Upper Peninsula Regional Dinner! Celebrate YOOPER Pride!

Join us for this very special event featuring the staples from Michigan's Upper Peninsula! Tourists visiting our splendid region and locals alike-- gather up your friends for this culinary journey through our region!

Think aromatic pork sausage (cudighi!), lake superior trout, u.p. maple syrup, wild blueberry jam, pasties, ...

The Yoopers’ Table:

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has a unique culture and distinctive dishes. You’ll find influence from the Native Americans, Finnish, Italians, French Canadians, Cornish, Swedish and Norwegian people who migrated here and were hearty enough to call it home despite the cold, harsh winters, buggy (and short!) summers, and hard work in the mines. The people from the U.P. (“yoopers”) are tough and rugged and have “SISU” (hardiness, determination, grit and bravery). With vast wooded areas, open space and plenty of gorgeous lakes (including the largest lake in the world, Lake Superior), there is plenty of foraged food, hunted game and fish of the lakes and rivers to round out the table. The growing season is quite short and the winters are quite snowy, long and cold, making canned, smoked and pickled foods common. Think lots of dairy and cheese, cured vegetables, lots of hearty root vegetables that can withstand cold temperatures like potatoes, parsnips and rutabaga, Whitefish, Trout, Venison, Partridge, Rabbit, Wild Rice, Maple Syrup, and lots of berries in the summertime.

While Strega Nonna's heart is in authentic style Italian food, the most Italian thing to do is always to preserve local traditions and use local ingredients!

Let's Do our Part to preserve U.P. Food, Culture and Heritage!

Say Yah to da U.P., eh?!

Sample Menu Below (Subject to change)

To Start:

Le:Pajuustoa Homemade Finnish-style squeaky cheese (Jean and Wayne Carlson’s Famous Recipe!)

Smoked Lake Superior Whitefish from Thill's FishHouse in Marquette

The Lynch's Family Homemade Jam

Venison Sausage...Can’t have a U.P dinner without a little deer meat. Hunting is probably the most popular hobby of the area. Family’s boast when getting the first deer of the season and process the meat to last the entire year.

Pickled Beets

Pickled Herring

First Courses:

Grandma Joans’ Pasties (Homemade hand pies that got popular when miners would need to keep a filling lunch in their pockets to fuel their hardworking days; stuffed with meat, rutabaga and potatoes and served with homemade ketchup and butter)

A “Cudighi” (traditional yooper sandwich in slider form with homemade sausage, Melty Cheese, grilled peppers and onions and tomato sauce; Served on a Bergy Brioche Bun with a Side of Spicy Giardinera)

Second Courses:

Lake Superior Trout... Native Americans are still catching this delightful fatty fish from our gorgeous, crystal clear lake

Cudighi and Cabbage... A classic Hearty Dish to get us through the cold season

Sides:

Wild Rice... This black rice that grows wild in the area has been a staple for centuries.

Grandma Jean’s Famous Garlic Green Beans (a childhood favorite of Rachael's)

Dessert (Yoopers love their sweets!):

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream , REAL U.P. Maple Syrup and U.P.’s famous Trenary Toast Bakery Cinnamon Toast crumbled on top! Oh Yah!

Yooper Maple Cookies