Frenchies Famous

Excellent little café in TC. It’s small! Don’t expect to get a group of more than 3 – 4 people in together. Meanwhile, the coffee and specials were quite tasty. Brunch only. Come early.

Unreal. Love this place. No better lunch anywhere. Breakfast wonderful too. This couple achieves orchestral food balance and taste. Some people it seems have issues with service and forget that this food is unrivaled. I pose only one question: is it the service or the customer? My wife and I eat many a lunch/​breakfast date here and have even become acquainted with the owners and think very highly of them both as people and restauranteurs. Any review slighting politeness or whatever without adequately reviewing the food misses the point. This food is unmatched in TC. The people are great too. Just take a moment to be nice and start a conversation and you will enjoy this to no end.

The soup nazi of Traverse City will bend you to his will and you will pay handsomely for pastrami, green chili, or monte cristo. You will be served exceptional coffee by someone who knows what good coffee is. You will not attempt to make small talk in an overcrowded, understaffed establishment. If you eventually develop rapport and go during of hours, you will receive exactly one smile as payment for your loyalty to this establishment. They don’t need your business and have no problem 80/​20-​ing you. I’ll be back if they’ll have me.

My wife and I stopped in for breakfast and had a fabulous meal. The place is small and cozy. The owners friendly and helpedl us stay with our request for a vegetarian breakfast. The Egyptian bean hash was very tasty, the spices and flavors well done. Crepes and omelets, bread and jam all very nicely done. These folks can cook! We will be back on our next visit to Traverse City.

Probably the best coffee in Traverse.
Our Airbnb host told us about this little gem when we were up in Traverse City about a month ago. The food and coffee are fantastic! The service might leave you wanting a little more, but honestly, that has it’s own charm.
To reiterate, it’s tiny and you may have to wait a little bit. The owner is really just keen and getting people in and out so there is not too much small talk, but that really didn’t rub me the wrong way. In a way, the service is great in that they get you delicious food quite quickly. Their omeletts are just divine! Softest and fluffiest omeletts in all the land.

The food is amazing — best pastrami sandwich ever. Get the half size with an egg at breakfast. Awesome coffee too. Are they rude? Sure. If you expect your waitstaff to smile at you and exchange pleasantries, you won’t find that here. Honestly, the guy could punch me in the face before handing me my sandwich and I probably wouldn’t complain. Order takeout if you’re that sensitive or go elsewhere… but you’re missing out!

Wow wow wow. Killer smoked salmon omelette and huevos rancheros. Great little place. Not you traditional breakfast.

Great food, its a small place and you will be close to your neighbors. I had huevos rancheros and it was unbelievable. Get toast and jam, the jam is incredible.

Second time there and the service is certainly not friendly bordering on rude. They act like they don’t want to be there at all. Food was terrible. Never again.
Seriously. Have to do better

Well the owner shut the door right in front of our face. It’s ok if when there’s no place in the room but we preferred a much nicer attitude. We went to omelette shoppe instead.

Food was great quality, caramel macchiato was awesome. Chef prepares his own pastrami and bakes his own bread in house and everything tastes great.
Chef/​owner was very nice and down to earth person and even served complimentary apricot cookie to my 11 year old. My son is planning on having the chocolate chip cookie tomorrow and we cannot wait to get our next cup of java.

The pastrami sandwich here is possibly the best thing I’ve ever tasted. Homemade bread is made fresh daily, rich in butter, garlic, and kosher salt. The pastrami is well balanced, not too lean or too fatty, not too bland or too overpowering. And the tangy house horseradish and deli mustard adds the perfect touch. There’s a reason Mario Batali says this place is one of his favorites in Northern Michigan.

My girlfriend and I visited Traverse City for the weekend, and both were very interested in trying frenchies after reading the raze reviews on Unilocal and by Mario Bettelli. Contrary to these positive reviews, DO NOT EVER GO TO THIS PLACE. This Place is the WORST Place that I have ever been to in my life.
Just so everyone knows, Frenchies is a very small restaurant less than eight tables with an open kitchen. After walking into to Frenchies around 10 am, we were not greeted by anyone. Every single table on the inside of the restaurant was available. There were a few table out back and one in front of the restaurant, only three of these tables were occupied; but less than 10 people total.
However, the only employee, and the owner were directly in front of our face. Neither the owner or the employee/​cook acknowledged our presence. Finally, after more than five minutes passed, the owner gave us an acknowledgement, and an ugly stare. We asked if we could have a table for 2, and he did not give us a response for another two to three minutes. At this point, the owner told us that he could not accommodate us. Once again, NOT A SINGLE TABLE WAS OCCUPIED ON THE INSIDE. We asked if we could wait for a table outside, and he once again un apologetically reiterated to us that he was UNABLE to accommodate us, and that we should find another place to eat.
The owner did not utter another word, and simply pretended to ignore while my girlfriend and I both stood there in utter shock and disbelief. This was the WORST treatment we had ever received in our life, and the ONLY time we had EVER BEEN REFUSED SERVICE. Why we ask? For no reason at all.
On a positive note, we tried BAY BREAD Co. just down the block from Frenchies, and it was amazing. Bay Bread was significantly cheaper, and they had three to four tables outside for casual seating. I highly recommend the cinnamon rolls and the Italian breakfast sandwich. Also, the service at BAY BREAD was superb.

