Red Spire Brunch House

On a recent visit to Traverse City was looking for a great breakfast and this place was highly rated and highly recommended. First of all the wait for a table was about an hour and a half, which made me think the food must be AMAZING... Well the food was ok. It didnt deliver the wow factor I was expecting. I ordered the croissant French toast which was ok, but a little mushier than I was expecting. Also the strawberry fruit topping wasnt fresh. It had the familiar taste of frozen strawberries. Fresh sliced strawberries would have made a huge difference. My friend had the house omelette, which comes with crab meat in it. Again the shredded crab meat didnt taste fresh. It tasted like cannned crab meat. The establishment (being located inside and old asylum) is very busy with tours going on and lots of other shops in the building... But to me the food was just ok. It felt like a bit of a tourist trap. But if you are there for a tour already then it is probably convenient to grab a bite there. Pics for reference.

On a recent visit to Traverse City was looking for a great breakfast and this place was highly rated and highly recommended. First of all the wait for a table was about an hour and a half, which made me think the food must be AMAZING... Well the food was ok. It didnt deliver the wow factor I was expecting. I ordered the croissant French toast which was ok, but a little mushier than I was expecting. Also the strawberry fruit topping wasnt fresh. It had the familiar taste of frozen strawberries. Fresh sliced strawberries would have made a huge difference. My friend had the house omelette, which comes with crab meat in it. Again the shredded crab meat didnt taste fresh. It tasted like cannned crab meat. The establishment (being located inside and old asylum) is very busy with tours going on and lots of other shops in the building... But to me the food was just ok. It felt like a bit of a tourist trap. But if you are there for a tour already then it is probably convenient to grab a bite there. Pics for reference.

Absolutely impressive place to have Brunch! Everything was made fresh and portions are generous. They were busy but still attentive. We came during 4th of July week and got right in as a family of 4; but they were packed and also doing carry outs. My kids could have shared the Sourdough French toast because there was about 4-5 large slices on each of their plates and it was $10 each! My kids did add blueberries and chocolate chips for a little more. The Crabcake Benedit was delicious. The coffee is good too and they have whole beans to purchase so we did. Quality food and exceptional ambiance. We even visited the markets in the rest of the building. Highly Recommend.

Absolutely impressive place to have Brunch! Everything was made fresh and portions are generous. They were busy but still attentive. We came during 4th of July week and got right in as a family of 4; but they were packed and also doing carry outs. My kids could have shared the Sourdough French toast because there was about 4-5 large slices on each of their plates and it was $10 each! My kids did add blueberries and chocolate chips for a little more. The Crabcake Benedit was delicious. The coffee is good too and they have whole beans to purchase so we did. Quality food and exceptional ambiance. We even visited the markets in the rest of the building. Highly Recommend.

This brunch spot was the last stop on my Traverse City weekend! The location is unique, as it is located in the basement of an old mental hospital that has been refurbished with shops and restaurants. It has a beautiful brick interior which makes the space unique and quite cozy. There are two parts to the restaurant, a back seating area and a hallway seating area. I made a reservation for Sunday at 11:30am which I’m thankful I did as I overheard the hostess say the wait was over an hour to another party checking in. Our waitress was super friendly and took our order shortly after we sat down. The biggest downside to this experience was how long it took for our food to come out. It took 45 minutes for my group to get our food and when it did come out there was an error with one of the dishes, so it had to be sent back. Due to this error that group member ended up waiting close to an hour for their food, which was disappointing. Although the wait was long we all throughly enjoyed our food. I ordered the western omelette with fruit and rye toast, all of which were flavorful. The portions sizes were great for 1 person as well. Overall I had a good experience but would caution anyone going to allow ample time for the meal!