Garfs is a local bar and tourist bar all in one. Â Boasting the largest deck in Vail, it isn't hard to see why this place attracts everyone. Â If you're headed out with hopes of meeting people whether you live here or not then this is probably your best bet. Â During ski season don't miss Friday nights here. Â Their big special is $3 you-call-its. Â Tough to beat a Crown or Grey Goose mixed drink on a Friday night in a ski town for $3. Â The place gets packed and they have a DJ, so put your dancing shoes on and utilize them if you can find room. Â In the summer it's not quite as wild due to less seasonal workers and tourists, but there are still great times to be had. Â Whether mtn biking or skiing, you can't beat this place for an early afternoon beer and appetizer. Â Their beer selection is nothing to boast about, but when the bar is 100 meters from the gondola I guess you can't be too picky. Â I'd recommend the quesadilla, and also get a side of their thai sauce no matter what food you order (trust me on this one). Â I'd say this place is the epitome of a ski bar, and not many places in Vail give Garfs a run for their money. Â Show up in ski boots, covered in mud, or dressed up and nobody's gonna judge you - but they will probably be able to tell if you're from outta town. :)
Review Source:Pros: great location, right at the bottom of the mountain in Lionshead. Perfect for a apres-ski beer. Tons of outdoor seating. Fun arcade games to keep the kids entertained for a bit.
Cons: The food. I think I cooked better food in my college dorm room. Kids liked their meals, but the adults weren't impressed.
Bottom line: go for the location and the beer, not the food.
On my recent trip skiing, I visited the resturant twice as the fook was so good I couldn't stay away! Very easy to eat at for lunch while skiing. Although the 2nd trip was a nice dinner. A little more crowded, however we didn't have to wait for a table.
The servers were some of the most attentive I've had, also they hustled to delver and please. The best part about Garfinkel's was the French Dip Sandwich. I just say, it's the best one I've ever hard. High quality meat, great flavor and super moist along with fresh baked bread! Â If your intown, you owe it to yourself to try the resturant out!
An A-OK place to unwind after battling the slopes of Vail. The view can't be beat, especially on a warmer day. It does get crazy busy here though, so it's probably a better place for a day when you quit a bit early.
The service was surprisingly attentive given all the people. The nacho plate was massive and loaded with pretty much every nacho ingredient you can think off. A good option for a group to share. The tab, which included a couple pitchers of Coors Light, seemed a bit high. But then again it's Vail and was actually kind of affordable in a warped Vail kind of way.
10 bucks for Reuben and 4 bucks for a beer not bad for Vail, except that they got my order wrong and my server never came back to refill my beer or offer me water. Â Actually, my server never came back (willingly)... I wish I would have kept the first order. At least the bread was nicely toasted on the sandwich and the French fries crispy. Â When my order came out the second time it was completely soggy, fries bread all of it like it was just thrown together in a hurry. Â I didn't dare complain again for fear I would get a spit sandwich, not to mention that I wouldn't have been able to find my server to make the complaint before I starved to death. Â Â
On the up side, The restaurant is conveniently located by the slopes in Lionshead and its fun to see the skiers coming down the hill. Â It has that going for it. Â
One the down side, it's a seat yourself place with servers who look busy but in reality just seem to be moving around a lot and not really doing the "service" part of things.
In the end, I had to chase my server down through the bartender (who was a bit snotty about it) to get water and my bill. Â Needless to say this was reflected in my tip. I didn't hold getting the order wrong against him (that could have been a kitchen error) until he disappeared and I had to chase him down.
I have this thing about servers who are less attentive to single diners--like somehow they think we tip less or because the bill is smaller it's not worth the work to earn a good tip.
I am a good tipper (usually) and I'd be willing to bet that there are times when I have excellent service that I tip more than your two or four top. Â So don't ASSume anything when you see a single patron all alone at a table. Â Do your job like you mean it and want to keep it.
Servers take a lesson: Â Server is derived from SERVICE (enough said).
