Ahwahnee Bar

Not impressed.
Spend NYE 2015 in Yosemite. It was exciting, it was beautiful, it was a winter wonderland. After exploring and sight seeing inside the park, we were starving. We had heard that the Ahwahnee was the nicest hotel in the park and that the bar is great. No.
We we arrived, there was a wait. Of course, it’s the holidays and it was the only food option that was open in the lodge. I don’t know why they would do that. Anyway, we approached the very very rude host that told us it was be 1.5 hour wait for two people. You literally had no choice. You had to eat there or not eat at all. So we waited. He continuously called peoples names — most times not very loud or with an attitude. We waited nearly 2 hrs. We were finally seated and was waited on right away. Fortunately we had a decent server.
First and most importantly, the food was completely unacceptable. It was overpriced and nearly rotten. I don’t think I have ever been so upset about the quality of food at any other restaurant.
I ordered the only vegetarian option, which was a veggie wrap with a ‘fresh’ fruit cup. My wrap was soggy, it was dripping water. Besides that, it lack flavor — well actually it just tasted like watered down hummus. Sounds yummy right? Don’t worry I only paid ~$ 18 for it. And my ‘fresh’ fruit, was brown. This meal was barely edible. I was starving and couldn’t even eat it.
The only good thing I have to say is that it has a lovely ambience. That’s it. Our bill was $ 80 and I was disgusted, hungry, and sick. Never again.

Bar is quick place to grab a meal. Limited menu for multiple visits if you are in Yosemite for several days.

I had basically the worst waiter IN THE WORLD, EVER here. Every time we needed to talk to him about anything, he seemed completely put upon. When he did deign to talk to us, he was extremely kurt. For example, telling us the actual name of the cheese with which the soup was made was way too much trouble, so he dubbed it «fancy cheddar». Only when we pressed further, through multiple heavy sighs did we gain the privilege of knowing the actual name of the cheese. I also heard him ask the table next to us to remind him to bring their second course. Really it would have been better if we had just eaten at McDonald’s. At least it’s cheap.
The beer selection sucked, and they were out of 1 of their 3 beers. I had chili. It was lame. Others I was with had sandwiches. They had pulled pork. None of it was very good. There’s no excuse for this nice of a hotel to have such a sucky place.

Cocktails were great! & The chili and pulled pork sandwich is amazing! Service was great– very friendly staff. We will be back!

Admittedly I had high expectations coming here as it is more expensive. However I found the staff to be courteous, to food to be great — and FAST — overall — had a nice time. I would recommend giving them a chance. I had the pork sandwich and the hot chocolate with tequila in it — YUM!

While waiting in line to get our formal portrait done before the Bracebridge dinner, my friends ran off to order us drinks here while I held our place in line. I thoroughly enjoyed my Madras, while my friends got a Moscow mule and some other cocktail. I told them I’d get this round and handed them $ 40 for the 3 drinks. Since I didn’t get any change back, I’m gonna guess drinks were pretty high (and also I don’t drink much, so I’m always suffering sticker shock at bars). Once we had our portrait done, our drinks were empty and we came back to sit down at the bar for one more round. I asked our server if she wouldn’t mind giving me another orange slice (they were so sweet and good). She didn’t even blink an eye. «Oh, I thought you were going to ask me for something REALLY hard!»

Their Caesar salad was amazing along with my hello kitty wine

This place gets worse every time I eat there. So, this is the very last time. A totally indifferent waiter did not help. The bean soup was nothing more than dish water with some veggies and a chunk of chicken. It did not contain ANY beans!!! It was difficult to get a refill of our water and soda. The rest of our meal was quite average at best. Perhaps they might even appreciate our business during the SLOW off season!!!

