THE MAGIC OF SUTTONS BAY
Updated July 2021
I currently live in Traverse City and am quickly falling in love with the surrounding villages and towns that are just a quick drive away. Suttons Bay is definitely one of my favorites. Just 30 minutes from Traverse City, the village of Suttons Bay offers beautiful beaches, crystal clear water, great shopping, great food and enough wineries and breweries to keep you busy all day.
Below is the perfect jam-packed day itinerary if you are visiting Suttons Bay in the summer, but I also included some pictures of the places in the fall and winter to show Suttons Bay is also a great place to visit year round, it’s just a bit more magical in the summer.☺️ I snagged this picture from the Suttons Bay Marina website to show the gorgeous colors in the West Traverse Bay!
KAYAK or SUP AT SUTTONS BAY BEACH
Suttons Bay Bikes now rents kayaks and stand paddleboards and right behind their building is the gorgeous public Suttons Bay Beach to enjoy them at! Either pick one up (located right downtown Suttons Bay) or take advantage of their free delivery to West Traverse City, Leeland, Northport, Suttons Bay, Lake Leelanau, Cedar, Maple City and Glen Arbor hotels or vacation rentals. You must call for reservations and I definitely recommend reserving in advance because these rentals go fast! Start your morning kayaking at sunrise at the Suttons Bay Public Beach.
GRAB A TEA AT BAYSIDE COFFEE AND TEA OR A COFFE AT MUNDOS
BAYSIDE COFFEE AND TEA
Bayside Coffee and Tea offers fine coffee, tea, and homemade pastries. It’s the perfect place to grab a drink before heading to the farmers market or walking around town. I love their Turmeric Ginger Chai Latte.
MUNDOS
Mundos started in Traverse City and they have somewhat recently added a new location in Suttons Bay! I absolutely love the decor and vibe of this coffee shop. It’s my favorite place to go and work for a few hours. I personally don’t drink coffee but all of my friends go crazy for their stuff so I definitely trust their judgement.
It’s just what Suttons Bay needed and now they are serving yum breakfast and lunch as well!
SUTTONS BAY FARMERS MARKET
Open May-October on Saturdays from 9am-1pm, Suttons Bay Farmers Market, is a must-see visit. All products and produce sold at this farmers market are made or grown within 60 miles of Suttons Bay. If you’re lucky, snag some Bardenhagen Farms strawberries they are my favorite strawberries I’ve ever had!
BREAKFAST AT 45th PARALLEL or MUNDOS
There are a few great breakfast joints in Suttons Bay but our current favorite is 45th Parallel Cafe. If you’re here between April and June and it’s been a successful season, definitely order the Morel Mushroom Omelet. It. Is. To. Die. For. But if you are visiting out of morel season don’t worry, there are plenty of wonderful omelets and breakfast, we love the Smoked Bacon and Potato Omelet and the Chorizo Omelet. Keep in mind the portions are pretty big!
Mundos Roasting
45th Parallel is still my favorite but Mundo’s food was so good I might have to give it a tie!
They keep adding new things to their menu and their outdoor dining area is so cute.
They use fresh and local ingredients and I absolutely love their avocado toast options.
EXPLORE THE SHOPS IN TOWN
You can walk the whole village in Suttons Bay in just 10 minutes if you don’t stop, but good luck with that, there are so many adorable shops each way you turn.
There are many shops to choose from, but these two are my personal favorites and they are actually the newbies in town!
LAKE AND WOODS APOTHECARY
If you’re looking for handcrafted plant medicines, bulk herbs & teas, skin care, and so much more adorable and wonderful things, you MUST visit Lake and Woods.
The owner, Kelly, is so kind and wonderful and makes the most amazing and healing products. She is also designing clothing as well and every time I stop in or check on Instagram she has started selling something new and incredible. She is also a wealth of knowledge when it comes to comes to all things herbal, plant medicine, etc so make sure your stop in and chat if you have any questions regarding those things.
POPPY THINGS
Another newbie in town is, Poppy Things and it’s right around the corner from Lake and Woods. This is the perfect shop for plant needs, art, and gifts.
It’s my favorite place to shop if I am looking for a quick gift for a friend. Everything in here is so dang cute!
A fun and kooky store in Suttons Bay called Bayside Gallery is a must visit as well, you’ll find a ton of unique decor for your home and garden. Pictured below, but you obviously can’t miss it when driving throught the village.
LUNCH AT STREETSIDE GRILLE or BAY BURRITO CO.
These are both great lunch options when you are in Sutton’s Bay. If you can’t choose after looking at the menu, I’d say you’re looking for something for more casual and quick I’d head to Bay Burrito Co.
STREETSIDE GRILLE
I started coming to Streetside Grille because they served a Bourbon Cider I loved called “Whiskey Business”, but then I tried their food and fell in love with this bar and grill even more! Their fish tacos, pork belly tacos, mussels and lobster roll are my favorites. Their menu seems to change often so make sure you look online for a current one before getting your hopes up for a certain item,
BAY BURRITO CO.
Lately, whenever I asked tourist what they love about Suttons Bay I keep getting the same response. They say, “We loved everything but Bay Burrito Co. took the cake. Some have even gone two days in a row! If you’re looking for a giant burrito, quesadillas, or tacos, this is the place.
