Jake's on the Lake opened in 1978 and was scheduled to serve its final meals at the end of October, after 48 years at the Boatworks Mall. On the West Shore, Sunnyside was scheduled to close in October for a $5 million remodel and has a projected April 2027 reopening, with more than 100 former employees already signed up to come back.
Both restaurants had loyal customers and decades of history. The difference between them is what was happening with the property each one sat on. The same is true of every big change on Tahoe City's lakefront this winter. The Boatworks Mall is in bankruptcy court, the former Safeway is still empty, and the county has started work on three public buildings by Commons Beach. Each outcome depends on who owns or lends against a building, and the dining room is just where the rest of us see it.
Jake's lease ran out before its business did
Jake's had already been through one close call. In October 2025, managing partner Jeff Hill told the Sierra Sun that the restaurant would close when its lease ended around Nov. 1 while negotiations went on. He said the restaurant earned its money in summer and lost money from November through May. It came back in June 2026 for what ownership called its final summer. Most of the staff returned, and the plan was to stay open through the end of October, according to the Sierra Sun's June report.
The Hula Pie is part of this story too. Jake's has been independent since 2003, when Chris Thibaut and his wife, Sherri, bought it from T S Restaurants. T S Restaurants kept running Sunnyside under a lease for 39 years, and it owns the trademark on the Hula Pie. With T S gone from Sunnyside, Sunnyside's FAQ says the dessert won't come back there.
The mall under Jake's is in Chapter 11
MJD Capital Partners announced it had bought the Boatworks Mall in August 2019, after buying the neighboring Tahoe City Inn in late 2018. Moonshine Ink later reported the price as $10 million. In December 2023 the property took on a $15 million loan. The Sierra Sun reported in April that the loan was in default over unpaid property taxes and missing proof of insurance, with more than $14.39 million due as of Jan. 27, 2026.
A public auction was set for 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 12. On Aug. 11, Boatworks at Tahoe LLC filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of California. The LLC owns the mall and the Inn at Boatworks, and it said both would stay open while it asks the court to approve a reorganization plan. In the Sierra Sun's coverage, MJD CEO Marie Murphy said, "We continue to believe a mixed-use redevelopment is the best way to revitalize Boatworks and preserve its unique character."
The next date in the case is close. On Nov. 5, lender Citizens National Bank of Texas filed papers backing its motion for relief from the automatic stay, along with a notice of hearing. The hearing is set for Dec. 3 at 10:30 a.m. in Sacramento Courtroom 33, according to the case docket for case 2:26-bk-24577. The docket also sets a Dec. 14 deadline for creditors to file claims.
What the redevelopment would put there
The project would replace the mall, the Inn and the El Dorado Savings Bank building with a hotel, spa, condominiums and commercial space. The most detailed version is the joint Placer County and Tahoe Regional Planning Agency notice from early 2024. According to the TRPA staff report, it called for:
- 79 hotel rooms
- 29 condo-hotel units, each with a lock-off, for 58 lodging units from the condos
- Conference space, a spa, food and beverage outlets and retail
- Underground parking
Those numbers are from a proposal, not an approval. In November 2025, Placer County said the application was still under review and that public hearings would come after the environmental documents were finished. MJD estimated construction would take about two years, and shops would have to move or close during that time.
The shops already felt it this summer. In July, Moonshine Ink reported that Geared for Games, Tahoe Core Pilates and Tahoe T-Shirtery had moved out ahead of a possible demolition. Acorn Home Furnishings & Design was expected to leave at the end of August. The mall was about half full, with eight businesses open daily, and every tenant except Jake's was month-to-month.
The building next door has the same problem
The Lighthouse Center sits at the same end of town and has had an empty storefront for a year. Safeway owns the building and was its only tenant facing the street. It moved to the other end of Tahoe City in October 2025. That move goes back to October 2023, when Save Mart lost its lease to make room for Safeway, and the remodel of the new store took two years. The businesses still at Lighthouse, including A Santé Lakeside Fitness and Tahoe National Brewing Co., are in the back of the building. CVS and the Tahoe City Post Office are in a separately owned building.
