The Dam Cafe

Keep your receipt! Bagel sandwiches and smoothie shop! The girls who work there are kind. The food is good! Especially their current special smoked salmon on a bagel. Big portions and good prices. Good for a quick breakfast for a family. Cute small dining area. Update: took off 2 stars .. went a second time. They were rude when busy. I added hot chocolate after our order. Paid for it. But they forgot to put it under my name and didn’t want to give it to me I had to talk her into it and almost offered to show my bank statement because she was being so rude acting like we were trying to trick her.

We loved the Dam cafe !! The breakfast sandwiches and coffee were stellar AND there was someone playing acoustic guitar that made it such a lovely experience. As of Oct 2025 it was a little hard to find with construction but it's worth it !

Great place great location but food here could definitely use some improvement…. Every time I eat here is literally nothing special… just average food…. No spices nothing special… I would love to give 5 stars but I can’t …. Food is food I guess Addition: yes your cafe in Tahoe City, California … I recently ordered a burrito priced at nearly $18 after tax, and unfortunately, I found it to be quite dry and lacking in flavor. To be candid, I’ve had better burritos from Safeway for just $5.99. While the price isn’t my main concern, the quality of the food did not meet expectations. I believe your team has the potential to deliver a much better culinary experience, and I encourage you to review and refine your recipes and preparation methods. Even a quick review of best practices or tutorials online could offer helpful insights. I’m confident you can elevate the quality of your offerings and hope to see improvements in the future. Wishing you continued success.

In a world of boring strip mall coffee shops, this place did not disappoint. The building is cute, there’s some good views, the staff were super sweet, the coffee was good, and the food was delicious. 10/10

My family rented bikes and rode the trail from Palisades into Tahoe City and stopped at the Dam Cafe for a late lunch. We dropped in right before closing but the staff was gracious and the food was fabulous despite how busy they were. They had a gentleman outside playing music and he chided me for not clapping enough. I would have been upset but he was super nice and talked to us between songs. What did we order? Mostly smoothies and coffee and it was all very good. I love the ample parking and convenient location. I also love supporting local businesses and this one is a good one. Michael Delehanty Compass Real Estate

This past week, my daughter and I visited Tahoe City, and we are from Texas! We came to the Dam Cafe to grab some breakfast, since we read some good reviews for the most part. Well, we both had a breakfast sandwich with coffee, and it was SO good!!! We enjoyed it so much that we went back the next two days of our stay, and got breakfast, lunch, and a Blueberry Granola smoothie to snack on later in the day, since they close at 1pm. Lucia and Pamela do an excellent job running this place and kitchen! They are so friendly and kind! I came across some reviews that complained about how long it took for their order or the size/amount of food items, and these are my thoughts about those kind of comments: 1. I think some of these negative reviews were written intentionally to discourage people from going there. 2. They make your food when you order, and if you happen to go in a busier time of the day, there's a chance you might wait about 15 minutes, or maybe a bit longer, but trust me, it's worth the wait! Food items we ordered and loved are: breakfast sandwich with avocado, breakfast burritos, lattes, iced coffee, smoothies and coffee muffin. Everything tasted so good.

Such a nice little spot for coffee, smoothie and sandwiches. Delish.

Wow I cannot say enough good things about this coffee shop! First it is is so so so adorable from the outside and the inside. The service is excellent! The people working inside are so sweet. The coffee is made perfectly and they serve the best coffee cake bread I’ve ever had in my life! I will be dreaming of that coffee cake bread for ages!

Dam Cafe was a nice stop for us in Tahoe City. We woke up early in our hotel and decided to wander the streets to see what was open and we stumbled into this little place for some coffee. The service was great. The woman who took our order was very friendly and they even had some free pastry samples cut up for our enjoyment. Our food and coffee came out quick. The prices were fair, maybe slightly inflated but I always expect that for tourist places like Tahoe City. The decor here is nice but a bit eclectic. Vanilla latte and cold brew were good. No latte art, but flavor was there! The downside here is the hot food options. The hot food is just frozen meats reheated on a hot plate along with an egg, salsa, cheese, etc. and wrapped up in bread or a tortilla. Nothing special and a bit disappointing as homemade food would have been much nicer for the price. Everything still tasted good, but the quality wasn't all there.

