A Foodie Review: Happy Hour Hot Shots visit Margaritaville's Landshark Bar & Grill and License To Chill

Four long-time locals started a new feature for South Tahoe Now. The "Happy Hour Hot Shots" will visit local eateries from time to time and report on their Happy Hour experiences in South Lake Tahoe.

Their latest stop was at the Landshark Bar & Grill and License to Chill at the new Margaritaville.

First Impression

Walking into Margaritaville’s entry was fun and inviting. Paying homage to the Margarita via margarita glass chandeliers in the foyer. Add a giant Flip Flop statue (Plastic? Acrylic?) plus the light, airy beach vibe gave the place a real upbeat first impression. There’s also a large Lake Tahoe seal on the floor acknowledging their location. Having opened in December 2023, we had not been to this site since it was the Embassy Suites, so this was quite a change.

We tried our best to take Lake Link (the local free transit service that could pick us up at our door) but by 3 p.m. on a Wednesday, there was a 90-minute wait time…way past getting us to our happy hour on time. We ended up driving. The parking fees here are pretty steep, negating the savings on happy hour! Next time we will know to call earlier.

First, we went to LANDSHARK BAR & GRILL (Happy Hour 2 p.m.-4 p.m.). In our group, we have a dark beer drinker and a non-alcoholic beer drinker. Neither was on the happy hour menu, so there goes the $6 beer! Their $6 margaritas, while a bit tart, were very refreshing and, by the third sip, were deemed quite tasty by the group.

The music at this location was a little loud, but we managed to keep our conversation going. It was upbeat music we could relate to.

The service staff were friendly and fast. We were seated immediately, and questions about the Happy Hour Menu were answered and our order was taken. It’s hard to beat $9 appetizers ($2.25 per person per item). We chose Coconut Shrimp and the Spinach & Artichoke Dip. The shrimp were hot & crispy with a great coconut flavor. The warm spinach dip was good, but some of us
would have preferred a good sourdough bread to dip instead of tortilla chips. Though tasty, the amount of food served was pretty small (1 shrimp per person), maybe 1/4 cup of Spinach Dip per person.

From here we moved on to the LICENSE TO CHILL Happy Hour (4 p.m.-5 p.m. Sun-Thurs). Located in the center of the Atrium of the hotel, this bar is made to look like a beach ‘Bar Shack’, Our Happy Hour drink here ($7) was a Passionfruit Mojito. This was delicious and the perfect size, adorned with fresh mint sprigs. The Bartender was very friendly and helpful. Actually, all the staff we met seemed very happy to be working there. During the busy Tourist Season, that’s a big plus. We thought we might try the Beach Chips (a nacho version with potato chips instead of tortilla chips) but without a table, we opted to try it next time The live music here (a young man with a guitar) was very good, but being indoors, we could no longer carry on (or hear) each other, so we left shortly thereafter. Overall, we thought the bars at Margaritaville were fun and a good choice for some good friends to get together. Great service, great value for the food and drinks made it an excellent choice.

Our ratings:
First Impression - 5
Drinks - 4
Food - 4
Wait Staff/Service - 5
Comfort (hearing/seeing) 3 (hearing near License to Chill was not good)
Value - 4

- The Happy Hour Hot Shots