Picture this: you’re heading back to town after a long day of lounging on the beach. Or kite surfing. Or from visiting local art galleries, playing a few rounds of golf, mountain biking all over the Petoskey area, hunting Petoskey stones, fishing, or whatever makes you happy in this northern Michigan paradise.

It’s not quite time for dinner, but you’d like to sit outside and have a cold, refreshing beverage and snacks while you relax.

Folks, that’s the time for happy hour. A chance to explore drink specials and unwind from a long, hard day of play. Whether it’s an upscale experience you desire or a simple afternoon in a pub, the Petoskey area has you covered this summer, with more enchanting drinks and specialties than you’ll ever be able to try in just one trip.

Any of these summer deals are subject to change, so contact the establishment you plan to visit for more details.

 

Boyne Falls

From 3:00—6:00 p.m., the Whi-Ski Inn has cocktails, domestic beers, and small plates for happy hour. Options have included discounted Polish mules and margaritas, $2.00 domestic beers, and such offerings as quesadillas, nachos, and loaded poutine fries. Stay for their smoked barbeque sandwiches and bourbon.

If you’re at Boyne Mountain, you have plenty of happy hour options to choose from. Sunday through Friday, between 4:00 and 6:00 p.m., six eateries offer discounts: Après Ski Pub, Everett’s, Back Forty Biergarten, Forty Acres Tavern, Skybridge Food Truck, and Trophy Room Pub & Pizzeria. Look for specials on beer, wine, and select cocktails. For example, Trophy Room happy hour includes select $5 domestic beers, $7 craft beers, $9 glasses of wine, $3 specialty cocktails, and discounted breadstick appetizers.

 

Boyne City

Boyne City is no slouch when it comes to happy hours. Take, for example, Café Santé. From 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. daily, their happy hour consists of $5 snacks and classic cocktails, including gin or vodka house-mix martinis, Spanish sparkling cava, margaritas, and old-fashioneds. The rotating happy hour food menu currently includes cheese pizza, pâté maison, duck French onion soup, and house-made meatballs.

Boyne River Inn’s happy hour runs from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. every day, with an ever-changing menu of bartender’s choice drink specials and rotating food items. Past selections have included $2 pints with a meal, two for $20 pizzas, and $5 margaritas. On Sundays, appetizers are half off all day. Their extended menu includes burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, fish and chips, coconut shrimp, salads, and appetizers. And there’s a lovely view of the Boyne River right out back.

Provisions provides more than a lounge with a full complement of food and drink options. The open, luxurious space doubles as a party store and triples as a gourmet market.

Provisions Lounge is more than just a great place for happy hour specials. It’s also a deli and one of the best bottle shops in northern Michigan. Come for the happy hour specials, and grab gourmet deli items and sandwiches to go for a day on the beach, a bottle of your favorite spirits, or mix-and-match six packs of beers and ciders. Happy hour runs from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. and includes $2 off all wine, beer, and spirits. While you’re there waiting for the kitchen to open, try some happy hour snacks, like Marcona almonds or whitefish pate.

Mike Castiglione started Stigg’s Brewery in 2017, and his beers have taken Boyne City by storm. Join happy hour from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday for $1 off their flagship pints. While you’re there, check out their Summer Music Series, on Fridays and Saturdays from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. And you may as well grab some grub while you’re in the neighborhood. Luckily, Stigg’s has a full menu to serve your hankerings, with smoked meat platters, burgers, pasta dishes, and homemade soups.

 

Petoskey

What kind of happy hour experience would you like? Burgers and fries or prime rib and lobster? This guide to Petoskey happy hours will help you decide.

 

The Noggin Room is the kind of place where everybody knows your name. It’s a cozy, inviting space below one of the most beautiful venues in all of Petoskey: The Perry Hotel.

Good old-fashioned happy hour for me, please:

The Noggin Room Pub, part of the beloved Petoskey institution Stafford’s Perry Hotel, offers happy hour specials Monday through Friday from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Currently, this includes $3.50 draft beers, $1.50-off house wines, and $5 appetizers, such as cheese curds, spinach-artichoke dip, and six-piece wings. It’s a casual spot to hang out with locals after some quality time shopping downtown.

Mitchell Street Pub is a colorful, welcoming local bar with happy hour from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. every day. That includes 50 cents off drinks and all the atmosphere you could care to imbibe. From cabin décor to wood paneling, antiques, and stained glass, the pub is a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. Their dinner menu is a winner, with homemade soups, burgers, sandwiches, fried walleye and grilled salmon, steak, and tons of desserts to choose from.

