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Island Park, ID

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Ponds Lodge

4.0 (163 reviews)
Open • Open 24 hours

Ponds Lodge Photos

Business Info

PONDS LODGE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Casual
Good for kids
Good for groups

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Recommended Reviews - Ponds Lodge

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When in Idaho, you must do an Idaho Mule and Idaho potato skins.  Both hit the spot.   Add in Short Rib Poutine and WOW, what a meal!
Andrew O.

Thank you Yelp. As we approaced Island Park, we searched Yelp for dinner options. Pond Lodge didn't disappoint! Couple great food and service and we will certainly stop again if ever in the area.

Papi Karl's Burger with my salad on the side
Jeremy B.

Family and I were staying in the area decided to stop in for dinner when we returned to our cabin. Some of the reviews had me a little Leary but we decided to give it a shot. Nice size place with plenty of sports on tv and awesome seating. Waiter was prompt and got our orders quickly. Food was delivered in a timely manner. Those of us with burgers enjoyed them. I needed a salad so got that for my side and all the ingredients were very fresh. Daughter had the Spicy Chicken Pasta and liked it. My burger was something new for me. Had bacon, blue cheese and Granny Smith apples. Man it worked. Great food.

a pizza with mushrooms and black olives
Chad C.

If you need some fuel and are feeling like some beer and pizza to top it off with this is your spot !!!

This is right outside Ponds Lodge.
Jared S.

During our 5 night vacation to Yellowstone we ate at Ponds Lodge twice. The first night I had their pizza and potato skins and my friend had the bison meatloaf. The pizza was AMAZING as were the potato skins (I mean, it's Idaho, right?). My friend also enjoyed his meatloaf and even talked about it a few days after the trip because it was so good. The second night my friend and I split a pizza and also ordered the pretzels. They must make the pretzels and the cheese sauce there because they were out of this world! So tasty! What really set this restaurant apart from the rest was the service. Our server was attentive, super friendly, and took the time to chat with us when she wasn't busy. She was telling us about Yellowstone and gave us some info on her background, which was super interesting.

Doc Holiday Burger
Starla W.

Ordered a burger for takeout that was awesome! Would order again for sure. Super quick wait time.

Piece of plastic found in the pot pie. Horrible experience all around!
Kayla B.

Worst food experience in a while. We're in town on a trip we take with friends every year and stopped in for some takeout food. First, there was nobody in the restaurant and the blonde server scolded us for waiting inside for our food and kicked us out. We sat on the cement for over 20 min for our food. But the person who was in charge of the takeout counter changed and the second person had no idea we even ordered or what was going on. Then, we had our food on a picnic and multiple things were wrong. There was no cheese on the cheeseburger. We were given no condiments. Given no napkins or silverware and we had a salad to eat. And to top it off, there was a piece of PLASTIC in the pot pie. Absolutely awful experience all around. Oh and overpriced. This is Idaho, not New York City.

Bison and pork tenderloin with mashed potatoes mushroom gravy veggies and crispy onions!

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5 months ago

Great service here & this place is busy. Food also was very good, plan to go back to Island Park Idaho.

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2 years ago

Came here with the family- 5 kids and two adults. Staff were very accommodating and attentive. Food was good and all enjoyed their meals

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

Great food. I really enjoy the fish tacos. The fries are always fresh and the service is excellent.

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Review Highlights - Ponds Lodge

“The space accommodated the rules for COVID, which is important to me, my family, and the well being of everyone.”

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Hanks Chop Shop - Bison burger with side salad

Hanks Chop Shop

4.1(247 reviews)
21.3 mi
•$$

Must try: Bison Bone Marrow and Elk Ravioli!…read more Why: Never had Bison Bone Marrow or Elk Ravioli so had to try and both were delicious! Bone marrow was rich, buttery, and savory. Ravioli in creamy tomato vodka sauce was packed with flavor. Loved both dishes! We also got French Onion Soup, Ahi Tuna, and Elk Burger, which were all good but the bone marrow and ravioli were special. We did family style to be able to taste various dishes. We also came hungry for dinner since we didn't have any lunch. This meal hit the spot especially after a long day driving through Yellowstone National Park, and for our first evening in West Yellowstone. Notes: We arrived around 6:30pm and waited about 10 mins for our table. We were able to look through the menu and decide on what to share. It was packed in seating area and bar area. Loved the many large TVs playing sports so we got to enjoy a meal with some entertainment. Fun decor outside and inside. Waitress was welcoming, friendly, attentive, and helpful. Overall, great dining experience.

