Jolly Pumpkin: Old Mission

Jolly Pumpkin: Old MissionJolly Pumpkin: Old Mission
Jolly Pumpkin: Old MissionJolly Pumpkin: Old Mission
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

13512 Peninsula Dr
Traverse City, Michigan, 49686-9717
United States

(231) 223-4333 | map
jollypumpkin.com

Beers are, and should be, listed under Jolly Pumpkin's main brewery entry:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/9897/

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BEER STATS
Average:
0
Beers:
0
Ratings:
0
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.15
Reviews:
25
Ratings:
69
pDev:
10.6%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
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Ratings by rjcoy06:
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Rated by rjcoy06 from Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -9.6%

Sep 15, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.16 by RalphStanley34 from French Polynesia

Aug 16, 2022
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Reviewed by Redrover from Wisconsin

4.23/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
In talking to the staff, found out that this building was the carriage house and stables for a large estate. Its roots show with lots of large wood beams, massive wood pillars, exposed iron fasteners, etc. The bar is located just to the right as you enter. They have both indoor and outdoor eating spaces available.

We had a half-hour wait for a table (we were a party of 8) but was able to grab a few stools at the bar. The bartenders were very friendly and as were the wait staff when we were seated.

Beer selection was solid. I enjoyed an Celtic Ale and then a few farmhouse ales.

I thought the food was decent and the menu is large enough so most folks should be able to find something they like.

I will have no issues making a return trip!
Aug 09, 2022
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Reviewed by PapaGoose03 from Michigan

4.28/5  rDev +3.1%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.5
It's been years since my last visit here, and I didn't write a review back then, so here goes. It's a pleasant drive out to this location on a warm, sunny, fall day for a late lunch. The one-way driveway off the roadway leads up to the pub and to a parking lot at the rear. The entrance to the place is off the parking lot. I'm guessing the brewery converted an old, large home into this business. A large stone fireplace, heavy wooden beams and plenty of wood paneling sets the vibe here, and I liked it.

The beers served here are the Jolly Pumpkin and the North Peak and Old Mission brands (I recognize the OM beer names as being from North Peak), but we were here to try the JP beers. We ordered a sampler flight of all 6 of the JP beers for $15 (there were 9 other beers from the other brands plus one cider) to evaluate them for this review. The beers were all in the 'sour' style, although the tartness was very minimal in a couple of them. We scored the beers between 4.0 and 4.5 and very much enjoyed all of them.

There was a good selection of items on the food menu, and we really enjoyed what we ordered. (I recommend the pulled pork sandwich.) They do a great job here and I wish we were able to get here more often. Highly recommended!
Oct 10, 2020
 
Rated: 4.83 by U2Chaser from North Dakota

Oct 15, 2018
 
Rated: 3.81 by JimboBrews54 from Michigan

Oct 08, 2018
 
Rated: 3.86 by mwade5 from Indiana

Mar 17, 2018
 
Rated: 4.29 by redleg64 from Michigan

Dec 20, 2017
 
Rated: 4.2 by JeffSK from Wisconsin

Sep 17, 2017
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Rated by GregKobeArntz24 from Michigan

4.51/5  rDev +8.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.75 | food: 4
I use to work here and this is where I developed my pallet for sour beers and I have my very first Oro De Calabaza.
Jul 15, 2017
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Reviewed by Tsar_Riga from Minnesota

4.28/5  rDev +3.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.25
Lovely spot just north of Traverse City. We visited late afternoon, and we were lucky, because the wait was 2 hours when we left. Great food, excellent beers, and friendly attentive service make this a superb place to visit.
Jul 04, 2017
 
Rated: 3.61 by Tjb14 from Michigan

Dec 09, 2016
 
Rated: 4.78 by Danielr26 from Michigan

Oct 20, 2016
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Reviewed by Dactrius from Netherlands Antilles

4.18/5  rDev +0.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 3.75 | food: 4.5
Nice vibe/atmosphere, beautiful location (although you don't get the best view from inside). Service was solid. The JP beer was of course interesting and had a few really nice beers on tap but their "guest" beers (i.e. North Peak) were pretty unexciting. Nice bottle selection with a few bottles I believe are brewery only. Food was excellent. A great place to stop while you're checking out the beautiful Old Mission Peninsula.
May 31, 2016
 
Rated: 4.56 by Loudog1411 from Michigan

Apr 09, 2016
 
Rated: 3.54 by cards22 from Michigan

Nov 10, 2015
 
Rated: 4.35 by DMarlinJ from Michigan

Jun 14, 2015
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Rated by CCrable

4.98/5  rDev +20%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.75
Ron is great. Place has a great selection. Of beer from sours to IPAs. Food has something'everyone would like.
Jun 07, 2015
 
Rated: 3.65 by JDoHo from Michigan

May 31, 2015
 
Rated: 3.63 by Dr_Fox from Utah

May 25, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by n2492004 from Michigan

Feb 14, 2015
 
Rated: 3.84 by Samurai_Jesus4 from Michigan

Jan 15, 2015
 
Rated: 3.98 by Brandonparrent from Michigan

Dec 31, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by Agentveba from North Carolina

Dec 03, 2014
Photo of simplejj81
Reviewed by simplejj81 from Wisconsin

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%
Great sours, and about 8 other beers on tap. $1 for a 5 oz taster of any beer on tap. They only had 4 jolly pumpkin sours on tap, but I liked all of them. esp otono

A bit out of the way, but it would be a beautiful spot during the daylight hours!

