A NEW STEAK OF MIND
Bowdie’s Chophouse, a mainstay of Michigan cuisine, makes its first foray south of the Mason-Dixon on Hilton Head. BY BARRY KAUFMAN
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PHOTOS BY ROB KAUFMAN
Other than a vague sense of dissatisfaction with the state of Ohio and a close geographic resemblance to an item of clothing, there’s not much that the state of Michigan has in common with Hilton Head Island. And yet, the state shaped like a mitten has recently established a unique bond with the island shaped like a shoe. For the first time, its famed Bowdie’s Chophouse will head outside the state of Michigan with a Hilton Head Island location. “We’d always kind of talked about it, and if we were going to expand outside the Midwest, why not Hilton Head Island? And what better time than now?” said Tyler Bowdish, who is spearheading the Southern branch of the Bowdish family empire. The first Bowdie’s Chophouse came about from founder Scott Bowdish’s love affair – some might say obsession – with fine dining. For a quarter of a century, the elder Bowdish built an empire of cellular stores across the Chicagoland area, sampling the rich array of culinary options the Windy City offered. Homing in on that greatest of midwestern exports, rich juicy steaks, he decided to try his own hand at a high-end chophouse. The first Bowdie’s Chophouse opened in 2014 in the Bowdish family vacation retreat, Saugatuck, Michigan. Their approachable take on sophisticated steak and upscale cuisine was an immediate hit, giving Scott Bowdish a chance to build yet another empire with locations in Grand Rapids and Lansing. And when Tyler Bowdish found himself with a severe case of wanderlust during the pandemic, the seeds were sown for Bowdie’s Chophouse to make its out-of-state debut on the island. 16
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