Way too much $$$$$ for a (fancy) BLTA bought to the table in a paper wrapper on a paper plate. We asked for a cup for our drinks and got one without ice. Two sandwiches, two orange sodas = $41.?? ....before tip. I don't care if there are millionaires coming out of The Bay; it is a seedy sandwich joint. GET REAL!

$24 for a breakfast burrito and smoothie. Forgot the coffee so paid an additional $4.44 for a coffee. Food is meh. Ok. Not worth the cost FOR SURE.

A cute little cafe for breakfast and lunch. Had an egg croissant which was fresh and delicious. Bagels are toasted well with many toppings available. Lots of smoothies and coffee drinks, too. Staff is friendly and smiling. Would recommend! Prices are reasonable.

The two women that work here are so sweet! My husband's breakfast croissant was so good! I got a smoothie and it was great too! Nice and cozy in here with good tunes.

Such a cute spot in Homewood near Lake Tahoe! I got a yummy breakfast sandwich and it was great! Super kind staff!

Cute cafe for an order at the counter breakfast stop. Food: 4 Service: 4 Atmosphere: 4 Cost to worth it rating: 3 Opentableable: no Return worthiness: sure Highlights: - Breakfast burrito: fluffy omelet style eggs and can add meat (sausage or bacon) and avocado plus spinach bell peppers and others for no extra charge. 4 stars - Small cute little house with lake signs around - Can pre order for pickup from toasttab - Lots of coffee options like lattes etc. - Parking outside and not in a super crowded spot - Some seating with few small tables inside and out Midlights: - Limited options since it's a small place. Lowlights: - Only open til 1 - Sell out of their pastries Nice stop for a breakfast burrito and a coffee to carry you through your Tahoe day.

Food and service here is really good. The food is fast and the drinks are amazing. Perfect place to stop by before you hit the slopes :)

Out of all of my visits to Tahoe City, I had never noticed The Dam Cafe until my most recent staycation and walk from the beginning of the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail. My husband and I decided to grab a couple of breakfast burritos before hitting the trail. I was impressed with the options to customize a breakfast burrito. You can pick a meat AND avocado with no extra charges! My bacon and avocado breakfast burrito was a modest size which was a perfect portion for me, but a little small considering the price was $12.75. The cafe is very small and crowded inside, but luckily, there were a few tables outside and the weather was still nice enough to eat outside. Be careful if you are outside, because there isn't a great system for calling out when orders are ready. Sometimes the staff will bring orders outside, but sometimes the staff will eventually search for you to let you know the order has been sitting for a while--which is what happened with the coffee from our order. I also found it odd that the chalkboard menus inside do not list any prices. I knew it would be pricey since it is Lake Tahoe, but prices in the menu would have been nice to help determine if you want to wait in the long line to place an order. Overall, food was fine, coffee was fine, service was a little unorganized. However, the location was great; especially, if you are in the area before or after a hike or bike ride.

Food is excellent! I had the bagel sandwich with sausage, egg, and cheese. So yummy! My friend had the bagel and lox. It was huge and he loved it. You order at the counter. We ate outside. Lots of seating outside and some inside. Guy was even singing and playing a guitar. Service is excellent, efficient, and friendly. Highly recommended. Prices are on par with the Tahoe area. Not cheap but oh so worth it!!

The first time I came here I got a hot white mocha.. wasn't a fan to be honest especially for the price. But I came here again to try out the smoothie and it totally made up for the coffee. It was refreshing and had peach,banana,blueberry,orange juice. I can't remember the name but I would go back for it and next time I'll definitely try a croissant. The staff was very friendly also and they bring your order to your table.

Their breakfast burritos are solid, hearty and flavorful. Great service and out came out fast. Warm and cozy. Even had live music! There's only about a dozen seats, so timing is everything. Menu is breakfast and lunch only. Like most restaurants in a resort area, a little pricey, but in this case it's worth the price. Nice drive from the Olympic Village. Cheers!

