Peaks of Otter Lodge

Location, location, location. Great place to stop on the parkway for an overnight. The rooms are pretty standard and have been kept up adequately. It’s not fancy but is clean and not run down. The restaurant is very good. Service was super friendly and reasonably quick for the small staff on a weekday. Went for a hike the next morning and saw a bear a bit closer than we had planned, heh.

The scenery and the service are what earns this rating. This place is so clean, it sparkles. This area is breathtaking. The Lodge is built to be rustic, but very comfortable and the meals are excellent, if not quite 5-​star, however the service is excellent. We came in late and the manager opened the coffee shop that had closed hours before, so that we could get sandwiches and drinks… and Route 11 Chips! Do not miss Rte 11 Chips! Our rooms were very basic, but clean and comfortable, and accept pets. Perhaps WiFi is new, but it is free and I used it from my room. This is an area dedicated to the true outdoors, not kitschy or built up, just true beauty with serious comfort when you fall, exhausted, into bed at night. And did I mention… you can bring your pet. Our Labrador cost us $ 25/​night, pennies compared to what we would have spent to board her. Besides, exploring the outdoors is more fun with your dog who loves everything!

Went with the family fir seafood night. The whole family enjoyed it except for my uncle. He is a complainer by nature so I discount his nitpicking. We got crabs in the bucket and the buffets. Really nice seafood and beautiful scenery. Can walk around the lake afterwards with the family. I would recommend it.

What a charming location located on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The lodge is large, contemporary, slightly rustic and staffed by pleasant professionals. Everything is clean, neat and well organized.
There are accommodations for guests, a large restaurant; set up for table or cafeteria service. There are rooms, most with marvelous views. There are a variety of fireplaces in the lodge and various areas to sit for small or large groups. There are various trails, including to the local peak, visible from the facilities.
What a great place to get snowed in and marvel at the views!

When I was a kid, my parents took me and my brother to the Peaks of Otter Restaurant every Sunday for brunch or breakfast, and it was the highlight of my week. I’m 23 now, and I’ve since moved away from the area. I came back to see my parents for the holidays with my best guy friend. From the stories my family has told about the Peaks, my friend knew how much brunch had meant to me growing up, so, for Christmas, he took me to the Peaks of Otter Restaurant for Sunday brunch.
Worst. Experience. Ever.
The place has gone WAY downhill.
You pay $ 18/​person for the all-​you-​can-​eat buffet, which should be relabeled to the «everything’s-cold-by-the-time-it-hits-the-table» buffet.
It’s enough that the food’s cold, but, on top of that, it sucks. I mean, I’ve had better scrambled eggs at a Shoney’s.
Do not waste your time and your hard-​earned gas money hauling your ass up to the Peaks for the restaurant. Stay home and cook a nice meal for a fraction of the cost with your family. Then go hike afterwards at the Peaks — for free! It’s wrong to charge people that much for the stuff that you’re serving, Peaks of Otter Restaurant.
The management of the restaurant today really put a damper on the wonderful memories that I had of Sunday brunch growing up.

Just spent Thanksgiving here — cramped eating space, rushed service, and not very tasty food on a buffet line. Beef was just shy of being jerky, food was warm not hot. Just not very good at all today.

My girlfriend and I only stopped here briefly on our Blue Ridge Parkway trip, but the area seemed really nice and rustic. There is a restaurant, gift shop, and small coffee shop inside (bathrooms are through the front door on your right downstairs). The property overlooks the lake with numerous paths all over the place.
Overall, it has a really nice feel, although don’t expect to get any cell phone service here, and there is no complimentary WiFi.

