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    Dinghy's Restaurant & Bar

    3.9 (188 reviews)
    ModerateAmerican, Barbeque, Bars
    Closed Closed

    Dinghy's Restaurant & Bar Photos

    DINGHY'S RESTAURANT & BAR ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Happy hour specials

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    Breading after fish filet was picked out

    American fare. We ordered the famous onion bloom app- a lot of breading on the onion and not enough sauce for the size of the onion. We ordered burger with bbq and bacon- was served med-rare as ordered- prob best item at the table Also ordered 2 fish 'n chips- out of cod; should have stopped there, but got lake perch Instead. SO MUCH breading and small - almost non existent filets. Dry and overcooked, as well as just too much crunchy breading. I'm used to airy fluffy light crispy breading and this was dense- like what would be used for a large price of chicken. Overpowered the delicate (small) filets. Bomba fries were good and hot; would get again. Coleslaw and tartar sauce was super yummy. Service was lacking; very odd- not personable or attentive. Not the best or worst I've ever had.

    Nauti by Nature
    Marie W.

    Tucked in the adorable beach town of Frankfort this hole in the wall is dark, loud, and cozy all at once. The service was okay, not the best we've had, but it could have been a personality issue. The house salad with steak added on was crisp and refreshing, but TINY. Smaller than any house salad I've had in a long time. The clam chowder was worth the drive, however. My daughter ordered a kids meal and said it was "super good." Definitely worth a try when you're in town!

    A Horny Monk
    Mike H.

    Dinghy's is an old school, no frills kind of place that looks like it's been around before the term Bar and Grill was even a thing but that's exactly what it is. Lot's of fishing decor throughout the place with record setting fish taxidermy and pictures. There was also the coolest Budweiser lamp I have ever seen. It had a Clydesdale with stagecoach kind of diorama inside of a bubble. I want it in my man cave! Any way I got a fajita salad which was fine. Just the usual fajita ingredients on top of lettuce. The waitress forgot the orange vinaigrette that I asked for and it took me a few minutes to track someone down to get some. I washed this all down with a Horny Monk-a double Belgian from Petoskey Brewing that was great. Overall the place is fine. Service a little slow, food was pretty good and they have a decent beer selection.

    Great food Great service - thx Max!

    Fantastic service from our bartender/server Max! Max gave us great recommendations, served me a fabulous negroni and he had a welcoming vibe not only to us but to every customer he greeted that came in the restaurant. Our food was delicious, plus the restaurant has house made dressings, coleslaw, amazing fish n chips, and smokes its own meats. So many scratch made options, it's difficult to choose from the menu. Thanks Max for making our experience fun and welcoming. You're the best!!!

    Shay R.

    If Dinghy's Restaurant & Bar does one thing they will get you tipsy. I visited Dinghy's with my family during our family vacation. During my visit it was really busy but we were able to get seated rather quickly. Our waiter was fairly new, I believe it was his third day, but he was very friendly and got our food/drinks quickly. Anytime I visit a place that has BBQ is I like to try it out so I shared the BBQ Platter with my husband. The platter included a half-rack ribs, half-chicken, and pulled pork. The entree came with fries, we choose the bomba fries, and a side of mac-n-cheese. I was surprised but the mac-n-cheese was tasty. I didn't have high expectation for it but it was just enough cheese. I liked the half-rack ribs the most from the platter. The half-chicken was dry but most places don't make good grilled chicken. The pork was also dry and not that tasty. I enjoyed the fries that had the cajun spices on them but the cajun seasoning wasn't evenly distributed on the fries. Only the ones on the top layer had the seasoning. This could've been easily solved by mixing the fries together to evenly distribute the seasoning. Dinghy's does make a strong drink. I visited twice during my visit to Frankfort and one visit was just for the drinks. The bartender has a heavy pour but the drinks were still tasty enough that the alcohol didn't overpower the drink too much.

    The sampler for big appetites
    Loretta S.

    Great casual place in Franfort to chill after biking/hiking. Great selection of local craft beers to go along with delicious ribs and pulled pork. Had the combo plate, which we split and was enough gor hubby and me. Service was great..friendly and relaxed.

    Veggie skewer and fries
    Nishi S.

    Not for vegans, don't recommend. They have no option for vegans like literally NOTHING....I ended up having just fries which was absolutely unhealthy. I'm never coming here again.

