Review of Curragh Irish Pub in Holland

Curragh Irish Pub is located in downtown Holland, about 30 minutes from our Inn. The atmosphere is of a traditional Irish pub: casual, friendly, and usually full of people having a good time. A generous amount of outdoor seating is available overlooking the prime intersection of Holland, 8th street & College. There is outdoor seating on all four corners here: New Holland Brewery, JP's Coffee, and Kilwins chocolate (now featuring an outdoor fireplace.)
This is one of our favorites because the food and service are always good. The menu trends towards interpretations of traditional Irish food. For example, we had Bangers and Mash: Irish Sausage, Mashed Redskin Potatoes, Roasted Shallot Gravy.
And a Chicken Boxty with Pesto Cream: sauted vegetables paired with chicken wrapped in a potato pancake.



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Review of City Vu Bistro in Holland

We had lunch recently at City Vu Bistro a restaurant located on the top of City Flats Hotel in Holland, Michigan, about 35 minutes from our inn.

Probably the most appealing aspect of this venue is it's view. There aren't many tall buildings in Holland, perhaps this is the beginning of the "Holland skyline?" Anyway, this picture is of the downtown area, taken right from our table.

The decor is decidedly modern and clean, as shown below. The rest of the building, the lobby, lounge, and I would assume the guestrooms are all consistently in this kind of style. Maybe a little cold for some, but certainly one of the the hippest spots in Holland. This seems to be the second best thing, after the view, of this location.


Since this was just a light lunch, we did not order anything too large from their menu, which had many good things including multiple variations of flatbreads made on site. Pictured below is what we ordered: Mushroom ragout, Roasted tomato Soup, Mixed Greens with roasted beets and fennel. While the food was certainly good, it didn't seem like the most wonderful part of our visit. Go for the view, enjoy the clean and modern atmosphere, and have some good food while you are here.


Here's the google map:


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If you have some experience here, please comment to keep these reviews balanced.

Review of Food Dance Restaurant, Kalamazoo

Food Dance is located in Kalamzoo, about 30 minutes from our inn. We had dinner there a couple of weeks ago to sample their late spring menu offerings. We have always favored this establishment because of their focus on local and real ingredients. Their menu offerings always chicken from Otto's in Middleville, greens from Mud Lake farm, and imaginative vegetarian offerings.

Good bread is offered, usually the focaccia:

Ruth had the Berkshire Pork Chop with caraway mustard spaetzle and onion gratin with wild leek and pine nut relish:
The spaetzle was a first for us, shaped like a nut but tastes like a noodle.

I had the old favorite, Otto's Brick Chicken, stuffed with preserved lemons, rosemary and garlic:

Always good food and service.


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