The Tavern

I don’t understand why this place has such low ratings. We went last night and had an amazing time. The food was delicious! My husband had the «Wild Game Bacon Cheddar Burger» and he loved it! The burger was juicy and didn’t taste too gamey. I had the «Seafood Oscar» and I also enjoyed it. The salmon was fresh and full of flavor.
We would definitely go again next time we’re in Estes.

Could not find this place. Frustrating to use walk and drive directions and not find it.

Loved everything about this place! I was in town for the Estes Park Half Marathon and I was looking for a place away from downtown Estes where I could find a good pre-​race meal the day before the race. This was the perfect place!
I was there mid-​afternoon, so they didn’t have their full dinner menu out. I ended up getting the kale salad and adding salmon. Every bite was delicious and I was so relieved to find a healthy, but filling meal option. It was light, fresh, and amazing. And then I saw that they offered chocolate soufflé for dessert and I couldn’t resist. They brought it fresh from the oven, so it was soft, warm, and oh-​so chocolatey and topped with the amaretto cream? Heavenly. And the view from the patio just can’t be beat!

Our first visit here. I would have given it 5 stars but our waitress seemed to concentrate on most of the other tables around and made us wait for some time for a box and bill. Otherwise all food was delivered quickly. We really loved the fried calamari. Way better than the Dunraven and Sweet Basilico. I would go back just for the calamari. I had the chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes, gravy and brussels sprouts. All were very good and so much I had to bring it home. The steak is sirloin and I found it tender, the breading nice and loved the gravy with bacon in it. Really good. My husband had the portobello sandwich and cole slaw and liked them both but HATED the raspberry iced tea. We would go back though.

Very yummy, kinda pricey, but a wonderful view that overlooks the valley area.

Really liked the Tavern. They have great beer and great food in a great atmosphere. It was really busy and a little loud for us — but we kind of expected that, given the season. We’ll go back again soon. Even the quesadilla was surprisingly gourmet and unexpectedly delicious and exotic. Definitely worth future visits.

First thing our waiter says to us, which is what every diner wants to hear, «This is my last day guys, sorry if i’m a little out of it». That was an understatement.
We started with 3 – 4 appetizers, no real complaints there. Nachos, molasses wings (which, were actually very good) and a pretzel. I mean, it’s a pretzel… how hard is it to screw up a frozen pretzel? Apparently not that hard at The Tavern.
Three of us got the chicken fried steak, and the three of us are from Oklahoma and know what a good CFS is and this wasn’t it, far from it. Bland breading, meat was too thick, and very tough (and they tout it on the menu as ‘prime rib’). Potatoes were just OK. Sweet and Sour green beans are literally canned Del Monte beans in a weird sweet and sour sauce like you would put on your Chinese shrimp. It was a very WTF am I eating moment, I should have just got the side salad.
Friend got the Shaved Prime Rib Sandwich. She opened it up, took her fork, and lifted up a huge piece of burnt/​greasy/​stuck together strings of meat. Looked like something my cat throws up on occasion. She ate the fries, and said «I don’t care if these are cold, i’m starving to death». If I were her I would have sent it back, but that’s me.
Other friend got the elk chops, he didn’t have anything bad to say about those.
The ONLY thing this place has going for them is the view. That’s it.
Oh, and somehow this place is ‘closed’ on UrbanSpoon… with a 57% rating I can see why they’re trying to cover that up. Changing the way you present your name on websites won’t hide you, Mary.

The food is outstanding. I wanted to bring my family here after visiting two years ago. My last visit was great. A dull chatter, great food, great service. This time, I tried to warn The Tavern about my party size, no one picked up and thirty minutes later I still didn’t have a call back. The bar patrons were loud as was another table. Like yelling. The bar tender made no effort to quiet one of his patrons and the table of drunks next to us was talking about butt hair and breasts. I was embarrassed for suggesting this place. I asked if we could be moved and was told that was not an option due to reservations though I noted plenty of open tables outside during our meal and on our way out. Never coming back or suggesting this place to anyone.

Finally new ownership and chef bring the food and service back up to par for this spectacular location.

If it was possible to give a restaurant no stars, that would be my rating. We live in Estes and the restaurants can be disappointing, but we realize the challenges of providing a great product in an area where we have such big swings in the number of people in town. However, I don’t think that excuses rude servers or lousy food. This used to be a fantastic place to eat, but our last three visits have been greatly disappointing and we will not return. This time we came for Sunday brunch and ordered the Salmon salad. The Salmon smelled so strong, we could smell it before it was placed in front of us. The salad dressing was bitter and unpalatable. When we said something to our waitress about the salad dressing (we didn’t even complain about the salmon), she told us we should have ordered it on the side. Hello — how we would we have any idea that the dressing that came on the salad was so terrible. She was so rude, we felt like we’d been slapped. After picking at our salads, she gave us a ten percent discount. Then we drove to McDonalds and got a sandwich before we starved to death.

