21 Best American Restaurants near Nisswa

“Very nice experience. Fantastic food! Outstanding cocktail. Our server, Jenny, was great and extremely helpful.“

“Wow oh wow! How do I even start a review about this place! Everything about this place is mind-blowing! I absolutely love this place; the view is just breathtaking! It almost feels like something you'd see in a movie. There are plenty of seating arrangements, including a more private area for people who want to sit outside but be close to the bar. The seating arrangements are both indoors and outdoors. Plenty of tables from looking out to the lake, some longer tables for bigger parties, and also some tables closer to the doors leading inside the actual restaurant to the indoor seating. There are lights that are close to the door hanging around the back of the building to have more of a romantic feeling to it, which in my opinion really enhancing the feeling of the atmosphere. The server we had was caring and sweet! Even slightly talkative! We even saw a groundhog! The music playing in the background wasn't too loud but there was a lot of good songs playing! I had the nachos. Not a disappointment! One of the best nachos I've ever had! I also had the kitty cocktail! Which really hit the spot! All around the atmosphere was 5/5, service 5/5 view 5/5. She server refilled my drink and was very fast and efficient bringing our food out. Told us we can pay the check and linger if we wanted too! Just all around a really good experience! I will be coming back to this place as soon as I'm in the area again!

Wheelchair accessibility: Unfortunately it's not really wheel chair accessibility. There's stairs on both sides of the building leading to the restaurant. Inside the building there's more stairs to go down to it. Multiple ways. But none for the handicapped ?“

“Great eggs Benedict ( and I’ve worked for years in the restaurant industry). My favorite breakfast place in the Brainerd Lakes area. Plus, they are family owned and run. Love it!“

“Great food and service! We had the shrimp tacos and a Reuben. Both were excellent. Very good tap list and drinks as well.“

“We may have higher expectations for the food or we didn’t select the best menu items which evidently is the pork chop. At any rate we appreciated being seated by Pat and told what is good and also the history of the building.
I ordered a Cosmo but immediately knew it wouldn’t be great. It was red vs light pink. Oh well?‍♀️
Ordered popovers for the four of us. They were good. Here’s the menu items we had - the flatiron steak (chewy), shrimp scampi but must order angel hair pasta as a side otherwise it comes with nothing, the Pot Pie - very good crust but mostly vegetables and less chicken.
It was a very slow night - only 4 tables of diners. Maybe that impacts the kitchen.
We did appreciated the quiet atmosphere but not the flies that decided to dine on our food while we were eating.“

“We went to Sunshine’s for supper Wednesday night and had the pizza. It was the best ever. I usually don’t eat the crust but this crust was tender and good. Looking forward to our next visit.“

“Excellent! Highly recommend. Charming place with great food“

“Awesome place with the best food!“

“So much fun!!!! Thank you Mary for the great time!“

“If you are coming to the Brainerd Lakes area a visit to Ernie's is a must. They represent what we are about up here: water, beautiful settings in nature and some of the best food you can find. Their creativity, presentation, and taste exceed the norm. Do not miss Ernie's!“

“The service in the morning breakfast are excellent A+++ but not at the dinner time, our server was just so so. However the food was very good, especially my surf and turf was excellent. The best prime rib ever, the lobster was very good also.“

“Excellent service, great selections, delicious food, and gorgeous wooded setting. My sunfish appetizers were fantastic!“

“We are a young family and have been here twice, once for a work trip for my company and more recently with our 3 young kids as a family trip.

Cannot recommend this place enough, and we're thinking this is going to be our new family tradition for the summers.“

“My girlfriend and I ate there last night. We don’t eat out often but this was the best food at a restaurant that we have had since last year in Buffalo Wyoming. Costs were extremely reasonable and portions were large. I had the beef brisket dinner and girlfriend pulled pork. Bbq chicken wings nice and crispy. I would eat here all the time if I lived up North“

“We were so happy to find this new restaurant. The food was amazing ( especially the butternut squash). There are unique menu options and the service was fabulous. I highly recommend this restaurant and, next time we are in the Brainerd area we will be going there again !“

“Absolutely best restaurant I’ve been to in Minnesota. I wish they had the classic grill in the cities, but it’s always a special treat coming to our lake home and getting the experience of eating here. The food is phenomenal, the staff is amazing and the atmosphere is unmatched. Every time I visit, I can count on trying one of the new menu items and being in awe of the flavors and presentation. The favorite orders of our group were the Indonesian chicken satay appetizer, the chef’s risotto, and the truffle citrus scallops. My attached picture won’t do it justice, but the presentation of the meals is so unique. If they had Michelin star restaurants in Minnesota, this would for sure be the running. Maddens resort is truly the best location in the brainerd area.“

“Great food experience. My advice is to book a reservation. The place is packed through out the evening. The food, the staff and location was great. Try the local artisan bread and burnt butter. You will love it.

Well dob“

“Breakfast Skillet! Ordered milk & it came in a chilled glass, super nice“

“One waitress was absolutely the best the hostess couldn’t be bothered“

“Beautiful patio, delicious food and friendly service. it doesn't get better than that! My favorite place Up North❣️“

“The restaurant was one of the options of the meal plan at Madden’s and it far exceeded expectations. Meal was 3 course and food was outstanding. The service from Helena from Brainerd and Paul from Jamaica was superb. They both were knowledgeable, attentive, and extremely friendly. They both made the experiences wonderful. Only rated a four star as they are not open on Monday and some of the nights the service was very slow. Also if you are planning on getting the upgraded options such as the ribeye, they will run out if you eat later.“