Old Mission General Store

This is an unusual place. If you give yourself over to the experience you will enjoy it every bit as much as we did. Looking for a place to eat, and not realizing how small Old Mission is, we thought we would get something to tide ourselves over. But after an excellent smoked whitefish sandwich on well baked french bread we were set. Ate outside and enjoyed the superb scenery. Back inside, the 5 cent (that's right a nickel) size coffee that was an option hit the spot, alongside with one of our kids' choices of a ten cent root beer from a barrel, and a black cherry phosphate (old time-y style.) Staff was witty and eccentric in just the right doses. The place is chock a block with unusual items--sundries, things you may need (shampoo, soap) things you may not (slingshots, foghorns) and I keep thinking about getting back there. It felt like a dream it was so off beat, but the real good food made sure it was here and now. Next time I will definitely get one of the terrific looking eclairs.

Our expectations were quite low when we decided to drop in here for some lunch. But bit were we surprised by the quality and taste of these made to order sandwiches. They were very tasty & very large sized, we ended up only eating half & saved the rest for a picnic lunch the next day. It did take awhile to get our 5 sandwiches made, but we were in no hurry and found a nice table out front to wait for our food. When it arrived, it was delivered by 3 of the staff all with proud smiles on their face. It was a great lunch stop and we'll worth it!

If "Petticoat Junction's" store owner Sam Drucker had a grandson who dropped the brown acid in the Haight, then came home to take over the family enterprise...well, it might look something like the Old Mission General Store.

The first thing you have to remember is that this is primarily a store for tourists. It's also a kind of love letter to historic Old Mission, before the peninsula became home to trendy vineyards and plutocrats' bayside mansions. So, walking inside, you find yourself in a sort of half-business, half-museum.

The place sells a little bit of everything -- food, booze, antiques, retro toys and other fun stuff. It has a small, eclectic selection of deli items, and an ice cream/breakfast/lunch counter.

My suggestion: Arrive with an open mind, and with time to spare so you can truly explore the place. Don't worry about outcomes. And have some ice cream.  If you're a goal-oriented shopper, then you'd probably be happier driving back into Traverse City.