Little Traverse Inn for sale, Graeme Leask considers last decade, next chapter

Photo: Graeme Leask and his partner Michelle Schulte.

By Norm Wheeler

Sun editor

“Way hey and a way we go donkey riding donkey riding,
Way hey and away we go riding on a donkey.”

Many a Friday night over the past decade, patrons at the Little Traverse Inn have finished their fish n chips and listened to the affable, often kilt clad owner Scotsman Graeme Leask roar out the lyrics to Donkey Riding by Great Big Sea, or Mary Mack by the Clancy Brothers, backed by whatever local band was in the house that particular Friday. Blessed with a big laugh, a soul full of poetry and music, and a gift of the gab, Graeme has nurtured the burgeoning popularity of the old inn along M-22 across from Little Traverse Lake that folks like to call Leelanau County’s living room.

Once the Leelanau Country Inn back in the day, and then the gourmet eatery North for a while, Leask took over the reins in 2011, remodeled the six rooms upstairs to give each one a bathroom, renamed it the Little Traverse Inn (LTI), and on June 22, 2012, started serving his gastro-pub menu, including fish n chips, haggis, curry, corned beef and cabbage, toad in the hole, shepherd’s pie, beef wellington, Scotch egg, smoked salmon on Irish soda bread, soups, salads, burgers, and more. Besides Guinness, LTI has a shifting selection of micro brews on tap and on cask from all over the state. 

“It played out as planned,” Graeme recalls. “The idea was to be a community living room, but it took a couple of years for the paradigm shift. At first folks came in suits and dresses expecting fine dining. I’d meet them at the door in shorts and a t-shirt. One lady who liked us and kept coming back told me that the first time she arrived, ‘I thought you were the custodian!’”

Live music every Friday night inside all year, and out in the beer garden on summer Sundays, added to the allure. Local Irish musicians who gathered in Traverse City on Thursday nights for their weekly session of jigs and reels soon moved out to LTI, of course. Irish step dancers followed. As one of the few year-round venues for live music, LTI has become a favorite haunt for the likes of Andre Villoch, Goodboy!, The Wild Sullys, Jazz North, Elizabeth Landry & Joe Wilson, Blind Dog Hank, the Jameson Brothers, and the Bourdains. Graeme’s father has visited twice from Scotland to lead scotch tastings. There has always been a Robert Burns Supper to commemorate his birthday in January (pre-Covid) with poetry and readings and bagpipes. There have also been game dinners, trivia nights, comedy nights, euchre tournaments, a cornhole league, and Scottish ceilidhs. Every winter LTI hosted the popular Michigan Civil Beer Wars. Each week customers could taste flights of beer from various breweries, including the likes of Arbor Brewing Co, Lake Ann Brewery, Stormcloud, Terra Firma, Beard’s, Founders, Battle Atwater, Grand Armory, Pike 51, and Oddside, among others. The voting each week propelled the winning breweries into the next round.

Graeme Leask has also been notably generous. He serves free food every Boxing Day (Dec. 26) as a gesture of customer appreciation.  Many fundraisers have been hosted by LTI to help Big Brothers Big Sisters, Wings of Wonder, Buckets of Rain, and the Empire Emergency Fund. “Last spring during COVID we fed 287 families. Amy Johnson-Velis from Glen Lake School came often to fill her car and deliver food to needy families in the area, so we were literally feeding our neighbors. My partner Michelle Schulte also delivered food,” Graeme remembers. 

Staff member Nicole Anderson adds that, “Graeme takes great care of his staff family. Every Labor Day we float the Crystal River after he cooks us breakfast. He provides all of the beverages, and when we’re done he feeds us again.”

When the COVID shutdown of restaurants and bars hit 13 months ago, Leask came up with the idea for a “shanty village.” “I’m like a cicada, I have one piece of foresight every 17 years,” Graeme laughs. So he and his crew built six ice fishing shanty replicas, painted them with bright colors, and provided them as ventilated outdoor places for folks in the same bubble to eat.  They were sterilized and sat empty for half an hour between groups. There was also a big bonfire out in the middle of the shanty village to gather around, and despite the cold, the shanty village remained popular all winter. “It may be an odd statement to make, but we had a great year at LTI despite the COVID. We had the land (for the village), the weather was good, and we took every precaution to make sure everyone was safe. Everybody stayed healthy. The staff just did home, family, and work, even the 20-somethings. Sure, it was a day-by-day trying year of unknowns, so we had to roll with the punches and keep a positive attitude while taking all of the precautions.”

Assuming the Little Traverse Inn sells, what’s next for Graeme Leask and Michelle Schulte? “We’ll probably live in Ireland in order to be close to my parents, who live in Yorkshire in the north of England.” Graeme says. “They are both around 84 years old. Dad is diabetic and has macular degeneration now, and Mum has RA. They are both in good spirits and upbeat, and they are active in their community.”

“And we want to focus on our tour company, Radiant Moments. We specialize in destination immersion so that you see the place through the eyes of the locals.” Graeme and Michelle have already organized and led several trips to Ireland, England, and Scotland before COVID. “We imagine hosting 10-12 trips per year to the British Isles. What we do is so personal, we will always have that personal touch. We’ll keep our condo in Suttons Bay. We plan to keep our roots here for the foreseeable future.”

At press time, the Little Traverse Inn may have an interested buyer. Inspections are ongoing, but so far there is no closing date for the sale. Nicole Anderson, as well as being on staff, is the realtor who is facilitating the sale. Graeme expects to stick around for the rest of the season even if it sells, as it takes a while for the liquor license to transfer, and he wants to help the new owner get through the year. “It’s rough to get enough help,” Leask adds. “Hiring for the season is the number one headache. Everyone here ends up working a lot!”

LTI is currently closed until Friday, April 23, for Spring cleaning. The shanties are moving to the back lot where they are available for artists to have small studios or workshops through the summer. The front yard will again be the beer garden, outside dining area, and music venue surrounded by the Rick Jones circle of sculptures. 

Follow the Glen Arbor Sun for news on what’s next for the Little Traverse Inn as events unfold.