It was worth a visit once. It's all about cherry wine and products. I thought it was quite pricey but I'm still glad I stopped to find out what all the fuss was about. The ice cream I got in the little cafe was delish as was the coffee. That said, I'm personally not a fan of cherry foods but that's my shortcoming. Definitely pause and look around for a quick moment and maybe buy somethings as a souvenir to take home. read more

Out of all the goodies they sell here, I left with a book. Even the counter lady was like "why are you buying this book"? No joke. It's a good thing I left with brain food instead of actual food, because between the BBQ sauces, candies, mustards, salsa's, chocolates, pops and other delicious edibles here, I probably would've gained a pound around my waist and lost a few pounds out of my wallet. Snack wise, their red chocolate covered cherries were delicious.. hence why I didn't buy them. Dangerous stuff! We went to the restaurant next door and had some cherry coffee and a cherry turnover. I personally got a cherry unsweetened iced tea, I wish they sold that in the store because I would've dropped some cash on that to stock up for at home. The turnover was pretty great.. especially since it was still warm when we got it. read more

I honestly don't know where to start with Cherry Republic. I've gone to Glen Arbor for years in the summer and Cherry Republic has always been a place to celebrate the fun day I've had at night. Since the last time I had been to Cherry Republic they have completely revamped and added multiple items to their menu. I have gotten a burger, pretzel, and a salad and they are all delicious. My favorite is definitely the burger though. I also get cherry pie when I eat here, and it doesn't disappoint. The Black Cherry Creme Soda is to die for. It is a nice relaxing drink to have with your dinner. If I could rate Cherry Republic 100 stars I would. Obviously I can't so I'll stick with 5, which definitely doesn't do it enough justice for how good it is. read more

Even though it seems a bit gimmicky it still feels true at heart. The layout is fun as it feels like a tiny village with some nice gardens and plenty of spots to sit outside and grab a bite. The cherry glaze on the burger was pretty good but I thought the Mac and cheese and chicken salad were too simple. Good for kids I guess but I was looking for an adult version with some more interesting flavors. Didn't think the wine was good either but I do recommend checking out their beer. I had a porter with some subtle cherry flavors that I would definitely go for again. There is Cherry Republic in Ann Arbor so there was no need for me to buy anything from the store but there is lots to see and plenty of interesting finds so totally worth it if you have never been to one before. Also have to commend the service and wait staff who kept the line moving, were super nice and helpful even during a busy weekend and still maintaining safe COVID protocols for all. Well done! A perfect example of how to keep things running smoothly without losing the art of treating people well. Although everyone was wearing masks, you could tell there were smiles behind them. read more

See all

This was my first time trying Cherry Republic, It was everything I hoped it would be! It was definitely way more crowded than I thought it would be but I still really enjoyed myself! We are going to check out the Traverse city location later today. I'm sure we will come back with the sour gummies,soda, & the Cherry salsa! Everything that I tried was amazing!! The jams were all very good and I'm not even much of a jam person. There is a building for wine & pop tasting and there was a very nice lady that helped all of us, she was very good and quick at her job. Tons of kids swarmed around her shouting different soda flavors and she was very quick to fill them all. I can't wait to go back! read more

See all

Cherry Republic has great cherry products. I love the chocolate covered cherries. The dried cherries are great additions to my scones. During the summer there is no better place to go for samples and to drink tasters of beer (cherry limbic, yum!) On the desk. However maybe the best part of Cherry Republic is the customer service. Any thing goes wrong, extremely nice and friendly people take care of the issue and make it right. Can't wait to go back this summer!!! read more

Just wow.. All I can say. This place is just simply Wow. Food is excellent. The cherry bacon marmalade burger is excellent and full of flavor. Get the black bean and corn salsa side.. Just flavorful and so good. Kids Mac and cheese was very good. Comes with fresh fruit. Hummus and pita was very tasty. Chicken cherry salad sandwich my wife said was very good. All around awesome stuff and we will be back. Don't miss this place for food!! read more

Starving after hiking, we came into town looking for food. Was told Arts, but that looked packed, so we ended up here. Line took 45 min to order a sandwich. Another 20 for the food to come. These young kids at register seemed a bit overwhelmed... Turkey bacon tom Sammie in cherry bread was good, but it was like a slice like one slice of turkey, no joke. And the chicken salad Sammie was good. The cherry bread was so good!!! Loved it!. We split a piece of pie, which was also good. Would have been a five star if it wasn't for the young help that was flustered - (told us to wait in that line again to get out pie that we already paid for, AFTER our sammies came out. No f way we are doing that.) and the one slice of turkey. read more

Cherry Republic - Sign is funny - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

