Old Tavern Inn

LOve the local atmosphere of Old Tavern Inn which we have nicknamed Sumnerville Tap. Mossy Oak attire is always in season! We loved it so much that I choose this as the place to have my 50^th birthday dinner where we shared cake with the waitress. Chicken is always really yummy, as is my favorite — the whitefish dinner. Have also had burgers and the goulash (especially on a cold Michigan night) which also were very good. The best part is that the food is ALWAYS served steaming — so hot you have to wait for it to cool off to eat it. The staff is always friendly and the service is fast. One of our must stops when we are in town. While we have never had their famous ham sandwich, it always looks delicious… perhaps one day. Great place to stop for lunch or dinner and a cold beer.

I have eaten at old tavern inn a couple of times now over the past few years. The place looks a bit intimidating upon entering it but it has been around for I believe more than a hundred years… «Michigan’s first business».
Everything’s we go, I haven’t been able to convince myself to try anything new. I always get the ham sandwich. It is huge, it is delicious, it is amazingly priced. We have never been disappointed with the old tavern inn.

Ok as the name of this place is Old Tavern Inn it was just as I expected.
First I want to say some of the reviews on the service are way off base. The server we had was named Kelly, She was waiting on about 45 guests and was running her butt off. She was the only one waiting on the floor and the bar area. I have been to several hundred places to eat and drink and she is #1 in my book. my glass never got empty before I was asked if I would like another. most times I tip 20% if I have a good server, But She was so good and happy and smiles. I left 30% .
now for the food. Wife ordered the burger and fries which she enjoyed and really like the fries. I ordered a full Ham and cheese sandwich. Wow I should have ordered ½ ham. Any ways must have been 2 pounds of the smokiest sweetest fried ham and the cheese just oozing out of the sandwich all of this on a soft french roll .
so the place is the oldest business Establishment in Michigan, Most places like this have old date run down kitchens you would not want to eat out of. But the view I got was spotless clean floors shinning stainless steel. ever thing had a place and was very organized. I rate this in my Top 10 places to eat … Its a local favorite. Ice cold beer good food and great service is all I need to bring me back for more.

Honestly, not sure why it had one of the top burgers in Michigan! It tasted like something grilled at home. Service was good. I got a soda and it did not taste good. The lines for the soda machines must be old! Pop was flat with weird taste. French fries were terrible. Ambiance isn’t great either. Very dingy and old. We will probably return because it’s so close to home but we weren’t impressed with the burgers or fries. Two burgers and we split fries and our bill without tip was $ 18.

Touted as the «Oldest Business in Michigan». If you like a good ham sandwich you have to try the ½ ham sandwich. Don’t let the ½ fool you… its not a small sandwich. Cool atmosphere.

Wouldn’t bother with this place. Service was absolutely horrible, it was even slow when we were there. Food honestly wasn’t much better. If you’re into the oldest bars in America tour just get a beer and leave.

And on to the oldest bar in Michigan.
I’m sure some of you have heard of the «Ship of Theseus» before. Theseus was the hero who according to legend defeated the Minotaur and freed the Athenians from Crete. Well, the Athenians had a ship that the believed was actually used by Theseus to sail to Crete (Theseus probably was a real person who defeated the Cretans in battle). By the time of Aristotle this ship was very old, and he said that every few years, a plank of the ship would be rotten, and the Athenians would replace it. By Aristotle’s time, nearly the whole ship had been replaced. And so the question was posed, «Is this still the ship of Theseus?»
Why do I write this in review? Well, this bar is kind of like the ship of Theseus. Yes, a building was built here in the 1830’s, not long after Michigan became a state, but this the building you can calk into today at all related? I don’t know.
What I do know is that there are lots of very old wooden beams in there – and that seems old-​timey – even if the siding on the outside does not. This is definitely a neighborhood bar. When I walked in with my Dad, everyone stopped and stared at us. I half expected the music to come screeching to a halt. However, the people in there were real salt of the earth and were very friendly.
The beer selection was pretty standard – but there were some interesting local Michigan choices as well. As for the food, I really wanted to try the goulash, but I went with a burger. The burger was as no-​frills as it gets, but it was very juicy and really hit the spot. My dad had the giant ham sandwich (really get half if you’ve eaten at all the week before), and it, too, was no frills but really hit the spot, good bread, decent ham, good stuff.
Worth the effort (about 35 min from South Bend) to get here!
Word on the street is that there is good fly fishing very nearby here if you visit in the summertime.

Went for goulash but they just served the last one, first disappointment 2^nd was service was not good! We had to flag her down to get drinks and then she promised to bring a sample of goulash and it didn’t happen.

best ham sandwich in the area and beer is cold cold cold! Great service

Great food and cold beer. The best Ham Sandwich to be found for 100s of miles around.
One of the oldest establishment in the area. Near the Dowagiac Creek which was part of the gateway to the west.
The Dowagiac Creek is one of the best trout streams in the world so after you finish fishing stop at the tavern and have a bite to eat.