Our new favorite spot! Atmosphere on the deck overlooking Black Lake is gorgeous. Service was the best we've had at any restaurant UpNorth! Food was delicious and came out quickly. We took four small children along with 8 adults for dinner- no easy feat for any place to accommodate- but wow. Thank you to our amazing waitress who thought of everything!! There's even a small grassy area with lawn games where the children could play. We will be back! read more

The Bluffs on Black Lake - Back deck overlooking Black Lake - American Near Me - Cheboygan, Michigan

Dont waste your time. Even with many empty tables we(2 people) were told there was a 45 min wait and could sit at the bar. Nobody was waiting to be seated the kitchen was just behind and they couldn't seat people at all the EMPTY tables. read more

We had the greek/Mediterranean pizza! It was awesome! The best pizza ever, it helps to have the best waitress ever, her name was Jennifer. Can't wait to go back there! Or I almost forgot the wings were shook good! Yum! read more

Fish fry Friday! Amazing!! Service was so personal! Loved the bartender Jodi!! She was ready to please!! The fish was excellent cooked perfect! We were met by the owner Lisa and felt so welcomed!! read more

The Bluffs needs to update the yelp information. Chef Craig sold the place some time ago. Since then it has decended into standard bar fare and not the good dishes that Chef Craig maintained on the menu. However, they kept Chef Craig's prices but now serve lower quality and less tasty food for the same money. I've gone in about three times since he sold it hoping the food and the menu would improve and it has not. They also had a gal who sang on the weekends, she was wonderful. They got rid of her too. read more

I have lived in the Midwest, West coast and the East coast and the chicken wrap at this place is the best I've ever had! I believe it was called the chicken bacon ranch wrap on the menu. The Moscow mules were amazing and came in the biggest copper mugs I've ever seen. The wait staff was so friendly and we got to see an amazing sunset from our table! Highly recommend! read more

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When pulling into this place, I wasn't sure what to expect. The menu offers many choices, as well as nightly specials. The staff was very friendly, and our server was GREAT!! We had a party of 5, and she handled everyone's questions without batting an eye. The fish and shrimp meals were a tad overcooked, but the batter they were in were delicious! My chicken parm was absolutely wonderful. The noodles and marinara were so good. We took an order of pork rinds home, and they were popping hot in the box when we got them , and so delicious the next day!! The atmosphere was great, it has a cabin feel, offers outdoor seating, and overlooks the lake. The downside, that I have to mention, is that the water, and the softdrinks have a bad taste. Other than that, it was a GREAT experience!! read more

100% hole in the wall but really good food and service. We had a large group -10 of us with 3 kids. We sat outside on a beautiful porch with trees and a view of the lake. We had the pretzels and spinach dip for an appetizer. We enjoyed our drinks while our kids played outdoor games in a safe enclosed area. I had a burger and my husband had the local fish. Highly recommend the Bluffs! Super low key and attentive service! read more

The team here did a great job with the staff they had. Food was good and the beer was cold.

Fabulous food!!! Greatest kitchen, ever!! Wait staff, along with Lisa and Kyle are awesome!!! Not to mention the amazing view of Black Lakea! Don't miss this hidden , laid back gem!! read more

Kinda quiet for a Friday, but the weather was crummy so I won't hold it against the place. Cool atmosphere, decent food (great crispy onion rings and bruschetta bread was tasty), nice deck overlooking Black Lake. read more

The Bluffs on Black Lake - beer taps - American Near Me - Cheboygan, Michigan

Stopped here on a snowmobile trip. Easy access from the trail even has gas if you need to fill up. Place was crowded but we didn't have to wait too long. Ordered the chili which was excellent and the onion rings were awesome. Staff seemed a bit overwhelmed but other than that a good experience. read more

Dropped by here on one of our snowmobiling jaunts over the weekend and had a good time. There were 8 of us in total, so it was a pretty big group. Almost all of us ordered burgers, which I hear were pretty good. I tried the BBQ tacos (apparently they are known for their BBQ). The tacos were definitely basic - flour tortillas with shredded BBQ stuffed into them. I thought that the BBQ was overly sauced and kind of sweet - found it improved by adding a bit of salt and mustard to offset the sweet flavor. Service was a bit slow, but you coudn't expect anything less than that because there was one poor lady working the counter at the bar, taking orders, and busing tables - and there was only one person working the kitchen. Not to mention, the place was packed! As a subnote: don't drink the water. Smells awful. Can't imagine the ice cubes are much better. If I were coming here again, I would certainly eat here, because it's convenient when you're snowmobiling or ATV'ing around, but I wouldn't seek this location out otherwise. read more

Came for dinner with six, everyone had great food, and fabulous service. Thanks, Lisa!

