Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    The Forester

    4.0 (324 reviews)
    ModerateGerman, Salad, Seafood
    Open 3:30 pm - 8:00 PM

    The Forester Photos

    Business Info

    THE FORESTER ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Dogs allowed

    You might also consider

    More like The Forester

    Recommended Reviews - The Forester

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    Reviews With Photos

    Meatloaf
    Barbara A.

    My 2nd visit to this pub in Camino. I love German food and they have a nice selection. This time I had meatloaf, red cabbage and potato pancake. My companion had the chicken and dumplings. Both dishes delicious! They serve local wines which I love. Keeping it local. Great service even when busy. Love the tavern rooms. Check them out after wine tasting or visiting Apple Hill orchards.

    Beef goulash with spaetzle and red cabbage which
    Samuel H.

    Staff here are wonderful and were very welcoming of our little girl, which is always a relief as a family. The restaurant itself has an awesome cozy vibe and unique decor, which goes great with its location beneath the pines in Camino. If you like Germanic cuisine then you will love it here. And even if you don't, you should still try it. The food we ordered was delicious and so more-ish. The goulash was creamy and flavorful with awesomely tender beef pieces and served with a spaetzle that was a perfect accompaniment. I chose the red cabbage which added a nice little tangy touch to the savory flavors. My wife said that the schnitzel she ordered was the best thing she had eaten in a long time, with a very tasty sauce/gravy. Ordering the side of potatoes AND dumplings was way too much food for two of us but it did provide a tasty snack the next day, and both were deliciously savory. I would highly recommend this place and am grateful that we have a German eatery locally.

    Top Sirloin Steak (large portion) with buttered carrots and spaetzle.

    The place is nice. A little log cabin 5 minutes from High Hill Ranch Apple Hill. We would have liked to come earlier than 3:30pm when they opened. Would have liked to come around 1pm for lunch, but they only open at 3:30pm. The food and service was good, only thing I wish is for more than three carrots for the side meal. Seems like previous people that ate here were given larger portions of the carrots. So what happened? Carrots are such an inexpensive side dish for a meal. Why only three carrots? Also the speatzle was amazing! I would have liked more of that on my plate as well! It was so good! The dumpling in gravy tasted more like a buttermilk milk biscuit in gravy. I was expecting three to four smaller sized dumplings such as Bavarian style potato dumpling with a homemade crouton in the center. Next time I'll try the potato pancakes as an appetizer. All I can say is please offer bigger hungry man proportions for the sides. The main cut of meat is a good size proportion. Just the sides are lacking in size. Good quality taste. But I would redo the recipe on the dumplings to make make them more like traditional Bavarian style potato dumplings with the crouton in the center.

    House salad, blue cheese.
    William D.

    Homey wood trim work and Buck stove roaring made it cozy inside on this cold January afternoon. We split the.. Wienerschnitzel(Vee-Ner-Shnit-Sl). Tender thin breaded pork cutlet,served with a thick white wine sauce, Spaetzl with similar if not the same sauce, red cabbage & a starter salad with blue cheese. Meat was tender enough to cut with a fork,sauce was mild but had a good flavor & consistency. The Spaetzl was my favorite, fresh egg noodles in short thick spaghetti like form with the white sauce. I could have had a full meal of this. Red cabbage was cooked with apples, sweet, slightly bitter OK. Salad was pretty standard fare. Good beer selection, waitress was attentive, but allowed us to relax.

    Meatloaf, small plate
    Donna M.

    food last night was amazing !!! we always enjoy ourselves. everything is just so nicely done beautiful environment. The outside seating looks wonderful..

    Beef Stroganoff with sauerkraut

    First experience here was over 10 years ago, I never forgot about that buffalo burger. So when my husband and I came up to Apple Hill today I was so excited to return here. At first I was apprehensive because it has since changed to a German menu but we decided to embrace it still. And we are so glad we did! The beef stroganoff over spaetzel was so good! Huge portion with plenty of mushrooms & tender beef. My husband got the meatloaf and he loved it! Staff were super attentive and they seemed to be very acclimated with their regulars. Would definitely return the next time we are in the area

    Wienerschitzel with Spatzle and Red Cabbage
    Kristian D.