I say this being completely serious: I'm not sure if the bartender was mentally challenged or just out of control rude and/or oblivious. Â I try not to be obnoxious trying to get a bartender's attention since they usually see you there if you make yourself obvious and will make their way over to you. Â I had practically climbed onto the bar and no matter how many times I said "excuse me" in increasingly higher volumes as he passed, he just ignored me. Â Keep in mind, it wasn't all that crowded. Â Every guy who came up to the bar somehow got immediately served. Â I even tried going to the place where the person who had just ordered went to catch him as he brought the drinks, but he still decided to walk away as I was talking to him.
Then, my friend came to drop off the TV remote that she had borrowed previously to change the channel. A guy nearby finally helped me flag him down and he asked me if I wanted the remote again. Â I explained that was someone else and I wanted a drink. Â He then kept talking about me giving him the remote and really didn't seem to believe or care that it wasn't me with the goddamn remote and took forever to get my drink. Â THEN when I went to pay, I pulled out my card and told him I also wanted change for my cash to play Big Buck Hunter. Â He just took the bill, and gave me change (not even coins, but dollars) for the drink. Â When he came back and I told him I wanted the drink on my card and quarters for the game, he asked why I didn't tell him before. Â I did, you imbecile!!!!
Seriously, find a new bartender who doesn't have dementia. Â Only good part was the Big Buck Hunter. Â And there was one other server/guy who was very friendly.
(For vail) this place has a great menu, easy seating, and good prices. If this was in my home town I'd probably give it 3/5, however considering the deal in vail it's a 4/5.
Also IMO, their meat and fish is the same as the higher end places and probably comes from the same truck.
It's a good goto place for dinner.
Great place! Low key! Great for lunch between skiing or great for cocktails or beer to unwind after skiing! Service at the bar is incredible! Look for Doogie, Mira, and Paly! Love this place! We opted to hang and eat here a lot instead of the fine dining options! Can't wait to come back! Love Vail
Review Source:We stopped in here for happy hour after a day of skiing. There was a bouncer at the door, I guess it's 21+ at all hours. This was fine and dandy since our whole group was of age, however I continued to get ID'd 3 more times while at the bar. After I mentioned that to one of the waiters, he explained that they had recently gotten in trouble for underage drinking, hence the repetitive ID checking.
They had a good beer selection, I especially enjoyed the wide selection of local (Colorado) brews. Our first waiter was very attentive and knowledgable about the menu. He made some great beer suggestions. However, his shift ended about halfway through the afternoon. After we closed out our tab with him, no one else came to check on us for at least 20 minutes, so we decided to move to another section and hopefully get some service. The waiter in our next section was not as friendly or attentive. I ordered a Moscow Mule from him, which was supposed to come in a copper mug. He brought it over in a pint glass, and when I asked about the mug, he said they were all dirty. I was a server for 3 years, and that is NEVER the answer you give a customer. If I had ordered a martini or a glass of wine, would those have come in a pint glass as well?? I suggested that as a solution to this dilemma, he could go wash one of the mugs, but that never happened.
The only thing this place has going for it is that it is right next to the lifts and you can immediately engage in après-ski drinking. If this place was anywhere else, it would probably be out of business. Â
Food is well below par, and service is horrible. Â Our waiter had no idea what beers were on tap. Â It could either be that he was new or that he smelled like he just got done baking out his car.
The wings were boneless and resembled chicken fingers, and the chili was Hormel with some green onions sprinkled in top. Â
The good thing is that our beer was on special. Â We ordered IPAs, but somehow Cheech (our waiter) translated that to Coors.
Stopped by for a snack between runs. Â Waiter commended us on ordering the sweet potato waffle fries with side of cheese sauce. Â "Never seen that before."
I innovate. It's what I do.
I also recommend the hot buttered rum. Hoo boy. The butter was still floating on top when it came out!
It also appears to be good for football watching.