Stopped in at Hanks because the pervious night I saw people waiting outside. Yes I became very…read moreinterested in that my friends. So today I stopped off for lunch to beat this crowd. I got the half pound burger with onion rings. The rings are thick batter dipped and delicious. Not those pitiful things a lot of places pass off. The burger was juicy and beautifully done medium just as I asked. The veggies for the burger were fresh and crisp. The bun is tasty. The place is clean and the staff friendly and the food is good. I couldn't finish it all, thank god for take away containers.

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Hanks Chop Shop - Bar area with large TVs

Bar area with large TVs

Hanks Chop Shop
Hanks Chop Shop

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Anglers Riverfront Restaurant - Trout

Anglers Riverfront Restaurant

4.6(43 reviews)
4.1 mi

Really nice ambiance, like an upscale cabin, overlooking the river where you can see people fly…read morefishing. The restaurant is on a gravel lane off the main road and is nice to walk around. They have outdoor dining where dogs are allowed as well as indoor dining with a bar. As of May 2026 when we went, the menu online was not the menu we received when we dined in, so I attached a photo but keep in mind it can change. The service here was great, it was out waitress Brooke's first night and she was wonderful. The manager and staff overall were fantastic and the food came out at a good pace, not too long or short a wait. For starters we ordered the grilled peach burrata salad, elk and bison chili, crispy brussel sprouts and chicken wings with huckleberry bbq sauce. Each of these were very tasty and we would eat them all again. I would argue the appetizers were better than the entrees. The wings were slightly under par compared to the other dishes, but that is just because they needed more huckleberry flavor (very light). For entrees we ordered the pan seared trout and the grilled ribeye. Both were massive portions, the trout came with wild rice and asparagus, the steak came with goat cheese mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts. The trout was served as two big filets (found a few small bones, but no big deal) and was cooked well, but one filet needed more seasoning and was a little fishy tasting. The rice was a bit boring and dry, but the asparagus were superb. The ribeye was cooked nicely and tasted even better with the chipotle lime butter it came with. The mashed potatoes were great and did taste of goat cheese and the brussel sprouts were delicious, very similar to the appetizer preparation. Similar to the trout, the portion of steak was large, but a good portion of it was gristle and fat (about 30-40%). Overall a nice meal with huge serving sizes. Had we known how big the entrees would be, we may have shared one or ordered less appetizers. Great service with a pleasant ambiance.

In Idaho for vacation and this restaurant was the closest to where we were staying. I'm glad we…read morefound it! When we walked in we were in Awe, log cabin interior was beautiful what u want to see in the Idaho mountains, the atmosphere and window view(of Henry Fork River & mountains was to die for. Service/Server was great, very friendly and prompt. We ordered elk burger and the Brie burger with fig caramelized onions and hands down the best burgers we ever had. We had a great experience and we highly recommend this place, u wont be disappointed

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Anglers Riverfront Restaurant
Anglers Riverfront Restaurant
Anglers Riverfront Restaurant - Don't make me re peach myself cocktail

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Don't make me re peach myself cocktail

Lakeside Lodge - Chicken club

Lakeside Lodge

3.8(94 reviews)
3.5 mi
•$$

There aren't a whole lot of dining options this far out in the boonies, so finding the Lakeside…read moreLodge, only 15 minutes away from our rental cabin, was a blessing. Their operating hours...not so much: by the time we realized we were hungry, we had to book it over there to grab a table before things started to wind down (their closing time was 8:00pm, which makes the Lakeside Lodge a lunch place, in my opinion). True to its name, the lodge has gorgeous views of the water, and a welcoming, rustic aesthetic. We didn't order anything fancy or particularly adventurous: a bison burger for myself, and some surf-and-turf sturf for me wurf (sorry, the Swedish Chef in me took over there for a moment!). Everything was good, if not particularly remarkable, but it certainly did the job. Expect hearty, homestyle cooking, not haute cuisine, and your expectations will surely be met to your satisfaction. Service was present, attentive and friendly, and if it weren't for that passive sense of anxiety that comes with being the last served table in a closing restaurant (not their fault; that's my own hang-up), I would have felt more at-ease. I wish we'd had more time to check out the restaurant and the resort, but I guess that'll have to wait for a return trip, sometime in the future.

