travel blogger – Barnwood and Baked Goods

Bone Island Grill

@tour_the_town visited local favorite Bone Island Grill recently for a quick lunch.

Bone Island Grill is right around the corner from us and is a favorite fun local hangout. It’s a surprisingly big place seating as many as 170 guests! This is a family friendly warm tropical themed restaurant and bar. They serve breakfast lunch and dinner. They host many special events throughout the year. And offer an outdoor patio as well as conference hall space for private parties.

It was a quiet lunch hour when we visited but the staff was friendly and lunch was delicious!

I enjoyed the pecan chicken salad, the sweet pecans with the perfectly cooked warm chicken on fresh greens with vinaigrette was delicious!

Owned by Karen Drushal and Frank Slaby, Bone Island has played an important role in our community often contributing to various charity events and organizations in the area. They even offer a loyalty program and loyalty fundraising program! We highly recommend that you visit during one of their themed events like retro weekend, slaby-fest, or just a week night of DJ Bingo! Stop in for a visit and try the fish tacos! They’re fabulous too! Enjoy!!

If you’d like to know more or see they’re specials visit them on Facebook! Or instagram! @boneislandgrille

Jackson Coffee Co.

Snow days are great! Am I right!? With the wind blowing and the snow coming down Amber and I headed out for a days of pics, coffee, candy, and maybe a quick well deserved lunch! We laughed, posed, and all in all had a great time!

Our trip started off with a slow drive to Ella Sharp park for a few pics. We were met by an indecisive squirrel who danced in front of my stopped vehicle trying to decided which snow bank looked less menacing. It was pretty entertaining. A few quick pictures and we were off to downtown!

Once there we grabbed a couple more pics and laughs and headed to Jackson Coffe Co. For a wonderful warm up!

Jackson Coffee Co. Opened it’s doors September 2006 and have made quite a claim to fame in the Jackson MI community. Their locations are a reflection of the community with photos, art, music and more all from local artists and other area businesses. The crown jewel is the downtown coffee house location! This beautifully restored location in the downtown business district is beautiful and easy to get to! The perfect stop before any major …or minor downtown event or excursion. Right away when you walk in you’re hit with the fantastic aroma of fresh roasted coffee! The decor has a fun nostalgic feel and the staff was super friendly and informative!

There are two levels to the cafe’ the lower level with a long counter space for a fantastic street view or a roomy upstairs with seating and a small stage where they host live local musicians on Friday nights. They even offer a conference room area for satelite meetings or small group gatherings.

So what makes Jackson Coffee Co. the best? They slow roast small batchs of perfectly selected beans from some of the best growers in the world! It doesn’t get any fresher than that! But it’s not just coffee they also offer tea, smoothies, and snacks!

If you’d like to try it for yourself visit them at their downtown location on the corner of Mechanic st. And Cortland Ave. Or visit their website at http://www.jacksoncoffeeco.com

@Tour_the_town visits Jackson Candy and Fudge Factory next, just in time for Valentine’s Day! Stay tuned, and get out and enjoy your own hometown…or ours!

Hurst Planetarium-Grand reopening!

@Tour_the_town had an educational afternoon today! Now, I’m not much of an astronomy buff but I enjoy sciency things and when I heard that the Hurst Planetarium was hosting a grand re-opening event today, just days before the Blood Wolf Super Moon Eclipse, I thought what a perfect time to feature them here!

Named after Peter F. Hurst the planetarium was part of a project started in 1967. It was added to the Ella Sharp Museum grounds, and based in part by the nation’s excitement over the growing space program. In July 1969 during the Apollo 11 moon landing, attendance at the planetarium soared. Officials estimated that more than 15,000 visitors, including 11,883 students, used it that year.

The planetarium is a museum focal point surrounded by amazing art and near the rose gardens.

The planetarium underwent a huge facelift in 2018, making it more accessible for families and the handicapped. They upgraded the interactive projection system in the dome observatory room. And will be adding some new interactive displays to other areas of the building.

Tonight’s Grand Reopening included a few words for the Museum board and from Tony Hurst the son of Peter Hurst namesake of the planetarium. They performed a ribbon cutting and showed us the technology of the new system and I have to say it’s pretty amazing!

The Hurst planetarium holds viewing events on Thursday and Sunday evenings. You can find more information on their website. http://www.hurstplanetarium.org

Find them on facebook http://www.facebook.com/hurstplanetarium

They are hosting a special event on Sunday January 20th from 9p-12am this will be an opportunity to view the Blood Wolf Super Moon Eclipse! Hope you enjoyed our visit as much as we did! Touring our town is so much fun! Follow us on instagram for behind the scenes photos and more!