Char-Pit

Wondering why the food takes so long here? Because they have to melt everything first.
If you’re into frozen burgers and fries a few weeks off the Sysco truck then this place is for you! They literally are not ashamed to open that big ol freezer and show you the secret behind their «original burger» and fries.
Burger was dry and tasted just like the ones you buy in your freezer section when you have 40 people to feed at a family cookout. You know the ones that the adults avoid and the kids love.
They are under the impression that slapping a bunch of condiments on a frozen party makes a good burger.
What I don’t get is if you’re going to brag about your «fresh buns» then why not find a butcher who will sell you some fresh hamburger? Why not buy one of those industrial potato cutters and provide fresh fries. Why not live up to the name and décor.
2 stars because my girlfriend thought her veggie burger was ok and the shake wasn’t bad. Go figure, the two things that usually come frozen are the best in the house.
Quick update: 1) never said the staff wasn’t awesome. Never even mentioned the staff. 2) the food did take awhile. I am not the only one who said that. 3) i looked into the freezer and there was a giant tower of uniformly stacked burgers. They were perfectly shaped and frozen. No doubt about it. Read the other reviews from people who noticed the same.
Were the perfectly formed and stacked burger patties fresh at some point in the not too distant past? Maybe. We’re they fresh today? No. They were perfectly shaped and stacked in plastic in the freezer.

Tremendous choices on menu: burgers, tacos, shakes, fish n chips
Definite return trip

Burger was good and Hawaiian chicken sandwich was excellent, would recommend this place if you are passing through.

3.5 stars experience. Including patio view of nature ambience. Unfortunately half pound Burgers takes two patty. So you loose juices effect in every bite. Village Kings Beach very nice. Family thought the swiss burger half pound was solid 4.5 stars. Meat is not organic. 80 20 preformed patty.
Two of us loved their shoe string fries. And chrispy beer batter cod. Basket fair priced appx $ 8.50.
I would return back for cod or shrimp or clam strips. Cod was fresh tasting. Tho doubt it was hand battered.
This is a nice place to eat. After outdoor adventure when you haven’t cleaned up or dressed comfy

I think this place is great. It’s a real burger joint. No frills just a great burger. My wife and I came stumbled upon this place a few years ago after a day at Northstar. It’s a good local spot that if your hankering for tasty burger and fries, it delivers. Also they have beer on tap if you like.

We were so ready to hate this place, but it wasn’t so bad. It’s got a bit of a weird vibe inside. Not much seating, but the Saturday evening we went there were only two other diners. We ordered the full rack of ribs which were surprisingly pretty tasty. My partner ordered the burger which he said was decent. Fries are pretty flat, but we also ordered for take out so definitely consider the wait time to eat it.
I think that since we had already pretty low expectations before going in here, it actually wasn’t so bad. It was my first cheat meal in a few weeks, so I really enjoyed it! The rack is pretty small, I could of killed the whole thing by myself, but took it easy and shared with the beau!
We didn’t want to drive to Tahoe City so stayed in the immediate area and it wasn’t so bad!

Was taken here by a local who told me it’s THE place to go for a burger. it ain’t pretty but the burgers are worth it.

Tried to come here to get a shake. The employees and the process to order here is impossible. Couldnt even get near the counter to order. Left. Came back a week later. Its about half full in here. Its a ONE HOUR wait for a burger!!! It was constant chaos and confusion, names yelling, missed match orders, tickets spinning around and around. There are 13 customers. And its a fricken hour to get a damn sandwich??? Management is obviously not handling their business. Peoples time is valuable. Will not return.

Fun atmosphere, a cool place to ran a burger after a day at the lake. The service was poor though. My wife and I were the only two people here and both employees ignored us while they cleaned and stocked shelves and left us standing at the counter for 3 or 4 minutes before they helped us (and yes, they did say hi when we came in). The food was what you would expect from a beach burger shack.