This is a must stop for excellent food and. Killer view overlooking black lake. They have a great assortment of draft beer, our appetizer was bruschetta with fresh tomato/garlic and Parmesan cheese and roasted half potatoe skins with bbq pork/sau e and cheese. And 4-6 is happy hour read more

Has so much potential, good food, good atmosphere and great staff, but way under managed and food took forever, very tasty and large portions....we have two little ones so an hour n a half wait is a bit much! But our waitress (stressed out) was sweet as peaches and still got a nice tip, not her fault owner doesn't know how to run a business!!! Will come again but needs more staff and better service a must in order to make it I think? read more

BEST chili ever! Great food and atmosphere you can't beat. We rode the trails summer/winter and make The Bluffs a destination every time! SOOOOO happy to see them open back up after this winter read more

Bluffs bar has recently acquired new owners who have revamped the restaurant and created a new menu. For the location the food is good. They do put a lot into presentation. They have a pool table and TV's along with a bar area. The price you pay for food I would say is a hair above average. The location is within a camping area right around one of the biggest and best off road trails in MI. read more

Founders on tap. Lots of people tonight. They sell gas. The ribs were excellent! Smoked. Really good. Food was slow getting out. Our waitress was really nice. They closed at 9 which isn't unusual for around here. read more

The Bluffs on Black Lake - The bar... - American Near Me - Cheboygan, Michigan

This place has new owners I guess and what a great place! The food was amazing. We started pig skins as an appetizer. They were fabulous! The pork on them was delicious!! My wife had the potato burger and I had the BBQ Sammy with beef brisket. Both were amazing!! The burger was one of the best I've had up here. And the brisket was amazing. Had a great smokey flavor but not overpowering. And the BBQ sauce has to be homemade and was perfect. The inside is very clean and very nice. In the summer, there is a front deck that overlooks Black Lake with a SPECTACULAR view. When you drive there for the first time you'll think "we're in the middle of nowhere?" but I assure you this place is a hidden gem. Service was great and food arrived fast. This is up there with our list of favorite restaurants!! read more

An update to my previous review...I have now changed my rating to a 5 star. We boated over twice the week of July 4th and both times the service was notably much better--slow service was why my original rating was a 4. The food, as always was delicious. My husband loved his lightly sautéed perch tacos and he's a perch snob. I had the grilled chicken sandwich with lots of fresh avocado slices, aioli and homemade potato chips that are addicting, and my son loved his beef brisket. This is not your average fried bar food. Most know The Bluffs for its smoked barbecue choices; which are delicious, but please note, the menu is diverse and offers a thoughtfully planned and freshly prepared menu that will appeal to everyone. Even my daughter, who is a vegetarian likes it. Happy I could give it 5 stars! read more

Always great food and great service. We eat here frequently and have tried just about everything. The wings are smoked then lightly fried. They come to the table crispy and smoked. Pizza is very good, and just about every appetizer. I would have to say our family of three agrees that the Bluffs has the best burgers we have ever had. read more

The service was horrible today. 7-6-19. Got there at 5:30, did not get our food until 7:30. Waiter keep ignoring us. The new owners are a joke. Three things we asked for on the menu they ran out of. Will not go back. Other people walked out because it was taking so long. Jk read more

Terrific views, great patio in the summer, friendly staff and good for large groups. Nice beer and wine selection with interesting APPS such as Sweet Chili Sriracha Shrimp and Goat Cheese Brushetta !!!! read more

We visited the Bluffs last night for the first time. Our dinner was better than the average you would expect from a local bar but not quite four stars. The Bar has been nicely redone in side. It is bright and open. We arrived at the end of happy hour and had a cold beer and appetizers which were very good at reduced prices. Burgers and a pulled pork sandwich were ordered. Service was better than most places as were the burgers. Chips were served as the standard side but they were stale. We told are waitress about the chips but nothing was done to correct the problem. Soggy chips will not deter me from returning for another dinner. read more

