Mendon Country Inn: Home Cooking in River Country

By Kiel Christianson, Senior Writer

MENDON, MI - The front door of the Mendon Country Inn is precisely half way between Chicago and Detroit. The inn was the major stagecoach stop between the two young metropolises from 1843 until the 1880s, and around it grew such a thriving town that Mendon (changed from Puddleburg to sound more sophisticated) was chosen originally as the site for Notre Dame University.

Although Mendon itself is no longer the hub of activity it once was (current pop. 702), the Mendon Country Inn still welcomes road-weary (and world-weary) travelers with cozy beds, historic décor, and lavish breakfasts, and it serves as the perfect home-base for exploring all of the pleasures that River Country has to offer.

Two years ago, Geff and Cheryl Clarke first visited the Mendon Country Inn, and soon thereafter, they took over the operations. Such is the spell of peace and well-being that this historic inn casts.

Geff even tells of clergy who have laid their hands on the staircase banister to absorb some of the sacred aura. Here, guests are swept into another time, before television and cell phones, when folks could sit on a long front porch or around a hearth and a piano and get to know each other, and in the process, get to know themselves a little better.

The inn is an historic landmark, built in 1873 (after the original inn, dating back to 1843, burned) from bricks made of clay dredged from the very spot on which it now stands. Geff reminds guests that the history of the town began long before the inn, however-the Ojibwe and Potowatomi settled the site as far back as the 1200s.

Several areas of the inn are devoted to passing on the Native heritage of the area, especially the Creekside Lodge, a newer, separate portion of the inn that is decorated with a variety of Native art.

Geff and Cheryl are quick to point out that they are relative newcomers to River Country, and their wonder and excitement about the place is not only obvious, it's infectious.

Originally from South Africa, where they ran a game reserve and guided big game hunting safaris, the Clarkes have adapted amazingly well to the much more subdued lifestyle of SW Michigan. The couple have formed close friendships with the large local Amish community, and the inn regularly arranges for interested guests to visit Amish homes and partake in dinners with some of the larger, local families.

Highlights of the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons at the inn are enormous, lavish dinners prepared jointly with the Clarkes in Amish homes.

Geff is a classically trained chef who describes himself as a gourmand, in other words, "a gourmet glutton." Each morning, guests are tempted with a cornucopia of breakfast delights, including-if you're lucky-a layered Southwestern creation that is a cross between soufflé and omelet, and which simply must be tasted to be believed. Other treats include waffles, French toast, and homemade pastries and breads.

It isn't often that you can sit down with an innkeeper who can share with you the recipe for a traditional Amish meatloaf as easily as he can instruct you in field-dressing a wildebeest, but if you're interested in either one, or pretty much any topic in between, take some time and chat with Geff. He and Cheryl are also extremely knowledgeable about the attractions of River Country, and will be more than happy to point you in any direction you'd like to go.

From the inn itself, Geff runs canoeing excursions down the river that runs through Mendon, and you can also rent bikes if you prefer a drier tour. Remarkably, River Country is one of those increasingly rare places where all of the pieces are in place to create a big, splashy, resort, except for the resort itself.

Here you have rivers and lakes, literally hundreds of antique shops, Amish bakeries and craft shops, and all manner of local stores, historical attractions, and golf (Island Hills Golf Club-see accompanying review), but no actual resort. And this is the great charm of the place: You get to escape the generic hotel/motel scene and experience the uniqueness and charm of B & Bs like the Mendon Country Inn.

Geff and Cheryl have 18 rooms: 11 in the historic inn (all of which feature antique furnishings and decorations), 5 in the Creekside Lodge (with private Jacuzzi tubs and shared fireplace/kitchen/sauna/recreation areas), and 2 cottages (each with its own fireplace and Jacuzzi). But, should they be booked during the time you'd like to explore River Country, other alternatives exist, including Christmere House Inn (Sturgis, 888-651-8303), the Sanctuary at Wildwood (Jones, 800-249-5910), and Palmer Lake B & B (Colon, 616-432-4498).

Specific "musts" in the region include the Nottawa Fruit Farm, where you'll find some animals to pet, homegrown produce from beans to berries, and some of the most amazing pies and cookies you have ever tasted. You might also want to traverse the longest remaining covered bridge in Michigan, and take in "The Magic Capitol of the World," Colon, MI, adopted hometown of one of the greatest illusionists of all time, Harry Blackstone. And of course, you can play some great golf at Island Hills Golf Club in Centreville.

Area restaurants of note include the Bistro Rio (entrees $13-19) across the street from the Mendon Country Inn, Cheer's Pub (try the pork chops), River Lake Inn in Colon (be sure to take time to wander through the butterfly and hummingbird sanctuary on the grounds either before or after you try their fabulous seafood), and Rocky River Café in Three Rivers (the Latvian porter goes well with the mustard-encrusted tuna steak).

I dare say that once you fall under the spell of the Mendon Country Inn, you will not want to leave-just ask the inn's more "permanent" residents, if you happen to bump into one of them (or, more likely, they into you). Geff and Cheryl will do all they can to make you feel not only a part of their family, but also of the families of the other guests: When's the last time you just sat down and chatted with someone new, anyway?

Mendon Country Inn is located in the heart of River Country, just 1 hour from Kalamazoo and South Bend, 30 minutes from Shipshewana and Elkhart, 1½ hours from Ft. Wayne, Lansing and Ann Arbor, 2 hours from Toledo and Chicago, and 2½ hours from Detroit. Room rates range from $69 to $139 per night, and various package rates (golf, canoeing, winter/holiday, romantic getaways) are available.

Phone Geff and Cheryl Clarke at 616-496-8132 or 800-304-3366 or e-mail at vasame@aol.com. You can also find more information about the inn at www.rivercountry.com/mci and about the area in general at www.rivercountry.com.

August 28, 2000