See all

Wow, we loved this place. It is so cute, mixed with kitsch and attitude! The cherry port and cherry cider were great! Most of the wines were also tasty, but the sangria honestly tasted like soap to me (though another person in our group enjoyed it). So you start in the building on the left, which has wine AND soda tasting (for the kids). And then you go to the middle building, which has really cute well designed t-shirts (and "dictator hats" as one lady put it), cherry chocolate, cherry salsa (surprisingly good, but didn't buy any), dried cherries, cherry ... everything. It was honestly, awesome. I can't help it, I loved it. The last building on the right has the cafe, the cherry pie was packed with butter, but the other foods were really overpriced. $10 for this tiny pulled pork sandwich. Overall, I as a non-local money spending yuppie (according to Jenny Z) really enjoyed this place. Note: it is pretty hard to find without good signage, so google map it and follow the directions to a T and you should be OK. read more

The day we went it started raining while we were sitting on the patio. Fortunately we were under an umbrella but our server was amazing and kept delivering drinks/food in the rain. Everything was delicious and the staff was extremely courteous!! read more

I am a Cherry Republic fanatic. Whenever I'm up north I make it a point to go to one of the stores. So I was thrilled when I saw that this place existed! Love that its dog friendly - not on the inside but most of the seating is outdoor anyway. Love the cornhole and especially the cherry pit spitting setup! I came here twice over Labor Day weekend. Didn't have a great experience the first time but held off on reviewing because I thought it was a fluke. My husband ordered a burger and added bacon and egg. They brought it out and I asked for a side of cherry bbq, which they never brought. Realized his burger didn't have an egg on it, which we had paid for. Had to go back in and ask for it to be added. They offer a unique thing where you can get a shot of cherry juice added to your beer. We both did it and the shot is HUGE. It was so strong and overpowering that I could hardly taste the beer. On our next visit, we took the last open seat and quickly noticed the strong smell of the dumpster which lasted throughout our visit. . This time I ordered the public house salad which was a good size! When I opened the dressing container (they only gave me 1) I realized it was only one quarter full. Also we had no silverware and had asked the person who delivered the food but they never brought it. Asked for more dressing and received 2 more containers that were a quarter full. The salad was a bit disappointing because it was pretty much all lettuce and not much else. The ice cream was fantastic and my husband loved his burger. I'll give it another try. read more

Cherry Republic - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Nice ambience & easy parking. Came on a busy day so service was very slow. Had the pulled pork sandwich which seemed like poor quality for the price. read more

Stopped in for brunch while up in Glen Arbor for a wedding this past summer. I ordered a burrito with cherry salsa. That's when things got good. I started chatting with Cass, who should be mentioned by name as he deserves Yelp celebrity status. The burritos arrived, he offered to refill my coffee then brought us some homemade cookies to take home. While clearing our dishes he then brought over a slice of cherry pie that was exquisite and ice cream on the house. The experience was so good a member of my group brought friends there a few hours later. We could not stop mentioning the Cherry Republic to everyone at the wedding. Before leaving Glen Arbor I had a whole pie and cookies in tow. We had to stop back to share the excellence with others. I've never had a more pleasant and wonderful experience! This place is a MUST! read more

See all

The place is perfect. 1) delicious food. It make look overwhelming when you look at the menu and see that everything is made with cherries, but I honestly couldn't taste them. All I tasted was awesome. My boyfriend had the meatloaf sandwich (to which he described as the best he's ever had) and I had the CBLT (cherry bacon lettuce tomato) with cherry pasta salad- everything was great! Sadly- no room for deserts, but I'm sure we'll be back for that. The decor is rustic, old fashioned, and adorable. Great outdoor seating! And don't worry- there is even THE North American Official Olympic Sized Pit-Spitting Arena on the property. What more could you want?! read more