After working up an appetite hiking the slopes of the Yosemite mountains, we thought that late lunch at the historic Aheahnee hotel would be a perfect end to a very memorable day. Unfortunately, we were wrong. The Aheahnee bar serves expensive food with surprisingly terrible/​unsanitary service.
First, the location. The Ahwahnee hotel is beautiful and definitely worth a visit. The large fireplaces, nooks and dining room are all very beautiful and inspiring. Skip the Ahwahnee bar, though. Unless you’re up for waiting for an outside table, the interior is dated and uninspiring.
Second, the service. Our waitress was rather slow, filled our water glasses up with ice instead of water and tried to take away my plate before I was finished. Much worse: we were sitting near the bar, and I saw several instances of waitstaff prepping glasses with their dirty hands. They were touching everything – from money to credit cards to the register to the menus to dirty plates. And also the lemons I asked for to put in my water. And that celery stick, lime and olive prepared for another customer’s Bloody Mary. The waiters just dunked their unwashed hands into all those containers of drink fixings. Gross.
Third, the food was just ok and definitely not worth the ridiculously high price tag. I ordered the Caesar salad with chicken ($ 18). While the dressing was on point, the cold chicken and store bought croutons were a disappointment. You’d think an $ 18 salad would include house made croutons, they’re really not that hard to make and they make salads so much classier. Ugh, whatever. Drinks, too are expensive, like beer for $ 8 and mixed drinks for $ 13.
Unfortunately, I will probably never be back. Hopefully the main dining room is classier and has more sanitary waitstaff practices.

Terrific cocktails that you can drink outside with stunning views of one of the country’s great national parks. The interior of the hotel is classically gorgeous, but it can’t compete with nature.
I ordered the Irish Nut, a hot cocktail of Coffee, Bailey’s Irish Cream & Frangelico topped with whipped cream as the sun began to disappear over the mountains… so basically, a perfect experience. Our server was as chilled out as you’d imagine a dude who lives and works in Yosemite Valley to be. The drinks are a bit expensive, but you’re ordering them at a nearly 100 year old luxury hotel that inspired the production design of The Shining located in a breathtaking national park… you can handle spending a few bucks more than normal for a good cocktail. Sit back, relax, and enjoy.

Stopped at the Ahwahnee Bar for lunch while visiting Yosemite. What a disappointment! Very over priced for what you get, and the servers are very lacking in customer service skills and cleanliness. I ordered the pastrami sandwich with chips and my wife ordered the pulled pork sandwich with chips. The pastrami had a sweet taste to it, which I did not like. The pulled pork sandwich had a strange seasoning on it, which my wife did not like. We traded sandwiches and both agreed the best park of the lunch was leaving! It was over 100 degrees with no AC! We had iced tea with lemon to drink, and you would think that when the glass is full to the rim with lemons from the refills that we would have to hunt the waitress down for, eventually the waitress would bring you a new glass… but not here! It was very VERY unsettling when we turned and noticed our waitress had some sort of bug bites that looked infected all over her legs — and she was wearing shorts and low booty socks!!! GROSS — they looked like bed bug bites! After finally getting the check, which turned out to be the WRONG check — we had to search again for the waitress to bring us OUR check so we could leave.
Unfortunately, it was after we left the bar that we realized we were not at the restaurant we heard great things about!

The Ahwahnee is a gorgeous hotel. The hotel bar is on the back side over looking a field and gorgeous trees. We sat outside under an umbrella so that we could continue to enjoy the stunning Yosemite views. Three of us enjoyed yummy strawberry margaritas, my dad enjoyed a bottle of cold root beer. The views, combined with the chill of a cold drink after a long day of hiking was a perfect trifecta! Wonderful day and our server was great!

Gross.
The bartender did not use an ice scoop for putting ice in my cocktail. The server brought out my drink holding it by the lip of the glass. Gross. The servers were dirty and messy. Dirty clothes, dirty hair, dirty hands. Really unsanitary. I think that because this location is on federal land, state mandated food handlers licenses are not required for the staff.
Just avoid this place.
If you still want to enjoy the view, grab a bottle of wine from the sweets shop in the lobby and sit at the Adirondack chairs on the lawn adjacent to the bar.

