Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Restaurants

KARL'S CUISINE & WINERY
(906) 253-1900
Ever since it opened, Karl's has drawn crowds for soup and sandwiches. Now it serves dinners, too, and makes its own wines to compliment entrées like whitefish in distinctive cream sauces ($15) or special sirloion dishes ($14 and $18). Vegetables and a starch come with dinners. "From simple to spectacular" is the motto. Sandwiches are the customer choice at lunch—perhaps a beef or chicken pasty ($8), stromboli (in which sandwich filling is encased in a browned crust, also $8), or Elliot's chicken sandwich with fresh mozzarella and dried cherries. Dinner reservations suggested Thurs-Sat. The second-floor deck is pleasant, and offers a fine view of freighters if they happen to pass.

LOCK VIEW RESTAURANT
(906) 632-2772
Across from the entrance to Locks Park, the Lock View isn't just for tourists. Local people regard its whitefish as some of the very best, and the soups are good, too. The whitefish dinner is $14, whitefish baskets $9. Friday's all-you-can-eat fish fry, after 4 p.m., is prepared five ways: pan-fried, broiled, deep-fried, cajun, and lemon pepper. Other attractions are the $4.29 breakfast special with eggs, meat and hotcakes; Heart Smart items at every meal; burgers; fried clams; and $7 basket specials with fries at lunch. The owner spends winters making various kinds of locks-related nautical decor for tables, walls, etc.

PENNY'S KITCHEN
(906) 632-1232
Tucked away on a downtown side street, Penny's is a bustling, very successful coffeehouse, deli, bakery, and gourmet shop with free wi-fi. It's so busy at mealtimes, in fact, that it seems a bit like a cafeteria at a large company or a college. The café opens early for fresh bagels, muffins, and scones, and entrées like blueberry pancakes, omelets, filled croissants, and egg/cheese scrambles served in bread bowls. For lunch there are many deli sandwiches, wonderful soups, and prepared salads. This is the place for special picnic takeouts. 



CUP OF THE DAY COFFEEHOUSE & DELI
(906) 635-7272
In the heart of downtown, Tony Stackpole's compact spot offers free wi-fi and a wide range of coffees, cheesecakes, fountain sodas, and smoothies; entrée salads ($5-$6); over 30 specialty wraps, panini, and sandwiches (mostly around $5); and soups. There's lots for vegetarians. House specialties are chicken gumbo and grilled California panini with turkey, avocado, and cheddar. 


THE ANTLERS
(906) 253-1728
Perhaps the best- known restaurant in the Michigan Sault is a family restaurant in an old building made of sandstone rubble. A big draw is the decor: dozens of deer antlers cover the walls and beams, intermixed with stuffed beasts, from a big polar bear to deer and beaver. Some mounts form the centerpieces of wildlife scenes.
    The Antlers has gradually evolved after an Irishman from Detroit's east side bought it in 1948 and came up with the hunting motif. Now owned by Chris and Kathy Szabo, who also have Patrick Sinclair's, an Irish Mackinaw Island restaurant, the mounted animals remain and now number over 300. Bells and whistles fill the air every hour or more, when there's a touchdown or a customer with a birthday—or just upon request. The menu ($4 to $25) features burgers, steaks, chicken, BBQ ribs and seafood, along with homemade soups. Also has in-house bakery.

CLYDE'S DRIVE-IN
(906) 632-2581
Generations have grown up on various sizes of the C Burgers, from baby to the 3/4 pound Big C ($7.75 with cheese), made fresh on the grill and served as you like at. Hearkening back to an earlier era of burger joints, Clyde's, founded in 1949, offers eat-in and curb service. (The 3 other U.P. Clyde's in Manistique, St. Ignace, & Rudyard, have been sold off.)
This Clyde's remains very much a diner. It serves breakfasts, chili, and baskets of shrimp. An extra plus for boat-watchers: it's on the St.Marys River at the Sugar Island dock, the best place on the Great Lakes to watch freighters in motion.

STUDEBAKER'S RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE
(906) 632-4262
Especially for breakfast, Studebaker's is a local favorite. It's actually a competent all-around restaurant with a wide-ranging sandwich, salad bar, and dinner menu (Mexican, pasta, steak, seafood, chicken). Most dinner entrées are from $7 to $10. Sandwich menu served any time. The big breakfast menu (served all day) features good 3-egg omelets ($7.99) and a weekend breakfast buffet ($8). It's fun to see an owner's collection of Studebaker memorabilia, highly evocative for people who grew up in South Bend.

ANG-GIO'S RESTAURANT
(906) 635-3046
Mixed reviews for this Italian Olive-Garden-like restaurant. Some hate, some love it. Pizza might be your best bet. It's a weekly destination for the families of many working mothers. The sandwich menu is served any time. Weekdays there is lunchtime pizza buffet from 11:30 to 2. Dinner entrées are from $10 to $16.

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