I was 11 miles away and remembered, I was told. If your ever in Incline Village eat a burger at the Char-​Pit. It’s a cool little spot on the side of the road that after looking at the menu has a little of everything. Burgers, Ribs, Chicken, Fish & Chips and Frosties. Yum so many great sounding burgers. The 2 youngsters running it were very friendly and helpful. I think I’m gonna go with the Sour Cream Bacon Burger and Fries.
Waiting for the fresh cooked everything to come out I took a look around. Lots of really cool signs and a few old video games. The red checkered floor is cool. Looks like they have a great kids menu also. I was so stuffed from the burger and fries or I would have tried the Char-​Pit Banana Split.
They have a great family rib meal for 30.00 that might be worth driving back up to try. There are great sounding sandwiches and lots of stuff from the deep fryer. Some of the other burgers are the Tiki, The Yankee, The Mexican and The French. You can even get burgers by the box. 6 for 22.39. I will be back to try more of this great food soon. This is cool spot.

Coming to this place on a weekend after Tahoe, this place was so busy on a Saturday afternoon. I guess if they are busy they are doing sometime right. My girlfriend and I waited longer the 45 minutes just for two combo of the quarter pound bacon cheeseburger and fries. It was cold outside so we ate inside. The place will have you smelling like grilled burgers by the time you are finish with your meal. All doors and windows must be open or it will be filled with smoke from the bbq burgers. The burgers were decent but I wouldn’t want to wait 45 minutes plus just for burgers and fries. I burgers are better than fast food but not worth the wait.

2.5 stars.
This place was also recommended by our Airbnb host, so we decided to stop in for lunch after driving around the lake. Parking is extremely limited, if full requires a three-​point turn which was difficult for my SUV and the outdoor tables. There was free public parking a little down the road, easily walkable.
Ordered the ¼ lb regular bacon cheeseburger (American cheese) combo (fries and a 16 oz soda) at the register by the door, filled up our drinks at the fountain and waited at the bar for our order. It was quite smoky, as you can imagine, but cool to watch ‘em grill the burgers and do their thing.
…except it was also torture to see and smell all the deliciousness that didn’t have my name on it. Granted, this was a Saturday afternoon so it was understandably busy/​popular, but it took at least 30 – 45 minutes for our order of two cheeseburgers with fries. Something about the grill being new and unevenly cooking, and an order before ours that got french fries instead of whatever they ordered so a new batch of fries had to be made up, takes time. Sad face.
We were able to score an indoor table near the window when the food finally came, and it was pretty good burger, not gonna lie. Crispy bacon, good sized patty. Not worth the wait though. I would just as well go to another shop down the highway that had ½ lb burgers, Habit Burger, or Burgers and Brew.
Been there, burgered, bye!

WOW! I am AMAZED that this place got so many great reviews! My daughter & I tried the «Char Pit», in Kings Beach, at North Lake Tahoe, the 1^st night of a 9 day vacation. Within a few hours of eating the food, we were sicker than I can describe.
I threw up for 9 hrs. straight! My daughter wasn’t as lucky, she spent the whole week looking for bathrooms. Kind of a «vacay» buzzkill… I’d felt some trepidation, after seeing a «Busboy», wearing the greasiest apron I’d ever seen. It was only after we’d ordered & paid that I saw he was actually the cook, as well! The food tasted good– (the 1^st time, not so much coming back up)! Locals later told us that place is notorious, & say they never eat there, so live & learn!

The food was yummy, the service was meh.
We got there 20 minutes to closing, (I know, I know) so I asked the pierced to the hilt girl at the register if the patio was going to shut down when they closed up. She kind of just rolled her eyes and asked if we wanted it for here or to go, again, instead of answering me either way. I was asking about the patio so we could decide that! If they were gonna hustle outside first, instead of cleaning up the mess inside, then I didn’t want to be in their way. She made a point to come out and kind of slam stuff around pretending to clean up, ok beezy. Now, the other girl was super nice when our food was ready! You can be annoyed by customers without letting it show. My husband even remarked on the difference in customer service when we walked down the street for ice cream and she was a doll. More on that in THAT review.
Also, and this kind of freaks me out, the people putting the food together weren’t wearing gloves. I watched the blonde touch everything within sight bare handed and THEN use those same hands to assemble the burgers. Without washing them. My husband didn’t seem to be worried (he’s a restaurant manager) and we didn’t get sick, so I guess it’s ok. No, it’s not really. There was one guy wearing one glove, I assume he’s the guy that touches the raw meat. I sure hope so.
Anyway, I’d go here again because the food was good, it’s right downtown and they have outside seating. I would not wait longer than 10 – 15 minutes and I wouldn’t tell anybody they have to go here with exaggerated enthusiasm.