    After many years of visiting Apple Hill, I finally stopped at The Forester Pub and Grill. Their menu included some familiar German dishes which looked interesting and a nice option for a cool late fall visit. The restaurant was filling up quickly which was a good sign for this place on Carson Road in beautiful downtown Camino. Parking is decent, and they have a lot in the rear. The inside of the restaurant looks like your uncle's old cabin in a wonderful way. It has a warm and comfortable look with authentic wood stoves. I sat down and reviewed the large menu. There are lots of traditional American dishes here that seem to be popular, but I had my eye on the schnitzel. They have Jagerschnitzel and Wienerschnitzel. I chose the Wiener since the sauce seemed intriguing. A generous and loaded salad and a hot cup of coffee were quickly delivered to my table while they prepared my entree. The Wienerschnitzel was simply amazing. The meat was perfectly cooked with a nice thin breading and a sublime sauce. The spatzle were just heavenly - truly homemade and light as air even soaked in gravy. You can get red cabbage too which helps cut through the heavy fare. Towards the end, I finally squeezed the lemon on the schnitzel and was rewarded with a spectacular combination of flavors that made it easy to clean the plate. The location near all the farms in Apple Hill is more than enough reason to visit The Forester, but the amazing schnitzel is worth the drive. If the rest of the food is similar to the German options, I think this place is a true gem in the foothills.

    Beef stroganoff,  spaetzel,  and red cabbage.  Perfect Autumn meal.
    Tashara H.

    I really love this place. We have been several times over the last 6 years, and I'll definitely be returning again. The last time we visited, we actually ordered food to go because we were staying in town overnight, and checked into our hotel about an hour before closing time. We phoned in the order and it was ready for pick up in no time. We ordered the pot roast, beef stroganoff, potato soup, salad, and some grilled cheese sandwiches for the kids. Everything was plentiful and well cooked. The only down side this time was that my spouse's pot roast seemed to have been cooked with twice the salt that it needed. He actually ended up rinsing it off before he could eat it. The potato soup was equally as salty. Everything else was find. We've had both the soup and pot roast in the past (years ago) and didn't have the same issue, so we're going to assume this was just an off night. Parking can be tough as this place is a local favorite, but the atmosphere is great and cozy, and the food really is great. I keep saying I'll try their burger or tacos, but I can't stray from the stroganoff. I also love the salad and how they include fresh beets as part of the main salad. Fresh-not pickled. Such a treat! If you are driving to Tahoe, or enjoying time at Apple Hill, I'd absolutely recommend stopping by here. I tried to get the family to stop again on our way home, but we were in a rush to get home and had to pass. Maybe next year :).

    Menu 6/2022

    See all

    2 months ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jim M.
    1
    24
    0

    3 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    8 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    7 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 6
    Thanks 1
    Love this 4
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Amanda B.
    94
    29
    13

    6 months ago

    The food and service is superb. A great stop before or after a trip to Apple Hill. The ambiance is fun and in side and outside.

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Isabela I.
    334
    27
    23

    8 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    8 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of James G.
    826
    33
    1

    7 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Mc F.
    0
    19
    1

    10 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 1
    Love this 3
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Mike J.
    58
    481
    85

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 months ago

    Average food, nothing spectacular. Service and wait time were very good. Nothing about the food was overly flavorful. Just average.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    So the menu is very misleading. You don't get what the menu says and then when you point it out to the waitress she doesn't care

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 35
    Thanks 1
    Love this 36
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Nancy E.
    28
    41
    23

    10 months ago

    What a great surprise! Terrific food, beer and dessert! Fantastic! We had such a lovely visit we want to move to Camino!

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 2
    Oh no 1

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Mark G.
    432
    181
    5

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    10 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Great ambience, phenomenal comfort food, fantastic service. Located in a rural little town which just adds to the mystique. What a gem!

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Liz S.
    3
    50
    14

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    Page 1 of 9

    Ask the Community - The Forester

    Is there a bar?

    Yes, within the dining room.

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    You might also consider

    Himmel Haus - Oktoberfest Band, Bayern Maiden!

    Himmel Haus

    4.4(2k reviews)
    41.8 mi
    $$$
    10 years in business
    Locally owned & operated

    10/10!!! Amazing authentic German restaurant. We started with the pretzel, which I usually wouldn't…read moreorder out, but it was the best pretzel I've ever had. Seriously... order it when you come here. The service was amazing and so was the ambiance. We wanted schnitzel and were told they don't serve veal anymore so we got pork. No biggie as I eat pork but I know some people don't. Pork schnitzel was incredible (but you need that Jäger sauce poured all over, it really takes it up another notch. I ordered the Spätzle as well and I regret not getting the full size (ordered the half size). IT WAS SO GOOD!!! I almost licked the bowl clean. Woooowwww... Please please please go here if visiting South Lake Tahoe area. This will be the first place I go back to next time I visit!

