Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant is a classic and elegant Door County Supper Club experience. Read on to learn more about what you can expect at Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant. I haven’t received anything from Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant, and I have personally dined here, so you can trust that I will give an honest and informed opinion.
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant Review
Summary
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant offers a standard supper club menu (though with a few surprises!). The food is well-prepared and high quality. Service is always attentive, knowledgeable, and capable. It has a timeless, rustic-chic ambiance with a dining room that overlooks Lake Michigan. Make sure to make reservations well in advance for this beloved Door County institution.
Menu
Donny’s Glidden Lodge offers a menu that is limited but with many surprises among the dishes it offers.
The core of their menu is a typical Wisconsin Supper Club offering of steaks and fish complemented by potatoes and vegetables. As expected at any supper club, you can choose from various cuts of beef along with shrimp, lobster tail, and walleye.
But, sprinkled among those traditional staples of the Upper Midwest, Donny’s Glidden Lodge has a few surprises. Their seared Ahi tuna is paired with a delightful avocado mousse and a pineapple chutney – not the sort of flavors you expect in Door County, and a welcome diversion from the traditional American fare that prevails in the peninsula. Other surprises include a grilled lamb chop and a blackened, Cajun-style Yellowfin tuna dish.
I gave Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant 4 stars for their menu.
Food Quality
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant serves a limited, traditional supper club menu. But, the food they offer is extremely well-prepared. The ingredients are always fresh. Everything is cooked well. When you order a steak medium-rare at Donny’s, that is exactly what you get.
I gave Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant 5 stars for their food quality.
Service
Service is another place where Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant. Quite simply, this restaurant hires the best of the best. They know the menu, and they can help guide you to the best option for you. The waitstaff is attentive and friendly.
If you are looking for quick service, Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant is not the place for you to eat. This goes along with their traditional supper club approach. Supper clubs don’t just expect you to linger. They want you to linger.
Pro-tip: Once or twice an evening, two of the servers will sing a romantic song a capella for patrons. It is an extremely moving experience that amplifies a romantic dinner. When you make your reservation (and you need a reservation for Donny’s Glidden Lodge,) ask about this to see if this can be arranged.
Ambiance
I have eaten at restaurants around the world, and few match the ambiance of Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant.
Timeless. Classy. Rustic. Elegant. Inspiring. It’s hard to stop listing off the superlative adjectives for this restaurant.
When I dine at Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant, it feels as if I am connecting with vastness – vast times and spaces. It seems as if Donny’s Glidden Lodge has always been there and that it will be much the same as it has been far into the future. It’s a place where time stands still. That’s a good thing.
But, you also connect with vast spaces. The dining room is right on the shore of Lake Michigan, with huge windows opening out to the expansive waters.
The ambiance of Donny’s Glidden Lodge is best enjoyed when it is light out. To put it another way, it is best enjoyed when you can see the Lake. Because of this, I typically don’t dine there late in the evening during the summer or at all in the winter. But, the experience will still be an elegant one when it is dark out.
Location
I discussed the location in the ambiance section above, so I’ll make this short: Donny’s Glidden Lodge has an amazing location on the shore of Lake Michigan. It is picturesque, secluded, and quiet.
Summary: Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant
All-in-all, I give Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant 4.8 stars as an average of its ratings for menu, food quality, ambiance, and location.
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant offers a standard supper club menu (though with a few surprises!). The food is well-prepared and high quality. Service is always attentive, knowledgeable, and capable. It has a timeless, rustic-chic ambiance with a dining room that overlooks Lake Michigan. Make sure to make reservations well in advance for this beloved Door County institution.
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant General Information
4670 Glidden Dr, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant FAQs
Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant offers a few kids’ meal options. However, families with rambunctious young ones should probably dine elsewhere.
Yes, Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant takes reservations. In fact, reservations are recommended as Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant has a small dining room that fills up most evenings.
Of course, service animals are welcome. But, Donny’s Glidden Lodge Restaurant is not a place to take your dog.