Homemade bruschetta. A Red Hot Best Winning burger. Oven-baked grinders. Duffy’s Garage and Grille has everything you need for a winning dinner, plus happy hour specials Monday through Friday from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Try $2 off all appetizers, $4.50 well drinks and draft beers, and $5.50 bloody marys and house wines. If you’re looking for a pizza feast, you’ve found your place.

 

I’d like to try something a little more upscale, thank you:

Palette Bistro always offers an elevated dining experience. Imagine a plate of buttery sea scallops on the sunny front patio, or a meal of beef tenderloin or harissa salmon in a dining room overlooking the bay. During their happy hour from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., you’ll get 40% off their delicious, innovative small plates, $1 off draft beers, and $5 select cocktails and glasses of wine. Their rotating menu of small plates has included a forest floor soup bursting with gourmet mushrooms and crab cakes.

Palette Bistro, an upscale dining destination in downtown Petoskey, offers generous discount on their small plates and drink specials, along with great views of the bay.

Right next door to Palette is The Beacon Bistro, with a generous happy hour from 1:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. every day and a gorgeous lake view. You can get 30% off cocktails, beers, and glasses of wine. Appetizers include dishes like a charcuterie board, smoked whitefish spread, and a decadent burrata caprese salad. If you plan on staying for dinner, New Zealand lamb rack and ribeye steak are all currently on the menu.

If you’re looking for an upscale dining experience in between rounds of gaming and entertainment, try Odawa Casino’s Sage restaurant. Thursday through Saturday from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., try their half-off appetizer and drink specials in the lounge and sunroom. And how does half-off select bottles of wine on Fridays sound? Look out for their holiday brunch and dinner specials—lobster bisque, surf and turf, and crème brulee anyone?

Bay View is well known for its beautiful historic homes and summer events. But what about the 1911 Restaurant? If you haven’t been to this gem you’re in for a treat. Tuesday through Saturday from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., they offer $5 off bottles of wine, $5 off appetizers, and select cocktail specials. Appetizer selections include pan-fried crab cakes, vegetable spring rolls, fried green tomatoes, and barbecue shrimp cocktail. If you’re staying to dine, you’ll have your choice of maple-planked whitefish and wagyu sirloin, among several other options.

Every day from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., Spring and Porter offers a rotating menu of bar snacks and happy hour drinks. Some standards are $3 house beers and $8 cocktails, like cosmos, martinis, and old fashioneds. While the food menu varies, a few of their happy hour snacks have included chicken tacos and rigatoni Bolognese. Check out Spring and Porter’s events page for wine dinners that pair wine selections with special theme dinners.

 

Bay Harbor

NOMAD. is the kind of restaurant where you want to try everything, and they cook up some truly unique dishes. Have you ever had saffron spaghettini with lobster, prawns, and scallops? Or citrus salmon with coconut curry braised kale? I rest my case. Happy hour is seven days a week from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., with a special Sunday evening happy hour and DJ from 8:00 p.m. to close. Specials include 30% off select small plates and drinks.

 

Harbor Springs

At Bar Harbor, every hour is happy hour. But they offer drink specials from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. every day in the form of $1 off adult beverages. If you’re looking for a locals bar with outstanding burgers and sandwiches, huge onion rings, and some options for the kiddos, this is the place.

Vernales serves of a dining experience for every taste, along with 40% off appetizers and $4 wines during happy hour.

Vernales is a local institution, featuring steak, seafood, pasta, and more on its extensive menu. It’s been voted the number-one steakhouse in Michigan and won several Wine Spectator Awards. Vernales is split into multiple sections, including two outdoor dining patios, and happy hour takes place in the Sports Bar from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. There, you can find $4 pint craft beers, domestic beers, house wines, and well-drinks. You can also get 40% off starters like calamari and crispy brussels sprouts.

At State Road Provisions, drinks are 30% off every weekday until 6:00 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays between 11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. While you’re there, check out their Detroit-style pizzas, enormous onion rings, burgers stacks as long as your forearm (no joke), fish fry Fridays, and other standard bar fare.

Find yourself ready for some sustenance after a round of disc golf at The Highlands? Check out Slopeside Lounge located at The Highlands for Discs & Sips on Fridays from 2 PM – 6 PM. They offer 1/2 off appetizers and $5 Petoskey Brewing Draft Beers.

 

About the Author: Jen DeMoss is a newcomer to the Petoskey area and loves northern Michigan. You can catch her paddling a canoe, hiking a trail, or swimming in Lake Michigan as often as the weather cooperates. She’d love to help you make the most of your time in this paradise she now calls home.