West Shore Cafe & Inn

My wife and I went there recently. I’ve been many times under the old ownership and it was a Sunday afternoon fav during summers. This is my first dinner under new ownership.
We had risotto ($ 25) and the burger ($ 25).
I’d say quality of food was 3.5 stars.
Service 3 stars.
Ambiance 3 stars.
These ratings are ALL based on expectations communicated by the décor and price. It feels they are trying to price themselves into a finer establishment but only half-​heartedly. New décor was beautiful for example, but 60% of the tables sat empty with no candle or place settings (just empty tablecloth) and it looked desolate and it ruined the overall mood. Also for those prices I would expect top-​notch service. Now, our server was great, kind, just not at the level id expect for the prices. (Again, all this is based on my expectations they created!)
What I mean to say is if this burger was $ 12 and the risotto $ 18 and no white tablecloths, I would have given 4+ stars.
I fear they are tying to be more Michelin than they really are, or maybe are trying to pay for the debt of renovation or, more likely, maybe protecting themselves in a tricky, weather-​dependent market. I really hope they find their groove!

This place is by far the best place on the lake. The food is amazing, the location and building are stunning but the people are the best! Amber the bartender is always so happy and smiling and helpful, I’ve been coming here for years and she is someone I always look forward to seeing. I also recently went to a wedding over the summer and I was so happy to see Amber… NOTE. This place is absolutely amazing wedding venue. I will be coming here forever!

Very handsome place, looks like fun to stay and perhaps beautiful in summer. But food was so disappointing. My beet salad was excellent, but we had to return two items. Very friendly staff helped, but no excuse for poor food.

We stayed here for a long weekend and had the most amazing experience! The room (we stayed in the mount Watson suite) was gorgeous and cozy, with a fireplace in the common room and bedroom. A yummy breakfast was delivered to our room in the morning. The view of the lake is literally the best thing you will ever see, just unbelievable. As far as the atmosphere and staff, simply the best! It is a small and quaint place and you get a feeling like you are «home». They were all friendly and extremely helpful. My boyfriend worked with Julie and Lisa to pull of an unforgettable surprise proposal and it was really just first class all the way around. We have memories captured of our big moment on camera and we had roses and champagne waiting for us upstairs. The restaurant here is also delicious and has a great bar. S’mores happy hour was also enjoyed by many! We will definitely be staying here again, thank you all so very much for making this weekend absolutely perfect.

I’ve been coming to the west shore of the lake for many years. Our family has a cabin in Tahoma so we’re west shore savvy. We did dinner at the west shore café the night before Valentine’s Day as they were booked up for the day itself. The fucked it up from the word go. First off they’d lost the reservation, then the food was poorly prepared, the desert was worse. The cocktails prior to dinner were there only bright spot during an otherwise down trodden meal. I’ve eaten here before but only in summer and out on the deck half drunk. It has always seemed great so I thought tonite would be no different. I was wrong. Tread carefully.

Here enjoying dinner with friends and listening to Amazing Music by Jenni Charles and Jesse Dunn from Dead Winter Carpenters.

This is my favorite place on the lake. The food is creative and delicious. The staff is wonderful. If you have not been inside you need to stop by, think the godfather combined with old Tahoe. Have Lynn, Brittany, or Amber make you one of their delicious cocktails. If by chance you do not have a place to stay yet the rooms here are gorgeous and a phenomenal value.

Absolutely love the West Shore Café — the food is great, and the drinks are amazing. Beautiful space and ambiance — right on the lake — wonderful in summer and winter.
By far the best bartenders on the lake — Brittany and Lynn will take great care of you. We missed Amber this time around but hopefully next time (or later this weekend).

We had such a nice meal and evening at West Shore. The food was great, the service was so helpful and attentive, and the ambiance was wonderful. Our server Brook was so patient with us and helped pick our food and wine. Randy, the manager, even came by to see how we were doing and if we liked our dinner. I would definitely recommend checking out West Shore and it’s beautiful view of the lake.

We appreciate the Monday local promotion. Presentation was first rate. Our waiter, Robert was engaging and professional. Wife had the Tenderloin and I the fish stew (Ciopino?). Both were outstanding. Nice wine list.
Recommended.

I was trying to find a place for a very last minute family vacation in Tahoe. I stumbled on the West Shore Café and Inn online and thank goodness I did! I worked with Robin who did her best to get us a room during our vacation timeframe, despite it being a busy holiday season. We were able to get a room for a 2 night stay and it was fantastic. The staff did everything to accommodate us and make our stay comfortable, from special bedding for our kids to answering ski questions to random late night utensil requests. The restaurant food and atmosphere were fantastic and although it’s more upscale dining, it is 100% kid friendly. The location was beautiful and we had a wonderful ski get-​away!

My husband and I were married at the West Shore in September 2015 where we held our ceremony and reception. The wedding was magical and we couldn’t have ask for better staff, service, food, view and fun. We’ve been coming to West Shore Café and Inn for years to have meals and knew it was the perfect venue for our wedding — we were right! Katie was a dream and worked really well with our planners (Summit Soirée) and vendors. She made planning super easy for us and the night (with 200 guests) went flawlessly. My groom and I didn’t have to lift a finger or worry about any logistics what-​so-​ever. A few curve balls came our way (as can be expected) and they handled them all beautifully. We couldn’t have been happier with the day. We want to get the marriage annulled, just so we can get re-​married and relive the day all over again.
We plan on bringing our families and future children to the West Shore Café and Inn for years and years to come.

