Too Bad the Boathouse closed... It was the last time this place was any good... now even when there is no wind, this place Blows!Went there last Saturday place has changed with new owner,the good:still located on the lake / somewhat dog friendly / more shade over the outside deck / Alaskan Amber on tap.the Not so good:Place is a more "stuffy"/ lacking in personality especially the bar tender who takes his time serving you, but is very good... at ignoring you, talking to customers does not seem to be on his to-do list.No domestic beer. all drinks $7** or more + Tax.The day I went there were only a few people there and there was a strange vibe.. like the place was waiting to turn into an LGBTQ bar. there was one "couple" on the patio all by themselves one with a pair of lips that could have belonged to a wide mouth bass, sex unknown. The entertainment that showed up later in the day was an old guy on the piano, On a SATURDAY Wow that's entertainment?O well things change, sometimes not for the better.PS; pool table is gone, but hey there is new wall treatment inside LOL.
Jaime Correa
Great place, great people, limited food menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Alexander Viloria Winnett
Staff was very kind, and made my friend feel celebrated on her birthday.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Veronica Garcia
Everything was great. the only thing was trash arrangements was somewhat a little inconvenient .... overall, we enjoyed ourselves there
Agata J.
Service was great and although the menu is minimal all the food was delicious. Great family place & very relaxed atmosphere.
S P.
We have a 2nd home in Big Bear and we're often up on the weekends. Moving here in a few years. As a semi-local, Pines Tavern is one of our favorites. We love the easy-going music from the moment we walked in, We've brought friends and family here who appreciate good food. The daytime lake view is spectacular. The Tavern's menu was reduced, I guess to allow the restaurant (next door) to focus on the wonderful entrées offered. So, there's some great "tavern food" offered. The tri-tip 'tips' are delicious and we don't need the sauce -- but the sauces offered are good. Everybody loves a soft big pretzel. (at 7000ft elevation, bread dries-out quickly, so enjoy it while it's freshly delivered. We love their pizzas! Always feels like we got it fresh out of a wood oven. Love that they offer half of pizza. Don't expect a 200-bottle wine list, but their selections are perfectly good. Our spiced-rum/Coke and whiskey old fashion are always good. The team is working hard to take care of everybody, it's Big Bear, have a little patience -you're not in LA. The point is to enjoy your surroundings and the people you're with -- if you like the company, then you shouldn't mind hanging out a few extra minutes here and there (no matter which eating establish you're at). Most small communities have limited staff and they run on their own time schedule. It's a Tavern folks... Take a deep breath and relax.
Anndee T.
Came in for dinner and drinks. Waited 53 minutes for service. The waitress repeatedly said she'd be right there. Never even got water. Watched numerous tables that came in after us get served. Gave up and walked out.
Gohar K.
Even though I saw the reviews for this place I still chose to stop by for lunch with my husband while in Big Bear. What can I say I'm a sucker for restaurants with great views whether it's ocean view or lake view or Mountain View. I love it. So I told my husband I want to try and have my own opinion about the place. Who knows we might be surprised. Oh boy were we surprised. The food is awful or at least whatever we ordered. The pretzel that our waitress said was super good was horrible. Like a ten days old rubber. The clam chowder was tasteless and the tri-tip the worst ever had. The pizza someone was having looked ok but we didn't risk to waste another dollar. We couldn't finish any of it so we just paid and left. The location and the views are beautiful. I wish they did something about the food too. This place will be very popular if they get someone to make delicious food.
Arjav Shah
The live music, food, and the view were all fantastic! Monica was outstanding! Shall definitely come back here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Margherita Pizza
Kimberly Tuminaro
The tri tip tid bits app is fantastic. My husband said it may be some of the best tri tip he’s ever had (and he’s tried many).Good place for a snack and drinks but not a meal; limited food menu.
The best Tri-Tip beef I've ever tried. It strongly reminded me of “Shashlik, “which I've been craving for a while. My Bloody Mary was absolutely delicious, and the service and atmosphere were amazing. I'm eagerly anticipating my next visit.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tri Tip Tid Bits, Tri Tip Sliders
Matthew R.
Love this spot, good food and even better views. We've had a nice family meal here several times and enjoyed the live music.
Bonnie F.
The view and boat dock is the only reason we have ever came back!! Horrible service every single time!!!! Not busy at all and the bartenders stand around talking while current and new guests sit at the bar waiting to be helped!!!! I'm sad to say that I agree with all of these other negative comments! Ordered my appetizer of course she forgot to put the order in as per usual smh. Someone needs to clean house with these women who look miserable and don't like to wk once and for all and also do a complete cleaning!!!! Wash the windows gezzzzzz such a beautiful place and view. Owners Just sell it already and give it to someone who cares about the place!!!!
Megan M.
Our waitress Jen was horrible. She had an attitude the whole time and was not attentive at all. We waited over two hours to get our food and when we asked her to check on the order she let us know that she forgot to put the order in. Once we got our food, they let us know that they were out of all of the sides we ordered and just "gave us what they add." The food was so bad. We ordered tri tip sandwiches and each one only had a small thin slice of tri tip on them. Definitely not worth the $26. When we asked her to split our bill 2 ways, she threw the bill at us and said she didn't know how to do that. On top of all this, she added an automatic gratuity of 18% on top of our bill because we were a party of 4 (even though we split the check 2 ways). She was extremely rude and didn't try to fix the situation at all. I will never be back. The only good thing about this place was the view and the entertainment.
