7/25/2010
We traveled back down M-22 and re-entered Traverse City for a proper exploration.
Our first stop was Schultz-authorized Sleder’s Tavern for dinner. The food was good, but we received the worst service of our entire lives. We stood in the entrance, babes in arms, while several staff members passed by us, looked at us, and ignored us. After five minutes a waitress said, “She’ll be right there.” Who’s she? “She” showed up five minutes later and brought us to a table. I asked for a high chair. She said she’d go get one, disappeared into the night and we never saw her again. Five minutes later a male waiter came and asked for our drink orders. I asked for a high chair again. The man disappeared. Several minutes later he returned with our drinks and took our food order. (It is at this point I need to mention the details of the kid’s meal we ordered for Daniel – it promised pieces of cod [apparently not to be confused with cod pieces], fries, a drink, and an “ice cream treat.”) Still no high chair, by the way. I asked about the high chair again and he said, “I was going to get it.” Off he went. Five minutes later the chair arrived. After a long while our food did too. No drink for Daniel, though. I asked about it and the man said again, “I was going to get it.” Daniel’s drink arrived after awhile again. By now, Laura had almost finished her lemonade. The waiter pointed at it and said, “What is that?” “Lemonade,” my wife replied. “Oh,” said the waiter, scribbled something down and walked away. Apparently he missed the lecture on “Ask the lady with the empty glass if she’d like a refill” that day at waiter college. That was the last we saw of him. We waited about fifteen minutes for Daniel’s “ice cream treat.” Eventually, I had to go to the bartender to ask about it. I said, “I think our waiter abandoned us. We were supposed to get some sort of ice cream with the kid’s meal.” “Oh,” the bartender replied. She pressed a display on her computer which turned the icon of our table from yellow to red. Then she went into the back and returned with one of those little ice cream cups with the tongue depressor spoon.
Admittedly, the food was pretty good, but the service really ruined the experience for us. One other thing I have to mention is that the place is decorated with various game animal heads. The centerpiece is “Randolph the Moose.” If you kiss the moose, employees start clanging a loud bell. Once one person kisses the moose, everyone has to kiss the moose. So the bell must be rung. Every time. They’ve been doing this for 128 years. No doubt this particular tradition got old 127 years and 364 days ago.
(Strangely, when I used to summer camp at Camp Manatoc in the Boy Scouts a similar “Kiss the moose” tradition existed in our dining hall. Is there a connection?)
When we left Sleder’s another couple was entering. The woman asked us how it was. I admitted that the service was lousy. She then mentioned that she and her husband were going to eat there because it was mentioned in “this book.” Could they have meant THE book? The love of my life? The core of my being? YES! I then proceeded to rabbit on about our adventures while these poor people slowly starved to death on the steps of this restaurant. Eventually, an ashamed and disgraced Laura dragged me away.
Ok, so the restaurant wasn’t so hot, but we didn’t come to the bay to eat. Sticking out in the middle of Grand Traverse Bay is the narrow Old Mission Peninsula. It kind of looks like Michigan is flipping Canada the bird. (Still sore about the War of 1812.) We decided to drive up and down the peninsula – about an hour round trip. Along the way Daniel discovered a new way to amuse himself – bopping back and forth in his car seat. There was something strangely hilarious about it and the more we laughed the more he did it, which only led to more laughter. Maybe it was the hours in the car that had made us all loopy that night, but the three of us were caught up in a cycle of laughing – the tears streaming down your cheeks kind. Oh, Daniel – never grow up!
We soon reached the tip of the peninsula, anchored by an old lighthouse and a stunning panoramic view. We got there just as the sun was starting to set. Thomas Kinkade, eat your heart out.
Laura took Daniel out into the shallow waters bay and I’ve never seen him have so much fun in his little life. This was a spontaneous decision, so we didn’t have his swimming gear. By the end of the evening he was filthy and his clothes were drenched, but he didn’t care. Neither did we.
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