3 Best Restaurants in Lake Placid, The Adirondacks and Thousand Islands

This lively first-floor restaurant and bar at High Peaks Resort has been a hit with locals and out-of-town visitors ever since it opened in fall 2008. The menu has classics like big hamburgers and homemade pizza as well as steak. It's also great for breakfast.

The extensive menu at this casual downtown eatery and microbrewery combines American and Continental fare. For a starter you might sample the escargots and mushrooms in puff pastry and cream sauce or bite into the nicely laden bruschetta. If you want a spicy-sweet start to your meal, try the Mardis Gras shrimp (spicy shrimp baked in jalapeño corn bread and drizzled with honey). Steak selections include a filet mignon (6- or 10-ounce options), sirloin sandwich, and New York strip steak au poivre. There are also seafood items, like the Seashore Pasta, packed with mussels, artichoke hearts, clams, portobella mushrooms, and sun-dried and grape tomatoes. The staff will know just which microbrew should go with your meal, and if you or your kids want to try a homemade brew but without the alcohol, order a root beer, made on the premises with pure mountain water and cane sugar. (If you're really curious how the brewing process works, request a tour of the small brewing facilities.) For a sweet finish, share a slice of the New York cheesecake drizzled with strawberries.

Nestled inside the Mirror Lake Inn, the View warms you instantly with its mahogany paneling and views of Mirror Lake and the mountains and a seasonal menu that leans contemporary and sounds elegant. For example, you might dine on venison loin encrusted with pepper and coffee and served with foie gras and a black-currant reduction.