For the first day after their long drive from St. Louis I
decided to take my niece Laura and her husband Bob to the fishing pier at
Ballston Lake. Ballston Lake is
south of Saratoga down highway 50 to Outlet Rd. Once you take a left onto to Outlet Rd you will pass the
hiking, biking trail and shortly after that on the left is the parking lot for
the fishing pier. Be careful
crossing the street, there is more traffic than you would think.
Once you cross the street and walk down the
wooden walkway surrounded by cattails and lily pads you will see the best view
of the lake. On the pier there is
a rail all the way around except for on the right side where you can put in a
canoe or kayak or even an inflatable boat.
of fish but also huge snapping turtles, geese and the occasional heron
When we were there, there was a family with two small girls
later joined by a grandma and two small boys. The girls would squeal and the boys would holler when they
would catch a little bass or sunfish.
It was cute to watch.
As we were walking down the wooden walkway to leave the
fishing pier we stopped at one of the cattail lined pools. There we saw two turtles sunning
themselves on a log.
We walked down the street (again watching for traffic) to a
small bridge. There we stood and
watched more turtles and fish jumping in the water. There were small boats with fishermen
and kayaks on the lake. It was
such a pretty sight, since the weather was clear and warm that day.
After our walk we decided it was time for lunch. We chose to take them to The Good Times
Lakeview Restaurant. My husband
Mark and I have been there before and really liked it and thought it would be
the kind of place that Laura and Bob would like too. Good Times is a non pretentious restaurant, warm and inviting, with a large fireplace
and cozy seating. But the best
thing about the interior is the view.
If you go ask for a seat by the window– there you will have a great
view of the lake, but not only that the windows are lined with a huge bird
feeder. While you are waiting for
your food you can watch goldfinches, red winged black birds and the more
comical squirrels and chipmunks
The menu at Good Times in huge. We ordered Saratoga Chips to start with (we always do
whenever we see them on the menu), and the waitress commented on how they are a
house specialty. The chips were
served hot and crisp with a cheese sauce.
I have to say they were some of the best chips I’ve ever had.
I ordered something I thought was an unusual combination a
turkey sandwich with blue cheese.
It also had caramelized red onions and spinach on it. And the turkey–real roasted turkey, one
of my weaknesses! The sandwich was
huge and delicious! Mark ordered
the bruschetta, which we had before as an appetizer. It’s tomatoes and herbs with mozzarella cheese all on fresh
Italian bread. Very good–I think
it’s the balsamic vinegar that makes the difference. Bob ordered a burger and fries–he raved about the fries
being so good I had to order a half order just to try them–and he was right!
Laura got the chicken quesadilla that came with a salad,
both a substantial portion.
She ordered her salad with the house dressing and liked it so much she
bought a bottle to take home! We
thought about dessert but lunch was way too filling.
After lunch it was back home, warm from the sun, feeling
good from our walk and our bellies full of good food from Good Times!
If you visit Good Time Lakeview Restaurant remember:
The portions are large
They offer mystery dinner theater, details at the restaurant
There are no free refills on soda but there is on tea
If you like the salad dressing, buy a bottle. The bottle itself is unique and reusable.
If you visit the fishing pier at Ballston Lake remember:
Its free!! But you must have a license to fish
Please don’t litter. There is a garbage can for bait containers, soda cans etc. Please use it.
But most importantly: Enjoy it! Its a beautiful place to spend an afternoon
Hi Kim,
I’m a fellow blogger and new to the area so I always read your blog. Yesterday I took a friend of mine, who was up from Long Island, to the Good Times Restaurant. It was a great experience. I called the day before to make a reservation and Todd was friendly and helpful- we indeed got the table by the window which you had suggested. The little birds were great – the Chinese feel that it’s very good luck if a bird just appears – different kinds of luck are associated with different colored birds.
Thanks so much for the recommendation – I know that I’ll go back.
Mary, Red Phoenix Healing Arts
Hi Mary,
I’m glad you liked Good Times Restaurant. Did your friend like it too? What did you have? I hope you tried the bruschetta and Saratoga Chips!
Hi Kim,
My friend is a vegetarian and at first she didn’t think that she could find something she wanted to eat -I forgot what she ordered (a pasta) but she was very happy with it. One problem – there were 2 screaming kids – different tables – my friend and I wanted to talk as we hadn’t seen each other in a while – I was losing patience as the parents seemed to encourage the bad behavior – the parents didn’t apologize but Todd came over and was very kind and apologetic. That was a good sign. Things happen – it’s important that the restaurant does their best to smooth things over.
I’m from Indiana – simple tastes – so I had a hamburger with the chips – it was great. (Does it show that I don’t have kids? – But my parents would not have allowed such bad behavior).
Keep up the good work – Mary
The Good Times Lakeview Restaurant is a new favorite of mine! I saw some coverage on Channel 10 about the restaurant having some hard times, so I decided to stop in for lunch with a friend. I had the Chicken Riggies and they were the epitome of perfection! Quaint, comfortable, and affordable, a MUST try!