The restaurant dishes up American favorites such as hamburgers and steak alongside salads and seafood. While most patrons come for quick and casual dining, Clark said he wants to cater to the diverse needs of his clientele.
“Most of our guests get burgers and fish tacos and things like that, but we do have a few different items that wouldn’t be considered in that area,” Clark said. “We’re very laid-back in our design and lake culture, but we always wanted to put added quality into food that wasn’t necessarily typical in lakefront environments.”
A personal favorite dish of Clark’s is the Texas Patty Melt, with grilled onions, bacon, green chile queso and thousand island dressing on buttered Texas toast.
The restaurant also serves entree salads with protein options such as miso glazed cedar plank salmon and Coca-Cola marinated sirloin steak. Sandwiches, tacos and Cajun-style dishes are also available.
“The difference is not what we make, but how we make it,” Clark said. “We tend to use fresher products and do more things from scratch than what most people conceive of typical lake food. We’ve always kind of found that helped make us successful.”
Easy access to the water allows tourists and boaters to ride in and walk up, but Clark said he also wants the restaurant to be a year-round staple for local residents.
With the exception of Christmas and New Year’s Day, the restaurant is open year-round.
Since opening around 2013, Sundancer Grill has had its share of ups and downs, such as having experienced two floods and now a potential drought. Developing a strong customer base has helped get through these setbacks, Clark said.
The staffing shortage, however, is a problem he has not dealt with in over 20 years in business.
“The post-COVID[-19] shutdown world is kind of an environment we’ve never found ourselves in before,” Clark said. “The guests are plentiful and ready to re-engage, and we have more clientele than we’ve probably ever had, but the workforce isn’t there.”
Like other businesses, Sundancer Grill is learning to navigate these challenges every day, Clark said.
“There are certainly challenges in the marketplace post-COVID[-19] ... but we can control the food,” Clark said. “The more good restaurants that are on the lake, the better it is for all of us. It’s more about being good at what you do.”
Sundancer Grill
Sail & Ski Yacht Club, 16410 Stewart Road, Lakeway
512-266-2268
www.sundancergrill.com
Hours: Mon.-Thu. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.,
Fri. 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-11 p.m.,
Sun. 9 a.m.-10 p.m.