    Cozy atmosphere that makes you feel like you're in Germany, somewhere high in the mountains…read more I lived in Germany for two years and I've always loved its cuisine that's so similar to the Polish food I grew up on. Schnitzel was a regular guest at our table. The schnitzel here was thin, tender, and fried to a golden crisp without a hint of grease. The rotkohl, German braised red cabbage, was sweet, tart, and gently spiced. I always like tasting items separately, and the only complaint was that the mashed potatoes had cooled, warm only where the schnitzel rested on top. This place is wonderfully authentic. Located right across from Heavenly Mountain Resorts base lodge, and the views are curated for a postcard. I love the rustic charm, alpine interior, and very lively energy. Service was warm and attentive and everyone around us was having a really good time. It's easy to see why this place is so popular and why it deserves to be, it's like a Bavarian hug in the middle of Tahoe.

    Photos
    Himmel Haus - Dopplebock!

    Dopplebock!

    Himmel Haus - Sausage Platter $28 "a selection of 4 sausages served with mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, rotkohl, pickles and mustard"

    Sausage Platter $28 "a selection of 4 sausages served with mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, rotkohl, pickles and mustard"

    Himmel Haus

    See all

    Bavarian Hills

    Bavarian Hills

    1.8(29 reviews)
    2.8 mi
    $

    I dig German food…read more. I drive for German food.. A lack of German restaurants in the valley...drove me up to Apple Hill to visit Bavarian Hills..again. I have been there in the past. I ate on the patio. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/bavarian-hills-camino?select=oyd28r8_BCl8fVAZbrt_nA#Ehcp3D2TsVuaSMoakqyx-Q The lady proprietor cooks and runs the place. The cooking is pretty authentic but most of the items seem to be pre-made since there is not a lot of turn-over. So it's kind of 'heat and eat'...which dries some food out. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/bavarian-hills-camino?select=oyd28r8_BCl8fVAZbrt_nA#wqa6bAMfvR9FDsKL4WWp8Q Portions are small, so you don't get a lot of bang for your buck. I had to order two extra side dishes to help fill me up. I drove up especially to eat here. But I also stopped at another favorite, Rainbow Farms, to pick up a gallon of fresh squeezed apple juice and a dozen fresh made apple cider donuts! I ordered: Meat Pie A Combination of Vegetables, Chicken and Seasoning with a Cream Cheese Filling Comes with your choice of one side and a dessert. I substituted hot potato salad instead of dessert. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/bavarian-hills-camino?select=oyd28r8_BCl8fVAZbrt_nA#esKqVrD-DhjA-jqzhSj0WA My other choice for a side was red cabbage. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/bavarian-hills-camino?select=oyd28r8_BCl8fVAZbrt_nA#-8XlG1A4hWNSrl_T7n-fUw Both the red cabbage and hot potato salad tasted authentic. They were very tasty...so tasty in fact, that I ordered one more side of each to help fill up my belly. Sides are $3.50 each. The meat pie was literally a slice of pie with the fillings listed above...albeit a small slice. I would compare it to our chicken pot pie without the gravy that we are used to. It had to be pre-made and heated before serving. I might stop here again if I were in the area... They also have picnic tables...I presume that you could bring your own food and enjoy the surroundings. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/bavarian-hills-camino?select=oyd28r8_BCl8fVAZbrt_nA#3EpY9Xqf4bsPaJj6Maretw

