Riva Grill - On the Lake; South Lake
Tahoe, CA; Casinos; Heavenly Mountain Skiing; Diamond Resorts International; Lake
Tahoe Vacation Resort.
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| Lake Tahoe - Courtesy of the Internet |
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| Lake Tahoe from Emerald Bay - Courtesy of Wikipedia |
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| Lake Tahoe from a ski slope - Courtesy of Wikipedia |
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| Lake Tahoe from a ski gondola - Courtesy of the Internet |
When in South Lake Tahoe, CA for vacation, a getaway
weekend, or enjoying the great skiing in the winter season on Heavenly Mountain
or one of the other fine ski resorts, there are many places that can tempt your
hunger and excite your palate, not to mention Casino Gaming. Whether
you go to a small local restaurant, or one of the inviting places to eat at a
Casino such the Hard Rock, Harrah’s, Harvey’s, or the Montbleu, you can find interesting
menus and good to fabulous selections.
However, after a week of sampling the local restaurants, I must simply
state that the Riva Grill located right on the lake is my hands down favorite
in South Lake Tahoe. 2016 is Riva Grill’s
16th year on Lake Tahoe.
The Riva Grill is on the southwest California side of the
lake as you approach South Lake Tahoe, CA on Route 50 heading East from
Sacramento, CA. It is located on Ski Run
Blvd., right across from one of the better time share resorts in the area, Lake
Tahoe Vacation Resort, a Diamond Resorts International resort.
The Riva Grill is on the southwest California side of the
lake as you approach South Lake Tahoe, CA on Route 50 heading East from
Sacramento, CA. It is located on Ski Run
Blvd., right across from one of the better time share resorts in the area, Lake
Tahoe Vacation Resort, a Diamond Resorts International resort.
You can also access the Riva Grill by boat and there is a
small dock for your boat while you enjoy the food. The Riva Grill is two floors with a large
outside deck open in the warm weather season and a good size bar area to eat,
drink and watch your favorite sports on the big screen TV’s. Try one of their many specialty drinks…… My favorite are their “Wet Woody” specialty
drinks.
As you approach the restaurant, there is a large sculpture
of Eagles and Bears! What an appropriate
masterpiece for this blog!!!!
We ate there on Sunday for a late lunch, so the following is
from their Lunch Menu.
They have a nice selection of Appetizers including Zucchini
sticks, Sliders, Beer Battered Coconut Prawns, Dungeness Crab cakes,
Pomegranate Glazed Pork Ribs and much more.
For our lunch we ordered two standard fare items and also two “Weekend
Breakfast” specials. They were:
Prime Rib French Dip: slow roasted and thinly sliced on a sweet French
roll with gruyere cheese, sautéed onions and horseradish cream.
My wife just loves Beef French Dip sandwiches and she also
ordered one at a Montbleu café restaurant a few days earlier. While the Montbleu meal was tasty, the Riva
Grill sandwich was superb. The meat was
perfectly cooked but the combination of the gruyere cheese, sautéed onions and
horseradish cream made it one of the best she has ever eaten!
Caesar Salad: romaine lettuce & classic garlic-lemon
dressing and grated asiago cheese, crostini (crispy baugette slices), sun dried
tomatoes, capers with optional grilled chicken, salmon or shrimp.
Our friend enjoys a good Caesar salad and he was certainly
not disappointed. The romaine was very
fresh and crisp and the dressing had a rich creamy texture with a nice anchovy
flavor. But, it was the cheese, capers
and additional sun dried tomatoes that you seldom find mixed with a Caesar salad
that set this generous serving apart from other restaurants. The crostini was crunchy and tasty and the optional
grilled salmon was moist and cooked to perfection.
Ok, I tasted both of these dishes and yes they were
excellent, but when I say the Weekend specials, two of us knew we had to
indulge ourselves with these very tempting dishes. We were NOT to be disappointed.
Caramel Sabayon French Toast:
sweet French baguette, Grand Marnier, caramel apple cream cheese, apple-cider
sabayon and mountain berries (optional maple syrup).
I just had to try this menu item myself. Now I have travelled the world in eaten in
thousands of restaurants but I had never heard of Sabayon. The server asked the chef, and I was told
that Sabayon is the French version of an Italian dessert Zabaione. Zabaione
is usually made with egg yolks, sugar, and a sweet wine (usually Marsala Wine). This dessert is typically a light custard
whipped to incorporate a large amount of air, and is usually served with strawberries,
blueberries, or other fresh fruit.
After hearing this, I could hardly wait to try this
delightful sounding breakfast with maple syrup on the side. The presentation was marvelous with six
slices of the French baguette with the sabayon in between and the caramel apple
cream cheese on top with fresh large blueberries and blackberries.
After taking my first generous bite all I can say is OMG (Oh
My God). This French Toast is to die for. It was an explosion of flavors, textures and
the very best French Toast I have ever tasted in the world! Fabulous meal, simply
fabulous! As a side note, you do not
need the maple syrup. But for Maple Syrup
French Toast lovers a dash of syrup may be satisfying.
Chicken and Waffles: Rice Crispy buttermilk fried chicken, bacon
stuffed waffles with chipotle-blueberry syrup.
To be candid, I was not too sure what to expect with this
dish. It was different. It sounded tempting
and possibly tantalizing. But, I was not
sold on the combination reading the menu.
Let me tell you readers, I was totally surprised and delighted. The presentation was not expected since the
waffles were served like a sandwich with the chicken in between. I sampled the chicken and waffles separately.
The Chicken tenders were crispy on the outside, moist and
tender on the inside and the herbs and ingredients produced the best tasting boneless
fried chicken I have ever eaten. It was
so delicious, I went back the next day to order this meal for myself but I was
so disappointed when I realized they only serve these specials on Saturdays and
Sundays.
The waffles were thick and crispy on the outside and
mouth-watering on the inside with the flavorful bacon. The syrup was scrumptious along with the
fresh blackberries and blueberries, and I was not even tempted to add the maple
syrup served on the side. My only disappointment
was I wished they served a more generous portion of the delicious chipotle-blueberry
syrup instead of the maple syrup. Waffle
Lovers, you have to try this meal!!
The Riva Grill service was excellent and the wait for these
tremendous meals was very reasonable.
The coffee served was better than most served in restaurants.
I did go back the next day and tried several of their
specialty drinks in the bar. They are
unique, refreshing and can pack a punch so drink responsibly. On my future trips to South Lake Tahoe, The
Riva Grill will always be on my list as a favorite place to enjoy a wonderful
meal.
BON APPETIT !!!!!
For more info on this wonderful choice for eating and
drinking in South Lake Tahoe, you can contact them at the following:
900 Ski Run Blvd., Suite #3,
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
530-542-2600
Riva Manager: Mr. Bryce Bjerke
Riva Chef: Eric Liebendorfer
Executive Chef: Peter Brinckerhoff
NOTE: The
owners of the Riva Grill also own the following other three establishments and
if I am in the area, I will stop and sample their offerings!
Gar Woods – Carnelian Bay, CA
Caliente! – Kings Beach, CA
Bar of America – Old Town Truckee, CA
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