Moonshine Ink's July report said Safeway had been trying to sell the building with a restriction against using it as a grocery store. Supervisor Cindy Gustafson told the paper she'd heard this directly from other grocers that tried to buy the site. She wrote to Safeway's headquarters on June 9. On June 22, a Safeway real estate manager replied that the company was reviewing the concerns. As of that July report, Safeway hadn't followed up. Gustafson summed up the stakes for both properties in the same story:
"I think the majority of commercial square footage in our town is tied up in those two properties, so I think it's concerning to the entire community and to the whole region, really, when you lose key commercial properties to service our needs, especially in such great lakefront locations."
Who holds each piece of the lakefront
| Property | Who controls it | Next known date |
|---|---|---|
| Boatworks Mall and Inn at Boatworks | Boatworks at Tahoe LLC, in Chapter 11 | Dec. 3 hearing on the lender's motion |
| Former Safeway, Lighthouse Center | Safeway, building owner | None announced as of the July report |
| Sunnyside Restaurant & Lodge | Same ownership group; Local Food Group runs the restaurant | Staff return in March, reopening projected for April 2027 |
| Old fire station, Community Center, Bechdolt Building | Placer County, working with UC Davis | Feasibility work under a $500,000 county allocation |
Sunnyside shows what a planned handoff looks like
Sunnyside has the same owners. What changed is who runs it. The FAQ says Local Food Group, led by chef Mark Estee, is taking over the restaurant. The ownership group will keep running the marina and take over the lodge. The remodel covers the lodge, a bigger kitchen, more private dining space for weddings and groups, and work on the marina and waterfront. The Sierra Sun also reported that the bar will move.
Estee knows the area. He was once executive chef at the Lone Eagle Grille at the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe and founded Burger Me and Moody's. Local Food Group now runs seven restaurants in Nevada, including all four Great Basin locations. He told the Sierra Sun that the fried zucchini will stay on the menu and that he's working on his own over-the-top dessert. "You don't want to change everything, but you want to change the things that need to be changed," he said.
The county is using its own buildings
Placer County owns property near Commons Beach, and it's acting on it. In late October the Board of Supervisors approved a memorandum of agreement with the University of California and set aside $500,000 from its Tahoe Economic and Community Enhancement funds. The money will pay for a study of whether UC Davis' Tahoe Environmental Research Center can move into three buildings. The first is the old Tahoe City Fire Station next to Commons Beach, which the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District left in 2011. The second is the Tahoe City Community Center next door, and the third is the Bechdolt Building across N. Lake Blvd., as the Sierra Sun reported.
The plan has two phases. The first would renovate or replace the Community Center and the old fire station, and the second would add the Bechdolt property. TERC already keeps a field station, a student house and boats at the Tahoe City Marina. Director Stephanie Hampton called the site "an unparalleled opportunity, not just to expand what we do, but actually to evolve what we do." County economic development director Gloria Stearns said a research presence would help a local economy that currently relies on tourism. The study comes first. Any programs or construction would follow later.
Where the lake is still on the menu this winter
These hours are what each business has posted on its own website.
- Za's Lakefront, 120 Grove Street, lists daily hours of 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. and says indoor dining is open year-round.
- Bridgetender Tavern & Grill, 65 W. Lake Blvd., lists the kitchen open from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
- Wolfdale's, 640 N. Lake Blvd., serves Wednesday through Sunday starting at 5 p.m. It lists closures for Thanksgiving, Nov. 30 through Dec. 17, and Christmas.
- Fire Sign Cafe, 1785 W. Lake Blvd., lists breakfast and lunch daily from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Cedar House Pub at Granlibakken plans to reopen in December for seasonal dinner service, usually 5 to 9 p.m.
Farther along the shore, Gar Woods Grill & Pier in Carnelian Bay closed on Oct. 8 for floor and equipment work, and owner Tom Turner said he planned to reopen in December. On the West Shore, Chambers Landing in Homewood says it's closed until May 2027.
What happens next on Tahoe City's east end depends on the Dec. 3 hearing in Sacramento, a decision from Safeway's real estate office and the county's study. The next restaurant changes will follow from those.
If you own a Tahoe City property and want to know how changes along the east end could affect it, Kane Schaller follows these files as closely as the sales. Schedule a Consultation and we'll go through what's pending near your street.