Such a great spot for breakfast and coffee! They have so many menu items for such a small space- from smoothies to bagels to breakfast burritos. They were PACKED the morning we stopped by but still got our orders correct, our in a decent amount of time, and everything was so delicious!

Great spot for when you're on vacation and you sleep in a little and then wake up wanting a filling breakfast/brunch. The breakfast burritos here are a great size. I do not care for the HUGE breakfast burritos that are overly stuffed. You can get a good grasp on these and the filling is a good tortilla to filling portion. Not a lot of seating outside, but if you can grab a seat it is nice and shady.

This cafe was so damn busy which says a lot about the food and drinks! Our big group met up at the Dam Cafe and waited for quite some time before ordering. I ordered the Breakfast Burrito with sausage and avocado as my two options which came with cheese, sour cream, pico (which was more of a slice of tomato), and 2 fried eggs. I expected a big burrito but it turned out to be a perfect portion just for me. It was super flavorful, hot, and had a juicy bite to it thanks to the tomato. It surpassed my expectations. I also ordered an Iced Vanilla Latte with oat milk which they use a machine for; you just press a button for espresso. I was expecting it to be mediocre but to my surprise it hit the spot. They used a powdered vanilla/sweetener which reminded me a lot of The Coffee Bean (which we don't have in the Bay Area anymore). It was delightful. A few of the cousins ordered a smoothie and didn't have much to say. They said it was more of a juice and I agree. I watched the blender run for quite some time before someone turned it off. There was plenty of seating indoor and outdoors. It was all in all a great breakfast before heading home. I'll definitely make a pit stop here if I'm ever back in Tahoe. Cheers!

Cute little place with cute little drinks. Crowded because it's popular. Food smelled delicious!

The blended coffee I had here was amazing maybe the best blended drink I've ever had in my life... Like everything else in the area parking is nearly an impossibility and seating is nearly as unlikely.

I have to often prefer off the menu because no wheat or bread. I asked them for their veggies whatever they have and meat. There presentation was on point. They gave me exactly what I wanted even better. It was so beautifully presented spinach bottom sausage slices on the right bottom ham top left, over medium bottom left. Shredded carrot pile in the middle, avocado , mid center, and the most beautifully long sliced rolled cucumber. Yummy. I didn't even need dressing!

Came to this café for lunch it was such a cute little spot and incredibly busy. The sandwich was very flavorful the bacon was crispy and the bread was not soggy. The staff was very polite and respectful and it was just all-around perfect.

Superb food and lovely setting. Took our wraps and sandwiches out on the water and it was so enjoyable! Ordered on the mobile app and everything was ready right on time.

Good food, great for ordering to go. Fairly quick to order for pickup. Convenient location.

Came here for coffee-- 2 of the 3 self-serve coffee thermoses were empty, one of them was warm but not hot. I know it was busy since it was the few places open early the day after Thanksgiving. I waited a bit, my BF ate his food, and another customer mentioned the empty coffee situation. The person behind the counter rebrewed the coffee, and by then time they put the new pots out, the coffee was cold. I know I could've just asked them to make em an Americano, but I didn't want to make a big deal because it was busy. Overall, waiting for the new batch of coffee just for it to also be cold was very, very disappointing.

This was a great breakfast burrito place for our group. Tasty, hot, made to order, plenty of java, welcoming staff. We will be back for certain.

I got a breaky burrito that was small but mighty! Very yummy. I paired it with a java smoothie with oat milk and I have never finished a drink so fast! There was a bit of a wait but I didn't mind. The outside seating was nice in the shade and the service was nice.

I've past by this cafe for years and so glad we finally stopped in! The location is amazing, right across from the dam and close to the Truckee River, and everyone's food was excellent! I had the Veggie Breakfast Burrito which had eggs, a delicious sauce, and tons of veggies, super flavorful and healthy! My wife loved her Vegan Burrito and the kids really enjoyed the rice and beans and smoothies.. Just a great experience, excellent food, really kind staff and owners, and right between my favorite North and West Shores, looking forward to coming back soon!

