Food Adventures in South Lake Tahoe, Ca

Food Adventures in South Lake Tahoe, Ca – Traveling 4 Food®

This past weekend afforded me the opportunity to do some short traveling near home. Short, as in a 3 1/2 hour drive from home to South Lake Tahoe, Ca. One of the most beautiful lakes in California and the 2nd deepest lake at 1645 ft in the United States, Crater lake in Oregon being number one at 1,949 ft.  Lake Tahoe is 22 miles long, 12 miles wide and has a shoreline 71 miles in length, which equals huge in California standards.

Wikipedia: Lake Tahoe

It was a family trip with the single minded determination to find some of the best local and slightly hidden dinning gems in the area.

I plotted our itinerary by researching the best food restaurants in South Lake Tahoe on Yelp with a focus on breakfast and BBQ. Finding places to try is the easy part, deciding which one to eat at is the struggle. With every review personally skewed to that reviewers expectations which may or may not be realistic, I managed to narrow it down to four meals at four different restaurants and 1 unknown that would be a “This looks Good”.

We actually made it to two of the four I had selected, opting to change one of them to “This looks Good”, one we just decide to skip because we were so damn stuffed and one other was a recommendation from the hotel staff.

Around all of the eating, we managed to walk down to the lake and enjoy the beach, hit the arcade at Harvey's Lake Tahoe, show the boys where mom and I got married (Harvey's Lake Tahoe), walk around the outdoor mall (spent way to much time in the candy store), visit some of the Nevada side of the lake, visit Emerald Bay and go bowling – whew …

We had an amazing time with great food, new adventures, laughs and great memories!

Below you will find my reviews from Yelp in case you didn't see them on Facebook and Twitter.

It would be a great pleasure if you were to like and and add me as a friend on yelp too: Traveling 4 Food on Yelp.com

Inn By The Lake

Check in was quick and easy due to the staff at the desk. We were in our room with-in minutes of arriving to the hotel. Security doors to enter the building = good.

Our room was a standard double queen, about 250 sq ft, which is small but it was freshly painted, large TV, refrigerator and balcony facing inwards towards the hotel complex.

The beds were great, with deluxe comforters and decent pillows. It is an old facility but it looks like it has been continuously upgraded.

We were on the third floor so sound wasn't a big issue.

One note I would like to share is the shower/tub combo. The shower had a very strong spray, which surprised me when I was expecting a typical mist, very refreshing.

The beach was a 5 minute walk and it was great! You could walk a football fields length into the lake and it was only up to your waist.

Great food with-in walking distance, along with a bowling alley right next door!

I would look at staying there again if I could get a room with a view 🙂

Location: 3300 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150

The Red Hut Cafe

Though it is unsightly from the outside, this little restaurant is a gem to behold on the inside! It's old school charm of a road stop cafe, along highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe, will take you back a few years to your childhood memories if you are as old as I am. Counters along two sides, small truck stop booths, nostalgia on the walls and super sweet waitress to make this a must eat secret stop.

First up was ordering drinks, coffee was my choice at this time of day and the cups were huge! Loved this!

Menu is nicely arrayed with many of my favorites, so it was a bit hard to choose. My boys ordered pancake waffles and a gigantic breakfast sandwich that included hash browns. The Mrs. ordered strawberry waffles and I opted for the french toast breakfast with two eggs and bacon, Texas style toast of course.

Everything was delivered quickly even thought there wasn't a seat available in the house and it looked delicious!

My french toast included three slices, quite a lot of food on one plate. Everything was perfectly cooked, severed in large portions and tasted wonderful.

Breakfast for four with two coffees set me back $45

I highly recommend you make The Red Hut Cafe one of your stops in South Lake Tahoe. Don't let the looks on the outside fool you – this is some good breakfast delivered old school truck stop style and I just love that!

Went to Sonney's based on the reviews from Yelp and most opinions are spot on. It is a friendly place with indoor, outdoor and open to the outdoors bar area. We sat in the outdoor section which has several picnic tables with benches overlooking their large lawn area.Arrived at 5:00pm ish and there was plenty of seating available but it does fill up fast. The waiter was at our table quite quickly with a smile on his face and a sense of humor.Ordered our drinks first, with several beers on tap to choose from and an fairly decent wine selection. Guinness and a Sierra Nevada for the Mrs., the boys bellied to their usual root beers. We opted out of the appetizers, which there were plenty to choose from and the fried pickles would have been my first choice.Pricing was fairly decent, though on the higher end with ribs costing almost $20 for a half rack and two sides. I understand how food prices have gone up and BBQ, good BBQ takes time to cook so this was expected.

We ordered a decent variety of foods to enjoy, BBQ chicken sandwich, 1/3 rack of St. Louis ribs and a combo plate of pork ribs and brisket. Our sides were varied as well with BBQ baked beans, cole slaw, home fries, baked potato, garlic mashed potatoes, and salads.

The big wins here were the BBQ ribs, all St.Louis cut, were simply perfect! Smokey, tender, juicy with a real nice dry rub ( sauce comes on the side). The BBQ chicken sandwich was moist and tender, packed with great flavor.

A quick notes on the sides: BBQ baked beans, cole slaw, home fries and garlic mashed potatoes were just euphoric, with the mashed potatoes taking first place. Loved the fresh garlic and red potato combination! We did get a good side of jalapeño cornbread with honey butter that I felt was to dry but still really good with the jalapeño sneaking through with every bite.

During our meal the Owner Sonney was making the rounds and he took a moment to chat with us. He is very friendly and genuinely cares if you are happy.

