Locals Lake Leelanau. Where everybody knows your name
Photo: Locals Lake Leelanau chef Caden Deatrick and owner Tony West.
By Ross Boissoneau
Sun contributor
Customer service is important to Tony West. So too is history, making sure that the area’s residents and accomplishments are recognized. And food: don’t forget good food.
Put that all together with a career spent in hospitality and you get West’s new restaurant, Locals Lake Leelanau, which is already generating buzz. West said in just its second week of operation, the restaurant was already drawing a healthy crowd on a Thursday night.
The Traverse City native graduated from Traverse City Central High School in 2000, moved to Denver for two years, then moved back to Leelanau County in 2002. West worked as a bartender at Dick’s Pour House in Lake Leelanau for a decade, then spent a dozen years at the Leland Lodge as the food and beverage director.
The itch to run his own place finally coincided with opportunity when Mark and Mandy Moseler moved Northern Latitudes Distillery to their new building, leaving vacant the one-time Thunderbird Gift Shop property. Over the years it had also served as home to the Leelanau Chamber of Commerce, Hannah’s Bakery, Trish’s Dishes and Lylah’s in addition to Northern Latitudes.
West saw nothing but opportunity in the building and its location on M-204 in the heart of the village of Lake Leelanau. So, he jumped at the chance to start his own business, one that while starting anew acknowledges the roles those who came before him played in the county’s growth.
Besides that, it’s just plain fun. Like the large prints he has mounted behind some of the original windows from the building. They’re now on display in the corridor from the main dining area leading to the small deck area on the east side of the building. More fun? How about the kids’ area, where they can measure their height compared to a fish.
That history vibe goes further than the décor. West decided to lean into it with imaginatively named menu items. Some are self-explanatory, such as Empire Strikes Back, By The Suttons Bay, T-Bird Smoked Wings and Polka Fest – a wedge of romaine, brisket and cheddar sandwich, chicken wings and local kielbasa, respectively. Others include Richard’s Walleye Tacos, named for the longtime operator of Dick’s Pour House, Richard Plamondon. Emelia’s Prosecutor Poppers honor “one spicy lady,” Emelia Schaub, Michigan’s first elected female prosecutor and later the first woman in the United States to successfully defend a murder trial.
Beyond the clever names, West says the menu is all about upscale pub food. He credits Chef Caden Deatrick and his kitchen staff for crafting the dishes, which also include pizzas, four variations of nachos, sides, sandwiches and salads.
Of course, Locals Lake Leelanau is not just for natives of the area. West believes sharing the county’s history and sense of place will bring in vacationers and residents alike. And if they can’t come in, West and team will deliver, courtesy of the restaurant’s “Locals to the lake to-go menu.” Boaters can pull up to the docks at the Narrows and get food delivered directly to their boat.
West completely remodeled the building inside and out. The interior features wood and exposed beams, while the multiple windows keep it bright and airy. Outside there’s a front deck facing the road, and in back he plans to have a stage for live music, with cornhole and other family-friendly activities and accoutrements.
Refurbishing the building took three months. “There was a lot of teamwork,” explains West. He says he’s fortunate to have a complete team to run the place as well, especially at a time when virtually every restaurant and retailer is looking for help. With 15 people in the front of the house, six in the back and four working the retail side of things, he is confident Locals Lake Leelanau will be able to handle the influx of visitors the area experiences in the summer.
West says he hopes the tavern will establish an aesthetic similar to Cheers. “I grew up on those old sitcoms. I love to work at a bar named Cheers,” he says.
But rather than just copy the name, he opted to go for a vibe like that of the fictional home of Sam, Norm, Cliff, Diane and the rest, where everybody knows your name. “It’s the concept of Cheers,” he says. In a nod to the classic comedy, he had a line of shirts emblazoned with the name Locals Lake Leelanau in a script just like that of Cheers.
The shirts are complemented by other Locals Lake Leelanau merchandise, from hats to hoodies. The western portion of the building offers a variety of local items for sale, including lip balms from Bee Joyful, sweets from Leelanau Cookie Co. (not-so-coincidentally based on cookie recipes by Tony’s mom LouAnn; his niece Rae West is designer and chef’s assistant), clothing items from High Five Threads, Goodness on Main in Leland, and promises of more to come. “I dabbled in retail at the Leland Lodge. We’ll have other local brands,” says West. That’s a good thing, as he’s dedicated nearly 1,200 square feet of the building to retail.
He says it has been a busy transition, from getting the space to reconfiguring it, then finishing the premises before opening. “From having enough blue tape and rollers to slinging pizzas,” West says with a laugh.
In keeping with his desire to honor the area’s history, West opened Locals Lake Leelanau on Saturday, May 10, the same day Provemont (Lake Leelanau’s original name) was incorporated in 1871. The restaurant is open daily noon to 9 p.m. Come summer, the plan is to be open 11 to 11, seven days a week.
“This opportunity is a dream come true,” says West, his broad smile confirming his emotion.
