This place is new in 2016. A very nice micro-brewery is now open in Sister Lakes called Sister Lakes Brewing Company. Roomy, comfortable and decorated with old signs from former area businesses. The Morin family has been coming to Sister Lakes from Illinois since the 1930's when great grandpa bought a cottage there. I tried a flight and had two other seasonal beers as well and liked them all. The Driftskipper winter warmer was outstanding. It was a dark beer with eight spices added (cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, ginger, coriander and orange). I also was impressed with the Brown, Porter and Chocolate Milk Stout. They have a nice menu with several sandwiches and appetizers, however I did not eat on this visit. I will update after my next visit. I also like their slogan "Fostering Community, One Pint At A Time". Nice place, nice people. Check out the guide for more details.

Brite Eyes Brewing Co. in Kalamazoo is a nice place with a great atmosphere and good food and drink. It is also a coffee shop offering breakfast and deli style lunch offered the rest of the day. My wife had a nice salad and I had a stacked hot ham and cheese sandwich which were both very good. I also have had the beers twice which were both flights. I have tried all but the mango IPA. I liked the blonde ale, the pale ale and the regular IPA. The seating area includes stools at the bar and tables. The dining room is two stories with a loft area which is not open to the public, but creates a nice feel. The windows are large and look over the city. When I paid at the counter, I spied a dessert which was a peanut butter crunchy square that was excellent. The menu is limited but offers some nice things. Good food and good craft beer! My kind of place. Check the guide for more details.

I seem to be visiting new breweries more than anything else lately. I was very happy to not only find another good microbrewery but also a German restaurant. Territorial Brewing Company in Battle Creek has excellent German style beers and a nice German inspired menu. The name is to honor people who used to travel the old Territorial road that stretched across Michigan and passed through Battle Creek. So far I have tried seven of their beers including ones I don't normally pick because you can see through them. I had kolsch, hefeweizen, black lager, pilsner and dopplebock to name a few and all had very good flavor. I normally don't order anything but ales. One of the beers has "Harmonia" in the name honoring the small town near here where Sojourner Truth lived in her days in Battle Creek. I was very impressed and look forward to trying all their beers regardless of style. For food we have tried the soft pretzel, knackwurst with sauerkraut, fries with porkbelly and very good bread pudding. They offer several German wursts, frankfurters, German style pulled pork braised in beer, schnitzel, rainbow trout, burgers and even mac n cheese made with house made spatzle. They also offer salads, surf n turf and wings. Check out their website for the full menu and other details.

New in 2014. Add one more Micro Brewery to the Kalamazoo craft beer scene. One Well Brewing is well located just off the highway on Portage Road and in the large and diverse Millwood neighborhood. Their name comes from the concept of a well being a common meeting place for a community. I think they can become that with the neat atmosphere of rustic woodwork and a neat wrap around bar. They are very into the local arts community and were hosting a Kalamadoodle event the night we visited. No food yet, but they have free popcorn and cheap peanuts so far. I tried the Bad Adz brown ale named for the company that did a lot of the woodwork. Very nice beer. I also tried the SimcoeRillo IPA made with Simcoe and Amarillo hops. Also, a good example of a craft IPA. I finished with the Xalapa which was a jalapeno infused blonde ale. Fairly mild with nice overall flavor. The owners were working behind the bar. Great atmosphere, good beer and nice people! Check out the guide for more details.

I don't know if this place will revive downtown Constantine, but it is worth getting off the highway to visit. Constantine Brewing Company, LLC has a neat atmosphere with a bar area and a second room filled with picnic tables and a stage. They keep six beers on tap. I had the Emperor's Victory Stout which was very smooth and good. My wife tried the fruity wine which was ok. I missed the BBQ because we got there too near closing time, however they served me a fantastic cup of their chili they call "Matt's Famous Chili". I talked to the cook who said he had worked on that recipe for 30 years. I do want to go back for more beer and BBQ. They have pulled pork and brisket with daily specials. All food is made from scratch with as many local ingredients as possible. The beer is good, the food is good. Nice friendly place. Check out the guide for more details.