Well, have to admit up front that the setting this day contributed to a high evaluation- it was 64 on this March 25 2012, the back deck overlooks the slopes (though not the typical white powder due to the warm weather). Not typical for this time of year. That said, the food was excellent even taken into account higher mountain pricing. What stood out was the quality and ample proportions from the kids turkey sandwich with four layers of turkey, to the the homemade quality of the salad dressings, to the ample portion of fries, to the very tasty ma-hi fish tacos and special salsa to the vast array of beers and drinks for the whole family. Our whole family ages 50 - 8 enjoyed this place.
Review Source:So last year's slow service was definitely a fluke. We stop into Garfinkel's every year at least once. Yes, there's always a happy hour deal (nachos, burger night, wing night, cheap beers, cheap Bloody Marys), but it really has turned into a must-go for our annual trip to Vail. Why?
Food is affordable, even if you don't order the special for the evening and definitely doesn't suck. Sitting on a picnic table, looking out at the mountain, sipping a beer and/or Bloody Mary, it's a happy place for us. When Bloody Mary's are on special, you get the $8 Bloody for $5 AND they'll sub that celery for dill pickle spears (love). On burger night, you can get that $9 burger for $6 with up to three toppings (and your traditional LTO) for no extra charge and a side o' fries. Bar food not your thing? Go for the sashimi grade tuna seared to perfection, lightly seasoned and get the loaded baked potato with steamed veg on the side.
I have no problems with Vail being over priced, but over priced for lackluster food - I have a problem with that. Garfinkel's is an affordable, tasty choice (of course, you can always rack up that tab even when drinking beers for $3). As long as it's not 10 p.m. on a Friday night, it's relatively family friendly and everyone can leave happy.
Dinner for three with many beers and many Bloody Mary's - well, not going to share that tab with anyone on Yelp. Just trust me. It's affordable.
First night was a great experience. Â Food and service were very good. The chicken nachos were very tasty. Â The beef skewers were outstanding, especially with their additive peanut sauce. Â They had 3-4 craft beer selections, which worked for us. Â
It was a good value, especially for Vail. Â As other Yelpers have said, it's a real "down to earth" place in an uber-upscale (and expensive) resort town.
Second visit... Â well, the games were on TV and it was WAY too crazy crowded to find a seat. Â Oh well, maybe next time.
Perfect low key bar in a upscale town!
Decent prices, karaoke, happy hour, nightly specials! Â You can't ask for more in such an expensive town as vail! Â The bartenders are mostly nice (theres one crabby one I've seen). Â They are very good to service industry people there. Â A lot of locals but of course a peppering of drunken vacation debauchery. Â It gets decently busy at night but never too busy to where your uncomfortable and you can't find a seat. Â I haven't tried the food but have seen it, pretty standard pub fair, and you can never go wrong with that! Â Give it a try.
A buddy and I sat at the bar right when it opened at 11am because the lifts were shut down due to wind. Â Unpleasant wait staff at first (although they did warm up after a bit), Â poor micro beer selection and mediocre food. Â Decent prices for Vail though. Â I may come here again in a pinch but there are certainly other good options around the village.
Review Source:The only thing that Garfinkel's has going for it is it's amazing location just steps from the Eagle Bahn Gondola. It is precisely this feature that lured us in here for a drink and afternoon snack while on vacation in Vail last week.
There's basically nothing to say about this place except that it's a sports bar with below average food, a mediocre beer list, and staff that clearly embody the ski bum lifestyle and all the pot smoking opportunities it has to offer. Maybe it's the rigid east coaster in me, but I like my wait staff to at least show up to work awake.
That being said, it's just an average sports bar, so some may be completely content with all it had to offer. I, however, won't be back.
The location is great. Â Vail is amazing by the way. Â It lives up to all that people say.
Garfinkel's is the perfect location for après-ski.  A place where the beer flows like wine.  Where beautiful women instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano.  I'm talking about a little place called Garfinkel's.
we stopped into Garfinkel's for apres ski and ordered a pitcher of Mirror Pond and wings. Â These were the best buffalo wings I have had in all of Vail...these were no joke. Â very crispy and the sauce had just the right amount of heat and tang. Â so good....
