Fresh. Local. Rustic.

We believe a great dining experience must not only be made with fresh quality ingredients and be expertly prepared but it must invoke emotion and memory. Truckee Tavern’s food and beverage offerings include the freshest, highest quality local ingredients, farm raised, hormone free meats and locally grown produce to give a sense of place. Menu items showcase the incredible diversity of food available in California. The menus changes continually to reflect the seasons, changing tastes and availability to give the feel of moment. Retaining crowd favorites with new and exciting interpretations invokes anticipation in our regulars. These offerings are paired expertly with the finest wine, spirit and beer selections. Truckee Tavern’s spirit program draws from Truckee’s rich history of bootlegging during prohibition and focus on artisanal small batch gin and whiskey, the two main distillation products from Truckee during that era. This is complemented by a thoughtfully chosen selection of fine rum, vodka, brandy, tequila, mescal, liquors and cordials, all complimenting the overall experience. 

Our Team

Chris St. Martin, Co-owner and General Manager

 As co-owner and general manager of Truckee Tavern & Grill, Chris St. Martin also wears the hats of the restaurant’s wine director, special events coordinator, bookkeeper and social media director.

 With more than 18 years of experience in the food service and hospitality industries, Chris began his career in Connecticut as a dishwasher at the age of 15. While in college, he worked full-time at Huskies Restaurant and Bar, a nightclub located in Storrs, Connecticut, as assistant bar manager. In 2006, Chris moved to Truckee and started work as a fill-in bartender at the popular Cottonwood Restaurant & Bar. He eventually moved into the positions of beverage director, bar manager and social marketing manager before leaving to open Truckee Tavern & Grill with longtime friend and fellow bartender, Ryan Dierks.

 Chris and Ryan opened Truckee Tavern & Grill in 2014 with the vision of providing guests with simply prepared local and organic comfort food “with a twist.” Their experience in the bartending arena also inspired the creation of Truckee Tavern & Grill’s seasonal craft cocktails and worldly wine list, featuring a variety of organic and biodynamic wines.

 A graduate of Eastern Connecticut State University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a concentration in finance, Chris’s goal is to provide guests with that moment in a meal where everything “clicks” – when the food is precisely prepared, the wine perfectly paired, and the service attentive without being overbearing.

Ryan Dierks, Co-owner and Bar Manager, Mixologist Extraordinaire

 Ryan Dierks is co-owner and bar manager of Truckee Tavern & Grill, and recognized by patrons as a “mixologist extraordinaire.” Known for his creative cocktails, Ryan finds inspiration in using seasonal ingredients to create perfectly balanced libations.

 Ryan has more than 20 years of experience in the food service and hospitality industries, having begun his career as a dishwasher before quickly moving up the ladder in the kitchen to line cook at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse by the age of 16. Realizing his passion for hospitality, Ryan requested a lateral transfer to the front of the house where he would begin working as a server.

 After spending six years in fine dining restaurants The Larkspur and Campo di Fiori in Vail, Colorado, Ryan set down roots in Truckee in 2004. His expansive knowledge of food service and hospitality operations afforded him the ability to quickly move from busser to server to bartender, before he left to open Truckee Tavern & Grill with Chris St. Martin in 2014.

 Ryan’s cocktail creativity shines brightly both in the signature libations he creates for establishment’s seasonal menus, and through the handcrafted ice blocks designed specifically to complement the fine whiskey and other cocktails offered at Truckee Tavern & Grill.

Josh Dinsmore, Executive Chef

 As the Executive Chef at Truckee Tavern & Grill, Josh Dinsmore is focused on creating high quality, yet approachable dining experiences that bridge the gap between fine dining and simplistic comfort. Focused on where the food he prepares comes from, Chef Dinsmore works with local farmers, ranchers and other purveyors to showcase local, seasonal and natural ingredients in creative ways that are prepared to the highest standards.

 Josh began his culinary career in Falmouth, Massachusetts in his teens. His break came when he joined the opening team at Firefly Wood Fire Grill Pizza as sous chef under executive chef Benjamin Phipps. It was in this role that Josh honed his cooking and management skills. After two years, Josh moved on to become executive chef at Fusion, an Asian fusion restaurant in Woodshole, Massachusetts.

 Josh moved to Lake Tahoe in 2004, working as sous chef at Balboa Restaurant, part of the Plumpjack Group in the Village at Squaw Valley, and for William McCullough at Truckee’s renowned DragonFly restaurant. Under McCullough, Josh learned the art of farm-to-table and the importance of a sustainable restaurant. He joined the culinary team at Truckee Tavern & Grill in June 2014 as the sous chef and was promoted to executive chef in 2016.