As others have noted, the food is pretty great, the service less so. The restaurant has indoor and…read moreoutdoor tables with a nice view of the lake. There is also a bar downstairs that had a live band. It is a very casual place, they serve your water in disposable plastic cups on the table. The portions here are large and each entree comes with a soup or salad so you won't leave hungry. There were only two waitresses when we sat down to dinner and that was not enough for the number of tables they have. It was hard to get a waitress to place our order and the food took forever to come out and when it did, everything came out at once (appetizers and entrees). We had hoped the soup or salad that come with the entrees would at least come out quickly, but it did not. We tried the bison burger (pretty good but nothing special), trashcan nachos with chicken (delicious) and I got the bison short rib which was exceptional with the chicken noodle soup (I liked that it had a few pieces of potato in it, we were in Idaho after all). The bison was cooked nicely and came with a generous portion of mashed potatoes and zucchini. I really enjoyed it and would happily eat it again. The prices are reasonable given the portion, but they need to work on the timing of the food and getting more help or more attentive help.

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Lakeside Lodge
Lakeside Lodge - Bbq chicken wings

Bbq chicken wings

Lakeside Lodge - Sunset view over Island Park Reservoir

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Sunset view over Island Park Reservoir

The Buffalo Bar - Huckleberry lemonade and side garden salad

The Buffalo Bar

4.1(1.1k reviews)
21.1 mi
•$$

Great food great service. We initially got here a few days before during the dinner rush and it was…read moreso busy which I'm sure it was a good sign. And then we came back and finally got to eat here and I can see why it was so busy as soon as we sat down they were very efficient which was nice. Our drinks and food came out very fast, which we appreciated because we spent a long day at the park. Also, as the name suggest lots of great tasting buffalo entrées. Also, lots of TV screens if you want to catch a game. All in all grateful to the staff here, thank you for a great evening. There is no doubt we will be back.

Buffalo bar was pretty good. It's a bit removed from the main drag but I had the west-Mex Buffalo…read moreburger and my wife had an order of wings (naked) and sweet potato fries. The burger was GREAT! Beware the roasted jalapeño as it definitely has a good kick, but I took bites of mine along with the burger and it was great. The wife's wings for being naked and not sauced were well seasoned and a good size for the price, recommend a side of fries or SP fries for only $3. Service was quick, we sat in less than 5 minutes with no reservation. Atmosphere was exactly what you would expect for a bar with sports and video poker, overall 8.5/10 after a long day, they need to keep their menus updated when they remove seasonal beers for a 9/10 or rounded 5 stars.

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The Buffalo Bar
The Buffalo Bar - BBQ Chicken Salad

BBQ Chicken Salad

The Buffalo Bar - Bbq chicken salad

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Bbq chicken salad

The Cafe at Island Park Lodge - Potato nachos

The Cafe at Island Park Lodge

4.4(33 reviews)
7.1 mi

Ok, my family just dined here for breakfast and we all thought the food, service, decor and pricing…read morewere spectacular. I ordered the French toast and meat & potato omelette both were delicious. My lady, and mother in law had the two eggs with sausage. Both ladies loved their meals. The sourdough toast was some of the best I've ever had! I am a foodie and eat out often in many different states throughout the U.S and I would put this in my top 3 breakfast/brunch restaurants. The ladies who took our orders, cooked our meals (Fawn & Rhonda) were a delight. They were welcoming and friendly. They also brought our food out in a speedy amount of time. I highly recommend giving this place a try. You will walk away in a food comma because the food is so amazing you won't be able to stop eating. The portions are also very generous

We realized at 1pm that we were all hungry. Yelped a few places in the area. The Cafe was close…read moreand we had to hustle because they closed at 3 pm. Arrived by 1:30pm and got seated. What a cute homey place with nice staff. We had 2 orders of grilled chicken salad and a ham and cheese sandwich. The food arrived and looked good. The chicken was nicely grilled, tender and still warm. There were also tomatoes, cheese and cucumbers. I ate it all. My friend also enjoyed her sandwich. We heard from staff that breakfast was awesome. Another trip is warranted. Parking lot right out front. No masks needed.

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The Cafe at Island Park Lodge - Inside

Inside

The Cafe at Island Park Lodge - Pork tenderloin

Pork tenderloin

The Cafe at Island Park Lodge - Lodge inside

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Lodge inside

Ponds Lodge - hotels - Updated November 2026

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