My wife and I have been here many time over a few summers. We always plan to stop in here at least once if we are in the Traverse area. The breakfast is always excellent. The drinks are great. The setup is small, so this isn’t a good place for a group. Plan on spending a leisurely time in a small place. This is not a spot for someone looking for a fast meal.
This time we brought out pup and we were seated promptly and kept updated on the extra expected time for seating and food.
Our chef/​server brought a water bowl for our pup unprompted.
We ordered iced mochas and a hot mocha. As always the drinks were very good.
We ordered the Gyro omelette, Italian sausage omelette and the breakfast scramble sandwich with sausage.
The bread was delicious. Everyone in our party was more than pleased with their food. The gyromelette is well worth the trip.

We were really disappointed with our experience here. It was small and quirky, but when it took 15 mins before we saw a server, we began to worry. The waiter was gruff and practically wordless and didn’t write any orders down. Predictably, mine came out wrong and the rest of the party was finished eating before it came out.
Asking for a discount was met with disbelief and disgust, but eventually my meal was comped.
Yes, the coffee was excellent but that’s all you should stop here for.

The Pastrami sandwich is literally the best sandwich I have ever tasted… and I have tasted quite a few sandwiches in my lifetime (in case you were like ‘this guy is probably a sandwich novice, what does he know?’) If the service bothers you, just call ahead to order and take it to go (there’s the bay walking distance away, good place to eat it?). It’s a very small french bistro-​esque place, that got huge national fame after Chef Mario Battali voiced his approval (of the restaurant and the sandwich) on his tv show, and it deserves every bit of it.
The espresso, lattes, and french press coffee are also quite delicious. Compliments that mouth watering, wonderful sandwich quite nicely.
I don’t know what else to say but I want to say more. That damn sandwich is amazing.
I’m sure they have other good food, but I’ll never know.

Well.
It’s a cute place. Very small. Intimate setting.
A bit like a teeny French bistro. I liked the setting.
HOWEVER:
I am an extremely polite, kind, considerate diner. I greeted them with a pleasant hello immediately as I walked in. Waitstaff walked right by me without any acknowledgement.
Finally came over & asked me very insincerely if he could help me. I informed him I was hoping to order a sandwich for take-​out. I then spied the back patio area & asked if it was covered. He didn’t answer. He said I could sit out front. I asked again about the back patio. I then selected the Lamb Gyro from the menu. I told him I was going to sit out back.
He brought out water & a roll up (napkin & utensils). He confirmed water was fine. No other comment. No smile.
He returned ten mins later. Handed the lamb Gyro to me on a plate. No garnish. No side salad.
I thanked him immediately as he handed it to me. No smile. No kind or pleasant engagement. NOTHING.
The Gyro was FINE.
NOT GREAT.
NOT SPECTACULAR.
I found both Waitstaff totally indifferent with a slight degree of annoyance, arrogance. I felt like I was a imposition that they had to deal with. I know people have their bad days. I get that, but REALLY?! Not even a kind comment, smile or acknowledgement. A «Your Welcome». A «Thank you, come back again». A «Have a nice day». NOTHING.
WHY, would a ANYONE, let alone a PAYING CUSTOMER, want to be treated so poorly?
Overall, a pretty unfortunate experience
Based on the Service & the food, I DON’T RECOMMENDED IT.
I’d rather put in a Hairshirt & go to a very good restaurant than repeat that experience.

My husband & I ate here on a very quiet Monday morning, we had the whole place to ourselves which from other reviews sounds like a rarity.
The food & beverages were good. I had the biscuits & gravy with scrambled eggs with a latte. The eggs & gravy were excellent, the biscuits were a bit tough. The latte was very good, although I was disappointed they didn’t have hazelnut flavoring. My husband had the pastrami hash and that was very good, everything was well seasoned and it just all went together well.
Our server was nice, but she didn’t want to make any small talk, etc. I could see this on a busy Saturday morning but when there are only two people, it was uninviting. The other staff were just kind of in their own world. I said hello and they didn’t respond. I asked if we sat down or ordered at the counter and all he did was basically grunt and look annoyed. Maybe it was an off day.
Prices are what put this down to a 3. For 2 meals & two drinks our bill was over $ 30 for breakfast! No alcohol, etc. We ordered off their «specials menu» but it was not worth the price we paid.
Seems like there is a lot of hype around this place, I wouldn’t go out of my way despite the food being good.

Disregard the other reviews about this place talking about how the coffee isn’t good. It’s french press coffee, it’s going to have some grounds in it, get over it. It’s not folgers from a drip machine, this isn’t Denny’s, and that’s what I like about this place. Also, the service here is fine. It’s a small place (10 max capacity) and they take their time making everything from scratch. You can’t expect a waiter/​waitress to drop everything to satisfy your every whim on a Sunday morning.
This is a very cool little spot. I recommend coming during off hours so you can get a table and enjoy a nice brunch.

You can’t beat Frenchies environment and intimate style of café. It’s adorable. It’s quaint. It’s very ‘I don’t feel like I’m in Traverse City sitting here’ –esque.
It’s also quite pricey. It’s also kind of rude. $ 31 for two breakfasts orders and two cups of coffee. Given the small amount of food you receive, and poorly made coffee, I’d suggest coming in to split lunch between friends. I hear they are famous for their pastrami sandwich? We were enjoying the moment, drinking our coffee +coffee grounds, reading the New Yorker and being lazy on a Sunday. There wasn’t a line out the door (yet), but the gentleman gave us the «appreciate it if you would take care of this in a timely manner» as he dropped the check. Faux pas, sir! Way to ruin the moment. But, the place has been crossed off my bucket list, so c’est la vie.