We stayed at the Inn and enjoyed one of the finest meals we have had in years! Chef Gigi came out herself and we enjoyed talking to her and learning her impressive credentials. The trout cakes we the best thing ever: far better than any...crab cake! My husband had the seafood stew in a bread bowl: superb. I had the salmon with a light citrus cream sauce; fabulous. Even the asparagus was cooked to perfection! The wine list is selected by the chef and I was blown away by how good the wine was!! Carrot cake did not disappoint for dessert either. Our server Sharon was a delight!More

Best fine dining (or any dining) in Lava Hot Springs hands down. This restaurant is above and beyond any other you will find in this quaint town. First you are greeted by the friendliest staff. They have great seating inside and also amazing river front...outdoor seating. There is also bar seating. Get started with a glass of their featured wines or try an amazing specialty cocktail. One of my favorite is the huckleberry margarita. It tastes delicious and is sparkly. Pick any appetizer. You really can’t go wrong. This visit I tried the French Onion soup which was rich and savory. The menu, though limited, ranges from a duck breast entree to a bison burger to a seafood chowder. Everything is chef prepared and top notch. I’ve been so many times I’ve tried most dishes myself. They do change up the menu seasonally. If you’re lucky enough, you’ll visit on a night when they feature live music. If I could leave a 10 star review, I would.More

The food, drinks and service has always been amazing. we make a special trip to go to this restaurant

Excellent food and service in a cool historic building. The Portneuf Grille brings in live musicians every week and offers a quality experience that you would expect in a much larger town. We are lucky to have them here!

All I can say is that our experience at this place is right in line with those of the last couple reviews of the Portneuf Grille. From start to finish, our dinner at the Portneuf Grille was bizarre, very unsatisfying, and expensive. When we first...walked in, not only was the ambience like something out of a B-rate slasher movie, the staff acted like they weren't too interested in serving us (I had made reservations, BTW). The restaurant is in the basement of a run-down hotel, and there are no signs to indicate where to go, to wait, etc. After finding the restaurant and walking in, a barmaid (the only visible employee) ignored us for quite some time (she was too engrossed in gossiping with a townie who was seated at the bar). It was an awkward moment for us, that's for sure. She finally sauntered over and asked us if we were there for dinner, and then took us to a table when we answered "yes." Aside from the customer at the bar, we were the only people in the establishment that didn't have to be there (a bad sign). Some time after being seated, we were "allowed" to order cocktails. What they brought us were two of the worst cocktails my wife and I have ever had. The amount of alcohol in the drinks must've been measured in the microliters. And these were expensive drinks - $12 or so. My wife sent hers back because it seemed that the bartender had forgotten to add the liquor. It came back just as weak as before. Next, we ordered our meals; my wife had the trout, and I ordered the the "filet mignon." After about half an hour, our "meals" were brought to us. The plates were cold, and what was on them was just as cold or colder. The presentation of the meals resembled something I would've prepared in my junior-high Home Economics class for boys (this is not hyperbole!). My wife's trout filet was in pieces and mixed in with a watery and bland sauce. Her polenta was below room-temperature. My steak was about 3/8" thick, and cut up in pieces which were then smushed down into a cold pile of bland mashed potatoes. I had to ask for steak sauce in order to choke down the meat (and I almost never use steak sauce). We also both had Caesar salads. These were just untrimmed romaine leaves with some out-of-a-bottle Caesar dressing poured over them. The lettuce was a little gritty (i.e., dirty). After eating what we could of our meals, we paid the check (over $125 after tax and tip) and then nearly ran out of the Portneuf Grille, so eager were we to be quit of the place. We have since then returned to Lava Hot Springs, but this time we took the advice of other reviewers of the Portneuf Grille and got our dinner at the 78 Main Street Eatery instead. We spent less than half as much to eat there, the food was delicious, and the staff was friendly and attentive.More

Waiting for dinner, ordered hot toddies. Not good, so asked for honey. Waitress tried squeezing it into our cups, saying she was in a hurry and waiting for a "four top." Trout was overcooked and mushy, with a red colored sauce. It came with polenta...- which had no flavor and a rubbery outside texture. When I complained to the waitress she said it's flavor was complimentary to the fish. We ended up paying $100.00 for the WORST meal ever. Go to 78 Main restaurant for decent food and nice staff, or drive to Poky.More