Huge burgers that are great tasting! I also got onion rings that were perfectly crisp and not too greasy! Its a must go if you are in the area!

I spaced putting up a review for this place. Probably because it was a horrible experience. First thing, we walked in and the guy who was running the kitchen was literally yelling at an employee. I’m not talking about teaching or guiding someone, literally yelling. His face was even red. It was sad to watch and made me want to leave. I should of, but we went through hell just to get parking to eat here. Second, the burgers are all pre-​packaged and frozen. I normally wouldn’t mind but you are paying a large amount of money for it. Lastly, I sat inside and noticed around the walls and counter (especially the floor) there is thick amounts of old grease. So old it’s black. Normal in a small a store, yet should be cleaned to prevent buildup.
Unfortunately I would not recommend this place to anyone. There is only one good thing I can say about it– it’s in Tahoe.

If you are looking for good old American burgers, ribs, and shakes, Char-​Pit is the place to be in King’s Beach. I had the half-​rack of ribs which was succulent, melt-​off-​the-​bone yumminess. Bobby J is an excellent chef who took great care to describe for me the steps they take to marinate the ribs.
They close a little past 9pm after the last customer orders. The staff are lively and want to make sure you have a good time.

This is a fun place. There is lots going on. It reminded me of what I think a food factory would be. People assemble food here, make sure all the components have been added, and that the order is complete. We had lunch for 4. We agreed that the food was superior to Jason’s Beachside Grille (a nearby competitive dinner house), except for the fries and onion rings.
We recommend the fish ‘n chips and the hamburgers. We made a note to come back, which we may do today, as there is much that we have not tried:
* Wings ‘n fries
* Hot dogs
* Breaded clams
* Fishwich
* Chicken stix
* Tacos (no fish)
* Mozzarella sticks
* The Wild Turkey (turkey with Swiss, sauteed onions, avocado, tomato, lettuce, and 1000 island
* Shakes, floats, malts, frosty cones, beer, and, of course, milk
Great place for kids, inside/​outside dining.
Enjoy!

Delish. It’s always a happening at the Char-​Pit. Definitely not a generic burger place. The burgers are smoky and charcoal-​y tasting from their grill. Get the classic burger with everything (mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato, pickle, red onion) — about nine bucks with a drink and fries, onion rings extra. It is really hard to get great onion rings out west in my opinion, but these guys deliver! The fish and chips are excellent, too, but I definitely crave the burgers here. For those who don’t there are tons of options– e.g., chicken sandwiches, ribs, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, and ice cream/​shakes for dessert.
Great outdoor seating in summer, parking lot can be crowded but there is free parking across the street, too. A throwback and a local institution. A great treat after trekking along Mt. Rose highway and enjoying Lake Tahoe.

We came to Char-​Pit around 3pm on the weekend and the cashier immediately told us that there would be a 40-​minute wait for food. We had the time so the wait was fine but many customers zipped right back out after hearing the wait time.
After ordering, I took a seat and saw that the tables were covered in crumbs and were sticky, there were fries all over the floor by the kitchen, and in the area where the ketchup was, there was ketchup all over the counter top. I thought to myself that they must be pretty understaffed for there to be a 40 minute wait for food and for the restaurant to be unclean.
We ended up getting our food in under 20 minutes (yay!). I really enjoyed my mushroom burger which was juicy as well as the side order of onion rings. They were extra crunchy and good but I almost thought that the onion got lost because the rings were fried so much. I also tried the ribs which were tender and flavorful.
Service was lacking.
There’s indoor and outdoor seating. As it was pretty warm during my visit, I noticed that most people came in for sweets — chocolate dipped ice cream cones and milkshakes.