$11 for 12 wings..a bit high but it is Vail after all....
Tons of flat screens and tons of space (inside and outside) Garfinkel's is a great spot to grab one or many.
Great bar for apres ski with the huge deck but even better later on in the night after the day skiiers are gone. On a Sunday night you can watch the many screens and have any of a large selection of beers.
Garfinkels is definitely an apres ski bar with predictable bar food but their deck is fantastic and they are open late into the evening for thirsty vacationers looking for somewhere to hang out.
There are three places I go for apres ski beer in Vail, and Garfinkel's is the only one I visit when I'm in Lionshead. Â I've gone in on countless occasions to have a beer or two, a shot or two, and reflect on my snowboarding adventures for the day. Â I've also been in here on a summer night when there was just my wife and I and two locals. Â The shot wheel was used plenty on that night!
For those reviews stating poor service, I've come to expect mediocre service at best at any non-fancy bar that's offering an apres ski atmosphere. Â Service is completely hit or miss wherever I've ever been in the ten years I've been apres skiing. Â So, expect mediocre and you won't be surprised unless it's pretty good or horrible. (and it was actually fantastic the last time I went)
The food here is solid bar food although I typically don't eat here, I have eaten here on a couple occasions. Â The beer selection is excellent, and this is also a great place to catch sports. Â The view from the deck is fantastic. Â The crowd is a nice mix of tourists and locals, although it does get crowded on a weekend.
Was here for some beers with friends while in Vail... great place for cheap beer/drinks on friday night, maybe even saturday. Gets pretty roudy and loud...but hey that's what you want in a bar, right? :-) Â
Great view of the mountain and nice deck to sit on and enjoy your beer or drink. They serve food, but I'd only eat it if you're really hungry and drunk, so you need something greasy in you.
Solid bar in the middle of Lionshead Village, with an awesome view of the mountain. Â I was there with a group of out-of-towners, and unlike some other reviewers, was made to feel at home. Â As others have commented, the service was slow, but in our case, it was also friendly.
The food was surprisingly good. Â We had a mix of the bar food standards as well as serviceable sashimi. Â Great beer selection, and, for our gathering, what seemed like good prices ($2 standards like Budweiser, and $3 specialty brews). Â But then, I'm from DC, where a $3.50 bottle of Bud is considered a happy hour deep discount.
Aside from the slow service, the overall layout, though huge, tended to make for cramped quarters. Â The table setup just doesn't fit the space, so you're always ducking and weaving through a crowd -- even if it's not croweded.
My favorite place in Lionshead Village. Â This is a big bar with tons of seating both inside, around the bar, and on the large patio, looking out on the ski lift going up the mountain.
Best beer selection in town, and good bar food. Â They have healthy food too, but it's not good. Â Trust me. Â If you come here, you might as well get something fried or greasy and enjoy it.
Good mix of locals and visitors.
Garfinkel's gets 5 stars for the view. It's tough to beat sitting outside on this sunny deck staring at the bright white slopes of Vail Mountain. I'll agree with the other reviews that this place is a bit more of a bargain than some of the other restaurants and bars in Vail Village, and therefore always crowded, but you lose some serious ambiance sitting on long benches wedged in between large groups of people. You'll wait a long time for service sitting down, but waiting in line at the bar isn't always any faster. The worst part about the long picnic tables and benches is that even if you wait long enough to snag a spot for your group (good luck!), the food baskets and beer glasses from the last group might sit on your table the whole time you're there. Kind of gross and only adds to the claustrophobic feel. But hey...you're in Vail!
P.S. The Garf burger is a bargain at $9 for a half-pound hand-formed patty that you can get as rare as you want.
Garfinkel's is right next to the lift and gondola at Arrabelle in Vail. Â I suppose that's why it's still in business: Â It's definitely convenient. Â Price-wise, it's less than nearby Tavern and Vail Chophouse, but it's nowhere near the quality. Â At the Chophouse, you can sit on the patio and watch the lift, gondola, and skiers and share a bottle of wine. Â At Garfinkel's, you can sit on benches and still see the mountain, but you're drinking beer and eating nachos. So it's a different caliber.
