(269) 857-2185
219 Union St., Douglas, MI 49406
Our last discovery in Saugatuck might be a bit hard to find, but when you do find it, you’ll swear someone put you into a Star Trek teleporter machine and sent you straight to the tropics. It’s called The Red Dock Café, and it’s actually way out on the end of a dock on Kalamazoo Lake. It’s the same dock where you’ll find the Sea Suites. This crazy place is a little bit Jamaican, a little Key West and a whole lotta fun. The atmosphere is relaxed, casual, tropical and the people are super friendly. The food and drinks are phenomenal, too. Just being there made even me feel kinda cool. To get there you can just walk to the end of the dock or do what the local boaters do… float in, tie up and get down.
The man with the plan is Chef Tony Amato, and the Red Dock is a total reflection of his personality and lifestyle. His background was in fine dining, but he woke up one morning and said to his wife, “I want to open a hotdog stand and play music real loud.” They moved to Saugatuck, opened the Red Dock and never looked back. I’ve been going to this area for twenty-five years and never knew the Red Dock existed until now. It’s a well kept secret in these parts and the magic of this place is all word of mouth. And if you’re looking for live original music, it happens there every Sunday from four o’clock until eight o’clock in the evening.
Three things to keep in mind about The Red Dock: they’re only open during the summer (which totally makes sense), they close every night at sundown and the place is cash only. So bring some green.