Prof P
I usually go here for a couple drinks around sunset when the skies are right. Can't say much about the food as I usually just have a couple drinks but the staff is always cool. Cheers.
Too Bad the Boathouse closed... It was the last time this place was any good... now even when there is no wind, this place Blows!Went there last Saturday place has changed with new owner,the good:still located on the lake / somewhat dog friendly / more shade over the outside deck / Alaskan Amber on tap.the Not so good:Place is a more "stuffy"/ lacking in personality especially the bar tender who takes his time serving you, but is very good... at ignoring you, talking to customers does not seem to be on his to-do list.No domestic beer. all drinks $7** or more + Tax.The day I went there were only a few people there and there was a strange vibe.. like the place was waiting to turn into an LGBTQ bar. there was one "couple" on the patio all by themselves one with a pair of lips that could have belonged to a wide mouth bass, sex unknown. The entertainment that showed up later in the day was an old guy on the piano, On a SATURDAY Wow that's entertainment?O well things change, sometimes not for the better.PS; pool table is gone, but hey there is new wall treatment inside LOL.
Great place, great people, limited food menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Staff was very kind, and made my friend feel celebrated on her birthday.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Everything was great. the only thing was trash arrangements was somewhat a little inconvenient .... overall, we enjoyed ourselves there
Service was great and although the menu is minimal all the food was delicious. Great family place & very relaxed atmosphere.
We have a 2nd home in Big Bear and we're often up on the weekends. Moving here in a few years. As a semi-local, Pines Tavern is one of our favorites. We love the easy-going music from the moment we walked in, We've brought friends and family here who appreciate good food. The daytime lake view is spectacular. The Tavern's menu was reduced, I guess to allow the restaurant (next door) to focus on the wonderful entrées offered. So, there's some great "tavern food" offered. The tri-tip 'tips' are delicious and we don't need the sauce -- but the sauces offered are good. Everybody loves a soft big pretzel. (at 7000ft elevation, bread dries-out quickly, so enjoy it while it's freshly delivered. We love their pizzas! Always feels like we got it fresh out of a wood oven. Love that they offer half of pizza. Don't expect a 200-bottle wine list, but their selections are perfectly good. Our spiced-rum/Coke and whiskey old fashion are always good. The team is working hard to take care of everybody, it's Big Bear, have a little patience -you're not in LA. The point is to enjoy your surroundings and the people you're with -- if you like the company, then you shouldn't mind hanging out a few extra minutes here and there (no matter which eating establish you're at). Most small communities have limited staff and they run on their own time schedule. It's a Tavern folks... Take a deep breath and relax.
Came in for dinner and drinks. Waited 53 minutes for service. The waitress repeatedly said she'd be right there. Never even got water. Watched numerous tables that came in after us get served. Gave up and walked out.
Even though I saw the reviews for this place I still chose to stop by for lunch with my husband while in Big Bear. What can I say I'm a sucker for restaurants with great views whether it's ocean view or lake view or Mountain View. I love it. So I told my husband I want to try and have my own opinion about the place. Who knows we might be surprised. Oh boy were we surprised. The food is awful or at least whatever we ordered. The pretzel that our waitress said was super good was horrible. Like a ten days old rubber. The clam chowder was tasteless and the tri-tip the worst ever had. The pizza someone was having looked ok but we didn't risk to waste another dollar. We couldn't finish any of it so we just paid and left. The location and the views are beautiful. I wish they did something about the food too. This place will be very popular if they get someone to make delicious food.
The live music, food, and the view were all fantastic! Monica was outstanding! Shall definitely come back here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Margherita Pizza
The tri tip tid bits app is fantastic. My husband said it may be some of the best tri tip he’s ever had (and he’s tried many).Good place for a snack and drinks but not a meal; limited food menu.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Tri Tip Tid Bits
Restaurantji Recommends
The best Tri-Tip beef I've ever tried. It strongly reminded me of “Shashlik, “which I've been craving for a while. My Bloody Mary was absolutely delicious, and the service and atmosphere were amazing. I'm eagerly anticipating my next visit.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tri Tip Tid Bits, Tri Tip Sliders
Love this spot, good food and even better views. We've had a nice family meal here several times and enjoyed the live music.
The view and boat dock is the only reason we have ever came back!! Horrible service every single time!!!! Not busy at all and the bartenders stand around talking while current and new guests sit at the bar waiting to be helped!!!! I'm sad to say that I agree with all of these other negative comments! Ordered my appetizer of course she forgot to put the order in as per usual smh. Someone needs to clean house with these women who look miserable and don't like to wk once and for all and also do a complete cleaning!!!! Wash the windows gezzzzzz such a beautiful place and view. Owners Just sell it already and give it to someone who cares about the place!!!!
Our waitress Jen was horrible. She had an attitude the whole time and was not attentive at all. We waited over two hours to get our food and when we asked her to check on the order she let us know that she forgot to put the order in. Once we got our food, they let us know that they were out of all of the sides we ordered and just "gave us what they add." The food was so bad. We ordered tri tip sandwiches and each one only had a small thin slice of tri tip on them. Definitely not worth the $26. When we asked her to split our bill 2 ways, she threw the bill at us and said she didn't know how to do that. On top of all this, she added an automatic gratuity of 18% on top of our bill because we were a party of 4 (even though we split the check 2 ways). She was extremely rude and didn't try to fix the situation at all. I will never be back. The only good thing about this place was the view and the entertainment.
I usually go here for a couple drinks around sunset when the skies are right. Can't say much about the food as I usually just have a couple drinks but the staff is always cool. Cheers.