The Idle Hour Lake Tahoe Earns 2024 Wine Spectator
Restaurant Award
The Idle Hour Among the World’s Best Restaurants for Wine—
South Lake Tahoe, CA August 2024 — The Idle Hour Lake has been honored for its outstanding wine program in Wine Spectator’s 2024 Restaurant Awards, which celebrate the world’s best restaurants for wine.
“The restaurant industry is growing and thriving, with restaurant openings surpassing pre-pandemic levels for the first time. To take advantage of the uptick, restaurateurs are re-investing in their wine programs,” said Marvin R. Shanken, Editor and Publisher, Wine Spectator. “Restaurants that make wine a priority are what the Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards program is all about. I’m pleased to congratulate all 3,777 restaurants for their dedication to wine and exemplary wine lists.”
Launched in 1981, the Restaurant Awards represent the world’s only program focused exclusively on restaurant wine service. They are assigned on three levels: the Award of Excellence, the Best of Award of Excellence and the Grand Award, with 2,150; 1,531; and 96 winners this year in each respective category.
The Idle Hour has won the Award of Excellence.
The Award of Excellence recognizes restaurants whose wine lists feature a well-chosen assortment of quality producers along with a thematic match to the menu in both price and style.
Wine Spectator’s special Restaurant Awards issue became available to readers July 9.
Follow Wine Spectator on Instagram (@wine_spectator), with hashtag #WSRestaurantAward, and at WineSpectator.com/Restaurants, featuring guides to the winners, interviews with leading wine directors and wine picks, and pairing tips from sommeliers at award-winning programs. In the Restaurant Search, all winners can be searched by name and location, along with attributes including proximity, award level, cuisine, wine specialties and pricing. Winners are also profiled in the free Restaurant Awards app, available for iPhone and iPad users.
About Wine Spectator
Wine Spectator is the world’s leading authority on wine. Anchored by Wine Spectator magazine, a print publication that reaches around 3 million readers worldwide, the brand also encompasses the Web’s most comprehensive wine site (WineSpectator.com), mobile platforms and a series of signature events. Wine Spectator examines the world of wine from the vineyard to the table, exploring wine’s role in contemporary culture and delivering expert reviews. Parent company M. Shanken Communications, Inc., also publishes Cigar Aficionado, Whisky Advocate, Market Watch, Shanken News Daily and Shanken’s Impact Newsletter.
About Idle Hour
Starting off as a dream, Karen Walsh had always wanted to own a wine bar. She spent years researching the perfect venue. Being a local, she always envisioned having her wine bar right on the water’s edge. With Lake Tahoe as a backdrop, it’s the perfect complement to wine tasting and good eats. She even had a name —a name that stuck with her from when her mother won a contest to name a new local ice cream store in her hometown: The Idle Hour.
After years of patiently waiting, The Idle Hour became a reality when our current location became available. At the time, it was just an office building with a view. Slowly, office by office, she began creating an oasis away from the busy downtown. Five years and counting, Karen and her wonderful staff strive to create an unforgettable experience for locals and first-time visitors.