Gamekeeper Restaurant

There are few restaurants that have both the dinning experience and the atmosphere of the Gamekeeper. The food is absolutely marvelous - some of the dishes - like the Emu Filet - are world class and melt in your mouth like butter. The restaurant is tucked away in a lovely alcove in the mountains and the interior is charming and a sort of chic rustic. There's also a dessert that's worth the trip all by itself - absolutely do not skip the Bourbon Vanilla Bread Pudding.
Reservations book up quickly - but the food is absolutely joyful, the staff are lovely, and the ambiance lovely. If you have the opportunity, do yourself a favor and try it!

My husband and I when to celebrate our engagement and absolutely loved the atmosphere. The service was very attentive and amazing. The food was undoubtedly unique and so well executed. Would recommend to everyone and it is an experience worth the wait!

This restaurant delivers a really incredible fine dining experience in the Boone NC area. It's definitely worth 5 stars

The potato soup, the beef picanha, and the bread pudding were the most popular items with our group but it was all really good.

Some items that made our experience a little less than perfect (but still 5 stars for us, so you can judge how much you'd care about these things)

1) instead of a bread appetizer, they came with a bread basket and gave everyone a single piece of bread and we had to ask for more instead of being offered any

2) we had a party of 16 and were told that wouldn't be an issue but ended up at two unconnected tables of 8 which is fine but not what we were told when we booked

3) one of us ordered a coke and then asked for the refill to be diet coke and we were charged for 2 sodas, but the people who didn't switch got unlimited free refills. It just feels very stingy for a restaurant that we spent over $1000 at.

4) we were celebrating a birthday and they came out and asked who's birthday it was and said "okay great" but then didn't follow up with a happy birthday or a little dessert celebration or anything, so it just seemed weird to ask and not follow up

I rarely give a five star across the board, but wow! Not just the food, the ambiance, our well-informed server ( thanks, Summer!), even the parking is so well thought out. One thing to know is the setting is very hilly and there are stairs to get up to the restaurant entrance.

This place was a 10/10 we enjoyed everything! Reservations fill up fast but we came in as a walk-in and were able to sit in the cozy bar area near the fireplace. Our food, service, wine and dessert were all fantastic. Just go!

The Gamekeeper has become one of our favorites! With all of its memorabilia and twinkling lights, the atmosphere is charming and inviting. Our table was located in the main dining room with a lovely view of the wood-burning fireplace and the mountains. The drinks were delicious, the butternut squash bisque was to die for, the trout was the best I've had and the fact that no bread pudding was left is a true testament to its tastiness! Our waitress, Summer, was on point and our food was prepared to perfection! Can't wait to come back!

Gorgeous restaurant on top of a mountain with a live fire place. Great service even if they are not your waiter. They have valet and you can park your vehicle as well. We came in January, so we had an interesting drive on ice, but worth it! The exotic dishes change, so you will need to come back to try everything. This go around we had Elk, Emu Tartare, Anteloaf (Antelope). The Elk is absolutely delicious! So tender and savory. Tastes like beef, but cleaner. Emu is in a category of its own, but tastes like beef. If you love beef you will definitely like the Emu tartare, it's actually a red meat. Anteloaf is delicious as well, definitely worth a try. The Bison and Venison are also super delicious, but if you have had these go for the Elk! Coffee is french pressed in front you and good quality! We got the Pan cotta dessert, delicious, not overly sweet. We will be back! Make sure you make a reservation, it will cost $25 a person. Thank you Gamekeeper for getting us in for my hubby's birthday!

They made my birthday so special. Like others have said, get the mixed game grill sampler. Also, enjoyed the game bolognese and emu.

The entire experience was out of this world. Right from pulling up the valet waves and makes you feel welcome. The atmosphere is rustic, romantic and calming pairing your mountain experience perfectly.

Each plates flavors took you through a flavorful journey. I had the Denver Elk Leg and enjoyed every bite even down to the vegetables and Mac and cheese. The mushrooms were to die for. It was an experience I want to relive over and over again. I appreciate the menu was elevated and considered fine dining without being overdone.

We will absolutely be back again. We even discussed having our wedding reception/dinner here if possible!

Thank you Micheal for getting us in without reservations & Jonathan for treating us like royalty.

Our server, Virginia just might be the best in the business of hospitality. I have met so many servers in my lifetime of dining. She is exceptional! She insured we had the most positive and delicious experience.

The chef sent out tiny bites of salmon and we ordered the emu tartare, the mixed game grill, Mac and bleu cheese and bleu salad, and everything was tasty and presented beautifully!

We could not leave without trying the dessert!
It was delectable!

The game keeper restaurant is the kind of place that you must experience. You feel like you are dining on top of the world. The inside decor is something that evokes feelings like you are in a special place and time. I love to write and this place inspired!

So glad we experienced Gamekeeper restaurant. It’s one for the books!

Check out my pics and videos.

Bon Appetit!