This was the worst experience I've ever had. It was Sunday on a holiday weekend (memorial day weekend) and it was pretty busy. It's a holiday, it comes every year and there are always tons of campers. We went in to eat dinner around 7 (a group of 8) and we could tell it was very busy. The waitress was nice at first however when she came to order and we said we needed 5 more minutes, she gave us 20 (it was very busy but that was ridiculous). Then we placed our order and continued to drink. About an hour in we still didn't have any food but everyone around us did including people who came after us. Then she said they ran out of Budweiser which my friend was drinking and she didn't ask what kind of beer he wanted instead she just walked away and left him with nothing. Then the kitchen closed because it was too busy . Then they ran out of French fries. When we finally got our food (an hour and forty minutes later - no joke) my friend had a half portion of French fries because they ran out, my other friend had half fries half chips, and my boyfriend had chips when he ordered fries. At this point we were expecting a manager to apologize, a discount to be offered, something. But, when we got our bills everything was on it including the fries half of us didn't get.......when we asked for a manager she said "so you had to wait a little longer for food..." (seriously?) i tried i explain all of the things that happened but she just gave us 10% off and called it good. That's about $2 on most of our bills. Normally I'd be understanding but I've worked in far busier places with two cooks on holidays, the place was under staffed, had waitresses that couldn't handle it, and did not have nearly enough food. That's just bad management, you plan for a holiday and you check on your tables and apologize for the wait. We shouldn't even have had to ask for a manager, she should have came over and offered some sort of resolution when we were waiting over an hour for food. Usually it's never the waitresses fault, but ours was way to busy for what she could handle and terrible at trying to make our experience better (IE apologizing for the wait, checking on us more, not buying us a round of beer and expecting it to make up for everything. It was a nice gesture but we just wanted better service). I don't understand how they even open on holidays if this is a normal occurrence . We will not be back on a holiday. read more

Great spot for drinks on the deck! Food is subpar since the new owner took over in April and most of the staff left. I believe they are buying the "smoked items" on the menu now since Craig left. Half done projects abound, looks unkept. Too bad as this was a great place. read more

I would have given this place one star but the view over Black Lake and the perch warranted another star. However, the service was terrible and our party was not the only group that thought that way. The choice of menu items were adequate as was the beer selection. That said, when we walked in we were told to sit anywhere, so we selected a table in the main dinning area. After waiting over twenty minutes I flagged down a waitress and she took our order. Ten minutes later she brought my drink, but not my wife's. Another twenty minutes passed and our dinner arrived. As it was served I asked for tarter sauce and reminded the waitress that my wife's drink order hadn't been served. Another five minutes and our order was complete. This place has all the potential of being a four star establishment, but management has to improve the service or it will remain just another dive in the woods of northern Michigan. read more

Hi All. Had a wonderful Burger,The fries were limp and the dinner salad was ok. Service was marginal, Only one person taking care of the dinning room.Asked for desert and were told it would be awhile because she is a newbie and very busy.Went to the dairy queen in on away instead........ Will likely go to the 211 next time. read more

Firstly, I'd like to say, if we could give zero stars for our experience here, we would. This review refers to a visit to this restaurant in July 2014. Let's start with the drinks (water and soda). They taste like they've been scooped right from a dirty toilet bowl. When we complained we were simply told "it's well water, that's what it tastes like". This is NOT what well water tastes like, this is what human waste tastes like. We were also extremely polite the whole time despite these disgusting drinks (and us being very thirsty) and the waitress was beyond rude to us in return. She interrupted our requests for new drinks and told us she was busy in a very rude manner. Lastly, our food took over an hour to get to us. Was it tasty? Yes. Was it worth the wait and the poor service? No. Avoid this place like the plague, not worth the money or the taste of sick in your mouth! read more