I was disappointed in the brisket though but only slightly. It was just too dry when served. I know it didn't come out of the smoker that way but by the time it was plated and served it was dry but still packed a ton of smokey goodness in every bite. My brisket was easy to pull apart (a good sign), with a perfect smoke ring and the BBQ sauce was delicious  tanginess that rivaled many I have tasted.

We could eat everything served and have some great leftovers for later. Our waiter brought over some carry out boxes, cup, and containers to take everything home.

Service was great at first but they struggled to keep up with the business once it got busy.

Dinner for four with drinks set me back $100.00. I would give them a 4.5 for the slow service but they get a 5 for the great atmosphere and amazing food!

Mazatlan Grill

Cute little restaurant set back a hands throw from hwy. 50. Kinda looks like you are walking into a red chalet. No one to greet us, so we walk into the main back area where everyone was and was warmly greeted by the waitress. It is dark in there, somewhat gloomy but clean and quite ( some music would have been nice) tables for various size groups with an inviting but unlit fireplace. Chairs were on wheels, which was a big hit with the boys.Our waitress arrived with chips, salsa and a pitcher of water with cups. The chips were fantastic, the type with seeds in them and the salsa was superb! I just love chunky salsa and ours had cilantro mixed in as well – delicious!Menu was extensive with dishes that included chicken, pork, beef, seafood, combination plates, house specials and a selection of appetizers.First we ordered our drinks. Bottle beers were $2.00 each! I ordered a Bohemia is and a Tecate, the boys opted for lemon aid which, of course cost more than the beers.

Order time! My choice was the house special of Mazatlan Tacos, three tacos deep fried with either shredded beef or chicken, rice and beans, guacamole and sour cream, all for $10.99. Everyone else ordered enchiladas …… So typical. I was torn between the Chile Verde and the Tacos but the tacos won out.

Our dinner was delivered promptly by our waitress, hot and steamy from the kitchen, which appeared to be run by on lady – she is an excellent cook! Plate looked inviting and delicious.

My first surprise was the retried beans, they were puréed, smooth and silky. I am used to having some whole beans in mine but these tasted delicious! Rice was flavorful and the guacamole was to die for! I just loved it! Chunky with bits of tomato, jalapeño and cilantro mixed in.

Mazatlan tacos hit the spot with the beef being superb! Just a tender, spicy and juicy as I hoped they would be. The chicken tacos could have been spiced up just a bit more but the we devoured promptly none the less.

So were there some negatives? Yes but small ones: ATM/credit card machine was done (for how long I don't know) so bring cash, ambiance was lacking ( I expected a more exciting environment), and I was confused on how to pay my tab ( guess I was supposed to bring it up front to the unattended cash register). Having said that – none of these negatives changes my overall opinion about going back here again – I will!

Local's Brunch Cafe

This review is a little tough to write because they deserved a 5 star for effort but we were let down with the food quality.We almost missed this little place as we drove to our hotel, it's only 20 ft wide at the most and it is located on a side street in a strip of commercial buildings but I just had to try it out the next morning.

I wasn't to sure what kind of food to expect but the front window stated breakfast and lunch with a free bowl of soup, so I was excited to try out a new breakfast joint.

When we entered, it was full except for one table with dirty plates still on it. We waited a few minutes before the cook came out to great us and ask us for just a few more minutes of waiting till she got the table clean. Clearly she was the only one working.

Once we were seated, the wait continued while she cooked the other customers food, then by the grace of the gods, the extra help arrived! The wait wasn't without it's virtues as we were able to enjoy the extremely eclectic decor in side this tiny cafe. From Elvis and Marilyn Monroe photos, to Buddha idols, Chinese fans on the wall, sombreros and a perilously leaning TV on the wall. I have no clue what style this might be called other than “Hole-in-the-wall retro ethnic style”, if there is such a thing.

We ordered coffee and waters from the just arrived waitress, then ordered breakfast from the delightful home style menu. First we ordered Bacon waffles, breakfast burrito and a 2 egg with hash-browns and bacon breakfast.

Then we received our free vegetable soup and it was fantastic! Just full of small diced vegetables of carrots, celery and potatoes.

The food arrived quickly enough but it lacked any sort of excitement other than the burrito was huge. But it all seemed rushed. My potatoes were just not quite cooked all of the way and the bacon was delivered after we started eating. My son claimed the breakfast burrito was amazing, so it must have been.

Local's Brunch Cafe is more of a Mexican restaurant that serves home style breakfast too. I think that on a better day the food would probably be amazing but this wasn't our day.

Price was fair and we walked out with four breakfast and two coffees for $30.00

Snow Flake Drive-in

Stopped at the Snow-Flake Drive-in because of the crowds we saw driving by and the constant bombardment of radio ads claiming they were voted “The best milk shakes in Lake Tahoe” three years in a row.

I was expecting a massive list of milk shakes but they only had a dozen flavors at $5.25 each. We ordered a chocolate, chocolate chocolate chip, butter finger and a Oreo milk shakes.

Our milk shakes were delivered with-in five minutes on a busy day, they were fairly large and full to the brim.

We opted not to stay at the drive-in which had several tables inside and outside. The place was clean and the staff was friendly even though the place looks tired from the outside. Apparently they have new owners, so I would expect more upgrades as time goes on.

So, how were the shakes? Delicious and made thick with plenty of fillings like my butterfingers shake. I was surprised that the best milk shakes in Lake Tahoe used soft serve ice cream instead of real ice cream. They were quite good but they started melting very fast and you could tell they had a high water content.

It was a fun and refreshing stop at an iconic South Lake Tahoe restaurant.

 

Location: 3059 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150