That being said:  You're still paying too much for minuscule portions and mediocre food.  We ordered the Asian Beef Salad ($12) which is advertised as "Teriyaki Grilled beef tips over grilled julienne vegetables and a bed of mixed greens."  We were never asked how we would like the beef tips cooked, and they came out well-done to the consistency of leather, with hardly any discernible teriyaki flavor.  There was no salad dressing, and the portion was sadly diminutive.  We asked our Servette  (Who was of the "Oooooh.... Shinyyyyyyy........." variety) about dressing and her answer was "Huh...... Why didn't they put anything on there?"  I don't know sweetheart.  Could ya maybe find some for me.  She suggested balsamic (With teriyaki??) and I said "How bout maybe the mango?"  Yeah, it was pretty weak, right out of the SYSCO bottle.
We also chose the Reuben ($10.) Â Typical: Â Pastrami, Kraut, Swiss, and Thousand Island, grilled on rye. Â The flavor of this one was okay (although the side of 'slaw that came with it was obviously days old, sogging away in it's vinegar bath.) Â The problem with this was that the "Rye Bread" it came on was all of 4 inches in diameter. Â Literally. Â The man ate all of it, and had to finish my salad to whet his hunger, although we both left still hungry, and headed across to Haagen Dazs to get him something sweet and filling.
This area of Vail has no shortage of Nosh Huts. Â From 5 star cuisine to casual, there are easily 10 other options that would be better value and quality than Garfinkel's.
It was a beautiful fall day in Vail when the nasty food and bad service put a great big cloud over the whole thing. Â After ordering our beverages and requesting water we eventually got the beverages. Â We ordered food and WATER again. Â The food came, but still no water which was really unfortunate considering the food was inedible due to the ridiculous amounts of salt added to everything. Â Like why could I see crystals of sea salt on my pastrami? Â ICK! Â It's pretty hard to mess up a reuben, but somehow they managed it. Â We asked for water again and finally our request was granted.
So, why the bad service? Â Understaffed? Â Hardly. Â There were 3 tables including ours for the 2 servers that were on the deck. Â It was just bad because they were obviously more interested in the game than doing their jobs. Â We literally got the bill dropped off at our table before we even got the water we requested! Â It was just bad, bad, bad.
Speaking of the game it's all you could hear. Â I couldn't have talked to my husband if I wanted to because the game was blaring so loud it drowned out any conversation. Â Including the request for WATER!!
Never again.
This place was pretty packed when we arrived, so I'm not sure how I feel about it. Â Garfinkle himself greets you at the door so that was fun - I'm all about bars having animal mascots (especially a moose). Â I am not sure if this place does karaoke every single night, but it was definitely karaoke time when we arrived around 11 p.m. on a Thursday night. Â Of course, it was MJ tribute night as he had just passed earlier that day, but still - kind of irritating. Â
The karaoke was pretty embarrassing and ridiculous, so I can't really decide how I feel about it. Â The line was too long to even sign up for a song and no one was singing anything good. Â Such is karaoke, I guess. Â There were too many people in the space (especially toward the front) and the beer was kind of expensive so we just got out of there after one drink. Â They did have a pretty good selection of drinks and they had it looked like they had a very large menu of food. Â If it hadn't been so chilly, we would have taken advantage of the outdoor patio which seemed really awesome. Â Too bad we couldn't bear to sit out there for more than a minute. Â
Meh, this place was OK. Â It really seems like the locals love it because it's like a drunk frat party, so more power to you if that's how you have fun.
5 stars for feeling like you are at a locals joint/people watching
2 stars for speed of service--yeah yeah you are busy, but hire a couple more staff would ya?
3 stars for price. Â Still expensive, but alot less than most other lionshead choices.
5 stars for location. Â Can't beat the sundeck just above the gondola and looking out on the mountain
4 stars for American food menu variety. Â Lots of choices for the big ones and little ones.