Cherry Republic - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Many many times sales staff essentially ARE a company. They can make or break an experience no matter how fantastic the product is. Sadly this experience was a big break for me. I've considered myself a "regular" of Cherry Republic for years. Sent their products as gifts multiple times and regularly stop in the Frankenmuth store anytime we are there. All benign or good experiences. Friendly staff and I bought my goods and was content. So now we get to Glen Arbor. The Mecca of the Republic. The shrine to Boom Chugga Lugga. I was over the top excited to visit. I even discussed our plan to stop with the cashier while we stopped in the Frankenmuth store ON THE WAY to Glen Arbor. Get the picture? There I was, basket in hand, piling in my lovely cherry goods, happy as a lark. Kids were picking their shirts. Husband was taste testing away in the preserves section when we came upon a cherry box that was the perfect cherry wood box for my husband's grilling spices. Attractive in design and color and had my favorite Cherry Republic brand logo on the side. It's cute and fit an actual need we had. I flipped it over, it had a price tag. Boom (chugga lugga) it was mine. We finally arrive at the checkout. It's fall color season. It's Saturday and it's started to rain. The place is packed. Did we find everything? Yes, thank you. Then comes the bomb. "Oh this box is not for sale. It's a display." Oh. But it has a price tag on it, I replied. She looks at me as if I'd just committed murder and asked if there were "things" in that box? The people next to me and behind me were waiting with baited breath for my reply. This is where my jaw locked. "Yes, there were a couple of granola bars in it and I put them in another empty box in the same place. ". She gave me a Head Mistress disapproving half-smile and said "well if it rings up I guess we can sell it but I really shouldn't because we can't get them anymore." Then she flipped the box and she announced that it was $40. Grinding my teeth now. The scanner took it. "Well it does ring up so I guess if you want it it's yours." Uh. Y. E. S. Give me my stuff lady. All I want to do is LEAVE YOUR STORE. Walking out my husband said "I don't care if that box was four hundred dollars. We were taking it. We're out of here. " And that is how fast a trip to eden turns into hell. Thank you Cherry Republic cashier for a lovely cherry box full of memories I'll look at for years to come while I contemplate recommending your goods to my friends. read more

The original Cherry Republic was a great lunch spot with a cozy interior and a menu that had lots of cherry infused meal options. We started off with a basket of seasoned fries that were similar to Steak N Shake's fries in regards to being thin and crispy with a bonus of tasty seasoning, they were devoured in minutes. My dad ordered the Parmesan crusted grilled cheese and was a fan, the cherry pepper jam was unique and tasty. I went for a winter time favorite, pulled pork macaroni and beer cheese, the cherry barbecue sauce gave it that sweet and savory combo. If you are an out of towner, Cherry Republic is a must! read more

See all

Best salsa I've ever had! I get 6 jars every time I'm in Michigan! They offer free wine, hard cider, and soda tastings too! I also enjoy the free samples of salsa and other spreads while I'm there. (The cherry sour candy is my other favorite). Such a beautiful place! read more

Cherry Republic - Wine tasting! - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

See all

Great wine! The ladies and gentlemen there were lovely. You get a complimentary glass , which is super cute! The wine tastings had a variety. The bottles weren't to expensive and I will come back next year thank you! read more

See all

Great food. Greater service. Quick, fast, and comfy setting. Highly recommend. Ish was a great waiter and showed great respect and hospitality during our visit. read more

I love this place! Everything cherry! I love the free wine tasting and soda tasting (black cherry cream soda is the way to go!). The great hall has tons of samples. I recommend the cherries cover in chocolate and the cherry BBQ sauce. Also the plain dried cherries are great too! The ice cream is awesome. I love the cherry chicken salad sandwich. Check it out! You pay for the experience.... it's expensive but fun! You can find dried cherry products cheaper near Suttons bay and on old mission. read more

Cherry Republic in ANY of it's locations are amazing, the product speaks for itself & stands above every other "cherry business" in town or in Michigan period. But above all, this flagship store in Glen Arbor is the best. I ran into the owner several years back bringing about 40 students with me & I felt bad they were taking so many samples. We talked, I told him about our venture out to the dunes & how we're taking the teens out for the day to enjoy the best place in Michigan & he created a game for us on the spot & gave us a $50 gift bag as a prize for the winner! The owner, the sales staff, cafe staff - top notch service & small town fun vibe. Through & Through, my years with family there vacationing in Glen Arbor, day trips to the dunes, my trips alone to train or study, Cherry Republic has always been the favorite spot to spend time along with the Dunes/Lake. When other locals were annoyed with students, Cherry Republic embraced us & made life long customers out of ALL OF THEM (8 year standing tradition)! Every year they rant about the CR experience & are spreading the news. Conservancy Wine, Boom Chunka (White Chocolate) Cookies, Hot Cherry Salsa, & Chocolate covered cherries are my families standards! Gotta go! read more

A very cute store with lots of samples! Ever wanted cherry hot sauce? Well there's like 6 to choose from. Want jam? Oh boy I hope you can choose just one. read more

Food was extremely mid. Had some real dry pasta with some mystery roasted vegetables. Nice seating area would be a good place to leave your children unattended. Someone threw a plate at me but they missed so it's okay ig p read more

MOLD on the Cherry Almond Butter I purchased. Sent email to customer service to receive a "meh what can you do?" response. So disappointed, won't even feed this to my dog! read more