This review is for event coordination (or lack of)
This was venue was #1 on our list for our wedding. From looking at numerous albums of previous weddings, we simply loved the view the restaurant had of Lake Tahoe. It gets two stars for the beautiful view.
Now, this is when things take a turn. We get into contact with the coordinator, Katie, and ask for a price for a May wedding, on a Wednesday. We were quoted, for 2016, we could do a partial buy out of the restaurant for $ 1000 with a food and beverage minimum $ 3500. Ok, reasonable. We make an appointment two weeks in advance to see the restaurant. My fiancé and I decide to drive three hours to see this venue.
We get there only to be greeted half-​heartedly by the wedding coordinator who took us to the pier and spoke with us for 5 minutes then left because she had another meeting going on. Then she tells us there no partial buy out in May, and we would have to do a complete buy out for $ 10 000 and a food minimum of $ 5000. Quite a difference from the quote she told me in the emails, which I mention, then she goes «I can make it $ 5000 rental and $ 5000 food minimum» Wow. This information would have been so helpful over the email before we drove up the three hours. We weren’t shown the suites either.
We felt the venue wasn’t sold to us because of the lack of customer service we were provided, seeing that we took the time to drive there and they could only spare 5 minutes of their time. We really wanted to like the venue for the view, but I would much rather spend my money on a place that I know I will be taken care of.

I had the most wonderful dining experience at the West Shore Café this evening. Lisa, the hostess, sat me and my beau at the best table in the house at the very end of the pier at sunset. Sophie, our server, had the best plate recommendations and we fully enjoyed our three course meal. The kitkat dessert was to die for! Aimee, the food runner met our every need including providing a second round of the delicious pretzel bread. Randy Miller, the floor manager, personally came to our table to ensure our satisfaction.
The service and food quality at the West Shore Café is outstanding and I can’t wait for my next visit. Thank you!
PS. We had excellent before and after drinks at the bar. Matt and Jason are hilarious and great bartenders. They are generous pourers and always provide a good time.

Out of all the places on the Lake, this one Rocks!
You really can not beat the location, and the food is great too. We had lunch here, and unfortunately we could not do dinner.(not for a lack of trying.)
My only complaint is the staff. I mean for real. If I’m going to pay the money they are asking for… PLEASE SHAVE, AND WEAR CLEN CLOTHES.
We had the burger and the chicken sando. I’m really not a burger fan, but after a 15 mile mountain bike ride at 6,000 feet a burger sounded great, and it was!

D

I think I should just make a pro/​con list for this one because I’m really torn. I give West Shore Café a ³⁄₅ because I really am undecided. Part of me would try it again to give them another chance, and part of me thinks there are too many good restaurants on the west shore that are worth going to instead.
Pros:
— The View: this one is a given– it is right on the lake, with several tables on the deck and dock. They have great lighting and the building itself is gorgeous. Great inside dining room and bar.
— Valet Parking: so much easier to valet the car than try and find parking
— Location: 5 minutes from our house and right across the street from Homewood
— Food: I’m putting this as maybe a 3.5 or ⁴⁄₅ stars. The food was good, but not blow your socks off good.
Cons:
— Service: I was honestly in shock at how horrible the service was. I’d expect that a restaurant like this would have an experienced wait staff, but jeez, no. Jackson was our waiter and although he was a nice enough guy, he was just very very inexperienced and it was mistake after mistake. He took our drink and appetizer order and then we were done with our appetizers and he still hadn’t come back to take our dinner order. One of the people in our party ordered the rack of lamb and it came out beyond raw, cold even. We asked to have it cooked a little longer. He would reach across people to set down silverware and bowls for the shellfish instead of walking around the other side of the table– all just very annoying stuff that really made the service stand out. I am usually pretty lenient on this but it was so annoying most of dinner, it just shouldn’t be like that at a place like West Shore Café.
Overall the food was pretty good. We got risotto fries and calamari to start, both very good. I had the peach and arugula salad and mussels and a few others had cioppino which was all great. The lamb was the only complaint, however, they did grill it a little longer.

I was a groomsman in my best friend’s wedding over Memorial Day weekend. While taking photos, the photographer asked us to take off our sunglasses, so I asked the outdoor bartenders to hold onto them for me.
Unfortunately, during the chaos of the wedding, I forgot to grab them right away. When I returned the next day, they had vanished. My friend, the groom, even went back a couple of times to see if they had surfaced. Nothing. $ 200 Oakleys gone forever.
I would expect the employees of such a nice establishment to be a bit more honest.
If you do plan on patronizing this establishment, watch your valuables closely. Don’t buy into the illusion that this is a safe place that’s exempt from thievery, just because it’s «high end»

My man and I came into West Shore Café tonight for the first time this season. We couldn’t be more pleased by the fresh new menu. We started our night off with a couple amazing cocktails mixed by Jason, one of our favorite bartenders from last summer. The ribeye was to die for, very juicy and flavorful. We will definitely be back, and soon!

Beyond beautiful.
The Inn is crazy gorgeous and the café is deeeelicious. Right across the street from Homewood, the best little resort in Tahoe, this is a must go to. Do not miss stopping here. It is what separates the north shore from the south shore, since it is the west shore :) This is Tahoe at it’s finest.

Beautiful place, overlooking the lake with a nice deck and sitting area. they had a few couples touring the site for their wedding. We came here after snowboarding at Homewood for their free smores (4 – 4:30pm). It’s conveniently located right across the street from the resort. We got there a little early so had a few beers (happy hr, $ 5 draft) and the bartender was very friendly. They brought out theirs smores and set it up outside by the fire and you use the skewers that look like trees set up right next to their little table by the couch area (thought they were decors at first). My friends got two glasses of milk ($ 4 each) and enjoyed our smores. we beat the crowd and it was just perfect. i’m not much of a smore person but had to eat. two of them! very nice & cozy set up.
We’d definitely like to try their food sometime and possibly stay at their inn.