Josephine

The Gamekeeper was more than I expected. My blunder with our reservation turned out to be a blessing in disguise. We were able to rent one of their igloos. Amazing experience. The service was first rate and the food was even better. Great food, great drinks, great atmosphere, and great service!!!

I can't wait to go back again. I have traveled to many countries and gone to many upper scale restaurants, and this is in my top 3 as of now. I went in, and by the time I had finished my first bite, I was ready to make another reservation. No one was super overdressed, and everyone was so relaxed. It was refreshing. The service was impeccable. They do an excellent job at training the staff. Now, the food was just mouth-watering, an otherworldly experience.

First and foremost - what a cozy and beautiful location!! Pictures of this place don’t do it justice. And the valet is a lovely touch. Secondly - we were celebrating my birthday and the staff couldn’t have made me feel more special. Lastly - the food. Wow. We tried escargot for the first time (tasty), I had the Elk Denver Leg and it was outstanding, then we had dessert (I can’t recall what it was, but some form of chocolate dipped in an orange sauce). We had a lovely experience and cannot wait to go back!

Cozy mountain ambiance with friendly service, complimentary valet parking, and a variety of dishes not commonly found. A great way to start if these dishes are new to you is to get the meat sampler. We enjoyed the tenderness of the bison, mildness of the elk, and distinguishably gamey flavor of the emu. The cajun seasoning on the double-fried fries was a perfect contrast to the meat. The bread pudding has notes somewhat like a pecan pie flavoring, and the mousse and sorbet are lighter finishes. Highly recommend this dinner experience.

A great experience overall. I love the inside decor and the outside seating looked really relaxing too. Wild mushroom soup was great. Enjoyed Trout for dinner and bread pudding for dessert. Didn't have enough room in my belly to try all that I wanted.

I can't even tell you which part is more phenomenal - the staff, the food and drinks, the location, the ambiance - are all a solid 5 star. If I could give them over 5 stars, I would. We went to celebrate my husband's birthday and this place pulls out all the stops when it comes to hospitality, food and drinks. By far one of the best meals we've had in the US. Mostly wild or exotic game, but executed eloquently enough for complex and novice palates alike. My husband could not get over (and still has not gotten over) how good the drinks were and how knowledgeable the bartender was. Though one would think the atmosphere would exude Michelin star finery, it's actually more funky dive bar meets old traditional hunting lodge - tastefully eclectic. Can't miss if you are in the area!

We went here for our honeymoon years ago, and just most recently for our anniversary. My vocabulary is inadequate to describe how delicious everything is. This place is special to me and my wife for helping us celebrate our marriage with delicious, close to nature food in a cozy and eclectic atmosphere.

The quality of service is top-notch and as someone who has specialized in hospitality in the past, I can guarantee you they are the cream of the crop. Little else compares around here or anywhere!

Our meals of choice were a chef's choice of sample game meat (elk, bison, antelope, boar) with an extraordinarily tender venison for my wife and elk for myself for our main course. I'd be negligent to mention how wonderfully the vegetables were prepared! It's not just about the meats here, everything is perfect, including the desserts... and cocktails!

The Gamekeeper is on our very short list of places we will go out of our way to travel hundreds of miles for.

We ALWAYS have an amazing time at The Gamekeeper. Wonderful atmosphere, delicious food, and the best espresso Martinis you will ever drink.

The entire experience was phenomenal! We had a reservation in one of the igloos and it was top notch. The food was spectacular!! The flavor was truly an experience. To mention, Tommy was our serviced and he was such a good dude. Great conversation and incredibly respectful. I hope you get blessed with the same treatment if you dine here. Ask for Tommy!!!

I swear everything was delicious!
I really enjoyed how upscale the food was mixed with a casual atmosphere.

Our waitress (Beth) was the best.
We never went without water and she was very helpful with the many questions we had.

Steak Tartare; It was very flavorful but on the edge of salty.

Detailed breakdown of our dinner below;

Okra Salad; They we’re not overly breaded allowing the Okra flavor to come through. The Pimiento Cheese pairing was nice.
It doesn’t need the greens but they don’t hurt the dish.

Bison Short Rib; Very much “fall of the bone” if you haven’t had bison short rib it isn’t quite like pork but has a slightly firmer texture.
The flavors on the rib were great, the garlic mashed potatoes also hit the spot, they had small pieces of potato in them that added nice texture.
The vegetables were definitely undercooked (the other plate at the table had more appropriately cooked vegetables), so a slight disappointment there.

Emu Filet; Great flavors all around (loved the sauce) and a very nice cook on the Emu as well. It’s very interesting for bird meat to be so similar to steak, so something I would recommend trying.

Blue Mac; Great! If you don’t like Blue Cheese you won’t like it but if you do you’ll love it!

Lemon and Blueberry Bar; It was good but order the Bourbon Bread Pudding lol.

Last but not least the Bourbon Bread Pudding; They have been making it for 20 years and it shows. A great bread pudding that I won’t spoil but would (strongly) recommend you get.

Good buy and have a good dinner🍽