Welcome to Dinner at the Glenwood

May 24, 2015

Donna Ervin and Chris Short were co-workers at The Brookside Inn in Beulah more than two decades ago when they kicked around the idea of opening their own fine dining establishment.

"Everyone said we were crazy," recalled Short, a hands-on guy who was cooking at the Brookside while Ervin bussed tables and served meals.

In 1994, after looking at several locations along M-22 from Manistee to Empire, they bought an aged building on the east shore of Portage Lake in Onekama and The Glenwood was reborn.

The Scene

A seasonal restaurant, open May through October, its annual opening is considered a sign of spring to folks around Onekama and Manistee.

"We have customers who have been coming here for 20 years," said Ervin. "Kids who were toddlers when they came here are now planning their wedding rehearsal dinners with us."

This customer loyalty has been a hallmark for The Glenwood and it’s kept the restaurant growing.

"Every year we get busier and better," noted Ervin, who handles front of house duties while Short oversees the kitchen operation.

"Last year was our best year ever and the year before that was our best before that. Chris and I are here all the time and it works for us. We pride ourselves on our service."

"Distinctive dining, prepared to your liking," is the motto of this charming restaurant, open only for dinners, beginning at 5pm.

"We bought the building on Jan. 2, 1994 and opened on Aug. 4," recalled Ervin. "And we were busy. People had been waiting for this place to re-open."

Over the building’s hundred-year history, it has been a summer lodge, a hotel and a restaurant. Historic photos show the exterior hasn’t changed much over the years.

"One of our customers, now in her 90s, worked here as a busser when she was 14," said Ervin. "Preserving history is important to us and we’ve tried to keep the building as it was back in the early days. The historic charm of the restaurant, along with the great food and service, really make The Glenwood special."

Short and Ervin remodeled the aged interior, opening up the dining area and adding a cozy private room that seats six. The spacious front porch overlooks Portage Lake and is always sought by customers wanting to see the sunset over the water.

The Menu

Diners can choose from an array of appetizers, including classics like crab cakes, mussels and baked artichoke spinach dip. Popular beef choices include grilled teriyaki filet mignon, porterhouse served with sautéed mushrooms, and the blue cheese filet mignon, a grilled 6-ounce tenderloin in a blue cheese cream sauce and topped with crumbled blue cheese.

The Glenwood’s seafood selection features parmesan-topped whitefish (from Carlson’s of Leland), a tall tower of battered and deep-fried perch filets, and grilled salmon topped with cucumber sauce. Everything tuna begins with a filet of yellow fin encrusted in light and dark sesame seeds, poppy seeds, garlic, onion and salt. It’s grilled and topped with a pesto aioli.

The most popular item on the menu is the almond battered shrimp. It begins with jumbo shrimp, fried to a golden hue, then blanketed in almond shavings. It’s served with a tasty cherry mustard sauce, which is available for takeout.

Seafood lovers enjoy special treats when The Glenwood gets its twice-a-week shipment of fresh fish flown in overnight from Hawaii. The restaurant also offers a "Hook and Cook" program, where guests can bring their freshlycaught, fully-cleaned filets from a nearby lake and the kitchen staff will prepare and serve them with salad, vegetable and bread.

Classic pasta dishes offered are chicken pesto, ravioli, chicken carbonara, shrimp scampi, and marinara over linguini. Mealsized salads include one topped with blackened shrimp, a grilled chicken Caesar and a Cajun tuna Caesar.

The Glenwood’s famously impressive dessert tray features more than a dozen rotating choices. A few of the tempting treats offered are a frozen peanut butter pie, triple berry pie, chocolate cappuccino bomb, key lime coconut angel food cake, caramel custard with pecans, homemade Irish cream or chocolate cheesecake with Frangelico cream.

"All our desserts are made right in the kitchen," said Ervin. "Life is uncertain, don’t miss dessert."

The Skinny

Steak dinners start at $19, seafood meals at $22, pasta dinners at $14. Meal-sized salads begin at $8. The Glenwood opens for dinner at 5pm, seven days a week, from May 1 through October. Ervin and Short also offer many of their food items at The Glenwood Market, 417 River Street in downtown Manistee.

The Glenwood is located at 4604 Main Street in Onekama. For more information, call (231) 889-3734 or visit glenwoodrestaurant.com.