Just alright! The Dam Cafe is extremely cute looking, and was conveniently located on our way to Palisades Tahoe. We stopped in for breakfast and ordered at the counter (the lady we ordered from was VERY sweet), and grabbed a table inside. Our drinks were ready pretty quickly, and I absolutely loved my dirty chai latte. My boyfriend's Breakfast Burrito (which he said was great) was ready soon after that. As I waited for my bagel, I noticed a few other patrons coming up to the counter because their orders were either forgotten or incorrect. After another 15 minutes, I checked in, and discovered that my bagel had been forgotten too. Once I got it, I unfortunately didn't love it. The everything bagel itself wasn't great and neither was the veggie cream cheese. Would definitely recommend getting something else off the menu. Overall, I REALLY wanted to like this place more than I did!

Humble, homey and welcoming little spot adjacent to the Truckee river for a nice breakfast, lunch or smoothie. Came here with friends to enjoy breakfast burritos and sandwiches prior to driving back over the summit.

All good. Chill music, great service and yummy food. Cinnamon roll was bomb, breakfast burrito was hot and fresh. Service with a smile. Totally recommend.

We've seen this location for years and stopped in passing through town. Friendly, gracious staff. Our food was terrific. I ordered the bacon, egg, avocado , cheese croissant that was delicious. We all loved the choices we ate.

Cozy little cafe/restaurant in Tahoe City with a frw indoor seating tables and to-go options. Serves up breakfast and lunch with a selection of drinks, closing early afternoon. Got a breakfast sandwich. Egg was perfectly cooked and bacon and cheese were dished out generously. Everything bagel was unfortunately not salted, but was nicely toasted. Would return!

I really wanted to love this place and it was a huge disappointment. First off almost $13 for a tiny breakfast burrito that's not even that warm? I asked for hash browns in it bacon egg and cheese. They put tomatoes in it? Why? So gross threw it in the trash along with the Carmel ice latte. What a waste of $23 dollars. Service wasn't that great either. I'm assuming a regular came in and they were taking his order as I'm waiting to order and I'm next in line...don't recommend whatsoever.

This is such a cute little place! I got a caramel latte and they blended it for me. Was delicious! Will definitely be back. Great staff! Super busy at brunch hour. Food was 30 minute wait- so just opted for a drink.

We enjoyed our breakfast here. Coffee was good. Line was long and parking was tough but worth it. It was nice to sit outside and enjoy the morning.

My mom and I enjoyed a bike ride from Squaw Valley to the Dam Cafe which gets its name from the dam that is located next to the property. We arrived around 9:00 a.m and my mom walked in to order a breakfast burrito for us to share, a latte for her, and a smoothie for me. I stayed outside with the bikes. The place was a ghost town and it took over 20 minutes for our food and drinks. While waiting, a man walked up to the "pickup door" and asked about placing an order. There was a lot of confusion and back and forth about how to do this. Overall, the customer service at this place is atrocious. The food and drinks are grossly overpriced for the quality. The green smoothie was the worst I've ever had and we would be better off microwaving a frozen breakfast burrito. I honestly have no clue how this place has so many solid reviews.

Cafe open for lunch in Tahoe City. It has mostly things like sandwiches. The Dam Cafe is located on the main road in town. Easy to get to if going around the lake. While prices are kind of high they're not outrageous. It sure is a good place for getting coffee. It has a few different kinds. They also have non dairy milks. Has some pretty good light food. There's things like bagels and salads. I stopped by the last time and got a latte. This was made with almond milk. I also got a sesame bagel with hummus. These items were both $4.25 and seemed worth it for the most part. Many items here are kind of expensive. This is a touristy area so it makes sense. Cafe is only open a few hours in the morning and early afternoon. It has stuff for breakfast or lunch. There's a kind of okay view of the lake from the outdoor patio and tables.

