Old Fashioned Trail on Mackinac Island

 Old Fashions are a popular drink in the upper Midwest and you can find this popular drink in a number of local bars on Mackinac Island.  The great thing is that because you will not be driving a vehicle on the Island and many of the bars are close to the lodging, you can safely try a couple of these local spots and make it back to your hotel.

An Old Fashioned is a muddled mixture of whiskey, sugar, water, and bitters.  It is a classic and aptly named as it has a long and rich history. In Michigan, we found that most were muddled with an orange slice and a cherry, which makes it classic Michigan.

1. Seabiscuit Cafe

Our favorite Old Fashion was from a restaurant we stopped in for dinner called Seabiscuit Cafe.  The bartenders here were excellent and really made a great Old Fashion, along with other drinks. At Seabiscuit they let you build your own Old Fashion so you decide on your sweetener and your choice of Burbon.  They had Makers Mark, Bulleit Rye, Woodford Reserve and Woodford Reserve Double Oaked to choose from. We went with the Woodford Reserve and it was our best Old Fashioned on the island.   We also enjoyed eating dinner here.

2. Carriage House Restaurant - Hotel Iroquois

We learned about a dock at the Iroquois where you can get drinks and food served out on the water.  We arrived about an hour before sunset to find only one other couple on the dock.  The Old Fashions here are made with Detroit City Rye and were a little bitter so we got a little extra simple syrup and adjusted it on the fly.  

The deck here is amazing, you can watch the ferries come in and out of the harbor and enjoy the skyline of the island.  We highly recommend stopping here for sure. It became our final stop on our Old Fashioned tour because the location was so relaxing we each ordered two drinks.

To accompany our drinks we ordered a trio of smoked fish.  They serve a plate with smoked salmon, smoked lake trout, and smoked white fish.  The smoke on each of the fish was amazing, but we determined that the lake trout was our favorite of the three. If you want to try different types of smoked fish right out of the Great Lakes this is an awesome choice to enjoy with your drinks.  The fish was served with toasted bread, capers, diced red onion, egg whites, and egg yokes.

The path leading to the entrance of the Carriage House Restaurant at the Hotel Iroquois also deserves a special mission.  The garden is colorful and so well taken care of, it is a feast for the eyes.

3. Pink Pony

The Pink Pony, located inside the Chippewa Hotel is a popular and well-known location on Mackinac Island.  It is known for having an eclectic menu of funky cocktails and for having great outdoor seating with views of the bay.  We had our drinks right at the bar as we were not ready to eat dinner yet.  The bar is Pink and the barback has a mural of Pink Ponies behind it.

The Old Fashion here was a classic and had great flavors. There were no special tricks, just a quality drink at a funky bar.

4. Horns Gaslight Bar and Grill

When we asked for an Old Fashioned at Horns Gaslight Bar and Grill we learned that the option available was a Tequila Old Fashioned. They use Anejo tequila, agave nectar, Mexican mole bitters, and the ever-present muddles orange peel, and cherry.  While I like aged tequila, this just was just too much of a deviation for me on the Old Fashioned to make it work.  I think that they are probably very good with their margaritas, and that is where the tequila really belongs.