The Sugar Bear

Fun stop on I-​94. If you’re heading between Detroit & Chicago, and need a quick fun food break, I’d recommend The Sugar Bear. Friendly staff, fun colorful décor, good soups and healthy food (along with some not healthy stuff and ice cream, if you prefer that sort of stuff). Great for families and kids too. A nice find among small towns bet Chi & Det.

Just swinging by on the way to Chicago. Chad our server and the son of the owner, was very friendly and polite. The food was what I was expecting for a small ice cream/​burger joint. Well prepared and flavorful. The fries were crispy and hit the spot.
The iced tea had a very strange flavor. I couldn’t finish it. My only real complaint is that the burger is really not worth the $ 8.99. I work in a high end burger tavern and we don’t even charge $ 9 for a burger. Let alone $ 3 for a mini 6oz. Cup of soup.
But it was a nice stop.

A local institution, it’s been around since the 1970s and it’s still much the same as it was when I was a kid in the 80s. As an adult vegan, these days I appreciate their dairy-​free ice cream and vegan food options more than their Blue Moon or Banana Splits, and they have gained a reputation for catering to those with special diets.
The menu is pretty clear on what’s veg, vegan, gluten-​free, etc., and I think they serve some meat options from a local meat processor, which shows more thoughtfulness than your average restaurant. Soups are quite good and the Quinoa wrap is maybe my favorite thing on the vegan menu. I am a bit chuffed that they’d charge an add’l $ 1.50 on top of an $ 8 – 9 burger to use a vegan Ope’s patty. That being said, this is the only business in PP that’s gone out of its way to advertise to vegans and I appreciate that.
I’d like to give five stars, however I’ve found the food good but not exceptional, and I really don’t care for the heavily-pastel’d, day-​care like atmosphere. If you’re a parent with young kids (admittedly probably the bulk of their business) it would probably feel quite inviting, but I’m a curmudgeon who doesn’t particularly like kids or kid-​themed décor. The mostly-​teenaged staff are friendly and the owner goes out of her way to give great customer service. Free wi-​fi and good people-​watching in the summer.

I’ve been here several times with my kiddos and always had an ok experience. Big selection of ice cream, reasonable prices, etc. But my major complaint is that every time I’ve been here tables are dirty, sticky, etc. and the carpet has a smell. I know it’s an older place but still. Probably an ice cream shop with carpeted floors isn’t the best idea. Yuck. There is a toy section but honestly I don’t let my kids over there, looks dirty. Tbh-I’ve never eaten their food, but I have heard good things about it. I’m. Sure we’ll be back simply out of convenience.

Have been eating ice cream there since 1977! My first job in high school. It’s a family tradition. Go there when in town from Texas. All had a good time during grape and wine fest

We visited Sugar Bear today for at least the fourth time. We just had comes today and the ice cream was delicious and the prices were very reasonable. On this visit we didn’t have any food although we have in the past and the food was very good.
One of our friends is vegan and this is one of the few restaurants we’re aware of with a good selection of choices for her and they always look delicious.
Unfortunately, today’s visit was marked by some poor service on what I’m assuming was the owner. Being the Sunday before Labor Day and a hot night it was quite busy (which should be no surprise). In fact the whole time we were there there were at least five families in each line. They had five people serving and the customers all seemed pleasant, however the woman running the restaurant was not. We witnessed her getting snippy with a customer who ordered a flavor of ice cream that had run out and broke a poor girls heart who had tipped them and was waiting for her song (as promised by the tip jar). She was abruptly informed that there would be no singing tonight.
It’s too bad that the service was sub par as we really like sugar bear. We’ll visit again and hopefully a better visit will allow me to update this review.

The Sugar Bear is a must visit! Perfect atmosphere with the greatest ice cream! Every time I’m in town, it’s first on my list of places to visit. They also have a bomb g-​free menu!

Don’t let appearances deceive you, this place is a hidden gem. My sister has a severe gluten allergy and a restaurant where she can order nearly everything on the menu is a rarity. The food was delicious, but the real standout was our server Jamie. She was exceptionally friendly and accommodating. She really went above and beyond to confirm that everything my sister had was gluten free and safe for her to eat. We will definitely be going back!

Very disappointing visit today. Stood at the register for SEVEN minutes waiting for the server to finish what he was doing before he bothered to help me place a lunch order for me and my 3 young boys. I ordered 3 hot dogs and a kid’s chicken fingers meal, plus 3 milks and a soft drink. 30 minutes later, we were still waiting. No food, no drink, no explanation, nothing. Ridiculous. This was at approximately 12:45 in the afternoon. Our food arrived after a 40 minute wait. I paid $ 27 for lukewarm hot dogs and undercooked chicken fingers. Had to ask for silverware and for our drinks. Server was nice, though obviously used to making excuses for The Sugar Bear’s crappy management. The server offered us free ice cream as an apology from the owner, but we passed and got dessert elsewhere. What was supposed to be a fun, special summer outing with my kids turned frustrating, sad, and disgusting. I would love to support a well run, family friendly bit of local flavor, but sadly, The Sugar Bear isn’t it. Overpriced, dirty, with a poorly run kitchen. We won’t be back.