It’s a lodge… nothing fancy but clean and rustic… If you are a Marriott snob. The view… wowzer. The rooms are 50 years old but are about to undergo a major reno so we will be back! The grounds are well manicured. They offer coffee in the room… kurig machine — and flat screen tvs!!! But who would sit n watch TV with great views off your private balconey. Food was hit or miss and so was the service. We will be back once the reno is done so we can give them the 5 stars they are trying to earn…

If I were to base this on the food and scenery this would have recieved 3.5 — 4 stars. However, our service was horrible. Beyond horrible. Our waitress gave a new definition to slow, neglectful, and just plain old disappearing.
Pros:
–Menu is limited but the food was pretty good. I had the turkey wrap and everything tasted fresh and flavorful.
–Views of the lake and the Peaks of Otter are great. There are trails around the lake you could walk.
–The dining room is large and open so you are no crowed by other tables
–Lodge and Restaraunt are located right on the Blue Ridge Parkway
Cons:
Waitress
–She refused to check with the cook if someone in our party could add another patty to their burger. Claimed they were slammed but very few people were in the dining room
–She would disappear at times.
–Forgot to bring our silverware when asked repeatedly for it. We finally got it ourselves.
–When it came time to do the check she disappeared again for 15 mins. Then she came out to refill waters at other tables and ignored us completely.

I spent 4^th of July at the Peaks of Otter lodge and I ate all my meals at their restaurant (there are not a lot of places nearby, and I found the restaurant a convenient and comfortable option).
The location is beautiful. The lodge is nestled right along the Blue Ridge Parkway, and you can walk easily to nearby trails – excellent hiking.
The rooms are not fancy, but they are clean and comfortable and the TVs are flat screen. All the views are wonderful and since the lodge is dog-​friendly you can bring your pooch or just all the dogs other people bring!
Be warned though, no cell phones seem to work at the lodge.
The food at the restaurant was good, but nothing to go crazy about. I enjoyed it though, mostly because it is just nice to hang out on the property. My favorite thing I ordered was a peanut butter dessert made with peanut butter mousse and fudge!
The staff was very welcoming a friendly. I would stay here again.

My family went to the Peaks of Otter restaurant last Sunday for brunch. This was the first time since the reopening and I was not sure what to expect, since there have been such mixed reviews. They had an omelette and waffle station for those interested in breakfast food and they also had a salad bar, plus all sorts of lunch items., not to mention desserts. Two of us had breakfast, which was delicious, the other two had lunch, which I was told the fried chicken and mashed potatoes were wonderful. The service and staff were great and the view… outstanding.

Be sure to sit by the window so you can enjoy the food with a great view of the lake.
Service is pretty slow even when there aren’t many people around, but the people are really nice. My waiter was really helpful when I asked him about how to go about driving the parkway and continuing on with my trip.
I got the pulled pork burger. It, as well as the other burgers or sandwiches, come with a side. I chose the soup of the day, which happened to be French onion soup. I couldn’t finish the burger because I wasn’t as hungry as I thought but I did save it for dinner and it still tasted pretty good then.
I think what I appreciated the most about this place was that it has wifi available here. After hours of driving without any phone signal or 4G to check my progress and plan out the rest of my day, it was nice to finally be able to use some modern technology again. Stop by here if you need to do the same.

We went for the brunch buffet today. The omelettes, waffle and beef tips and gravy were excellent. All the other food was only okay. The desserts were not homemade or even good. They seemed to be frozen, thawed and then placed on the buffet. The employees there were wonderful. I feel that the buffet was way too expensive for the «okay» food. I don’t see myself going back for the brunch buffet.

After a strenuous hike atop Sharp Top, I decided to come to this place for lunch. In the past, I have not eaten at this place due to no vegetarian options.
After getting seated at the table, I decided to try Black Bean Burger — the only vegetarian option. I was told that they were out of it. I was pretty dejected.
I was too hungry and tired to drive to another place. So, I ordered Sweet Potato Fries (served with maple butter), and quesadilla. May be I was hungry, but the food was really delicious. Sweet Potato Fries were surprisingly good and really yum. The location is unbeatable. I sat near the window, and had the lake view.
I’m going to try this place again, and hopefully they won’t be out of black bean burger.
Note: This review is just for the restaurant.

Easter buffet was wonderful. Food was nicely prepared. The hostesses still don’t have it quite right. We had 1:00 reservations but we were seated almost a half hour late although there were many empty tables.

