Three Shastas Bar & Grill

We arrived in Redding after a 9 hour drive and we’re ready for a good dinner. After consulting Unilocal and reading the reviews for restaurants near us, we decided to try the Three Shastas restaurant located in the Red Lion Motel. We were not disappointed. It was Thursday night and we got there about 5:30. It was quiet and we were greeted by Jin (sp?) and served our drinks promptly our order taken. My wife had the hazel nut encrusted salad
(Have the Demi size-​it has the same amount of salmon as the full size). I had been looking forward to a burger and a beer and had the Santa Fe burger and an excellent local IPA draft. The burger was cooked just as I ordered and was delicious and more than I could finish (½ #). We then met Karla who is the manager/​bartender who took exceptional care of us and really made us feel welcome. She also explained that they used all fresh produce cooked fresh each day unlike the chain restaurants that used frozen fare. The food was great, the prices reasonable and the service was great.

With three different service areas I tried, I am going to split them into the two that seemed to make sense to me.
This one– not so good. I walked into the lounge on a Monday night and sat in back, away from the noise of the TV. The waitress greeted me in a timely manner, and brought me menu and told me the specials. She was very sweet and seemed the only server in the room. The place was quiet and I think I was only her third party to serve.
Bread, reheated in a microwave, arrived quickly, along with ice water. The butter was whipped and not too cold, which is how I like it. The sourdough bread was tasty. Soon after that, the wine I ordered arrived. Timing was not at all an issue for this meal. The salad was especially nice.
The problem was the special. When I see grilled salmon on the menu, and am not warned that the fish will be smothered in canned salsa, I am not a happy camper when I find salmon is:
A. overcooked
B.Fishy-smelling
C. Frozen, and
D. Covered in stuff that masks flavor.
*sigh*
Thank you, but offers to take it to go don’t work if you are staying in a hotel. And if what you are leaving on the plate was left because it was really bad.
The other sides – ?The pasta and the zucchini? The pasta was very good, as was the zucchini. But really. How many people really like fresh zucchini?
So, essentially, I paid $ 20 for salad, bread, a few pieces of fresh pineapple (in the salsa) a bit of pasta and fresh zucchini… and a few bites of awful salmon. Not a terrible deal, but not what I had hoped for, either.

Came in for the beer and had a wonderful waitress explain and sample different beers.

Super impressed by the food here. Driving from LA to Oregon for the holidays, we are here because it’s inside the hotel. Got fish and chips = AWESOME, wipe got salad = happy with it, kids won’t stop eating what they have. Seriously impressed, so not expected.

YUM!
Was expecting crappy hotel lobby food, and am really happy to report that it’s actually really, good, high quality food! Kids are eating like they’ve not eaten in days! Great service too!

Normally I bypass the hotel restaurant (s) as a policy! So it goes; Question: What are your area food recommendations in the area? Answer: Try 3-​Shastas! Food is great. Our restaurant has great food!
Though skeptical, I was looking for something other than Apple$%&@‘s, without driving. The initial atmosphere is outdated with low bar seating and a stage for weekend events.
The service is excellent (Jennifer), with great recommendations and a honest opinion of the menu. Always a good sign! With unique specials, homemade sauces and dressing I was very surprised. The food was excellent with home-​cut fries and maybe the best French Dip I have had! I look forward to trying other options on the menu.

Having arrived at 9PM, I didn’t expect much food-​wise but I was informed by Christine (front desk for Red Lion) that their restaurant (Three Shastas) was quite good. Dubious, but willing to go to some place without having to drive the behemoth truck, I gave it a go and was yet again very impressed. I was the only customer in the place, but they kept it open for me. The wine selection did NOT match their corporate-​provided-​list. Instead, the lady running the place suggested something else which was fantastic, and a great deal! She also recommended the fish and chips. It wasn’t spectacular, but it was another good bang for the buck.
The best part was that about when I was heading out (now past 10PM), Christine arrived to speak with the lady running the restaurant. Turned out it was Christine’s bday so they came over and noted we all needed to sing her happy birthday. I know some travelers might not appreciate this, but I have a feeling they could tell I’m easy going and so looped me in with their celebration. It made being in the process of moving a LOT more bearable and enjoyable =)
THANKS to the staff of the Red Lion/​Three Shastas on the night of Tues 06May =D

This is a great little dive inside a hotel. I ordered a apple chicken salad and it was fantastic. Te dressing was sweet and tart and not too much of it. Prices are right on as mine was 12 dollars and comes with a basket of bread. It’s very quite in here and probably wouldn’t have considered it had I not been staying at the hotel. The server was very very nice although the service a bit slow — especially with no one being here. I will be back again for sure!

Hi. We live in Shasta Lake and have come to find this restaurant
to be a hidden gem.
The food is very good and of great value. The drinks reasonable and served by a great waitress who’s first name starts with a K.
Our group had the fish and chips and the crusted salmon salad, wow!
This our 4^th time here and enjoy it every time

I’m no Redding local either, but I observed a nice group of Locals in the bar when we stayed at Red Lion. We sat down with beer, (limited selection of three light beers on draft the night we were here) and did some people watching while listening to the live «band». Actually enjoyed the varied selection of music ranging from 60s to present day Lady Gaga. The band consisted of the guy on guitar and the nice lady with a big smile doing vocals. There was plenty of dancing on the dance floor, so, a good place to go if you’re staying at the Red Lion.

I am no Redding local, but was glad to find this place per Red Lion desk clerk recommendation. Let’s discuss…
The aesthetics: Like something straight from the early 90s with teal vinyl booth like seating bordering an entire side of the interior. There is a small wooden dance floor. There are swivel chairs along the length of the bar. The oval tall tables (one side bordering the vinyl booths) also had random tall chairs scattered about. There is a pool table in a separate room with red lights hanging over.
The service: an elderly bar lady who gets away with calling everyone sweetie is manning the bar and the food. She rocks.
The people: Every other person is either 1) sporting a mullet or 2) overweight
The food: Some gems on the menu like hazelnut crusted salmon pear salad. I had the quesadilla which was made with dark yellow tortillas, delicious and I don’t have a cheese hangover today. My fiancé had the club sandwich with potato wedges which he devoured, and proclaimed to be delicious.
The verdict: go here for something you may never see again, cheap eats, mixed drinks and awesome people watching.

This was a pleasant surprise while I stayed at the Red Lion. Small but good menu. The salmon pear salad is really, REALLY good and fresh. Very empty on Sunday and Monday evening, but you still need to be patient with service because there’s only one person working bar and restaurant. Food comes out of the kitchen at a good pace though. I like it because it’s convenient to the hotel and has decent food.