Heads up Fall travellers headed to Ely...beginning today (Wednesday September 5th) the Ely Steak House will be closed on Wednesdays until further notice.

Plan ahead if you need a Bucky Burger fix.

I guess I now know what day my trips will not end on, until further notice.

Hey! When did BW become a MOD??
Thanks for spending the time...

Thanks for the heads-up. We may be there on Sat, Sept 22. Although it's the Prime Rib Crisper here :-)

This can not be true. Good thing I had a Bucky about month ago

Remodling? Change of ownership? Staff on vacation? What's going on?

I’ll be honest, which may not be popular, but whatever, it seemed to me that the establishment is a tad musty, maybe needs a redo in some way. Maybe all around. I don’t mean to say, I’m just sayin. Burger was ok, but I wouldn’t go back for that given the other opportunities in town. Best of lu k.
Cheers, scat

I'm sure they are closing on Wednesday for staffing and due to less business after Labor Day .

Truth be told Ely is pretty quiet after the canoe season. As a resident of Ely we look forward to less traffic, getting into restaurants quickly, no lines and plenty of parking at Zups and finding a place to park on Sheridan any time we want with no time restriction after Labor Day and before Memorial Day.

During the off season Ely businesses have a hard time justfying being open long hours and every day based on just the local customers. Many businesses close all winter and if anyone has been to Ely lately you can see all the vacant store fronts and many others up for sale. If the tourist economy was as good as some state there would be more business and longer hours even in the off season. It's a tough place to do business with pretty much the entire year made on what you do from Memorial Day to Labor Day or just 4 months.

Amen Bro!!!
Certain groups give a false impression that Ely and surrounding area is July traffic year around, and that is where they get the inflated figures about the economic impact that tourism has on northern Minnesota.

Do they still have the piano in the Ely Steak house?
I used to play that regurlarly when I visited Ely from Isabella, havn't been to the Steak House in 10 - 15 years.

Hmmm, perhaps it was your playing that started the Exodus out the door and hasn't stopped yet!!
Bwahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!! :)

The Great Outdoors: "Amen Bro!!!
Certain groups give a false impression that Ely and surrounding area is July traffic year around, and that is where they get the inflated figures about the economic impact that tourism has on northern Minnesota.
"

I'm not from Ely, and I love the BWCA, but maybe a new economic resource could help the town....

Any time other types of employment are suggested for the Ely area, it's quickly eliminated through a lawsuit.
Even the tourism industry has been severely hampered by legislation over the last 60-70 years, so it is a mere shadow of what it used to be.
Interestingly enough, one of the leading advocates fighting increases in tourism, had a father that owned a Canoe Outfitter with about 1,000 canoes in the woods on his best weekend. He owned 650 of his own canoes, and borrowed the rest when needed.
She never quite seems to acknowledge that fact.

My husband and I went to the Ely steak house this past Thursday. We thought we wouldn't need a reservation since its past Labor Day. Wrong! There is the Harvest Moon festival going on through today and there are some people in town, but nothing like the Blueberry festival. However, the Ely Steak house was packed Thursday night. We got a seat in the bar unfortunately our waiter was the bartender and he quickly forgot about us. It was obvious they hadn't expected to be so busy and looked short handed on staff. When we first walked in the host remarked, "Is this the only place open tonight?" We decided it was too busy so we paid for our drinks and went to Sir G's for a great pizza! Better service and better atmosphere, IMO.

The Great Outdoors: "Hmmm, perhaps it was your playing that started the Exodus out the door and hasn't stopped yet!!
Bwahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!! :)"

Very possible if you would ask my piano teacher :-)

That is probably why I started tuning piano's, I actually make money doing that.

The good places to eat will be a little busier on weekends and even more so during the few festivals. If I am in Ely eating with people from out of town I let them know that this and we might have to wait a little longer then during the week.

It is hard to hire "good" people to work three hours on Friday and Saturday for only three months a year. If crowds, waiting and people bother you go out to eat early, late or even better during the week. It works for me.

