MUSKEGON, Mich. — It's been an unpredictable but unbelievable journey for Michelle Harris and Fred Scharmer. The married couple took a risk by purchasing a beachfront space in Muskegon back in 2014 and have since turned it into a booming restaurant.
“I've always worked in restaurants, and he did as well," said Harris, a Muskegon native. "We just have always loved the restaurant business. We're passionate about it and knew that we wanted to move home.”
Now they're making waves by the waves. The Deck is the only beachfront restaurant in Muskegon. They've owned it for eight years now, and made a major expansion two years ago.
"We have entertainment seven days a week, twice on Saturdays and Sundays," said Harris. "We have [an] assortment of games — checkers, foosball, bags. There's swings for people. The kids love the swings when they come. We have swing tables down below. There's just a little bit of something for everybody to do.”
The experience is special, but the food alone could win anyone over. Since barbecue food can't really be made-to-order, almost all the work has to be done the night before.
“We do overnight smoking," said Harris. "We smoke all day and all overnight. [We] smoke thousands and thousands of pounds of meat a day. We have a full-time prep crew down in the basement [and] their whole job is just prep.”
They say "summer is never a bummer" at The Deck, and it looks like people agree. The restaurant recently won the Muskegon Chamber's 2022 Tourism of Excellence Award.