Modern Bird

“Such a great evening sitting at the kitchen counter. We absolutely loved everything we ordered. Emily was so gracious with her time, answering our questions and chatting about family all while running the service. Great time, great food, an absolute blast to watch the kitchen work. We'll definitely repeat.”

“Food, service, and space were excellent and unique. Small dining floor is brick wall to brick wall in a quaint old building. It’s compact and cozy. Neighbors are close. Atmosphere is loud. Ran into the founder outside upon leaving. Thanked us for coming. Love the hometown feel. Great experience. Highly recommended.”

“We reserved Modern Bird's "Upstairs" private dinning room for 11 adults and three children. We worked with Chef Andy to curate a special menu and they went above and beyond to make our dinner unforgettable! It's a beautiful space and would recommend to anyone looking for private dinning experience in Traverse City.”

“While I didn't love my initial experience at Modern Bird, I genuinely appreciate the owner reaching out afterward. He took the time to understand what happened and made a meaningful effort to make things right, which I respect. Based on that interaction, I will try the restaurant again. That said, our visit itself was not what we expected based on all the positive reviews. The atmosphere was extremely loud - loud enough that it was difficult to have a conversation even when speaking directly across the table. It felt overstimulating and took away from what should have been an enjoyable dinner. I noticed other reviews mention the noise level as well, and some sound dampening would make a meaningful difference. Because the evening started on that note, the rest of the experience had a harder time recovering. The shared plates were good, but more in a "fine" or "solid" sense rather than something memorable. They looked beautiful, and in a quieter, more relaxed setting they may have landed better, but given the atmosphere, they didn't quite make up for it. The steak was the dish we were most excited about - again, it looked beautiful, but we were disappointed by the lack of flavor. Service was friendly, and it was clear the staff cared, but there were some issues with pacing and attentiveness - particularly with water refills - which added to the overall feeling that the experience wasn't quite coming together. The glass of wine I had was the highlight of my meal, and I know the owner puts a lot of care and thought into the wine list. I really did enjoy what I had, but I wish there had been more options for ordering by the glass, as ordering by the bottle makes it harder to find something that fits individual preferences for a couple or small group. Overall, while our first visit didn't meet expectations, I do appreciate the follow up and willingness to make it right. My interaction with the owner left a very positive impression, and it gave me confidence that guest feedback is taken seriously. I'm hopeful that a future visit will better reflect the restaurant's reputation, and I look forward to giving it another try.”

“Nice to try once. I've been to a large portion of our artisan restaurants in the grand traverse region and was very excited to finally try Modern Bird. I decided to take my mom for her birthday since she's been wanting to go for a while. We both came to the same consensus. The food was pretty decent but didn't wow us, prices were high, the servers were pushy/snooty and the atmosphere was crowded, loud and they kept messing with the lights which was annoying. We were the first guests in the restaurant (5pm reservation) that day but they took a very long time to come take our order. It was apparent that the servers only wanted catered to larger tables. It wasn't all bad. They kept our water glasses full, never received refills on our other drinks. The fish was interesting and had good flavor, my steak was cooked perfectly but lacked flavor. The best part of the meal by far was the cake. It structurally looked beautiful, was unique and taste amazing. All in all, I think it's a good place to recommend for tourists.”