Our History
Martin Telgard, a boat builder, and wife Leone opened The Bluebird in 1927 as a small sandwich and soda shop and it has remained in family hands ever since. With Martin’s talents as a craftsman and Leone’s dedication to excellence in the kitchen, the “Bird” slowly grew to be a restaurant and became the place to be when in Leland. Martin passed away in 1961 and Leone continued on, cooking every meal until her retirement in the mid-’70s.
All the while, Leland slowly evolved from a sleepy fishing village into a booming tourist town. Son Jim and his wife Nancy, both involved in the business since the ’50s, took over for a long stint, during which The Bluebird expanded its space to the present 10,000 sq.ft, and became one of the areas most popular dining establishments.
Today, a third generation of Telgards run the business, now a 180 seat restaurant and a bar area which seats 100. The restaurant still serves its award winning whitefish and famous cinnamon rolls exactly the same way Leone and Martin first did in the early days.