Cherry Republic - label reads Cherry Almond Butter... sounds so good until you open jar to find mold - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

Good food, try the grilled cheese. Enjoyed wine tasting and sampling the cherry foods in the shop. This is a nice place to go with kids, and also to pick up local gifts and souvenirs. read more

The food and drinks are great, but the service was horrible. We went inside to order ice cream and drinks, because it was raining...a small order. Bruce, a server, came up and said "you know you can order at your table." We we're already all inside with half our group ordering, so we said "that's ok, we're with them." Bruce replied with "oh so you just want to create this confusion inside for us?". He then waited about one minute before kicking us outside in the rain telling us we needed to go outside to order. ITS RAINING and we had 5 little kids with us! Why can't we order inside?! read more

Food was above average. Loved the cherry soda selection, especially since they are all caffeine free. Our favorite part was going next door to the store and trying all the samples. Yum! read more

The kind staff at M22 recommended Cherry Republic for Michigan cherry products and they were right on! We wanted some Michigan cherry pie and Cherry Republic hit it out of the ball park! We got the regular double crust and a crumble topping cherry pie and it was tough to decide which one was better. The pies are gorgeous and the crust seems homemade- crispy and buttery- just as good as you would hope it to be. The cherries seem fresh, tasty, and plentiful. Tip- buy two pies for $28 instead of one for $16. They are worth every penny. We also bought the dark chocolate covered dried cherries- yummmmm! I didn't think the salsas or the barbecue sauce was anything to write home about but appreciated the free samples. A friend bought a gift pack of various cherry treats and it was attractively wrapped by the cashier. Apparently you can eat a light meal at the cafe but we didn't do that. I would like to try it someday. I also saw some cute Tshirts and other nice looking gift ideas. This is a fantastic store to buy a cherry themed treat! read more

When walking up on the three Cherry Republic Stores you almost feel like your in a Cartoon or this amazing little world/village. They have the Wine Store, Restaurant, and regular souvenir store. I am a huge fan of all the Cherry products in the store and it is a must see. Instead of a 5 rating it got a 4 rating because I found the restaurant bland and lacking quality plus expensive. The Cherry Meatloaf was nothing special when I expected to be "wowed" With that being said go to the village and check out all the great amenities. read more

See all

I visited this place several times on my recent trip to Glen Arbor. There are several reasons to visit: shopping for cherry related food items, tasting wine or "pop," or having a meal. I did all of the above. The store is chock full of everything you can think of that's cherry and MUCH MORE. I got several gifts here, and also got to sample many items. They have a ton of samples and are constantly replenishing them. There also is a window where they will make gift baskets and ship them to wherever you want. The employees here were friendly and happy. I read in the local paper that they pay their seasonal staff very well and also have a program where they donate to college funds for staff based on hours worked. Cheers to good business practices. I visited the tasting room on one occasion, and only tried the "pop" aka soda. The cherry ginger ale was to die for. It really hit the spot. My only complaint was that they sold me a bottle that I bought cold, obviously for immediate consumption, and didn't inform me that it would require a bottle opener to drink. I left and got to my car since I was carrying my toddler, ready to drink it, and couldn't. I got to enjoy much more of that soda when my family dined at the restaurant. They have it on draft and you can get one free refill. I ordered the veggie burger, which was just ok. The slaw was good and I enjoyed the dried cherries in it. My mom had the goat cheese salad and it was delicious. My only other complaint was that it was pretty dirty in there - the floors had a lot of food on them, we had to wipe our table down, etc. I probably wouldn't eat there again but I'd get a pop and some ice cream, and I'd definitely shop here again too. Overall, read more

Cherry Republic - Cherry ginger ale - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

See all

I'll admit it - when this place opened I was prepared to dislike it. What can I say? I hate "cutesy" names, I just do. So, while I admire the moxie of the folks who started this place and I like that it is locally owned, I see it as a bit of a shameless tourist trap and shudder every time I drive by it and see flocks of perfectly groomed weekenders in their "up north" togs clamoring over all the charming cherry themed items. I just feel like you need to have a stamp on your forehead that says "fudgie" on it to even walk in here, so I don't anymore. That being said, the quality of the items here is good, if pricey. If you need to send someone a gift that says "Northern Michigan" this is a good place to do it, just be prepared to fight your way through the throngs of BMW SUV driving spending machines hellbent on getting their hands on some cherry salsa. read more