This place just opened in December of 2013. Kevin and Cindee Tibbs have created a neat atmosphere on a great corner next to the State Theater in downtown Kalamazoo. Tibbs Brewing Company seats 55 and offers 3-5 taps each day along with a chalkboard menu with a few items like nachos, sandwiches and some tasty pretzels from Renzema's Bakery in Parchment. You can try small glasses of the beers before committing to a pint. The day of my visit they offered an IPA, a Citra and a very nice Porter. I am a fan of Porters, so that was my favorite. I also really liked the pretzels. I have been to this space many times in my life as it was various restaurants. They have kept the spirit of the space and made a nice addition to the downtown beer scene. Nice place and nice people. Check out the guide for more details.

New in 2013. The name and location is new, however the downtown Jackson Grand River Marketplace evolved from Sleeping Bear Winery and Bad Bear Brewing Co. which was at the Concord exit. The new place is large and able to accommodate their new deli, winery, brewery and restaurant all under one roof. They also have room for a nice stage for live entertainment. This place has very good food made with top quality ingredients that you can see or buy many of from the deli. They are probably best known for their pizza, which is very good. The brewpub also offers some very nice deli sandwiches and burgers. The winery has a tasting area and a large selection. I am a big fan of porters and this brewery offers a constant rotation of several porters which have all been good so far. They brewer is very creative and has several other unique beers for you to try. This is the indoor area next to the Jackson Farmers Market. Check out more details in the guide.

New in 2013. This place has made a serious investment in Portage to become the town's first micro-brewery. Latitude 42 Brewing Co. is a first class effort by Joe Stafford and co. to offer great beers and excellent food to go with them. The atmosphere is very nice. Set up like a cross between a sports bar and a brewpub. I had the burger on the second night they were opened. I had to wait a little for it which was expected, however, I got a very good burger cooked the way I ordered with hot crispy fries. Great job handling a "quiet" opening that resulted in as much as a two hour wait for a table due to the crowds! I tried the powerline porter and the milk of amnesia stout which were both very good. I had tried the red beard before at a city of Portage outdoor concert. The red beard is a good summer beer. Nice place with good beer and good food. I noticed familiar employee faces from around the area. They also did a good job of hiring an excellent staff. Their brewer from Hawaii also knows what he is doing. I am sure more good things will come from this group! Check the guide for more details.

One of a kind pizza

This place is new since 2010. It has won the "best new restaurant" award in Jackson this year. Laughlin's Slice of Spice in Spring Arbor is the only wood fired brick oven pizza place in Jackson county. Fresh ingredients on a hand tossed thin crust cooked in the wood fired oven makes this place special. They use local fresh produce and italian ingredients to insure a tasty pie. Nice atmosphere for the whole family with original photos on the walls and comfortable seating. Nice salads and appetizers along with some other non pizza offerings. Full bar with padded seats, offering mixed drinks as well as a nice selection of wines including local ones. The beer selection includes seasonal and locally brewed options. I had Arcadia Jaw Jacker on my visit. Others in our group had Angry Orchard Hard Cider. Nice place, give them a try! More details in the Guide.

More beer in Kalamazoo!

New multi-tap place in downtown Kalamazoo, featuring 28 taps with rotating selections from around the world. Called the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange. The beers are shown on their flat screen TV's displayed like stocks on the Dow. This results in "market" prices that give you an ever evolving "happy hour"! Even though they name themselves for beer, this is a good restaurant. Several salad choices including strawberry chicken spinach with apples, candied walnuts, gorgonzola and blush wine vinaigrette. Three soups daily. Two of which don't change. The Wisconsin Beer Cheese and the French Onion. Check the blackboard for the blue-plate special or try their excellent sandwiches for lunch. Grilled salmon, pulled pork sloppy joe or maybe the piedmontese beef burger from Italy. Dinner offers chops, fish, crepes, steak and pasta. Try chef Bill's mac & cheese with three cheeses and truffle oil! Other offerings are the appetizers and snacks like pizza, wings, nachos or a beer steamed hot dog with detroit coney sauce. Neat 2 level place with an open kitchen. Great for food and beer! Check out the guide for more details.