GRAB ICE CREAM
You definitely have to grab ice cream in the adorable village of Suttons Bay. There are a lot of ice cream shops for a village that has less than 700 people but my personal favorites are Little Bee’s Italian Ice, Scoops Ice Cream Factory or Grandma Lin’s Ice Cream Parlor. Below is a picture of some Italian ice from Little Bees.
DAY DRINKING OPTIONS
For the afternoon/early evening chunk of your day, my recommendation would be to book a wine tour with Traverse City Wine and Beer Tours! This is the company I worked for and it is located in Traverse City but will pick you up and drop you off right in Suttons Bay. This way you don’t have to worry about driving to each place and you can hit more than a couple of stops. If you don’t feel like a wine tour, then just hop in the car and head to try one or two of these drinking establishments. From Suttons Bay, they are all within 10 minutes.
SUTTONS BAY CIDERS
Suttons Bay Ciders is my all-time favorite place to drink in Northern Michigan. Their location is up on Hilltop Road off of M22 and they take the cake for the best view of West Bay.
I have taken so many people here that say “Oh we can go because my wife likes ciders, but they are definitely not for me.” Then they come out saying, “Holy shit I loved that place, and ended up loving at least a few of their ciders!” The view is incredible year round but it’s definitely my favorite in the fall!
My favorites are Mosaic and Power Island. I love the huge window right when you walk in, even the view from where you order your cider is amazing.They recently started bottling their ciders as well so you can take some home with you!
TWO K FARMS CIDERY AND WINERY
Two K Farms Cidery and Winery also offers a beautiful view of West Bay. I love this spot because they offer wine and many types of cider. They even started offering a mimosa flight!
And just when I thought they couldn’t top the mimosa flight, they are now offering a Sangria cider SLUSHEE! Sooooo yum! This is a great place to hang out for a bit as they have a big deck with beautiful views of the bay.
TANDEM CIDERS
Tandem Ciders has incredible cider but also keeps me coming back because their staff is so knowledgeable and passionate about what they do. The owners Nikki and John are doing something special here because most of their employees have been with them from the very beginning (almost 10 years ago)! They are most popular for their Dry Spell, Farmhouse, Green Man and Smackintosh and they have over 15 cider varieties to try. They have polish horseshoes out front and a location you can’t beat between Omena and Northport so you will feel you are all alone enjoying some of the best cider you have ever had in Northern Michigan! Tandem Ciders is just a bit off M-22 and just when you think where is this did we miss it you’ll come across this awesome sign.
WILLOW VINEYARDS
Offering the same view as Suttons Bay Ciders + grape vines is the adorable Willow Vineyards. They are one of the five original wineries on the Leelanau Peninsula. They just went under new ownership and we can’t wait to go and try it out! I love the Pinot Noir Rose and Sweet Rain Chardonnay.
L MAWBY
L Mawby is doing something different than anyone else up here in Northern Michigan and are specializing in sparkling wine or what I like to call, bubbly! They have something for everyone to enjoy; including Dry(brut), Semi Dry (extra sec), Semi Sweet(sec) and Sweet (demi sec). Their most popular bottle is the SEX Dry Brut. And I am sure you can see why, people never get sick of saying “Omg, I can’t wait to try some sex!”My favorites were the Sex (of course), Wild and Talismon.
This bubbly is great on its own or in a mimosa and on Sunday’s they sell their special Mawbosa’s(includes: their Detroit bubbly topped with frozen orange juice topped with a little sex !), 2 for $9! L Mawby is a bit off the main road and offers beautiful countryside views from their tasting room. They also have some cider to try if you aren’t as interested in bubbly as I am!
HOP LOT BREWING CO
Switching from wine to beer here, Hop Lot Brewing Company is the place to be, enough said. They offer such a welcoming environment and when you pull up you will immediately think, “I want to join this party!” They have a few fire pits with benches around them. Hop Lot even offers outdoor seating all year round and set up igloos in the winter!This place has so many “summer in Northern Michigan feels” all wrapped into one awesome brewery.
To top it off Hop Lot is also family friendly. There is a large yard right behind the fire pits for your kids to run around while you enjoy a beer catching up with friends and family.
DINNER AT MARTHA’S TABLE OR WREN
It’s too hard to choose between the two so I’ll let you do that after reading a bit more about them and going to their websites to check their menus!
MARTHA’S TABLE
Martha’s Leelanau Table is a European-style bistro and cafe that has been around for about ten years in Suttons Bay. Martha not only makes wonderful meals and pastries from scratch using Leelanau produce, but she leads a tour to Europe every year for new experiences and inspiration. Her food is some you definitely don’t want to miss!
WREN
Wren is a farm to table restaurant located right in the heart of Suttons Bay. It is quickly becoming one of the most popular restaurants in the area and a lot of Traverse City locals will even drive the 30 minutes away from our awesome food scene to eat here! Their menu is always changing with the seasons and their dishes are always unique and wonderful.
End your day in Suttons Bay with a sunset cuddle session on the beach, a movie at the adorable local theater, or head back into Traverse City for a night out! Either way, I know you won’t regret your visit to Suttons Bay. Have you been? What’s your favorite thing to do in Suttons Bay? You can also read more Michigan related blog posts, HERE.
