Dillon, CO: A Little Sunshine Goes A Long Way … There a Are Better Options In The Area

Sunshine Cafe

250 Summit Place

Silverthorne, CO 80498

Phone: (970) 468-6663

Website: sunshine-cafe.com

Prices: $$$$

My son, a Dillon local, recommended this place because we always go to another popular breakfast joint in Silverthorne. They just expanded, taking the space next door, so it is large enough that you will not have much of a wait. 

Standard breakfast fare, they do not have skillets and make it a bit painful if you like biscuits and gravy with your breakfast, My recommendation is to skip the order of biscuits and gravy ($8.25, including two eggs) and get a biscuit with your breakfast and a side of sausage gravy ($1.75).

My youngest son had the Classic Eggs Benedict ($9.25) and it was just that, English muffin halves topped with poached eggs, ham and hollandaise sauce. The benedict was good, but the hash browns were the star of the show. Best hashbrowns I have had in a long time … plentiful, brown, and crispy on top and hot, moist, and tender underneath. My eldest son had an omelette with green (pork) chili, but disliking the sharing of food, I was unable to try it. He said it was “good”. Too bad they do not do skillets because these hash browns would be the star of the show and make one mean skillet.

I built my own omelette ($10.12), a 3-egger with cheddar and Monterey jack cheeses, bacon, chorizo, and sauteed onions and mushrooms. It was excellent and the hash browns were the coup de grâce. I got a biscuit and a side of sausage gravy, bringing the total to nearly $12, a bit pricey for breakfast.

Words of wisdom: Offer skillets and 1/2 orders of biscuits and gravy minus the eggs in the $3 to $3.50 range or, better yet, include a side of sausage gravy with a biscuit if desired and charge a max of 50¢ … make your customers happy rather than milking us dry for every last red cent.

Next time I am in Dillon, we will be going back to our regular joint in Silverthorne where biscuits and gravy and skillets are standard fare.

CombatCritic Gives Sunshine Cafe 6 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Priciness/Lack Of “Value” And Little Menu Creativity … More Bombs Are Better!

Six Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp – Elite ’14/’15/’16

Tabelog – Official Judge (Bronze)

Zomato – #1 Ranked Foodie





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Sunshine Cafe

Title: Dillon, CO: A Little Sunshine Goes A Long Way … There a Are Better Options In The Area

Key Words: Sunshine Cafe, sunshine, cafe, breakfast, Dillon, Silverthorne, CO, Colorado, Summit, county, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp, Zomato, Tabelog

Translation for Civilians: G2G = “Good To Go”

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Adriano’s Bistro: An Interesting Concept With a Few Rough Edges

Adriano’s Bistro

240 Lake Dillon Drive

Dillon, CO 80435

Phone: (970) 468-6111

Web: Adriano’s Bistro Dillon.com
Facebook: Adriano’s Bistro Deli
Prices: $$$$$

NOT Dillon, Colorado

Asking for quality and value in a tourist area restaurant is probably asking for too much and Adriano’s Bistro is not the exception. Looking more like a nightclub than a restaurant from the outside, the interior is somewhat dated with wood paneling, hard wood floors, and basic tables and chairs sans tablecloth.

We were seated quickly by a friend of my youngest son Nick, a Snowmaking Supervisor at Keystone Resort, by the name of Kaylee whom also turned out to be our server. Entrees run from $13.95 for pizza to $25 and up for specialties AND COME WITH APPETIZER, SOUP, AND SALAD INCLUDED. That is where the concept varies from other places, in a good way and bad.

The good news is that in a town full of hungry skiers and young resort workers, a hearty meal at a fair price would work quite well, but on a Thursday night in Dillon, you could almost shoot a cannon through Adriano’s without hitting a soul. They idea was good, but the execution needs some work …

The porchetta (pronounced por-ket-a – $19.95), a traditional Italian dish of rolled, stuffed pork slow-roasted over a wood spit or grill and served with roasted potatoes, but my dish did not resemble any porchetta I have ever seen. First, our appetizer arrived, half of a cocktail size meatball and a small piece of Italian sausage smothered in a red sauce and dwarfed by the bread plate they came on. I tried to make the meatball and sausage last for more than two bites, but failed miserably. The taste was “OK”, but could have been out of the freezer and can from Sam’s Club for all I know.

Porchetta – $19.95

Next came the soup, a cup of cream of vegetable that was thick, savory, and piping hot, probably one of the highlights of the night. The soft loaves of fresh, warm bread kept coming and were a nice accompaniment to the hot soup on a cold winter night. The small, side-salad was good, but minimal with a few fresh greens and shaved carrots topped with a light balsamic vinaigrette.

Fresh Baked Bread

Back to the entrees. As I said, my porchetta did not resemble the traditional variety, but was an interesting and creative approach with sliced pork (and not much at that), onions, and ground sausage in both red and bechamel sauces, supposedly on top of baked ziti (pasta). I found the dish a bit too salty and could not find the ziti which the chef apparently forget to add.

My oldest son had the Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken ($21.95), a basic, simple dish of pasta, cream, and cheeses that is difficult to mess up. The pastas we did see did not look fresh or handmade, but straight out of the bag and I would not be surprised if the sauce came from a can or jar. I am not saying it was bad, only that it was unremarkable for the price.

Margherita Pizza – $13.95

Probably the best value of the night was my youngest son’s Margherita Pizza (named after Queen Margarita of Italy – $13.95), a 12 inch, wood-fired, hand-tossed pizza reminiscent of Roman pizza, thin and crunchy (unlike traditional Neopolitan pizza which is soft and chewy). The sauce and cheese stopped well short of the edge, leaving a thicker-than-needed crust. The mozzarella could have been fresher, but the pizza was well put together and tasty … BRAVO!