Good knowledgeable and friendly staff.
Nov 23, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by Ekoseck from Michigan

Nov 03, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by irish6174 from Michigan

Oct 31, 2014
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Rated by Indianpaleale from Michigan

4.75/5  rDev +14.5%
The food is good. Great selections of beers. Nice atmosphere too.
Oct 07, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by chewymangos from Indiana

Aug 21, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by skyline522 from Illinois

Aug 01, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Mxsluis from Michigan

Aug 01, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by kraticus41 from Minnesota

Jul 08, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by vande from Illinois

Jul 06, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by snansel from Missouri

Jul 06, 2014
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Reviewed by troygreer from Pennsylvania

3.56/5  rDev -14.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.75 | service: 3.75 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
A great view can be had from the deck outside, nestled on a hill on the Old Mission Peninsula. But those seeking a true Jolly Pumpkin Tap room and experience, be warned. This venue plays more as a restaurant that just so happens to have Jolly Pumpkin on tap and a large selection of Jolly Pumpkin Bombers.

When you arrive you have to make a choice of having food out on the deck or sitting inside for a beer. We chose to sit outside thinking that we were still going to get the JP experience and considering the waitstaff was wearing JP shirts, we thought we made the right decision. Well come to find out, the outdoor area only had 2 (common) JP beers on tap but had a few bottles to offer as well. They didn't have sampler offerings, nor unique beers. Not really the experience i was hoping for... Needless to say we finished up our lunch (which was enjoyable) and headed inside.

The Jolly Pumpkin bar (not really a tap room) had sampler tray's of 5, but they only have 4 Jolly Pumpkin Beers on tap, so we went with a North Peak one as our 5th. It really doesn't feel like anything more than a bar that serves their beer. Kinda sad with the great atmosphere that they have.

The only real "plus" would be the large selection of rare JP bottles. I was able to get a few that i hadn't seen before

If you have some time for a nice drive on the Peninsula and want a decent meal, it is a good stop. If you are looking for a genuine JP experience, this is not the place.
Jun 19, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by jmich24 from Michigan

Jun 09, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by HardyA from Michigan

Jun 01, 2014
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Reviewed by JLSIV from Georgia

4.18/5  rDev +0.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.75
A little off the beaten path, but beautiful! Went with wife and loved it. Atmosphere was great, and bar and beer and food was awesome.

I want to bring others to this gem. Cottage like and set amongst a farm like area. Ride in and out is one of Western MI greatest fall areas.

We were there off-season, but still enjoyed it very much. Want to bring my extended family.

More pub like than craft brew, but a good mix for all types…serious beer drinkers will probably know of better beer purist type places, but definitely worth the trip
May 18, 2014
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Reviewed by EricTKole from Michigan

3.34/5  rDev -19.5%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 3.75 | service: 2 | selection: 3.75 | food: 4
This place...

Again same group of 8 touring TC breweries on a Sat(5/3)

Atmosphere-
Seems pretty cool/rustic in there but confusing in that all I saw upon entering was North Peak swag everywhere. Am I at Jolly Pumpkin or North Peak?

Quality-
No real complaints here. Kinda middle of the road, clean place cold drinks and food served promptly.

Service-
This was the stinker of the joint. We walked in by accident to the restaurant instead of the tasting room which was our desired destination. Staff was rude but directed us there. Tasting room was large but well understaffed for a Saturday afternoon in my opinion. Maybe 20-30 guests with 2 workers. After getting no attention for nearly 10 minutes one of the gals from our group went to the bar and asked how the tastings would work. The bar attendant handed her three menus(or so) explained how many we could taste and then told her(which I over heard) that she didn't know when she would be able to help us. After waiting another 5-10 minutes with no service we decided to go get a pint at the bar. We walked back in the bar and walked past the greeter's stand as there was no "wait to be seated" sign to be found. Which was a problem as the greeters then yelled(yes) at us to wait while they found a table. At this point my wife wanted to walk out and I told her "they sure are making it hard to spend money here", but when your leading a group of friends sometimes you gotta go with the flow. Once we got seated we finally met someone nice, our server who was very pleasant and helpful from that point forward.

Selection-
Small number of in house beers but was overall pretty good.

Food-
We just got aps but the Truffle Fries that I got were excellent

Value-
Flight of the Day and fries and out the door for around $15 very good!
May 07, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by Fargrow from Michigan

Apr 28, 2014
Jolly Pumpkin: Old Mission in Traverse City, MI
Place rating: 0 out of 5 with 69 ratings