Vista Grille

Service was decent, although our server seemed to have forgotten about us at one point. Had the Pork Tenderloin Scallopini, pork was slightly overdone and therefore on the dry side, but thankfully it had the mushroom ragout, which was pretty good. Side of veggies was kinda odd… sautéed baby bok choy, red bell peppers, and squash. Overall, not bad, but not great, especially for the average price per plate.

It use to be my favorite place to go but has declined in service, quality & atmosphere since the new ownership took over. Prior to this, I would have given it 5-​stars. Sad to see the decline but I will still go since we have few options in East Sparks and it is still decent… just not superb.

Skip this place. We have eaten here several times over the years and it has been hit or miss since it first opened. I do not know what is going on there now, but last night we waited over 20 minutes for a table in a dining room that was not nearly full at 6:00. The menu is completely uncreative and much of the better dishes we have had there over the years are gone. Very basic food not well executed. Our server was splitting her station between the dining room and the patio, which meant that we waited for everything. I can forgive a few service missteps and she was nice, but we sat at a table full of dirty dishes for another 20 minutes at the end while waiting for our check.
Also, we ordered two of the same wood-​fired pizzas (among other things) at the table. They were not alike at all. This speaks to the consistency of their food. There are simply better places to go. Unfortunately, if you live in Sparks or Spanish Springs it means you are going to have to drive into town to get a better level of food.

I was pleasantly surprised that this small chain restaurant in a shopping center seemed to be a good value and feed, not super great but very good. First, they serve all their wines as glasses, ½ carafes and bottles. This is a pretty unique methodology to offer wines of better quality w/​o having to jump to a full bottle.
The pizza was marginally NY style, a bit over risen, low in in flex, but well above you average. The ingredients were added generously. The edges were tasty. Great service. Well priced.

I come here every now and then. I came here the other night and had a sirloin steak with mashed potatoes and steamed veggies and also a house salad. The steak was slightly over seasoned but it was cooked perfectly (medium) and everything tasted great. I also had an old fashioned from the bar, which was made nicely although a little watered down for my taste. They have a fully stocked bar and good wine selection.
Overall the Vista Grille is a nice place with a cool upscale atmosphere and great service. I’ll definitely be coming back here again.

Service was outstanding. Food was really good. Price was fair. I will come back.

This place has taken a dive. The portions are so small and incredibly overpriced. Last time we were there I ordered the lamb and it was such a small portion, we laughed when they dropped it at our table. We laughed until we realized it was like $ 28.
On a sidenote: we used to come in and were pleasantly greeted by the part owner and his daughter. Apparently he was in a near-​fatal car crash and while in the hospital, the other owners fired his daughter and have made moves to force him out of the business while he was unconscious.
Overpriced food and horrible business ethics. I wish I had four hands to give this place four thumbs down.

Service is on key! We were immediately greeted as soon as we walked in. Our waiter was fantastic from beginning to end!

YUM! This place is really good! My husband & I went here on our 6 year wedding anniversary to celebrate. It was recommended by our good friends who used to live in Sparks.
I had the Stuffed Salmon with crab, cream cheese & spinach, pesto cream sauce on top of rice pilaf with fresh vegetables. It was so good! And the freshness of the salmon was impressive. My husband had the Pork Tenderloin Scallopini with mushroom ragout, white wine — butter sauce, over Fettuccine. It was delish!
The service was great & the atmosphere was really nice. We will be back.

Had dinner there last night and I had to throw in another star. I ordered the lasagna and it was SO good. Really cheesy and full of yum! The red headed bartender was so sweet too. She let us take advantage of the happy hour special on our first round even though it was a few minutes past 6 pm. What a sweetheart. We love this place.

Vista Grille is a Sparks treasure. The food is excellent quality at reasonable prices. During the summer they have a wonderful patio next to a nice strip of grass for my kids to play. We have been there dozens of times and never had something wrong with our meals and the service has always been top notch. If you haven’t been, you must go experience it yourself.

I have been eating at Vista Grille since literally the first month they opened. I ADORE this place for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the delicious food! The ambiance is great with comfortable seating and a very warm, homey feel. The service is always laid back and friendly, just the way I like it. If you like hurried service with waitstaff who pesters you with «check-​ins» every 5 minutes, this is not the place for you.
The menu has a super variety, something for every taste from steak and seafood to pasta to salads and sandwiches. I’ve had a number of different dishes from their menu and all have been very good, but my favorites are the French Onion soup and green salad with balsamic dressing, Cobb salad or Shrimp Louie salad. I also love the warm sourdough bread they give you. YUM!
If you haven’t been to Vista Grille yet, it’s absolutely worth a try. I bet you’ll want to go back!

We went here on a couple’s night Living Social deal which retails for $ 55. The coupon said we need to present it to the server at the time of ordering our meal, which I’m always skeptical of doing for fear that I will get lesser quality service. That was NOT the case. Instead we were offered various options (extra glass of wine in lieu of champagne, dessert in lieu of wine, etc.) I had some sea bass over cheesy risotto with fresh veggies. My husband had the NY Steak, potatoes and veggies. We were both very impressed with the flavor and service. The place was busy, but they were staffed to handle the crowd. This is not a place that I would typically go because of it’s location, but I’m really glad we did. If you haven’t gone and are thinking about it, just do it!

