A Vegan Mackinac Island Mini-Moon

What to do, where to stay, and where to eat for a plant-based filled weekend on Mackinac Island.

There might not be a better place in Michigan to honeymoon. Let me know if you have better ideas, but for two vegans who wed just a day before — Mackinac Island for three nights was absolute bliss.

My husband and I married on July 4th surrounded by our close family, and after a week of celebrating with our loved ones — and we do love them —  it was time for some alone time. We picked Mackinac for the same reasons so many others do: the boundless nature, zero cars, total bike-ability, and how romantic and quaint the island is as a whole.

And for even as calm as our wedding was, let me tell you, we were ready for some serious R&R. So we hit the dusty trail on July 5 for a long weekend as Mr. & Mrs.

After not drinking for nearly three months for wedding prep (and just in general it’s not something I have part of my life anymore, only really for special occasions), the first thing we did when we got off Shepler’s Ferry  (which we jokingly kept calling “Shleper’s”) with our bikes was head to Bistro on the Greens for a lavender lemonade cocktail and to wait for our room. I am certainly now a cheap date.

Bistro on the Greens is a great little spot I’ve been visiting for years because it’s just a short bike ride away from downtown and has beautiful views of Lake Huron. (They also have a few vegan options on their menu on the healthier side.) We had spent the first good half of the day cleaning up the aftermath of our wedding reception and traveling, so I’m not sure if it was the view or the high of being newlyweds, but I felt like I’d landed in paradise.

After we had toasted to finally arriving on the island, we trekked up to the Inn at Stone Cliffe because we got the text that our room was ready. It’s about a 2-mile ride from downtown, one of which is basically straight uphill. My husband is much more athletic than I am, and probably could have towed me the whole way if we’d had a cart, but I made it up eventually. Luckily the man I married is as patient and kind as he is handsome, so he walked his bike with me and I survived the climb.

Once we checked into our condo – which is right on the Stone Cliffe property — a pro tip if you want all the benefits of staying on this beautiful property without the steep price tag, we ordered some pizza, took in the views from our balcony, and fell asleep to the sounds of the woods.

*A note about Stone Cliffe: As beautiful as this property is, they are not vegan-friendly. Beyond salads, I don’t believe we found one option at their three restaurants. I hope this changes in the future with how many vegan people do visit Mackinac Island. So that was a big reason we rented our condo, since they have a full-kitchen and we packed a cooler and made a lot of our meals at home. So just be prepared if you come up to the top of the island! 

Day Two: A Rainy Day Romantic Dinner in The Woods

Have you ever slept for 10 hours and awoken feeling like a new person? Well, that was us on this morning. J., my husband, made us coffee and iced tea (tea for me, coffee for him) and we had it on our balcony with a big bowl of oatmeal, peanut butter, and banana for brekkie. It was simple and wholesome and we were ready to start the day with the 10-mile bike ride we had planned… and then started down pouring.

So with our biking plans thwarted till the next day, we did what most people were doing that day: get dressed and headed out into the thick of it.

After a breakfast espresso martini and a little reading time on Stone Cliffe’s terrace, we parked our bikes in the bike pavilion to keep the wet off of them, and took a carriage downtown for lunch.

If you are reading this blog it most likely means that you are searching for vegan spots on Mackinac Island, or just really like my writing, which, hey — hats off to you either way. So I will say this: Kingston Kitchen on Mackinac is my favorite place that we dined the entire time we were there. It’s a nod to the Jamaican history on the island and the food is so dang good. We ordered both a pulled jackfruit sandwich and a homemade veggie burger, and the chips were the best I’ve ever had in my life. And I lived in the UK. They were the perfect blend of French fry and potato chip and I will be dreaming of them until I can go back next year.

After lunch, the rain was still coming down, so we ventured over to The Pink Pony for a drink on their covered patio so we could watch the ferries roll in with the storm. It was the perfect way to wait out the rain for a while. And once our courage was up, we opened the umbrella we’d brought and walked the 2-miles back up to Stone Cliffe to rest for a while before our dinner reservation.

