Little Traverse Inn — Hotel in Cleveland Township

Update since eating here September 2021. Earlier I wrote: Fantastic hidden gem. Live music tonight was by Andre Villoch and was a phenomenal accompaniment to the meal. The onion bhaji, poppadums w/chutney, and fish & chips in beer batter were absolutely delicious. The fish was perfectly cooked with thin and crunchy batter. The fries were also perfectly cooked and seasoned. Know nothing of the B & B side of the establishment. Slight update and loss of a star as of this past visit. Poppadums again fantastic and so was the fish and chips. Then we ordered dessert. I ordered the Traditional English apple and cherry crumble. First there was no crumble on top which I thought strange. Then I took a bite. The apples weren't cooked. I'm not saying they could have used a few more minutes to be perfect, I'm saying they were like raw apple chunks complete with peel, thrown in the filling with fully cooked cherries and really no crumble. I'm not a complainer, but all I could eat was the vanilla ice cream off the top, it was just too odd a combo. When the waitress, and I think owners daughter, asked about the food I quietly told her the apples needed to be cooked. She was very defensive. Said "people just expect an American crumble and this is a traditional English crumble". I was taken aback. English crumble has a different style of crumble on top, but there is a nice crumble present (hence the name folks), and no matter what version, the apples should be thoroughly cooked to a soft but not mushy, texture. I was extremely polite about the comment, and quiet. I even still gave a 20% tip on the table's bill because it's not the server who was at fault. But to contradict your patron and try to correct their opinion by defending something that was undeniably wrong, is really a no no in the service industry. Apologize and take the item back to the kitchen for inspection by the chef. Thank you first for bringing the mistake to your attention and remove the charge for the item from the bill. Very strange dessert experience that left bad taste in mouth after...

Never stayed but have ate there twice. I cannot rave about their food enough! Very delicious options; many are fish. The atmosphere is also unique and inviting. If I had to rate only the food, it would be a 5 star review!

My negative stars derives from our poor service from our waitress. I was made to feel bad about not wanting my meat pink at all due to the fact that I am pregnant. The waitress then threw her hand out and kept clasping her hands together at me to hand over my menu, even though I still needed to make a new decision for dinner. Our waitress never refilled or asked us if we needed our water/beverages refilled until someone else came around and did it for her. Two people in our group asked if they could subsitite the veggie of the day for the fries since they do not like potatoes . We received an eye roll and were told no. Our food was either slid to us or set down harshly in front of us. At the end of the meal, she never asked if we wanted separate checks. We were a party of 12 and it was put all on one. We then asked to have them separated and she was incredibly rude about it even though we all said who we were with and what we ordered to help the process along. It took an additional hour. Those that ordered the fish and chips were never told it was a special of the day and were charged an extra $3 for a salad, even though the menu said all entrees come with a salad. It is unfortunate that this specific waitress ruined our experience at this restaurant and the fact that all of our credit cards were charge the incorrect amount. I loved my first experience there and couldn't wait to bring my family there. However, she made our experience unforgettable in the worst way and we will not...

Stayed here earlier in the week and I cannot say enough to encourage your stay. We decided to stay in one of the smaller rooms, which was cozy and clean, after a day of touring the vineyards. (In fact, one of the vineyard owners highly recommended the Inn to us and I am glad we listened to his advice.) BTW, Chateau Fontaine is the absolute hidden jewel of the Traverse Wine tour; do yourself a favor and find it!

We walked into the Inn and were immediately greeted by Graham, who made us feel right at home. After settling in, we came downstairs and started off dinner in the bar area where we struck up a conversation with John (behind the bar) and several locals that were in for the night. We were having so much fun meeting everyone that we decided to take our dinners right there at the bar. Haggis, fish and chips, Shepard's Pie, and Sticky Toffee Pudding (apparently Graham's grandmother's recipe) made up the delicious experience. What a fantastic evening of great food, drink, and company.

The morning brought coffee, orange juice, and an amazing breakfast made by Graham himself. It included an omelette, bacon, fresh fruit, and a danish that was crispy and made from scratch. My wife and I left beaming. We cannot wait to introduce our friends to the Inn with a return in October.

I read the two negative reviews and it left me scratching my head. I can only assume that those folks went someplace else and were confused or they are just the uptight sort. The Inn was clean and the food top notch. In my experience, you just can't go wrong with good people, and that's what you will find at the Little Traverse...