had the walleye and then we split it.  The walleye was panfried which is Mark’s favorite.  The salmon was cooked perfectly, not overdone which is my pet peeve.  Both were equally delicious. Alpine itself is amazing to see.  It’s like the movie “Dirty Dancing”… remember?  Almost always, all the members of the Bertschinger family are there hard at work.  Emily Bertschinger Pitchford and I are good friends and in the summer about the only time we get to hang out is if we head down there for dinner.  The Hof doesn’t seem to get the free publicity some of the other DC restaurants do and it is a shame… it is a first-class restaurant.  Next time you are in Egg Harbor, check them out.  See you there..

 As long as I have been dishing about Door County Restaurants, I can’t forget Mike’s Port Pub in Jacksonport.  Mike’s is owned by Mark’s sister Barbie and her husband Mike Lautenbach.  They operate it along with their kids Casey (Kelly), Megan and Leila.  My dad bought the Egg Harbor Lodge from Mike’s dad in 1976.  In Door County, EVERYBODY is either related or has a connection.  Mike has great pub style food, with specials from tenderloin to complete chicken dinners.  Mike’s is a really casual and fun place… They have great Bloody Mary’s and do fun things for Packer Games (free jello shots…) and other sporting events.  It is usually packed on Friday and Saturday nights but the service is really good, so there usually isn’t too long of a wait.  Plus, their bartender Joy, makes phenomenal Old-Fashioneds. They just put in a flat screen, so we can watch the away Packer games.  Barbie and Mike have 4 season tickets and Mark and I are lucky enough to get two for each home game.  Mike’s is definitely a place to check out. 

Saturday night, we went to dinner with our friends Lauren and John… they have been staying at Egg Harbor Lodge for years.  Lauren was our favorite nurse at St. Vincent Hospital when our son Josh had Leukemia in 1985.  We have kept in touch ever since and our Josh, Thank God, is perfectly fine.  Anyway, we decided to go to the Waterfront Restaurant in Sister Bay because it is Lauren & John’s favorite.  I am not usually a fan of expensive restaurants, because I love to cook and I always figure I can make the same things at home.  Well, in this case I would be so wrong.  There is no way in hell, I could make any of these dishes.  The food was amazing and the restaurant itself is just beautiful with a great view of the water.  For starters we had the seared sea scallops and calamari… really, really good.  I had the iceberg wedge with bleu cheese and the pulled duck confit with hand-rolled lemon thyme linguine and a pecorino cream sauce.  Lauren had her usual, the halibut and John followed suit. Mark had the sea scallops. It was truly one of the best meals ever, the only thing better was the company we kept.  After dinner we stopped at JJ’s next door (both restaurants are owned by the Johnson family). Mark was our DD, so the rest of enjoyed a margarita.  JJ’s is a hot spot for the locals… I know we love to head up to JJ’s when ever we get a chance, particularly in the off-season.   I love mexican food  and JJ’s is great.  Door County is fortunate to have so many really good restaurants and eating out is our my favorite thing to do.

Denny Delorit just stopped with some baked goods from his family’s bakery, that rivaled my mother-in-laws… Caramel and iced cinnamon rolls!!  They were really delicious… Pink Bakery is located next to Mojo Rosa’s Cantina, a family operation headed up by Kim Jensen and her mom Mary Jo Delorit.  Together with Kim’s dad Denny and her husband Todd, the family also own and operate the Village Cafe and Villaggios.  Mojo Rosa’s specialize in authentic Mexican cuisine (their guacamole is even better than mine!) along with pizza and American cuisine.  Villaggios has great Italian food and is located in Juddville.  The Village Cafe, is every-one’s favorite spot for breakfast, but is also open for lunch and dinner featuring great sandwiches, soups and homemade pot pies.  Not only is the food good in their restaurants, this is one hard-working family and they happen to be really nice to boot.  Check them out next time you are in Egg Harbor….  I think we will have to stop for a Margarita on the way home tonight!

Well, I took my own advice and Mark and I and our friends Nancy & Jim had dinner at Trio last night- delish…

Today we stopped at Casey’s for lunch and I had the smoked chicken wings, I can’t seem to order anything else, they are so goood!  Casey’s has new owners Mathew Peterson & Regan Spangler, who also own Pelletier’s in Fish Creek which is famous for their fabulous Fish Boils.  Casey’s BBQ and Smokehouse will feature, yes, you guessed it smoked food.  Ribs, pork, chicken… Casey’s daytime bartender, Leah, is efficient and friendly and makes people want to hang out.  We unfortunately, had to get back to work.  Maybe next time.