Food: Just ok to Yuck
Service: Friendly enough
Price: Can't walk out for less than $10 (for yuck, is sad)
Anything tastes good after a day of snowboarding, right? WRONG! It's been a while since I've had really bad food. Granted, my pulled pork sandwich (recommended by our waiter), was actually quite decent. Ample meat with just enough sauce and slight heat. However, the bun it was served on tasted of pure sawdust.
Spinach Artichoke dip - the worst I've every had. I didn't know you could screw that up. Lacked cheese (and/or artichokes?) and the bread it was paired with must've came from the same batch as my pulled pork sandwich bun - sawdust. I recommend to dip with the veggies, instead.
Hubby's buffalo burger tasted just like a regular burger. Correction, hubby's buffalo burger tasted like less than a regular burger. Lacked flavor in the meat altogether. I can do better and I don't charge $10 for one.
My friend Tsun T. wanted to use his Vail employee discount and was given some grief by the waiter before it was finally approved by management. Tight times, I suppose.
Luckily, the dining experience was saved by good beer (Blue Moon with slices of orance, yummilicious) and good company!
Garf's has awful food and is like vacationing in Brazil or Argentina, whichever ethnicity has taken over for the night. Â Vail is full of Visa workers from South and Central America and apparently this is where they all hang out. Â
Along with horrible food the drinks are a little pricier than other bars nearby, but this could be due to the fact that Garfs is one of the very few places you can ski in/ski out. Â
My suggestion is head over to Mezzaluna for drinks and appetizers. Â If Jody is bartending let him pick your drinks, he'll have fun making things up and he's great at entertaining a crowd.
Garfinkel's is a bait and switch apres ski spot in Lionshead, right off of the Vail gondola. It shouts out "I am a snow-bum's paradise! See my cheap wooden tables! See my snow-soaked floor! Gaze upon the glory of my never-ending extreme ski videos on the many TV's!"
Tired, hungry, you are lulled into complacency by the waitresses in tight tank-tops and the rough-and-tumble looking crowd of snow hounds at the bar. "At last," you think, "proof that Vail isn't just a millionaires' playground!"
You fight for a table, peel off your layers, get settled in, order a drink from the waiter, take it all in for a moment and then...open the menu. $15 for a salad. $10 for kids' plates. $11 for cheese fries...$25 entrees...damnit! Too late to turn back now, you realize you are paying Vail prices for South Lake Tahoe ambiance.
The food is decent. The service satisfactory. The ambiance: decidedly ski-bum. Garfinkel's is the place to get a pitcher or two on the deck after a day on the slopes. Maybe the only place to grab a casual bite at a sit-down restaurant in "the village." It is obviously the place locals go to party, after they've had a full meal at some less expensive place the In-Town buses don't travel to.
For me, it is definitely the place to let our toddler blow off steam while I enjoy a burger and fries, and reminisce about my own ski bum days. Â Ah, the good old days...when we used to get just a beer on the patio after a day on the slopes and make fun of the people who actually ate at places like this.
great apres ski in lionshead! right off the mountain, dust the snow off, blow your nose, take off your layers and pony up to the bar. grab a brew, order some wings and fries and oh yea...loosen your boots! the wings came in many different styles, we got the sea salt and pepper ones, real good! the service was good for it being super packed in there (prime time is probably 3pm-5pm).
b/c it's packed be prepared to share a table with some people (in our case a nice couple from Germany who just wanted to have a spiked coffee and a group of Brits who we made fast friends with). don't be "that guy" and sit there holding a table for supposed "others" ...let people sit down, make friends, colorado probably has some of the nicest people in the country!
After my first day of boarding in Vail, I headed here to recover, relax and have some food.
They have standard American bar food and attracted the young crowd. The servers were pretty busy, but helpful. Oh, and the hot chocolate was very hot and served in a large mug.
We ordered fries, a bowl of chili and wings, which we didn't finish. The wings were still pretty damned good when we re-baked them back at our condo.
All in all, it was a great way to wrap up boarding.
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,916 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