Fettuccine Alfredo – $21.95

Toward the end of the evening a large man with a Bronco hat arrived with a friend with a Dodger cap and, based on the attention they received, they were obviously affiliated with the recent Super Bowl losing Denver Broncos. The chef, manager/owner, servers, and other staff came out of the back to fawn over the celebrities, but did not say a word to the other guests, totaling about 7-8 by then, including us. The only one we spoke to all night was Kaylee, but she did a fine job and made up for her supervisor’s lack of hospitality.

With a $22 bottle of wine and three people, the bill came to just under $100 (without tip), a bit much based on the quality and substance of the meal and probably $20 to $25 more than a similar meal would have cost in Denver or Colorado Springs.

CombatCritic Gives Adriano’s Bistro 7 Out of 10 Bombs … BOMBS ARE GOOD!

Key Words: Adriano’s Bistro, Adriano, bistro, Italian, pizza, dinner, Dillon, Colorado, Keystone Resort, Silverthorne, Frisco, pasta, salad, appetizer, CombatCritic, TravelValue, combat, travel, value

Mountain Lyon Cafe … Best Breakfast in Summit County!

Piercing deep blue eyes the color of Arizona turquoise, a warm inviting smile on a winter’s day, Brook, a native of St Louis, Missouri said “welcome to the Mountain Lyon, I’ll be your server” within seconds of our sitting down in the booth by the front window. Serving only breakfast and lunch, the Mountain Lyon Café is a “locals” hang-out with stick-to-your-ribs, home cooked meals, and efficient, friendly service.

I feel like a local, having frequented this lively restaurant for many years, their breakfast is hard to beat in the Dillon/Silverthorne/Frisco area. I always seem to end up with the Ultimate Skillet ($8.95), an iron skillet loaded with home fried potatoes, 3 eggs any way you like them, tomatoes, green bell pepper, onions, mushrooms, bacon, ham, and sausage, all smothered with country gravy and melted cheddar cheese. A fluffy buttermilk biscuit (muffin or toast also available) accompanied my skillet and would only have been better had there been a dollup of country gravy on top.

Mountain Lyon Cafe has pretty much everything you could imagine available for breakfast and lunch, from French toast to French fries, omelets to burgers, pancakes to pickles, you get the picture. One thing I did not see on the menu that I was craving was a chili and cheese omelet, plain old chili with no beans and lots of shredded cheddar cheese encased in a fluffy three egg delight! But alas, there were none:(

The Mountain Lyon is as much an experience as it is a meal with hoards of interesting locals and a few odd tourists of every size and disposition imaginable, with stories as long and varied as the people telling them. I shall return again if for nothing else but to see Brook with those big blue eyes and have her say “Welcome back to the Mountain Lyon Chris!”.

CombatCritic Gives Mountain Lyon Cafe 9 Out of 10 Bombs … BOMBS ARE GOOD!

Key Words: Mountain Lion Cafe, mountain, lion, lyon, cafe, Silverthorne, Colorado, Dillon, Frisco, breakfast, lunch, eggs, bacon, biscuits, gravy, CombatCritic, TravelValue, combat, travel, value

Luxury? Inn and Suites – Silverthorne, Colorado

The cheapest, I didn’t say “cheap”, lodging in Keystone Resort (Colorado) area is the Luxury Inn and Suites. Located in Silverthorne, Colorado just north of I-70 and one block east of the main drag, the hotel/motel is conveniently located near shops, restaurants, markets, and more.

I paid $69 weekday and $90 weekend on Hotwire, but when I got to the hotel they were advertising $54.95 weekday rates. My payment to Hotwire came to $320 plus tax for four nights, which seems a bit high for a 1 STAR property, but the rooms are clean with a small fridge and microwave, AC, TV with HBO, small indoor pool with Jacuzzi, and continental breakfast included. Even though I paid an average of $80 per night, a value in this overpriced tourist area, I do not appreciate paying $15 more than the advertised rate people simply walking in off the street pay. Hotwire.com should be ashamed of themselves!

Breakfast is “OK”, with hot coffee, bagels, English muffins, and donuts still in the plastic box from the supermarket … classy!  The staff are not very friendly, but helpful when pressed into action.  They seem to care less that you exist, much less being a breathing human being and “valued” customer? Checkout is at 10:00 AM, so do not plan on sleeping in.  I was lucky enough to talk the manager (owner?) into an 11:30 AM checkout on my last day, but it took some persistence and smooth talking to get him to grudgingly agree.

The rooms are moderate in size and fairly clean, although the tile in the bathroom was cracked and some of the furniture looked as though it was purchased at the local Goodwill. Wireless internet is free, but slower than molasses in January…aargh, aargh. The “king” bed I was supposed to sleep in was a few testicles short of kingliness, looking more like a “queen” to me (no disrespect intended to my LGBT audience). It was fairly comfortable nonetheless.

The indoor pool was small, yet clean, with a decent size Jacuzzi that had whirlpool jets with a prostate problem…not a very forceful stream if you know what I mean. 

Exterior doors are open all night with no supervision, so if you are looking for security, keep on looking!

CombatCritic gives the unluxurious Luxury Inn and Suites 4 OUT OF 10 BOMBS for travel value…and they only did that well because everything else is a rip-off in the holiday destination of Keystone (Silverthorne/Dillon/Frisco), Colorado. 

Read more travel, hotel, restaurant reviews … AND MORE on my blog:

http://www.combatcritic.blogspot.com

CombatCritic … OUT!

Key Words: accomodations, basic, breakfast, clean, Colorado, convenient, disrepair, hotel, inn, internet, luxury, luxury inn and suites, motel, overpriced, security, Silverthorne, suites,