Twin Falls, Idaho is one of those places, in a movie, where the hero is riding his horse being chased and comes to the edge of a canyon. The canyon there has been carved by the Snake River and perched at the edge, 486 feet above the water, is the restaurant we lucked into: Elevation 486.
Located on the ground floor of an office tower with a terrace providing outdoor seating (we arrived just before a magnificent thunder storm), the restaurant offers an American menu, prepared well. This was the best meal we have enjoyed on our road trip, and although there were only a few items on the menu that were local, we were happy with the selection.
We started with calamari even though it is not a local food, as it is a quick test of the chef’s skill. It was lightly breaded and had the proper texture and was served with a spicy chili-lime-sriracha vinaigrette.
Graham ordered a spinach salad and I had the Tomato-Basil Bisque before our entrees arrived. Graham enjoyed the special of two grilled quail in a bourbon-honey glaze with rosemary vinaigrette and I had the pork tenderloin with apricot-Jalepeno-mint sauce. Both entrees were local offerings.
We managed to share one dessert, an apple-berry crisp with vanilla ice cream, also from local ingredients.
Our waiter was friendly and attentive and even as the restaurant filled (on a Wednesday night!) the service was impeccable.
We can heartily recommend this to anyone driving along I-84 in southern Idaho…just about 15 minutes from the Interstate. And the view is awesome.