This review is based on one time, Sunday brunch at the restaurant only.
We drove up last Sunday, beautiful drive, to have the buffet for Sunday brunch. The restaurant and lodge had been closed recently and went under new management this summer. We had never been there.
45 minute wait for brunch, with a lot of empty tables. We were told it would be 30. Our hand-​held indicator never went off, we had to go up to the desk and ask how much longer it would be. They couldn’t find our name on the list, so they seated us, right next to the buffet. Server came to us and took our drink order and then disappeared for much of the rest of the time we were there. No butter on the buffet, you have to ask for it. Some salad, a small area of breakfast-​y type food and other items. 2 types of bread, biscuits and very hard rolls, both very dry. Chicken strips and Prime rib overcooked and dry, no aujus for the rib. One container said it had scalloped potatoes but it seemed to be just full of cheese and oil. Mac and cheese was ok. Only 2 veggies on the bar, creamed spinach that had no flavor and buttered zucchini, which was the best thing there. Dessert was obvious food service stuff — trifle made with vanilla pudding and pound cake made in a factory and put into cans, there was rugelagh that is the same stuff you can buy in the deli at Kroger, same with the pies, and dry cookies.
Highly disappointed with the quality and price ($ 17!!!). It NEEDS to get better. The Peaks of Otter is a landmark and something we should be proud of in this area, but it is embarrassing. I don’t see us going back anytime soon.

Unfair to give the lodge and restaurant one review. The renovations of the hotel are awesome. Hotel staff are fantastic. large flat screen TV and AC. this is 1960s construction but this is a place to be outdoors or on your private deck overlooking the lake. the three otters in the lake are pretty cute too. If you love hiking you cannot go wrong with this place. No cell phone service or land line phone but for some that is a good thing. 5 stars to the lodge. if you do hike up one of the mountains I got full bars on my cell phone. The hotel staff said they are trying to get verizon to extend the cell service.
Now the restaurant:
Keep in mind this is the only place to eat within 11 miles and you are on top of the parkway. After a full day of hiking this is it. The Dept of Interior just awarded a new contract to this vendor. They should put this company on notice and if not corrected, terminate them for default. This is the worst managed restaurant I have ever stepped foot in. Top down it is incompetent. i just went to their facebook site and it states they are looking for staff from manager down to cooks… I had breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It was hit or miss. Uncooked rice, unidentified food, buffet that had no food and people waiting for food, cannot tell you how much my order was wrong when it came to the table. Several of the customers, at all three times I was there over three days, got into shouting at the staff that fully admitted they had no idea what they were doing. Not to mention long wait for food in an almost empty restaurant — With staff standing around doing nothing or arguing in front of the customers. Oh yeah, none of the staff know the menu. I cannot write enough to tell you how bad the dining experience was. In comparison if you go to shenandoah it is amazing dining but the rooms are what Peaks were before the renovation. The fried chicken my wife and kids had was excellent. However, it took over an hour to get our food and the restaurant was less than half full. Our waiter that night only had 4 tables and he was very confused.
i will say I will go back because the location and the hotel setting is awesome and the renovated rooms are great.
i will however bring my own food and drive into bedford for my meals. I was a Chef and I almost went into the kitchen to start managing as I felt so bad for all the people there. Oh yeah, they just got a POS and no one knew how to use it. A manager from MacD’s could whip this place into shape. I don’t know whom I felt more sorry for — the staff wanting to be led or the pissed off customers. A monkey could manage this beautiful place more effectively. I hope it improves as it has so much potential and is the only place around for miles.

The Lodge and the restaurant need Renovation and UPDATING. This place could be so much more. But it is disappointing after driving a long way and up very curvy roads to this place that looks like it hasn’t been touched since the 1970’s.
Please someone step in and take over this sad little place. The fabrics are old and tired and the furniture looks bad. It needs major refreshing.

Nathan that works at the front desk is the rudest human being that I encountered on the blue ridge parkway. He certainly does not belong in a customer service role as his attitude soured many guests’ stays.
Despite the lack luster welcoming crew, the property was peaceful and relaxing. The rooms and food were satisfactory but overpriced. It might be a place to stop in for the lovely view and a glass of wine but beyond that, don’t waste your time or money here.

The food here was decent, but definitely overpriced. You’re paying for the view– which is nice, Sharp Top is RIGHT there outside the giant windows.
Service was slow and pretty iffy– she forgot to bring items more than once, and my water glass stayed empty for long periods of time (which drives me crazy!). I’d come back here– but only because you have have no other choice in the area.