There is so much to do during the day in the Traverse City area but are you looking for something fun to do at night? Try Stevens Place Night Club just off of Garfield in Traverse City. This is not your run of the mill nightclub. This smoke free venue has amazing food, exquisite decor and a professional dance floor. Put on your party dress and dancing shoes and enjoy a great night at Stevens Place.
See recent interview below.

It exudes an air of near-forgotten glory, though far from being abandoned.

“Steven’s Place,” Traverse City’s newest “night club,” located on North Garfield, is a throwback to an era when dinnertime was an event, an experience to be savored and enjoyed, not eaten on the run.

Proprietor Steven Baum spared no expense when working to make his dream a reality, from the “mirano” (Italian glass) mosaic that covers the wall behind the bar, to the black granite and jotaba (Brazilian cherry wood) bar and the furniture imported from the Philippines.

Baum, an inventor by trade, wanted to recreate the nightclubs of the 40s and 50s.

“Everything here is original and real,” he said. “In the days of the old nightclub, the elegance was as important as the service, the food, or the full bar. You’ve got to have first class everything – and that’s what this place is: first class everything.”

Most certainly first-class is the menu. It boasts “everything from seafood to buffalo” said Baum.

Chef Ben Staples cooks everything “fat free, no deep frying, no butter.”

The food, though healthy, is decadent, with sauces such as a burgundy-onion reduction (on the filet mignon), and a Michigan cherry gastrique (served with the Chilean sea bass).

Meats are cooked over an open cherry-wood flame.

“It gives it much more flavor,” Staples said. “Steven wants the community to eat healthy.”

Staples, who learned his art at the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in Pittsburgh, has worked in such local restaurants as Windows and the Boathouse. He also took a sabbatical in Italy.

“I’ve spent a lot of time around. I understand what goes with what,” he said. “One hundred percent of the recipes come from in-house, my sous chef and I.”

Staples features a rotating seasonal menu and is a supporter of local business.

“It keeps us all in business,” he said. “It’s a big thing here to support the local economy. I don’t want to get stuff from California if I can get it here.”

Besides the entrees, desserts feature flavor combinations including a honey-lavender crème brulee and a coconut key lime cake. Even the desserts are healthy. According to the menu, all desserts are cholesterol and saturated fat free.

Steven’s Place also boasts “the largest wine list probably in Michigan,” as well as an extensive bar, Baum said.

Along with the full bar is accomplished wine steward Joseph Salatino, who has worked in restaurants such as Le Cirque in New York City, often considered one of the top restaurants in the world.

“We are so lucky to have a man that is as knowledgeable as he is about wines,” Baum said.

“I’ve worked with wines for about 30 years,” Salatino noted. “My family had their own vineyards in Italy.

“This is a beautiful place with beautiful music.”

The smoke-free restaurant is as much about entertainment and atmosphere as it is about eating a meal.

Not only is live music presented nightly (usually classical grand piano playing old standards), there is a professional dance floor where Baum himself often takes part.

Baum describes the wood floor as “highly technical.” There is “a give to the floor” that allows the invited professional dance troupes to perform to their highest ability.

Salatino calls Baum a “terrific dancer.” A painting next to the “tango table” (the best and most-requested table in the house) is said to actually depict Baum dancing the tango with a partner.

“This is a night out with food, drinking, dancing, and live entertainment,” Staples said. “There are no televisions to distract you. People come here to converse. Imagine yourself as Fred Astaire or Ginger Rogers. This is where you would hang out.”

Baum calls his establishment a place “for the ladies and gentlemen.

“We expect people to be dressed when they come in here,” he said. “It’s trying to be a real – real nightclub before they’re all gone and we lose another icon of entertainment. This was on my bucket list. I’ve been planning this for 50 years.”

For more information about Steven’s Place, call (231) 929-8945.