bavarian inn restaurant castle shops

The castle bakery is wonderful we bought German chocolate and chocolate chunk brownies for our anniversary they were the most moist and chewy brownies I have ever had. All the items they had for sale looked delicious and they were very reasonably priced $2.25 each. would highly recommend them.

Our daughter built a bear at the toy shop and the staff was great! Our daughter loved it! They were very friendly at all of the shops we went to.

We would make this trip to Frankenmuth almost every year when we lived in lower Michigan. Since moving to the Southwest US, I hadn't been to Frankenmuth in over 20 years. I expected to find it changed; but not the venerable Bavarian Inn! First off, we felt like cattle being herded through (and it wasn't that crowded, since it was right after New Year). It was as if the staff was used to huge crowds of people and just sees them as cattle to be moved from one place to another, fed and then released! There were 11 of us and we were seated in a comfortable, roomy area and that was about as good as it got. The waitress was curt and unfriendly. When we asked her what our dining options were, she just kept repeating that "the best deal is the all-you-can-eat-family-style dinner"; but that wasn't what many of us were looking for. When I told her I couldn't "eat all that food" and would probably only want ONE piece of chicken, she just repeated that tired phrase. After ordering, my son discovered that they had a "chicken plate" which gave us all we wanted...with only ONE piece of chicken. So, we called her back and changed our orders...she was actually angry! The food was simply "OK"...the chicken, of course, was the best; but the sides were not very tasty (pasty stuffing, too thick gravy, too tart cranberry sauce and watery squash). Two of our party got the combo meal with chicken, wienerschnitzel and sauerbraten and were soooo disappointed. The chicken was fine; but the two meats were tough and chewy and seemed like they had been prepared hours earlier, reheated and slapped onto the plate. I have to say, though, that we thought the downstairs BAKERY was very good. We brought home a pie and a loaf of cinnamon nut bread and they were very good.

We came to Frankenmuth hoping to buy some German clothing, music, pastry etc. We looked high and low and other then some beer mugs, beer stines and nick nacks, there was no German clothing or music to be found anywhere in Frankenmuth. We did however find a Irish store selling anything you could think of and a Scottish store that sold kilts and bagpipes. And we thought Frankenmuth was German????

great german food great service good people they also have some other dishes that is not german but i would try the german food while in town

My parents brought us here since the 60s. We go to Frankenmuth several times a year - mostly for the wonderful food at the Bavarian Inn. The sauerbraten is particularly wonderful. The chicken is always a hit and the appetizer salads and soup are phenomenal. It is hearty fare but a welcome after shopping for 3 hours through Bronners. Highly Recommended! And I will be back soon!

Got to get the family style chicken dinner every time I visit. A bit pricey but well worth it in the long run.

We were thrilled to find the Castle Shops since it was windy and cold out. There is a little bit of everything - candy, chocolate, bakery, beer & wine, toys, souvenirs, jewelry, etc. Every employee we encountered was very pleasant. The prices did reflect the tourist area, but there was a nice variety.

I have always loved Frankenmuth and it's "Christmas Town" atmosphere which is why when speaking to a Bavarian Inn employee a few weeks ago I was shocked to learn that they are open on Christmas and also Thanksgiving. Now I know lots of other places are open on holidays, but I cannot fathom why this place is.I joked with the employee, "Hey, at least if you have to work you get some sweet holiday pay!" They responded with a simple "No, we actually don't get holiday pay." WHAT!? Not only does this company force their employees to work on holidays, they don't even give them a decent amount of money for it. After a while of continued conversation, I found out that not only are they open for these major holidays, they are open for all the other ones, also. The employee informed me they are only closed one day a year. Huh? You do not run a business that is necessary to be open all the time, Bavarian Inn. You are a TOURIST restaurant and shop. You are not a hospital. I have always supported your restaurant even though the food was mediocre and overpriced and these shops even though the merchandise is clearly marked up for tourists because I thought I was supporting the local community. Turns out, this may not actually be the case. I write this review in the hopes that the sweet employee I talked to gets the holiday pay they deserve!

My husband and I visited the shops twice during our stay. The souvenirs were a bit nicer here. We loved the wine shop. You are able to purchase samples for 25 cents. We ended up purchasing the chocolate wine and the Bavarian Inn Cranberry wine. The bakery was incredible and offered a wide variety of choices. You can purchase the Stollen bread and the chicken seasoning used in the Bavarian Inn Restaurant in this area. Beautiful items, reasonably priced. The sugar free chocolates are great too.

always find something different there for my grandchildren and the prices are so reasonable plus I get perk points when I shop there

It's packed down there, but quaint. Candy, stollen, das boots, candy thermometers... whatever you need, you can find in the castle shops. Eat a snack. Buy a present. Go early ... this place gets BUSY.

We and some family and friends continue to to go on an annual basis to the Bavarian Inn Lodge for the Octoberfest. Every one enjoys the good food, shopping at the gift stores and the great service from the helpful and courteous staff.

About a month ago we bought tickets to an event called "What would Lucy do?" This was to be held in the Crest Room of the Bavarian Inn and starred Suzanne LaRousch, an experienced Lucille Ball impersonator. Tickets were $40/ea and included a chicken luncheon, non-alcoholic beverage, desert and of course the show. All seats were assigned by management and we were told they were assigned on the basis of how soon tickets were ordered. Funny, the man next to me ordered his yesterday. Imagine our dismay when we were escorted to our seats and discovered several large floor-to-ceiling mirrored pillars blocking our view of center stage...Seats were arranged in "bunkhouse" fashion where everyone sat at long tables. The tables were arranged perpendicular to the stage , which meant you either had to turn your head to the left or the right to view the show. In our case we would be turning to the right, our view of center stage being blocked by these pillars. We complained to the server and was told "sometimes she doesn't stay in the center so you should be able to see her ok". When the show began we soon discovered we were only seeing about half of what was going on...the pillars blocked the rest. Finally we moved to seats further from the stage, away from our table and turned these seats to face the stage. Even then we had to keep ducking and dodging to see anything.... Very disappointed in our visit there....other people expressed the same concerns as we did...Not a good venue to see a show. Go to Frankenmuth for the food, but don't waste money trying to see a show that is partially obstructed.

The shops downstairs are an excellent place to stock on your German staples such as Spaetzle and Stollen (spellings?) There is an incredible wine selection with an emphasis on great German wines. I recommend the Rieslings!