Pollock Dining Room at Skyland

We dined here several times during our stay, and overall, Pollock Dining Room delivers a solid experience—especially considering it’s inside a national park lodge. The food quality is surprisingly good, though prices are as high as you’d expect in a remote location like this. Wait times can be long: about 30 minutes to get seated and another 20 before food arrives, so be prepared to relax and take in the views. Dinner here shines more than breakfast. The ribeye steak was well-cooked and juicy, paired with velvety mashed potatoes and perfectly tender broccolini. The Forest Pasta with grilled chicken was another standout—rich, flavorful, and not dry at all. The pimento cheese dip came with warm, soft pretzel bites that were addictive. For dessert, the vanilla ice cream and mango sorbet were both refreshing and creamy—truly satisfying. Breakfast, on the other hand, felt less impressive. Portions are a bit on the smaller side and the offerings are fairly standard, nothing particularly memorable. The dining room itself has a warm, rustic charm, with large windows that frame beautiful mountain views. During dinner, you can sometimes catch live music or spot the twinkling lights from Luray far below at dusk, adding to the ambiance.

My husband’s steak was almost raw, they tried to correct the issue and replaced the steak with a worse cut and the next one was a little overdone but edible. His drink the cherry whiskey drink was sickly sweet. I had a wonderful experience which is why it’s 3 stars and not lower. The half chicken was delicious, the blackberry wine went well with it (a little sweeter than I usually drink but it was tasty), my husband and I both enjoyed the flourless chocolate tort. For the price I wouldn’t go back. There are plenty of options outside of the park that offer better quality food at similar or less prices.

This is a very unique dining experience. The portions are bigger than what is needed but the price is also higher so it makes sense to some degree. The food has great flavors and is delicious. The staff in the restaurant is great and very helpful. I really enjoyed the Turkey Dinner.

This is a must-see place just for the views alone. The food was excellent and our server was very attentive. If you have a chance when you're done eating, walk down the trail that runs alongside the building for some additional lovely views.

Host was incredibly rude and made me feel stupid. Outdoor seating is apparently not open for service, so I ordered my food to go and sat outside, which was fine but for the price of the food it would have been nice of service were available. My food and drink were incredibly average- I got the Forrester pasta with a blackberry margarita. The margarita just came from a premade container, which is disappointing when ordering and paying for a mixed drink. Table was dirty, and there was hair in my food. Ethan was kind. Views were great.

After a truly wonderful day exploring the breathtaking Skyline Drive, dinning here was the perfect way to end it. The food was delicious, a real treat! But honestly, the sunset views were the highlight - truly priceless and unforgettable.

We shared a piece of the Mile High Blackberry Ice Cream Pie. Very delicious and a feast for the eyes. Plenty large to share.

Food was delicious. Just wish there were more options. And it was a little pricey.