Sometimes Ely moves at a more relaxed pace. That's part of why I love Ely.

I’m not a huge fan of pizza, but that Sir Gs was the best I have had. Thin crust to perfection. That was one of the few times in memory that I was enjoying a pie to the last piece. Usually I’m good after two pieces. That was tasty.

I thought hawbaker did a good layed back thing and mosied over to Sir Gs. I'm glad to hear the steak house was doing well. Always good to hit different places for dinner... Plenty of good places to eat in and around Ely.

Hi, I just wanted to share my Steak House thoughts. I own another restaurant in town, but not here to promote that. I've been casually reading this board since the turn of the century. ;)

When I first started lurking, I lived in Michigan, but I knew I would live in Ely some day. I am not really a BWCA girl -- not, er, athletic -- but I found this board and reading the posts made me feel closer to where I wanted to be. I knew there were other people who shared my dream of being there, my goosebumps over pulling into town, I had the worst homesickness ever over for a place I'd never officially lived.

Periodically, I search for a mention of my restaurant here, because it makes me feel like I've made it if any of you have visited. It's the little things.

Anyhow, I love the Steak House! It's my preferred karaoke spot, and they're great people. A lot of restaurants here struggling with the small pool of employees, and the reduced traffic in the off season. We all get kind of creative. As some of you have noticed, we had/have 3 fewer restaurants this year, but a lot of us are still in the game.

I once saw a proposal at the Steak House. I've often had 1 too many at the Steak House. People there pretend my singing is better than it is. The Steak House is an Ely, MN mainstay.

Thank you for visiting Ely, thank you for keeping a girl's dream alive until she could make it a reality, although calling her a girl these days would be stretching it.

If this post crosses any lines, I'll understand it's deletion.

Had a karaoke moment myself this past late June. Springsteen, " BORN TO RUN".
I've had record label's approach me but I choose to remain retired .that was at the Steak House..

Well Elyishome, I’ve eaten at the Boathouse and Insula the last two nights. Maybe one of those helps you feel better. As a vegetarian, the Steakhouse is not my place and karaoke isn’t drawing me in either.

Seems like the steakhouse has a lot of fans here so I may have to try it one of these days? But, Sir G's, well that pizza and the service just cannot be beat!

andym: "Well Elyishome, I’ve eaten at the Boathouse and Insula the last two nights. Maybe one of those helps you feel better. As a vegetarian, the Steakhouse is not my place and karaoke isn’t drawing me in either. "

Ha, when people spend time and money in Ely, I'm happy.

Have you eaten at Organic Roots? I think it gets less attention because it's on Chapman, but good place for a vegetarian.

I genuinely like all the restaurants in Ely. 3 restaurants closed recently -- Two Gringos, Taste of Ely, and Chocolate Moose -- but there are still nice options.

ozarkpaddler: "Seems like the steakhouse has a lot of fans here so I may have to try it one of these days? But, Sir G's, well that pizza and the service just cannot be beat!"

Sir G's actually has new owners!

I’ve shopped at Organic Roots but haven’t eaten there.

Also had a couple of lunches at the Front Porch because we both needed to get some work done. So we enjoyed the good food and excellent internet access.

And as Bogwalker said, it’s a lot quieter than the summer and I imagine it gets even quieter once actual winter sets in.

andym: "I’ve shopped at Organic Roots but haven’t eaten there.

Also had a couple of lunches at the Front Porch because we both needed to get some work done. So we enjoyed the good food and excellent internet access.

And as Bogwalker said, it’s a lot quieter than the summer and I imagine it gets even quieter once actual winter sets in. "

It's a different experience this time of year, for sure. We've had a busy fall, but busy is a relative term. I love the spanokopita/spinach pie at Front Porch.

Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)

The Great Outdoors: "Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)"

Anything is possible. ;)

ElyisHome: "

The Great Outdoors: "Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)"

Anything is possible. ;)"

We have eaten there. Cute place, good food. Our granddaughter loves cheese, so it fits for her.