I am not so sure if dining at a hiatorical resort hotel in the middle of Yosemite Valley with mediocre food warrants a hefty price tag on it.
We visited Ahwahnee Hotel based on a friend’s recommendation. I was intrigued by the history that the place had and the significance it played.
It so happened that we got to the hotel around lunch time, so we decided to have lunch at the bar for a quick bite. The dining area is nice. It has a laid back atmosphere. Dining at the patio takes a while as most patrons preferred to dine outside to soak on the picturesque backdrop of the Yosemite Valley. Other than that the actual food at the bar was nothing special. It was somewhat disappointing.
The pork taco was bland. It came with boiled beans and some masged radish-​tasting sides that you can mix into the taco. Without the BBQ sauce rhat came with the other dish that we ordered, the pork taco tasted like someone took raw pork and boiled it (sans seasoning) and shredded it on a soft taco shell. Despite my hubby being hungry, he only ate half of his pork taco.
The pulled pork had a slightly better taste, but required some additional seasoning to taste. Good thing it came with potato chips.
We got Hot Diggity Dog for the kids. It’s was your usual hotdog. Nothing special. Sad to say that the street bbq hot dogs would’ve been my option over the ones at the bar.
The Chili bowl was a slightly better experience given that we like spicy food. It was a typical chili with a generous topping of xheese and sliced jalapenos.
My star rating. goes to the sole dish that we all liked: crab and artichoke dip. It was not so much of the dip but the crunchy and cheesy bread/​crackers that came with the appetizer.
I would’ve given thus experience 3 star, if not for this place’s demand of an 18% gratuity for a party of six for serving fast-​food type menu. Their service was not exceptional either for me to consider their demand worth my money.
It was mediocre food with ok service for a price tag of $ 96.54 USD!
This price tag was for 1 appetizer, a hot dog, a chili bowl, pork taco, pulled pork, and 2 lemonades.
I would say to atill go to Ahwahnee to visit this historical place, but I would recommend to just browse around the hotel or have drinks. Don’t expect to get good food. You can probably try the Ahwahnee Dining area, which hopefully serves better (but definitely more. expensive) food.

This is a majestic property in an even grander setting. However the bar is absolutely a waste of space. The atmosphere is terrible compared to the other corners of the property but with limited food options at the hotel the bar really needs to step it up. The food is absolutely disgusting. It reminds me of my college day cooking. We came with a large group on multiple days and had a chance to try multiple items. There wasn’t anything I can recommend except the vendor needs to be replaced. The food tastes like cheap corporate catering. Why does Yosemite give contracts to these types of shops? Makes an Amtrak meal look good.

Sometimes, even in wilderness, you want to go back to civilization for a little bit. To sit down, drink a well-​made cocktail, chat with strangers and devour good food.
After all, all that fresh air brings an animal appetite in you, and drinks… well, they are always welcome.
Ahwahnee Bar is just a place to do all that. The grounds of Ahwahnee are gorgeous, hotel is spacious, and bar is beautifully set. On busy nights, sit at the end of the bar, as middle tends to get busy with people ordering drinks for the lounge area.
Pork tacos are absolutely delicious. I mean, I think I destroyed them in 5 minutes flat. Have to be a new record for me. I tried few drinks on the menu while chatting with friendly Hawaiian couple, all were delightful (both drinks and people).
I came back here again, and since it was not busy, grabbed a table this time. Service is really quick, and once again, food was top notch. The cocktails are classics, and extremely well-​made. Cheers!
After few drinks, take a walk in the garden and look at breathtaking views around you, or relax in the lounge listening to live piano — perfection of the evening.

Not so many vegan options in Yosemite. We had peered at the fancier restaurant on the other side of the hotel, but for $ 26(!) for the only vegan entrée, I wasn’t interested.
This place is nice enough, with great views. However, the first clue to failure was the not terribly smart Romanian server. He started going on about gluten free options at the mention of vegan.
We got the veges and hummus at $ 12, which might have been an OK deal — except some of the veges at the bottom proved to be moldy! The server didn’t blink at this.
The beer was OK, but the wheat I think has honey in it.
No tip left. Should probably give one star, but at least they had options.

Yosemite is my favorite place on earth and the Ahwahnee is a gorgeous property, but my only complaint is the operating company’s food choice. I think it’s really subpar for extraordinary prices.
Limited menu, which I understand because of location, but it could use a few healthy options. I would say the staff is inexperienced at best from the host at the door who wasn’t able to provide an estimated wait time to the server that was indifferent when we presented him rotted veggies that were included in the platter.
If you’re desperate to eat here anyways, hold out for outdoor seating. The view is worth the 7.75 for Ahwahnee beer that you can buy next door for less than $ 2 per bottle.

