Clinton River Restaurant History
CLINTON RIVER RESTAURANT ROW – Lots of history over the last 100 years! North River Road’s “Boat Town”
Clinton River Restaurant History Transformation Over the Last Century
Over the past 75 to 100 years, the small stretch of North River Road along the Clinton River has witnessed significant changes. Most recently, Crews Inn Restaurant sold its property to the neighboring Bumpers Landing restaurant. For those who have spent many years around the river, the area holds memories of the original Bumpers, along with the Beachcomber’s, Koss’s Restaurant, Johnson’s Ranch House, the Lighthouse Inn, and, for some, the Hotel Denmarsh. All these establishments used to occupy this short stretch of property circled below.
Local Clinton River Histories and Personal Stories
In gathering the history of this area, several previous restaurant owners, employees, and local historian Jim Krause, a resident of the adjacent Conger Bay Drive for nearly ninety years, shared their stories. These accounts of the past revealed a close-knit community where many people are interconnected in surprising ways.
Early Beginnings:
The Dream of Belvidere
The section of Lake St. Clair discussed here is also known as part of the “Boat Town” area of Harrison Township. The earliest land records date back to 1835, when brothers James and David Conger bought all the land on the Clinton River in this quadrant for their ill-fated dream town of Belvidere. Unfortunately, Belvidere was flooded during a period of high water on Lake St. Clair and went bankrupt within a few years.
The Evolution of Clinton Riverfront Restaurants
While there were various North River Road informal businesses in the late 1800s, the focus here is on the evolution of restaurants in this small area, beginning in the late 1800s with the Denmarsh Hotel.
Denmarsh Hotel and the Round House
The Denmarsh Hotel featured an open-air dance pavilion, notable for its ship’s wheel-shaped ceiling.
After the Denmarsh Hotel burned down, Rodney Young acquired the property and modified the remaining pavilion, cutting it in half and added a new middle section to create the Round House Bar. He along with Fred Schumaker then constructed the landmark “Lighthouse Restaurant” using glass blocks illuminated in red, white, and blue, thereby establishing the new name.
The Lighthouse Inn
The Lighthouse burned down in 1998. Social media reports say zoning laws and insufficient parking prevented reconstruction. The owner Ron Heck went on to Key West full-time after he had opened Harpoon Harry’s in 1992 where a stained-glass window from the Lighthouse Inn still resides.
The Lighthouse earned a reputation for its high-quality cuisine, featuring signature dishes such as ribs, walleye, perch, and the popular Friday clam chowder. It was also a memory for me as this was the first place I experienced escargot! Additionally, the menu included “dolphin,” today more widely called Mahi Mahi, a well-known entrée in Florida, which must have come from the owner’s Key West influence.
Johnson’s Ranch House
Heading west, Johnson’s Ranch House was located across the street from what is now Dos Bumpers and today serves as an overflow parking lot. The former Crews Inn had purchased Johnson’s and demolished the building to build the lot. Johnson’s, originally bought as a house in the late 1930s, was well known for fish, clam chowder, and Sunday prime rib.
Owned by Fred and Lillian Johnson, their daughters Shirley, Beverly, Margarie, and Sandy helped run the place. As some may remember, Fred, formerly a circus clown, decorated the restaurant with clown photos.
Johnson’s Ranch House was briefly known as Bornamens during a short-lived land contract before reverting back to Fred Johnson in the late 1950s or early 1960s. After Fred and Lillian passed away, the daughters and a grandson ran it briefly before selling to Travis Hamburgers in the 1990s. Remodeling began, but the restaurant never reopened, reportedly due to zoning issues with the building’s front steps being too close to the street.
Our local historian Jim remembered the date Johnson’s Ranch House was established in 1937 because of this flood photo. Jim Kraus recalls in February 1938 when he was born, the flood water on North River Road was too deep to get a car through. They took his mother through Selfridge Field to St. Joseph Hospital on North Avenue in Mt. Clemens to give birth.
Gil’s Tavern and the Al-Dor Inn
Continuing west, historian Jim Krause recalls Gil’s Tavern and the Al-Dor Inn, owned by Al and Doris Knapp, which preceded The Crews Inn, today’s Dos Bumpers Tex-Mex Cantina.
The Crews Inn
In the 1970s, Gil and Fred Metry took ownership of Crews Inn. The restaurant was closed for three years after a fire in 1975 and for one year after another fire in 1995.
Crews Inn was known for popular dishes like perch, prime rib, in-house crab cakes & smoked salmon, and every Sunday full Thanksgiving Turkey dinners. Featuring a summer tiki bar, the Crews Inn was a regular gathering spot for boaters looking for fine dining and entertainment.
The Crews Inn also hosted many bus trips and parties throughout the year, as well as their annual Winter Boat Cruises up and down the Clinton River at Christmas time to see all the waterfront homes decorated for the holiday.