As far as I'm concerned going ham on the samples at Cherry Republic is the quintessential up north experience. Even if you are not the biggest fan of cherries- there will be something here for you. Their product line covers everything. Like any other small town up north it dies down a little here in the winter. When I was there this past weekend the Great Hall was closed for renovations as well as the cafe. They had moved a lot of the products to the winery though and the staff was very accommodating. The cherry ginger root beer was great - even in 20 degree weather! It was not overwhelmingly sweet and didn't have that super syrupy artificial taste that a lot of sodas have. Just a warning- the cherry sour patches are addicting. If you have not been, it is a must for you next time you are in Glen Arbor. read more

First of all, how is this place out of both red and white wines? That aside, we bought several bottles of cider, and a bottle of their other wine. We found the winery staff to be slightly irritating. They were obviously paying close attention to the older patrons-- many of whom were not purchasing anything. And, we, the younger crowd, were virtually ignored, while buying four bottles of their product. A bit of retraining of the winery staff is in order. Don't assume that, because we are younger, we are just in for free drink and not worth your time. read more

I'm so glad we stopped here. Not only is this the headquarters of all things cherry (salsa, bbq sauce, peanut butter), but they also have a nice little winery and a bakery/cafe. We stopped by their tasting room and tried some of the wines (free tastings!). Although these wines are a little fruity for my liking (they all contain some amount of cherry juice), I still walked away with a few bottles-- I highly recommend their sangria! And the lunch was fantastic-- we tried the bbq pork sandwich (with cherry bbq sauce) and a chicken salad sandwich (with dried cherries). Both were delicious-- the bbq had the right amount of spice to balance the sweetness of the cherries. My only regret is not saving room for some cherry pie. read more

I think that this place is just not for me. I like cherries, but I'm no super fan. And I don't really like sweet things in general. So cherry everything doesn't really do it for me. I will say that the complimentary tasting was very nice, and the woman pouring the samples was a real pleasure. Subtly sassy and very friendly. The store seemed to be well-stocked with all of your cherry needs. Samples are scattered throughout, which is nice. However, there were more than a handful of greedy grabbers snatching up more than their fair share. It's not a buffet, people!! I personally wouldn't be interested in coming again. But I think the general consensus is that this place is pretty legit. It's definitely worth checking out at least once. read more

The best cherry specialty store in this corner of northern Michigan, aka the cherry capitol. The chocolate covered cherries here are magnificent. The cherry salsa is surprisingly good, and has become a favorite of mine over the years. The cherry trail mix, dried cherries, and cherry chocolate chip cookies are all completely addictive. The cherry pie is quite good, although outstanding cherry pie is readily found at roadside shops throughout the region. A wide variety of gift boxes allow you to ship a taste of the cherry capitol to your favorite Michigan ex-pat. read more

Cherry Republic - Specialty Food Near Me - Glen Arbor, Michigan

See all

We had a wonderful family meal at Cherry Republic this week while vacationing in Glen Arbor. Beautiful evening, so we ate out back at one of the picnic tables. Home brewed beers, cherry wines started the meal and were great. This is a a "pub ordering" spot. You head indoors, order your food, and voila, a server delivers it to your outdoor table! Really quick and piping hot. We tried a couple of the pulled pork sandwiches, chicken lettuce wraps, a whitefish sandwich and the bratwurst special - two grilled brats with chips for $10 which I shared with my daughter, Food was really good and would recommend this stop to Glen Arbor visitors. PS. When you order and pay at the counter there's a gratuity option on the screen. I left zero, because all the cashier did was take my order. Later after seeing all the tableside service we received I realized I had made a mistake, so I gave one of the young guys $20 for all his effort. The look on his face was priceless. Don't know who gets the tips if you add one when you order, but if the young folk working your table are as considerate as we experienced, I suggest you slip him or her a little cash. They deserve it! read more

Normally I'm not a fan of walking up to order at counters, however the folks are so friendly here, that you want to talk every single 1 of them. Gluten-free menu items are clearly marked on the menu, and daily specials include fun things like pulled pork tacos. Park here and walk all around town for fun at the art studios, clothes shopping and tourist spots. I recommend the warm goat cheese salad, with cherry honey mustard dressing, loaded with healthy nuts. read more

See all

we LOVE their catalog & cherries are so good for you GREAT Gift ideas for XMas & they arranged personal mailing preferences for us read more

I like the Cherry Republic food offerings a lot but this campus was a disappointment. There was only 1 person working in the wine tasting area and she seemed really frazzled as one would expect with so many people visiting. The main building used to have samples out for all the products but I was disappointed to find that many items weren't available to sample including the fudge. The jellies/jams were also all empty jars so there wasn't much among them to try either. No one greeted me when I entered the store or offered to help me find anything. We didn't bother stopping by the cafe having been so disappinted thus far. Overall, I like their products but the visit to this location was not good. My experience last year at the Traverse City location was much better. read more