When I lived out in Wingfield Springs I used to enjoy this place for dinner or for happy hour drinks with friends. My favorite dish here is the Tahitian Prawns (it’s sooo good but I think it’s over priced for 2 admittedly enormous shrimp, it’s still $ 13 per shrimp plus standard sides, but it’s amazing). I was surprised when I looked them up on Unilocal to see they had such a low overall and quite the mixed ratings. It has been many many years since I’ve been out here for dinner, so tonight after a lovely stroll around the marina we decided to come try them.
We decided to have the special Thurs night couples dinner. It’s a starter and entrée + 2 glasses of wine each for $ 55 total. I had the hearts of palm salad and red snapper, s/​o had the potato cheese soup and quail. We also shared the calamari appetizer because he was mentioned last time he had quail at a restaurant he liked it but left still hungry. They let him choose the type of wine with each course and poured generously. The calamari was wonderfully light (no thick breading here) crispy and flavorful even without the two dipping sauces. My salad was very good, nicely chilled with sliced hearts of palm, feta, and lightly candied pecans. The cheddar potato soup was very flavorful, but it was a blended soup and I think a chowder style would have been better. His quail entrée was very tasty, and he got two twee little birds so there were leftovers. My snapper was also very good (I hesitated at the description of the accompanying sauce: creamy pineapple but it was very good!). Also generously portioned so there were leftovers as well. The veggies that came with our meals were notable as they were bright and perfectly cooked, not soggy and dripping with butter like many restaurants. I don’t drink much so I was told I could have dessert in lieu of the two glasses of wine. My choice of anything from their menu! We chose a spiced peach Napoleon with white chocolate mousse. The waitress suggested pairing it with Pinot Grigio and it was divine. paper thin layers of crisp phyllo layered with white chocolate mousse and topped with boldly flavored poached peaches. Very good texturally and flavor wise.
Service was prompt and attentive. The on duty manager or owner made the rounds and was part of the service. Very kind and not intrusive and a very spirited friendly waitress. We can’t wait to come back.

Me and my husband went to this restaurant, expecting a good dining experience and dinner. We got in, very quickly (was a Thursday night) and were seated right behind the «waiter hangout» area. The service was OK, the staff seemed to lack enthusiasm and passion for working there.
We decided on the Couple’s Night Special of the Evening. This started out with 2 glasses of champagne and a raspberry salad — which was completely overdressed and had the lettuce core and an onion peel in it (really?). We then received a glass of wine — which on the plus side was a good portion.
My husband received the osso bucco with mashed potatoes and green beans. It was prepared nicely and had good flavor. I ordered the red snapper, which was a big disappointment. It was terribly spicy — to the point I couldn’t taste much of anything else, and on top of that was undercooked. I pushed that aside and thought I could eat the rice pilaf, which had to have been from a box — overpowering fake taste and lack of any creativity.
I will have to say that we will not be back, it is unfortunate because it is close to us and a local place, but without the passion for service and the inspiration for cooking a nice dinner — a place like this would not be on our list of places to try for anyone.

Fantastic food service and desert is awesome. Will definitely return again! The dessert menu is awesome!

This is my favorite sit down place in Sparks. The food is consistently good, they serve Guinness and Jamesons and service is always top-​notch.
In the 5 years I’ve been a patron, I’ve never had a bad meal, but their St Patrick’s Day Menu keeps me coming back… I love their lamb stew… wished they served it all year round. The seared ahi is choice, too!

12.21.10
We got into Sparks for an almost week long snowboarding trip. Wanted a good, hearty meal (read, full of meat) and a good night sleep before another day of boarding.
Vista Grille did the trick. The rib eye, NY strip, and burgers were all amazing, juicy and tender.
Wash it down with a few pints of cold beer, and we’re good to go.

My boyfriend and I ate here on a random weekday, just to try it.
He had the prime rib and I had the lamb chops. Both were pretty good.
He also ordered an artichoke soup, which he thought was excellent.
Our service was good and the bill was fitting.
I’d definately eat here again.

This place is horrible. Tonight we decided to head there with a group of 6. I had called ahead and made reservations so we were seated very quickly.
We were seated at a table where waters had already been placed at each setting (creepy).
The waiter was a total creeper and was either whispering or screaming at us every time we interacted. The meals were so so — nothing amazing, nothing horrible. I had the Steak Diane and felt the quality was definitely lacking. The waited stayed near the kitchen the entire meal glancing at our party occasionally and not returning to fill waters or sodas. I was saddened by his lack of attention and by the quality of food.
I hadn’t dined here and several years but thought it would be nice to head back since the last time I was there was with mostly the same group (out of town family).
I def. disagree with Mike S who just dined there this month. This place pales in comparison to even McDonald’s in the bay area. What a HORRIBLE reflection on Reno and it’s restaurants. Next time we’ll make the 45 minute trek to Jake’s on the Lake in Tahoe.
Do not dine here. The food and service are sub par and the décor is def. as low class as the service and food.