    Well having lived in Germany as kid, and having visited Austria and Germany as an adult I truly…read moreappreciate authentic German and Bavarian style food. I love schnitzel, spaetzle, red cabbage, bockwurst, sauerkraut and true german potato salad! So as we made our annual trip to Apple Hill was surprised and very excited to come across this place that from the outside had the look of an authentic Bavarian establishment. As we pulled into the parking lot I could hear the sounds of an Octoberfest oompah band being played over the speakers, which got me more excited that this might be good. So as my family wondered thru the handful of outdoor vendor booths I peeked inside to look at thier menu. What really sold me that I had to try this place is when l heard the woman behind the counter speaking to another family, as it was quite clear based on her accent she was from Germany or possibly Austria! Bingo this place had the look, sound and feel of an authentic German establishment! I then had to convince the family we had to eat here and they would like it! This was not easy as they were skeptical and obviously do not share my love of German food. They have also gotten smart and knew to ask what does Yelp say. However due to my excitement I did not follow my own golden rule and check Yelp, and just told them trust me it will be good! So we order the schnitzel plate that comes with german potato salad and apple strudel, a bratwurst and a kids hot dog. The 1st sign of trouble was our order arrived within minutes of us sitting down. I quickly realized everything including the schnitzel was probably cooked in the morning, had been sitting and was then quickly warmed once we ordered. The 2nd sign was the meager portion of german potato salad that was served on the paper plate. Now I know I can be stubborn and so even with these signs as the family began to question my prediction that it would be good, I still refused to budge and reiterated they needed to be open minded and try it. Well boy did those words come back to haunt me! The schnitzel was dry and lacked any flavor. It tasted like it had been sitting for awhile before it was reheated, which clearly it was! The potato salad was warm but that is were all similarities with authentic german potato salad ended. The bratwurst looked and tasted like it was bulk purchased on sale from a small wholesale restaurant food supplier. The hotdog was clearly no better. Anytime a 7 year old takes two bites of a hotdog, then says I am full and do not want anymore is a sign! So knowing the food was 1 star my reason for giving this place a 2 star rating is the woman behind the counter was pleasant and the lady who brought our food out was very nice, and so am giving them a bump for thier customer service.

    Photos
    Bavarian Hills
    Bavarian Hills
    Bavarian Hills

    See all

    Kathrin's Biergarten - Large pretzel

    Kathrin's Biergarten

    4.1(804 reviews)
    29.8 mi
    $$

    Delicious meal and good service. I was here with a pretty sizable group of my family on a Saturday…read moreafternoon. We were seated in the patio in the shade, so it wasn't too insufferably hot on this very sunny, warm day. Jägerschnitzel is my go-to at German restaurants and the one at Kathrin's is one of the best I've had to date. My plate was generous and the jägerschnitzel was tender, the spätzle was too, and the mushroom gravy that topped the jägerschnitzel was just so good. I cleaned my plate. I also got one of their small pretzels to start the meal and loved how soft and chewy it was, and the mustard had a good punch of spice. I thought it was cool that their pretzels are sourced from a local Bavarian factory. The only thing I wasn't a big fan of was the dressing on the green salad that comes with the jägerschnitzel. I'm really not sure what it was and can't say I've had anything else that tastes like it before, but it was strong and I was good after just a few bites. However, that wasn't enough to ruin the meal for me with as good as that jägerschnitzel was. While I was only here because I was visiting family who live in the area and recommended this place, I'd be happy to return if my family wanted to come back on a future visit.

    We had been here for lunch, a while back and really enjoyed it. We went again for lunch and it was…read morea totally different experience. We found that they served the dinner menu all day and there was no lunch menu. We ended up ordering the Oktoberfest platter, which it was made up of five sausages, schnitzel, red cabbage, sauerkraut and french fries. 4 of the 5 sausages were extremely dry and over cooked. Schnitzel was dry and flavorless. It seemed as if they had heated everything up in a microwave. Overly hot and very dry. Happy hour started at 3PM and we arrived at 2:45. That would have given us a discount on food and beer. But we figured oh well, our bad for not realizing. We commented on it to the bartender / server, like "oh darn" and he didn't really react. It was not like we expected to get the happy hour prices, we were just commenting. Then, unfortunately, we overheard him talking to two men at the bar, saying "I waited until 3PM to ring up your beers because I wanted to give you happy hour price." Yikes! Why not us? (Only us and these two gents inside at the time. There was a handful of people at outside tables.) We are disappointed because we had enjoyed them before and they are the closest restaurant to us serving German food. The food and the service that day are not very motivating to return.

    Photos
    Kathrin's Biergarten - Game room has a pool table, foosball table, and shuffleboard table (not in photo).

    Game room has a pool table, foosball table, and shuffleboard table (not in photo).

    Kathrin's Biergarten - Inside sausages. I believe they are Bratwurst, House Special Sausage, and Chicken Apple.

    Inside sausages. I believe they are Bratwurst, House Special Sausage, and Chicken Apple.

    Kathrin's Biergarten - IPA 8.30.25

    See all

    IPA 8.30.25

    The Forester - german - Updated May 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...