Favorite longtime bartender and partner, Tommy Moons was at the Crews Inn for 32 years! Tom Moons commented owner Fred Metry was very supportive and appreciative of his staff which made the Crews Inn one of the Top 10 waterfront destinations voted by MLive.com in 2019, Michigan’s largest local media advertising network. Want to hear more old Clinton River stories? Stop by and see Tommy at The Griffin Restaurant in Fair Haven!
Crews Inn remained open until late 2024 when it was purchased by Paul Shamo, owner of today’s Bumpers Landing. The property was reintroduced as Dos Bumpers Cantina featuring a Tex-Mex style menu in late spring 2025. Extensive waterfront boardwalk and dock improvements were made to connect Bumpers to the purchased Crews Inn property.
The Origins of today’s Bumpers Landing:
• Koss’s Restaurant • Beachcomber’s • Bumpers
The building now known as the Bumper’s Landing “Tiki Bar” was once a cottage which was transformed into Koss’s Hamburger Bar by Mary Koss and her husband. After her husband’s passing, Mary sold the café to two men who converted it into a pizzeria and renamed it The Beachcomber’s Restaurant.
Following a brief one-year ownership, they asked Mary Koss for help in selling the business. Mary approached her local friend in the area Kathleen “Sis” Hudson, a bartender who had previously worked at The Lighthouse, Johnson’s, and was at the Crews Inn at this time. Sis had no money at that moment but was very interested. The two owners offered “Give us $100 and we’ll go from there!”
Memories of The Beachcomber’s Kristen, owner of the beautiful Schoolhouse Grille on Harsens Island, has fond recollections of her summers spent working at The Beachcomber’s alongside her sister and cousins. The connection to Beachcomber’s ran deep, as Schoolhouse Grille’s Kristen’s grandmother, “Sis,” was the owner! The atmosphere inside was both eclectic and welcoming, creating a sense of home for everyone who entered.
According to granddaughter Kristen, The Beachcomber’s earned a reputation for serving amazing breakfasts and outstanding cheeseburgers, a specialty taught to us all by Mary Koss. While perch was also a favorite, it was breakfast that truly drew in the crowds. Locals would share stories over coffee, making the restaurant the popular hub for the entire neighborhood.
In 1968, The Beachcomber’s was destroyed by arson, allegedly committed by a local resident, and was rebuilt between 1969 and 1970.
The Original Bumpers
Twenty-five years later, 1995, Sis sold the Beachcomber to her daughter Leslie Hudson and local Carole Schwertman Schuster. At that time, the Beachcomber was the only restaurant in the area where you could go “by boat” for breakfast.
Carole eventually took over 100% ownership and later renamed the building Bumpers, shifting the focus from breakfast to a liquor and bar establishment. Carole added more dockage in front of the restaurant, which was next to the Mariners Boat Club (today’s building housing the main bar of Bumpers Landing).
Carole & Bob Shuster – Co-owners of Bumpers on the Clinton River
Ownership Changes and Expansion – Bumpers to Bumpers Landing
In 2013, Paul Shamo, a regular bar patron and member of next door’s Mariners Boat Club, purchased the small Bumpers property from Carole and Bob Shuster, who together ran the bar for 15 years.
The Original Bumpers & Mariners Boat Club Combine to form Bumper’s Landing
The Mariners Boat Club later bought the property from Paul to expand the Club’s vehicle parking and add boat wells. During some Club’s financial difficulties, Paul bought back Bumpers and purchased the Mariners Boat Club property, combining them into today’s Bumpers Landing.
Significant investments were made during 2014 to upgrade the bar, boardwalk, and docks. Over the first several years, two houses were torn down to expand dockage and vehicle parking, to accommodate the thousands of weekly diners.
To create an exceptional boardwalk and riverfront dining experience, Bumpers Landing acquired Crews Inn in 2024 – and renamed it Dos Bumpers Cantina Tex-Mex. Now combined, these restaurants can accommodate over 60 boats!
Since taking over the Crews Inn, the past year was filled with extensive exterior renovations and upgrades to the dockage, boardwalk, and patio area of Dos Bumpers.
The Dos Bumpers menu now features a wide variety of meals with a Tex-Mex flare including tacos to fajitas, Chimichurri Steaks, shrimp, salmon, & chicken, along with burgers and ribs too! And in keeping with a long time tradition of the Crews Inn, Dos Bumpers will continue serving traditional Thanksgiving Turkey dinner every Sunday.
What does the future hold?
**January 2026 through early spring Dos Bumpers will be closed as the interior will be completely gutted and “Bumperized” to a more open dining experience. Photos below are the final pictures of “The Crews Inn” long time interior – so come on in and see what’s new at Dos Bumpers Cantina this summer!
