Daniel Higgins|Green Bay Press-Gazette
CARLTON - When a supper club overlooks Lake Michigan, it makes sense to pair a nautical theme with classic menu options like Old-Fashioneds andFriday night fish fries.
Serving schnitzel and dumplings smothered in sauerkraut is a less obvious choice. But the specialty German menu is popular says Gib's On The Lake owners Mark and Mary Weston.
Stop in Gib's on Wednesday or Thursday nights tofind dishes like sauerbraten with a side of sweet-sour cabbage in its vibrant purplish-red glory, while surrounded by seafaring decor from oars and model ships to wallpaper with anchors.
Originally started as a Wednesday-only offering to draw more weeknight visitors, theGerman specialties are now available Thursday nights as well.
The fact that the schnitzel is covered inbrown gravy with thick-cut mushroomsand the potato dumplings are smotheredin sauerkraut that packs a nice puckering punch doesn't hurt. Side optionsinclude spaetzle and German potato salad, too.
Regardless of the night, there are plenty of windows to enjoy a view of Lake Michigan while diningon everything fromthe onion petal appetizer to ice cream drinks.
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Three sisters opened Gib's in 1984. They sold it in 1996 to the Greenfield family who ran ituntil 2007 when, unable to find a buyer, they closed the supper club.
Mark noticed the vacant buildinga couple of years later while walking his dogalong the beach. He thought his restaurant days ended when he and Mary sold their Alexandria, Minnesota, supper club (yes, there are supper clubs outside of Wisconsin, just not as many) to move back to the Manitowoc area to care for his parents.
Still the frantic pace of being in the kitchen and the lure of connecting with diners proved powerful for Mark, whohas been in the restaurant business since he was 14 years old.
“I was considering getting out of the business, but I guess it’s a disease," Mark said with a laugh.
Gib's On The Lake opened under Mark and Mary'smanagement inOctober 2011, though it's not the last of their culinary endeavors. Casa di Amiciin Manitowoc is also a Weston-owned-and-operated restaurant. All the pastaon the Gib'sand Casa menus ismade from scratch in the Gib's kitchen.
At Gib's, the Westons brought what worked at their Minnesota restaurant and appliedit here — with a Wisconsin twist. Namely prime riband Broasted chicken.
Oh, and the Old-Fashioneds, which are evenly split between brandy and whiskey,says Mary.
What does transfer across state lines is the Westons' from-scratch cooking. The french fries, says Mark, are the only items that don't require cutting, dicing, mixing or some other method of in-house preparation.
The prime rib spends about 24 hours slow roasting before the first piece is cut and served. If they don't sell out, look for aspecial the following day in whichthe prime rib is slicedinto steaks and char-broiled.
"(We) move a lot of beef," said Mark. "People love their beef around here."
And count Mark as one the fans. The 14-ounce ribeye steak is at the top of his personal favorites on the menu.
Though if you're partial to sirloin, strip or tenderloin, those options come char-broiled as well.
When it comes to seafood there are plenty of options from scallops and shrimp to walleye nightly and Friday staples like deep-fried perch and cod. Though Gib's will mix it up with salmon, mahi-mahi or Wisconsin whitefish specials.
Platters of food come supper-club sized with you-better-plan-for-leftovers portions, but that doesn't stop customers from ordering apps. Onion petals, giant pieces of deep-fried onions, are popular,says Mary.
From the large platters of food to cheese curds from a local dairy and ice cream drinks, Gib's hits on most of the supper club expectations. The only thing missing is the salad bar or relish trays, but that's getting awful picky.
Gib's takes reservations,though if you prefer to have a couple of cocktails over the course of an houror sobefore dinner, reservations aren't needed.
Getting to Gib's comes with a side of beautiful Wisconsin vistas. It's about 10 miles to the nearest town. The drive either cutsthrough farm fields and forested landsalongtwo-lane roads that dump you out practically on the shores of Lake Michigan or hugs the lake along State 42. Mark says, once Door County vacation season picks up, so does business— especially on Thursday and Friday nights, and Sunday afternoons.
“The lake has been one of ourmost beautiful assets that we have here," Mark said. "We have many people tell us that we have themillion dollarview here and it really is. It is a gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous view of Lake Michigan.”
Gib's On The Lake
- 4-9 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 3-8 p.m. Sunday
- N110 State 42,Kewaunee
- (920) 776-1551
Contact Daniel at (920) 996-7214or dphiggin@gannett.com. Follow himon Twitter and Instagram at @HigginsEats and LinkedIn athttps://www.linkedin.com/in/higginseats/.