Once 7:30 rolled around we put on our best attire and took another walk through the woods to The Woods. If you’ve never been to Mackinac and are looking for a special dinner experience, I would highly recommend coming to The Woods. It’s certainly a “for special occasions” kind of place and spending an evening celebrating our marriage here felt right. The chef prepared two vegan options for us and even a special dessert. And when the waiter brought it out, the restaurant clapped for us and another couple seated beside us who were celebrating 58 years together. J. and I are both saps, so we both cried out of love and joy and all the feelings people feel when they’re thinking about life and death and all the moments in between. It was a beautiful, romantic evening I will never forget and look forward to coming back with loved ones in the future.

Day Three: Biking Around the Island, Drinking Mac Tai’s, and Getting Burned

After a bit of a later night, we spent the morning slowly. Making breakfast and coffee, reading for a while on the balcony, and with the sun on our side, suiting up for a day of adventure. We packed a backpack with beer and water, stopped by Watercolor Cafe for two vegan chickpea sandwiches, and set out to bike around the island. This is probably one of my favorite ways to spend a day on Mackinac. Though there were a lot of people on the road around the island, and I’d cut up my ankle pretty good from a fluke bike accident earlier that morning, we made our way. We stopped here and there to take in the view and found a sunny spot on a rocky beach when lunchtime arrived to enjoy our picnic.

The weather that day was deceiving because it felt cool but I had, in the mad dash to get to Mackinac, forgotten both a hat and sunscreen. This is my mental note to NOT do this for our honeymoon in Italy later this fall. Because by the time we had finished the eight or so miles around, and found ourselves at the Hotel Iroquois for a dockside pre-dinner drink, I turned to J. and said, “Hey, you look like you’re getting burned.” But I might as well have been looking in a mirror because I was just as red as he. Luckily, with a “Mac Tai” (the hotel’s  version of a Mai Tai which was out-of-this-world good) in my veins I didn’t care too much.

We ventured on to the Great Turtle Brewing Co. for dinner since they had several vegan options on their menu. I wouldn’t feel great recommending this place’s food, but it was vegan. So I won’t focus on that here and instead say that this is one of my favorite trips I have ever been on. The entire three days felt tranquil, blissful, and entirely rejuvenating.

The whole time we were on Mackinac, J. and I kept talking about how the island felt like a place we’d go if we were in one of those movies that depicts what eternity might be like. You know, big green lawn, white picket fences, people milling about playing lawn games. J. said he might play corn hole for a whole year. I said I’d probably take six months just to perfect the Mai Tai’s I kept ordering. Maybe another decade just to learn all the trees and wildflowers. Though we only had three days in reality, it was the perfect way to celebrate being newlyweds. Even if I cut up my ankle on my bike and they spelled our last name wrong in chocolate at a fancy dinner. I’m banking on spending every eternity with J., so I guess I better brush up on my corn-hole skills.

Vegan Dining On Mackinac Island

Grocery

• Doud’s Market

Casual

• Mary’s Bistro Draught House (Omni, but veg friendly)
• Good Day Cafe (Omni, but veg friendly)
• Yankee Rebel Tavern (Omni, but veg friendly)
• Sushi Grand (veg-friendly sushi rolls available)
• The Gate House (Omni, but veg friendly options available)
• Bistro on the Greens (Omni, but veg friendly options available)
• Millie’s On Main (Omni, but veg friendly options available)
• Seabiscuit Cafe  (Omni, but veg friendly options available)
• Pink Pony (Omni, but veg friendly options available — ask for the veggie burger)
• Kingston Kitchen ((Omni, but veg friendly options available)

Upscale Dining

• The Woods (Will make vegan meals upon request.)
• The Grand Hotel – Main Dining Room (Will make vegan meal upon request.)
• Chianti at Mission Point  (Will make vegan meal upon request.)
• Carriage House at Iroquois Hotel  (Omni, but veg friendly options available)

Have you ever been to Northern Michigan? Let me know in a comment below!

Until next time,

xx