Quick, what do people in shorts, tank tops, t-​shirts, flip flops and/​or baseball caps have in common?
All got bounced out of the Ahwahnee Dining Hall for failing to meet the minimum dress code for dinner. So where do you dining hall rejectees suppose to go to eat dinner? Why at the nearby Ahwahnee bar. open 2pm to 11pm.
We came to the Ahwahnee bar during the first day of our stay at the Ahwhanee, when the dining hall reservation list was full.
We sat down near the windows next to the Ahwahnee back green lawns, near the open swimming pool. The place is very clean, with shiny wooden tables, and a couple of steel German chandeliers, each with 18 lights, hanging from the low ceiling, with a room length bar and mirror.
This is a soup, salad and sandwich café, with small side salads about $ 10, and sandwiches $ 16.50-$ 18. Portions are average at best.
My wife ordered the Chicken Waldorf sandwich, and I got the pulled pork sandwich, each $ 16.50. The chicken Waldorf sandwich came with chicken salad on a croissant, with a fruit cup of green and orange melon and pineapple pieces. This was not enough for a meal by itself, as my wife took some chips from my dish to supplement her meager portion of food.
My pulled pork sandwich came on a Kaiser roll bun, with a generous serving of pork, with the bbq sauce on the side in a bottle, and a large pickle. Thick Hawaiian style chips accompanied the dish.
We didn’t order any drinks, as we had plenty of juices in the refrigerator upstairs in our room.
Our final bill with tax and tip came to $ 40.64, the most expensive sandwich lunch I have ever had.
Later we checked out the Ahwahnee dining hall, and found it half empty at 6pm. Apparently to save money they have only 4 waiters serving 6 tables each on duty. That’s 24 tables for dinner, and if the hotel has 123 occupied rooms –someone is going to go hungry for dinner.
The next night when we were going to dinner at the Ahwahnee dining hall, the Ahwahnee bar was filled with customers –probably hotel guests who could not get a reservation at the dining hall, as I see no reason to come here for dinner otherwise.
We ate here one more time, with the wife getting the $ 18 turkey sandwich with a fruit cup. Now the turkey sandwich comes with a very generous portion of meat, almost too big to fit inside one’s mouth. But $ 18 for a cold turkey sandwich?! You can walk half a mile down the road to Yosemite Village and get a $ 9 overpriced cold turkey sandwich from Degnan’s. $ 4 cold turkey sandwich at 7 – 11 in Silicon Valley.
Other entrees include anti pasta appetizer plates, chili hot dog, $ 18 roast beef sandwich, $ 10 side salads, $ 9 bowl of soups, bowl of chili, $ 18 reuben sandwich.
Of course if you are eating out on the patio, and enjoying majestic views of the Glacier Point towering over the 1927 Ahwhanee hotel, an American historic landmark hotel, why the ambiance is magnificent. You are paying for the view, as the outside tables are only reserved for paying guests of the Ahwahnee bar.
And by the way, when we were here on a Saturday night, the piano was in full operation, with the pianist belting out such Hollywood tunes as the Sundance Kid, and the the Magnificent Seven. The only problem was that the place was so noisy with people talking in the close quarters, that nobody could hear him!
The atmosphere is that of a laid back bar, without the formality of the dining hall. And it shows, we me in my bare pedicured feet in my white unisex Birkenstock slide sandals contrasting against my black pants! Well at least I did not commit the fashion faux pas of a dining room guest wearing dark blue socks with sandals!
You dining hall rejectees can come dressed as you are! Although no socks with sandals please!!!

What an expensive disappointment.
We arrived at the hotel a few hours before our room was ready, and figured we’d kill time by grabbing lunch at the ever-​popular Ahwahnee Bar, where people line up well before opening to secure a table, and the place fills up very quickly anyways.
COCKTAILS.
While they are, to be fair, strong, they are not well made. We had the El Capitini and the Moscow Mule by Oprah (which is a weird name). Both tasted pretty poor, the sugar rim on the El Capitini was the only thing making it minorly drinkable, and at least the Moscow Mule came with a wedge of lime to help.
CRAB, AVOCADO, & SPINACH DIP.
This was a complete joke. You’re given the world’s smallest bowl of the dip, and then a mountain of stale out-​of-​the-​box croutons (NOT crostini). Oh, and the kicker? They had the audacity to charge nearly $ 20 for this. A complete rip-​off.
AWHANEE’S FAMOUS BOYSENBERRY PIE.
This was also a big let-​down. They’re apparently well known for it, and of course I had to try it. It comes with a huge mound of cool whip, which already is a bad start. The pie itself has a thick, pasty crust, and the filling tastes canned, and overly sweet.
The kicker? Our bill was $ 80 for all of this.
Now, I understand that one doesn’t go to Yosemite for the fine dining and whatnot, but when you go to the Ahwanhee, and pay their pricepoints, I most definitely expect better. I’ve never had this kind of negative experience in their main dining room, nor with room service.
You’re better off getting pizza at Curry Village, which isn’t saying much.