I was not impressed with the meal that I got for the price. The menu had one price listed but they charged me more plus extra for the gluten free bun –which I did not request. (They also didn’t state they charged extra for that option on the menu. The side I chose was the cottage cheese which came in a dip cup –too small to be considered a side order. Overall I could have made this sandwich better at home for a cheaper price. I’m glad they have healthy options but not for the price and the product that was given. I have been in for regular and gluten free ice-​cream and that part has always been good.

Great ice cream for the kids, soups and salads are aces. Sandwiches are fantastic. Very unexpected find in paw paw.

It’s a very cute little place. Lots of tables inside and out. It wasn’t overly busty and the staff was friendly. They had NO waffle cones and that was upsetting. It was a Sunday and they were very busy the day before, I heard a staff member tell the customer before me. I had blue moon and my boyfriend had pumpkin pie. Both exceptional. The place has a big menu for both ice cream and food but the cleanliness could use a little work. It’s old, and a bit run down. It makes the ambiance fun, but it is still a restaurant and needs to be clean.

Awesome ice cream and it’s nice to have a place in town have gluten free and vegetarian options for my friends and family.

Lots of vegan options, which can be hard to find in Paw Paw, MI. Ice cream treats are super. Try the maple bacon sundae. It tastes like waffles and bacon covered in maple syrup, but cool and creamy at the same time. Really tasty!

A surprising little spot.
The Hubster and I were driving back home from Chicago and decided to stop into Paw Paw for a quick bite and coffee to keep us awake. The town looked pretty neat so we drove past the initial fast food joints that dot the street near the highway.
This place looked neat so we stopped in. I got a burger and coke, he got an ice cream and coffee. The ice cream was good, everything else was just okay. Service was very very friendly, and they had free wifi, which is like gold when you’re on data roaming.
I kind of regret not getting one of their vegetarian/​vegan choices, since that stuff seems to be pretty tough to find whenever I visit the US.
The place has outdoor seating and an area for little kids to play in. It’s a pretty great spot for taking a break from driving.

The Sugar Bear is a bit of an enigma — it’s a fast food joint, it’s an ice cream shop, and it’s a specialty-​diet restaurant. This results in an odd convergence of customers whose paths might not normally cross. One table full of kids eating sundaes after soccer practice beside a table holding a vegan couple out on a date. Somehow, it works.
I’ve enjoyed a bunch of their vegetarian and vegan fare. Nothing was mindblowing or gourmet, but it’s nice to know that there’s a restaurant *somewhere* around here that caters to the highbrow-​ethics/​lowbrow-​tastebuds mentality. Even vegans need a chili dog sometimes.

We come here when we are on vacation. The ice cream is good and the burgers one one of the best I have ever had the staff is friendly and they can adjust foods for alergys and diets

The plus side they DO have gluten free food and vegan/​vegetarian food. (my family is vegetarian and gluten free) If you like pre packaged bland food to be heated up in a microwave or have no other place to get a gluten free or vegan lunch then by all means stop on in. The website and facebook sites act as though they know what they are doing, but I warn you this place is run by teens and they have NO clue about the food. Scary if you are looking to avoid cross contamination. The prices are pretty good, but the food is so-​so and no frills (aka dumped from a can).
The décor is putrid. The staff are pretty unknowledgeable and all very young, they will be laughing and joking with their friends and I had a hard time knowing who was working there and who wasn’t. (they were all nice enough though)
I have been there a handful of times, the ice cream is very much over priced (oh and they weigh it out and will accually scoop teaspoons off your cone and put it back if it is over the weight!). They also had a difficult time understanding the concept of cross-​contamination with the gluten cones coming in contact with the «gluten free» ice cream.

The room was like a rainbow barfed inside. Too much clutter. Furniture was rather inappropriate and placed in strange places.
Food was okay. I’m vegan and they have tons for us! But the food presentation and the fact that we got simple lays potato chips just screamed low value.
A tour bus came in right as we got there. The place was swimming with kids and tourists. Very loud. With all that in play it was too small of an area. We finished our ice cream (vegan too, straight out of a Soy Delicious box) in the car.

This review stands for the ice cream alone. If I am back in the area again sometime I’d totally stop in to try some food too. A crazy adorable place. A co-​worker thought (based on the name alone) that maybe this was a gay bar, methinks she was making a joke. We decided we all needed to visit based on the name alone and for the sugar high. You go inside and it’s like a coloring box exploded on the walls and on the ceiling. The walls are painted all in pastels, and various customers/​families/​groups have painted individual ceiling panels. I loved it. I had a child/​mini-​turtle sundae, nom nom noms it was soooo very good. One friend ate 2 scoops (really 3) of blue moon/​superman. There is no soft-​serve, but the hudsonville ice cream is oh so tasty and try one of the sundaes, malts etc if you have 3 – 5 $ (more for larger sizes, I assume).
p. s. This place also has really cute t-​shirts featuring a teddy bear, and on each paw it says ‘Paw Paw.’ Cuteness gasm for sure. And it sort of resembles the grateful dead bear in some small fashion (arm and leg movements excluded).