    Chris H.

    The atmosphere here is nautical themed. It doesn't smack you in the face with it, just enough to make an enjoyable feel to the place. There's not a ton of seats, just enough to be cosy. I went a little crazy ordering, thinking I'd have leftovers. I ordered the Bacon Wrapped Sausage ($9). Then a half order of Honey Chipotle Wings ($8). Finally a half order of Ribs ($20). I started with the wings. They were excellent. Very tender and sweet and spicy. Not burning spicy, just smack you spicy. They were juicy and came right off the bone! The bacon wrapped sausage is a spicy andouille. Sadly it's just six small bites. That being said it is very good. Lol after the wings the slice in andouille was mild! The Ribs were spectacular. Fall off the bone tender and between the spices and bbq sauce on it it has amazing taste profile! It also came with coleslaw and bomba fries. The coleslaw was amazing, soooo good! The fries were good, but nothing special. I had no left overs. The service was excellent. Very friendly. They check on you and treat you like a normal. Overall an easy 6 star review. I mean 5, lol. Would I return? I don't know when, but heck yes I'll be back!

    Bar sign
    Mike E.

    A great spot after a long bot ride in 4-6 ft waves ... awesome drinks attentive staff and great bar food . Adult Mac and cheese , tremendous burgers and fries and ribs wet or dry rub . The ribs were tender Nd the rub excellent . The burgers larger and juicy and adult Mac and cheese w bacon .. yum Fridays they have perch dinners .. A must stop in Frankfort

    Happy Hour all day on Saturday
    Michael R.

    I had no idea where to eat in this quaint little town, thanks to fellow yelpers I chose here. I was not disappointed in the least. Awesome food, cold cold beer, friendly service. Anytime I am up north in this area this is where I'll be coming to to eat. Highly recommend.

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    4 years ago

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    1 year ago

    Local downtown bar/restaurant. Service was adequate, food was tasty but expensive for what it was.

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    Thanks very much for taking the time to comment.

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    2 years ago

    We had burgers and they were cooked to our specifications, which is hard to find these days. Good atmosphere and friendly staff.

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Very good food and service. Wasn't a wait till get a table. Staff was polite and friendly.

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    2 years ago

    Under new owners.... 1/3 the size on portions and not as good. 20 year locals too not coming back.

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    Sparks BBQ - Sparks BBQ -- pretty good (and I'm hard to please)

    Sparks BBQ

    3.8(297 reviews)
    31.7 mi
    $$

    How does this place get so many stars and good reviews. Whoever been liking this had no ideas what…read morereal BBQ is or they got lucky. This is such a tourist trap. 1. It is overpriced. $25 for 2 meat plate you get little piece of chicken and chop meat. Sides are good but the meat are tiny. 2. It is gross. you know something is wrong when your bbq is drown in sauce. Look at the picture. I never seen a bbq restaurant drown their meat in sauce. It is like they just grilled it or microwave the meat and just dump sauce on them and call it bbq. Also it was cold. Might as well eat at Applebee's if they are serving this. I was going to give 0 star but server was patient and nice. Food was just terrible. Everybody that give good reviews have nachos or macaroni. That's easy to make, but the items that involve technical skills and times, they have no idea how to make barbeque period

    Stopped at Sparks while visiting Traverse City because my husband and I were craving BBQ --…read moreparticularly BBQ nachos. Unfortunately, Sparks was busier than expected so it took way long to get our food - even though we just ordered the nachos and a side of mac. Our waiter apologized many times due to being short staffed for the holiday weekend, but we were getting soo hangry we devoured our food in 10 minutes by the time we got it. The nachos were pretty good - I expected there to be a lot more meat and toppings for the price - and I wish they had put all of the BBQ sauce on it! We asked for all of their BBQ sauce on the side so we could try all of it. The mac & cheese was also pretty good! I probably would opt for a sandwich if I came back though since I do think the nachos were a bit lackluster.

    Photos
    Sparks BBQ
    Sparks BBQ - BBQ Sundae with Pulled Pork, Coleslaw, Baked Beans, Hot BBQ Sauce and topped with homemade beer jerky

    BBQ Sundae with Pulled Pork, Coleslaw, Baked Beans, Hot BBQ Sauce and topped with homemade beer jerky

    Sparks BBQ

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    Dinghy's Restaurant & Bar - tradamerican - Updated August 2026

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