ElyisHome: "

The Great Outdoors: "Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)"

Anything is possible. ;)"

If there is one piece of advice I'd give to restaurants in Ely - for those of us who have dietary restrictions in our families - we have to research ahead of time which restaurants have food that we can eat...so note it on your website! I looked at Gator's online before our trip and it didn't say anything about GF bread available. As we came out the BWCA and were starving, we realized quickly that there was only one restaurant open that had advertised GF bread or GF options online. I called Gator's just to check, and indeed they had GF bread...but apologized that they had just run out! Bummer! Now that we know, we will indeed visit next time, for sure!

scotttimm: "

ElyisHome: "

The Great Outdoors: "Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)"

Anything is possible. ;)"

If there is one piece of advice I'd give to restaurants in Ely - for those of us who have dietary restrictions in our families - we have to research ahead of time which restaurants have food that we can eat...so note it on your website! I looked at Gator's online before our trip and it didn't say anything about GF bread available. As we came out the BWCA and were starving, we realized quickly that there was only one restaurant open that had advertised GF bread or GF options online. I called Gator's just to check, and indeed they had GF bread...but apologized that they had just run out! Bummer! Now that we know, we will indeed visit next time, for sure!"

I imagine Gator's will be updating their site shortly. I imagine.

As well as having gluten-free bread, I've heard a rumor you can get any sandwich made into a salad or served on a potato, and that there's a cauliflower crust option for the pizza.

ElyisHome: "

scotttimm: "

ElyisHome: "

The Great Outdoors: "Elyishome-Could your place be Gators???? (sp?)"

Anything is possible. ;)"

If there is one piece of advice I'd give to restaurants in Ely - for those of us who have dietary restrictions in our families - we have to research ahead of time which restaurants have food that we can eat...so note it on your website! I looked at Gator's online before our trip and it didn't say anything about GF bread available. As we came out the BWCA and were starving, we realized quickly that there was only one restaurant open that had advertised GF bread or GF options online. I called Gator's just to check, and indeed they had GF bread...but apologized that they had just run out! Bummer! Now that we know, we will indeed visit next time, for sure!"

I imagine Gator's will be updating their site shortly. I imagine.


As well as having gluten-free bread, I've heard a rumor you can get any sandwich made into a salad or served on a potato, and that there's a cauliflower crust option for the pizza. "

Those are great things to hear, thanks for passing that along! We look forward to trying out Gator's next time, and recommending them to others!

ElyisHome: "Hi, I just wanted to share my Steak House thoughts. I own another restaurant in town, but not here to promote that. I've been casually reading this board since the turn of the century. ;)


When I first started lurking, I lived in Michigan, but I knew I would live in Ely some day. I am not really a BWCA girl -- not, er, athletic -- but I found this board and reading the posts made me feel closer to where I wanted to be. I knew there were other people who shared my dream of being there, my goosebumps over pulling into town, I had the worst homesickness ever over for a place I'd never officially lived.


Periodically, I search for a mention of my restaurant here, because it makes me feel like I've made it if any of you have visited. It's the little things.


Anyhow, I love the Steak House! It's my preferred karaoke spot, and they're great people. A lot of restaurants here struggling with the small pool of employees, and the reduced traffic in the off season. We all get kind of creative. As some of you have noticed, we had/have 3 fewer restaurants this year, but a lot of us are still in the game.


I once saw a proposal at the Steak House. I've often had 1 too many at the Steak House. People there pretend my singing is better than it is. The Steak House is an Ely, MN mainstay.


Thank you for visiting Ely, thank you for keeping a girl's dream alive until she could make it a reality, although calling her a girl these days would be stretching it.


If this post crosses any lines, I'll understand it's deletion. "

Thanks for sharing your partial story! I hadn't been to Ely in 20 years and came up late August, been back 2 more times since camping. Absolutely loved it. Was in my blood also and like it brought me back. Will be making a late fall / winter trip. Never realized how much i missed just breathing the air and driving around Ely area!! Thanks again for sharing your story

Bob