DO NOT EAT HERE. Required a reservation before dining but when we arrived we were the only guests and got to sit anywhere. Another couple arrived at the start of our meal but left as quickly as they came in. Not sure what the reason...as service wasn’t very slow. Atmosphere was odd, dining area was in a lower level of a hotel and shabby looking. Only nice thing about it was the black table cloths. They had a live singer who after we sat down, went to get a drink and didn’t play again until we left. We ate most of our meal with only the background noise of the bartenders conversations. Overheard bartender/waitress telling her friends (sitting at the bar, with their dog) that they’ve been through 7 chefs in the last year. She was friendly but you could tell she was nervous about the food because she approached our table several times without anything to say and just an awkward grin. Spent over $100 on food that I could cook way better at home. Not that I’m that great at cooking but at least I know how to use salt and pepper. Boyfriend said we would’ve been better off spending $100 at McDonalds and getting better quality food for our money. Caesar salad was as if someone dumped half a bottle of Parmesan in it, mixed it up, forgot the dressing, and then dumped the other half a bottle on top. Per salad. Lettuce was also old. Chicken was dry and flavorless. Polenta was crusty and only seasoned in places, not throughout. Fries tasted frozen, zero seasoning (and who serves fries with chicken at a “fancy” restaurant?) The only really edible thing was the asparagus. No seasoning again, just cooked with butter. The only other thing I was able to eat was the pickle garnish that came with my “dickle pickle” shot, which wasn’t bad. My date ordered the trout which he was disappointed in as well with the uneven seasoning and the sauce not actually being on top of the main course. Moral of the story: don’t waste your money here. We recommend eating at the 78 Main if you’re in Lava Hot Springs.More

This place had amazing food. Really enjoyed the pairings with each entree. It had a very friendly and helpful staff. The outdoor seating was wonderful.

We were seated as usual by a hostess, and the lovely Sharon was our server. We adore her, she is quirky, funny, and a great person in general. The food and drink here is exemplary, I highly recommend the ribeye steak, and please try a...mango martini while waiting. The entire menu is terrific, the presentation excellent, and it's a nice quiet venue for dinner. I am picky about my dining venues, and I cannot recall a single instance when this restaurant wasn't simply excellent. You can't go wrong with that!More

Ordered the baked salmon. It was perfectly cooked and had an amazing taste. Great service as well. Highly recommend!

The food was all around excellent. The goat cheese mac & cheese was very well done, with a nice twist on a traditional dish. Even our teenage children enjoyed it. Seasoned and garnished perfectly, it is a fantastic appetizer. The leg of duck confit was...amazing. The cherry gastrique was done perfectly, and paired with the grilled duck for a sweet and savory entrée the absolutely nailed it. The New York steaks were cooked perfectly, and seasoned well. Just enough added flavor to bring out the natural beef flavors. The proportions were generous, and the sides complemented the steaks well. The grilled chicken was better than good, but not as unique or memorable as the other dishes. The plump side of the chicken breast was a bit on the dry side. The rice was nothing special, however the sauce was very good. The hint of garlic on the broccoli was a nice treat. This is a restaurant that targets a more adult crowd. And they do it very well. My teenage children are as young of a clientele as I would recommend. Certainly not for younger children. This evening, they had a musician offering live music. He was very talented. He seems to be a Bob Dylan fan, and he did the covers very well. It was a nice surprise, and a great addition to the evening. So, what prevented the fifth star? Our service was very good, but was mechanically competent and not very personable. A bit too far on the shy side. My wife was considering two different dishes, neither of which the server had tasted. She did recommend the duck to me, and for that I am grateful. Our drinks were kept full, and the timing of courses arrived perfectly. The service just came across as more mechanical than engaging. All in all, a fantastic choice!More

We are easy to please, but the service was wonderful, the food was great, and the ambiance was a great experience. We ordered the Salmon and grilled chicken and were pleased. I recommend making a reservation if you are able.