I'd like to start this by saying that usually we have a great experience at this store and this time the food and drinks we received were delicious but the customer service was horrible. It was difficult to order and we waited 30 minutes on a turkey sandwich. I'm not faulting the staff especially as it seemed most of them were new hires or there had been a language barrier, I am faulting the manager. The manager was very nice and friendly but the second no one was in line she did nothing to help her team and sat there chatting with customers. For the amount they're charging I would hope they would at least try to get their product out quickly.

Meh. Not so good for vegans, sadly. No vegan options on the breakfast menu. The veganrito (lunch) was meh and I worried a tad that the dressing wasn't vegan since they didn't seem super up to speed. The place was CROWDED so I guess they don't need to cater to us but they could get some frozen Just Egg brand squares (vegan egg substitute despite the confusing name) with a slice of Chao vegan cheese or some Kite Hill cream cheese and sub them into their breakfast sandos to sell us an easy delicious overpriced breakfast! lol Fire Sign Cafe up the road has a *delicious* tofu scramble so hopefully more Tahoe City places will start offering vegan options. Cute spot tho!

What a cute little spot! We stopped here before a meeting and grabbed coffee and breakfast. Most of us ordered the breakfast burrito, which was really delicious. I ordered mine with bacon and no cheese or sour cream. While small, they're very filling and mine was absolutely loaded with bacon. I also ordered a chai tea latte with oat milk and it was perfect. Can't wait to come back soon!

i ordered the salmon bagel and omg it was so good, and a TON of salmon! lots of capers too.....also got the turkey melt which was good...and free bag of chips with every sandwich!

This place was really good, kind workers, and overall had an amazing environment. I had the breakfast burrito with sausage and a caramel latte.

Lately, I'm really enjoying the Tootie Frootie with strawberries and only good organic ingredients - fruit and ice! It's consistently perfect. The girls are always helpful and smiling which even when they seem to be buried, can be tough, I'm sure. Well done A-Team!

Great place, coffee , service and fun environment! Highly recommend and would stop here again!

I know MANY people enjoy this place. I'm lukewarm. Partly because I have gone a few times, during posted hours, but the door is locked and someone says they're closed.... But there are placer county sheriffs sitting in there eating. And I'm talking like 10:30am. If it was just once, no biggie. But two times for me and once for my husband. It's just..... Weird. Gives me a bad vibe even though the food is pretty good.

Great coffee. Great breakfast sandwiches. Hard to find good and friendly service in Tahoe city. I only wish they would extend their hours.

The food is whatever, which is saying a lot when you have 5 people working to run the place. I really don't know how it takes them sssssooo long to make simple food. Cute vibes if you enjoy waiting to die. Seriously, if you have somewhere to be then don't come here. If you don't care, then definitely don't come here.

Our breakfast was hot and delicious. Great coffee and so cute and clean inside. Waitress was very sweet and welcoming

OG Lake Tahoe food spot. Really great food drinks and atmosphere. Great place to bring your dogs or kids. Make sure to try the bacon burly burrito in a bowl

So many options, and all so good. I ended up ordering their iced white mocha with oat milk which was delicious, and their vegan burrito with veggie sausage and hashbrowns on the side. A hefty and delicious meal. The only thing about this place, is that you have to place an order online, and wait a little while for them to have it prepared, and parking can suck depending on the time you get there, but overall really good food for Tahoe.

I've been going to the damn café since I was a kid. In general, the food is decent and the people are nice. However, the prices are completely out of control. For an iced mocha, it cost $8 dollars! For kids small hot chocolate, it cost $5 dollars. A bacon burly burrito costs $14 (from $8.75 a few years ago). I get that we are in a time of inflation, but I've never seen anywhere near these prices. All the other coffee shops in Tahoe (or the Bay Area or New York for that matter) don't charge anywhere near this much. That would be fine with me if the prices were posted. But, they don't even display the prices of things on the wall menu. **This seems super scammy.** If you want to charge crazy prices, at least post them on the menu and let people decide. My guess is that they realize that tourists will show up, see no prices, feel embarrassed when they are told the price, pay it, and never come again. Good for profits, but you have lost a long-time patron.