We went to the Mary’s Lake Lodge around Christmas time to celebrate with friends and family for a weekend. Naturally, we wanted to try out the Tavern. When we booked our party (there were 7 of us), I asked for us to be seated near the windows. To my dismay, when we arrived, they had placed us at a table in the back corner of the restaurant next to the bathroom – no windows. I shrugged it off and figured that perhaps they could not accommodate a larger party in a different part of the dining room.
When we began to order, our fantastic waitress had to regretfully inform us that not only was our first wine selection unavailable, but our second was as well. No matter. None in our party are super fussy wine snobs. At least they had our first choice in champagne!
When dinner arrived, I was disappointed by the look of my New York Strip. It was very small (even at 10 oz, it looked far too thin and greedily cut) and full of gristle. It was cooked correctly, but didn’t have any of the wonderful marbling you’d expect out of an expensive NY strip steak. My partner’s filet mignon was much the same – too small and of questionable quality for the price. Everyone else’s meals were in the same range of «underwhelmed».
Unfortunately, I can’t say I would recommend this restaurant to anyone simply due to the multiple issues we ran up against. From the seating arrangements (when we had booked a few weeks in advance) to the out-​of-​stock menu selections to the sub-​par food itself… the Tavern at Mary’s Lake Lodge was not what we had hoped for.

We went there with our adult children tonight. The waitress was excellent but everything else was disappointing and substandard. They seated us on the deck in the far corner as the sun was setting. Only problem was there was no light at all at that end. We literally ate in the dark. When I complained they brought 2 candles! The food was a major disappointment. The wings were cold. The sandwiches were soggy. The prime rib and jus was cold, not Luke warm but cold. Instead of serving each tray as she brought it out, she made 3trips to the kitchen so by the time she served the first tray offload it sat there a good ten minutes. We never got water glasses refilled. $ 328+ and the napkin was paper towel! We do NOT recommend this restaurant at all. Just have a drink and listen to the music

This is one of those places in Town that is hit and miss, but since the new ownership took over we decided to try it again. Today was a good day. The service was great as was the food. The Pot Roast was Excellent as was the Chicken Fried Steak. Maybe this new owner is good for business???

Good service. LOVE the lodge atmosphere. Seafood Soup is fantastic! I go everytime I’m in Estes.

They don’t serve my lamb shank anymore. but that’ OK I’ve found a rebound dish; the Trout.
I first laid eyes on this big beautiful fish in July when we came up here with friends from Chicago. I sat and poked at my lamb and lusted over that large plank of pink meat sitting on my friends plate… It’s huge, big enough for 2 to be greedy, and at $ 20 it should be.
This time I was showing some Chinese friends who were «fresh off the boat» around Estes Park and the RMNP.
There was no other place (in my mind) to go except The Tavern for lunch. The views are amazing, even if trying to gaze out the plastic weather shield… The heater on the porch provides enough warmth, and the atmosphere is pure Colorado.
We dined Chinese Style and ordered 2 entrees and an appetizer for all of us to share. It was hilarious to watch these newbies struggling with using a fork and knife!
Our waitress was so accommodating and when she realized that my friends didn’t know what fries vs. mashed vs. homemade chips were, she brought a sampling of each to the table so they would be more comfortable choosing.
We also ordered The French Dip, and the Seafood Bisque. Both were good, but the Trout was the runaway winner.

I think this is one of the best places in Estes and having spent a whole summer I think my opinion is more than just a quick tourist. The tavern is cheaper and way more laid back than the dining room. It has live music and its always full. They do take reservations which is the smart way to do it. In the summer its crazy so plan ahead. Try to get a table on the balcony, the view is pretty amazing. The menu is all over the board and the seafood is super fresh. I feel everytime I’ve gone I’ve gotten seafood (fish and chips, fish sandwhich, cioppino). The service is better than most places in town. Also, you have to like it loud, not a place for an intimate visit.

Went here with the family last night; we highly recommend the place for the view alone! View was 5 stars; service was 2 stars; food was a mixed bag… kids had pizza (2 stars) and chicken fingers (2 stars). Adults had small portions chicken fried chicken (3 stars), portabello stack (3 stars) and trout (4 stars). Nice night out but not gourmet food this time.

I love the fried pickles and the salmon burger. My boyfriend liked his chicken fried steak. This place was super crowded every time we went and most of the time I really detested the loud music. It was too much in a hustling and bustling atmosphere.
Only once have I had good service here, but every other time we had been ignored. But, we deal with it because it’s one of the few restaurants in Estes Park that stays open late.

The setting is lovely and we were seated outside on the open air porch to enjoy the view while we dined. But what started out as a wonderful lunch turned sour.
Two of three orders were incorrect when they were delivered to our table. My salad with grilled vegetables did not have the grilled vegetables. My sister-​in-​law ordered soup and salad and was served a large size salad rather than the small size ordered. We could not get our waiter’s attention and had to flag down someone else to help us. It was a good 10 minutes before the correct orders were redelivered. When the bill came the charges were incorrect.
This place has a lot of potential but I was not impressed. The prices are too high for what you get although the view is amazing. A beautiful place for a wedding but I would not trust the kitchen to get it right.

I normally avoid anything called a «tavern». I felt stuck having dinner at this one, as we were there for a former classmate’s concert. The menu seemed to be split into two sections, expensive French-​ish items, and more regular pub fare. Amazingly, the more plebeian menu had more variety and seemed healthier. I ordered a veggie pita and husband went all fruity with the mussels and lobster bisque. I was pleasantly surprised with my veggie dish – tasty, not bland with a side of good-​looking fruit salad. I tasted husband’s (unnecessarily)greasy dishes and they were flavorful also. Service was friendly though not particularly on top of things. The views out the windows were out of this world. Overall, I was very happy with our dinner.