Restaurant of the Week: Big Spring Tavern

MANISTIQUE, Mich. (WJMN) – Big Spring Tavern is the perfect place to grab a bite to eat after a day at the lake, checking out the sights at Kitch-iti-kipi or in need of some good food.

“I picked it up as a part time job, and now it’s become the full time job,” said Pamela Clemons, Manager, Big Spring Tavern.

Clemons has been at Big Spring Tavern for eight years and says whether it’s tourists or locals, it’s the people that make this place so special.

“Meeting the new people,” said Clemons. The tours, what brought them here? Why did they come to this bar instead of traveling somewhere else? We do get a lot of tourists from Kitch-iti-kipi down the road, but we end up getting all the same to come back again. So it’s enjoyable. I feel like it’s all your family. I always feel honored when they walk through the door because they chose us. So we try to make it a very good experience while they’re here.”

That’s True for one group of guys who are mostly retired teachers from the Flint area that have been coming year after year for 19 years.

“We golf and we fish,” said Scott Baker. “One of the key things here is nobody cares what you do. You do what you want to do. You be you. We have a couple of events like one day each time where you all play golf together. We have a big scramble and everybody participates in that. Otherwise, whatever you want to do, you do. We’ve got a couple of boats. You want to go out on a boat and fish, do that. You want to go golf all day, do that.”

But, they all come to Big Spring Tavern together.

“We enjoy coming here,” said Mark Mattingly. “It’s a nice area. It’s nice we come to the same place and know the area. It’s easy for us to get around now. We go into town a little bit, but we do spend a lot of time here. We like this bar. We’re like the people that run it. It’s a nice place for us.”

The guys like to order food such as the wings, pizza fries and fish. Clemons says their are other fan favorites as well.

“We have parm fries that are amazing, pretzel bites that are amazing,” said Clemons. “Our cheesesteak sandwich is out of this world. We have people from Escanaba that come here twice a week to come and eat that. Also, we’re known for the Reuben. We have people that come in and say that they eat Reubens all over the world. So far, some have said we’re number one and number two.”

The tavern gives a rustic feel as it’s been here for many years.

“It was real small,” said Clemons “There’s pictures up there that shows that. They used to have cabins in the back. Plus they had a bear, and you could buy a bottle of pop and you can feed it to the bear. So this bar has been around for a long time. Even the old timers that come in back in the day, they remember everything. It’s kind of nice to sit and listen to their stories about the bar.”

“We came here years ago because we stayed at Indian Lake once and then we had a big break of not going to this area and then we came back after that,” said Baker. “It’s totally changed. It’s beautiful.”

Until these guys come back up for year 20, the good times will continue on at Big Spring Tavern.

“The whole staff makes fun of me because I usually get somebody’s phone number or we’re friends on social media once these people are leaving, because I enjoy it so much,” said Clemons.

“Looking forward to coming out next year,” said Mattingly. “We’re already planning for the date next year. You got to book it almost a year ahead of time. As long as everybody stays healthy and nobody gets hurt, we have good time.”

For more information on Big Spring Tavern, check out their Facebook page.

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