Another disappointing experience. We used to come out here once in a while and enjoyed it very much. Then a couple of years ago my friend and his family were up visiting from Tecumseh. I recommended The Bluff's for dinner one evening. The restaurant was busy and extremely understaffed for a weekend. We waited about 20 minutes after sitting down just to get a beverage order in, and ten more minutes before we saw the drinks. We didn't see the waitress again for about another 15 minutes and by then the drinks were empty. We placed our food order and the waitress said she would be right back with beverage refills. That never happened. About 30 minutes later, the food came but still no beverages. My friend had ordered a chicken burrito (he doesn't eat beef), but a beef burrito was delivered. When he brought it to the waitress' attention, she told him that, no he had ordered a beef burrito. She actually argued this point with him. She finally brought him a chicken burrito, but by the time he got it, everyone else was done with their dinner. It took a while to get our bill after we requested it, but finally got it. We paid it, got a box for his dinner and got the heck out of there. Yesterday, a different friend was up from Warren this time. We wanted to go out for dinner. I thought we might try The Bluff's once more. This time, I called the restaurant mid-afternoon as I did not want a repeat of our last experience. I told the lady we were looking at coming in at 6:30 - 7:00 p.m. and asked if she thought there would be a wait. She said no that they had been slow lately. When we got there and the place was full. There were a few empty tables, but they had not been bussed. There were only a couple of waitresses and they were running around frantically trying to keep up. We found one of the empty tables, took the empty bottles/glasses up to the bar and rolled up the used butcher paper table cover. Finally after sitting there for an extended period a waitress finally arrived and took our beverage order. Five or eight minutes later the beverages arrived. She asked if we wanted to place an appetizer order. Seeing where this evening was heading, and while the waitress was here, in front of us, now, we took advantage of our good fortune and skipped the appetizer and placed our dinner order at that time. Quite some while later the waitress brought my wife her dinner salad that was part of her meal. It was a very lame salad. A little iceberg lettuce (about one inch deep) on a small platter, one slice of a mushroom, one slice of Bermuda onion, one piece of tomato and no croutons (I don't think I've ever seen a dinner salad at a restaurant without croutons). Anyway, no flatware was delivered to eat it with. A co-worker of my wife was sitting with her party at the next table. They were in the same situation, salads and no flatware. Our beverages were empty and no refills on the horizon. In the meanwhile, we saw two other groups come in and bus their own tables. Might be a new concept, have customers bus their own table to save on staff wages. When the meal finally arrived I saw that I received the wrong order. The waitress saw that something was wrong and I told her that I had ordered the BBQ Sammy with the smoked sausage and this was pulled pork. She offered to get the correct order and I said that would be fine. She expedited the order, but it still took long enough to receive it that my wife had finished her meal and my friend was close to being done. Almost an identical situation when my other friend was up a couple of years ago. From the time we walked in until we finally were able to get out of there: 1 hour 55 minutes. I felt bad for the couple of waitresses. They were REALLY trying hard to keep everyone happy. They were constantly running from table to table but were way understaffed for as busy as it was. I kept expecting our waitress to break down in tears and run out the front door. They were spread way too thin. Poor management! Pros: The food is really good (especially when you get what you ordered) Cons: Service. Seems they'll sacrifice customer service for profits. Also, very noisy when it's that busy. It's hard to hold a conversation with someone sitting next to you. If you don't mind sitting around for 2 +/- hours in a noisy atmosphere for dinner, this is for you. If you are geared more towards a good dinner in the 30 to 60 minutes time frame, this is not your place. read more

the fish dinners were great here once but new owners and they have gone way down hill the six piece perch dinner was a meal that you could have leftovers from now it doesn't even fill a person up and the fries you get with it are soggy and rubbery I won't be returning and we used to go several times a month read more

The service was amazing. The atmosphere was too. The spinach artichoke dip was wonderful. My husband and I tried the wet burrito; it was good. The mole was a little too sweet for my liking, but there was more than enough food. We will go back; my husband will probably have the burrito again, and I will try something else. Would highly recommend. read more

I am happy to say that the issues I have read about the Bluffs have been resolved! The owners and the staff have worked hard to achieve this. The water is now like real well water and the new staff is courteous and kind. The food is wonderful and you defiantly get what you pay for. We had their Fish Fry and it was awesome. The fish tacos also were extremely good. Thurs night steak special is unbelievable as well. I would not pass this place up! Also the bathrooms for the campground have been upgraded and are very clean. I hear they are going to start having outside bands on Friday nights too. Great location and close to trails. Love this place!! read more

We had dinner at the Bluffs yesterday and the food was excellent service was fantastic and the view was beautiful. I had the combination platter the ribs, beef brisket and sausage, and pulled pork was perfect nice mild smokey taste fall off the bones ribs all were nice and tender. For appetizers we had the Black Lake bar cheese with pita bread and sriracha shrimp. My wife had the cheese and macaroni which was way more than we can eat (we're having it for lunch today) and that was excellent. Don't miss the opportunity to go there if your near Black Lake. read more

This was the absolutely worst place I have ever eaten at. The well water ice cubes to the dry burger and the floor bouncing every time the waitress walks by. Very disappointing. Location was nice but certainly did not make food taste better. read more