State Game Lodge

We stopped in here last night after a day of exploring and the food did not disappoint. I had the Southwestern Quinoa Salad which was a HUGE portion of fresh heirloom spinach with quinoa, black beans, corn, and peppers. It was really good.
My boyfriend has the buffalo tenderloin and said it was good but after tasting someone else’s buffalo sirloin, he said the sirloin was much better.
We went with a group of 8 and the service was great, the staff all very attentive and friendly. I recommend this place if you’re in the area.

We stopped at the Game state lodge for lunch. The buffet was excellent. It had soup, salad, 3 entrees, sides of boiled vegetables, mashed potatoes, rice and dessert. Reasonably priced. They also offer an option of a la carte. The lodge is located about 0.5 mile off the Wildlife loop road.

We happened upon this historic lodge while driving around the area. Decided to stop in for a late afternoon cocktail and to check out the lodge. The bartender was great. The lodge had just opened on April 24. We were there May 4. We were told we could go upstairs and check out any of the rooms that had open doors. All the rooms were beautiful. Unfortunately, we had made online reservations at some cabins near Hill City so we didn’t stay overnight. We enjoyed our visit so much that we came back for dinner the next evening to celebrate my husband’s birthday. The meal was excellent! We had the buffalo empanadas for appetizer — delish! I had the walleye. My husband had the bison sirloin. Delicious dinner and excellent service. Because the lodge had only been open about 10 days, there were only a few diners but I’m sure in peak season this place is packed. We plan to stay in the lodge on our next visit.

Let me first say that I’m somewhat of a hotel snob, but the pictures on their website lured me in. Besides the buffalo in front of our cabin and the friendly receptionist the rest of the stay was horrible. Flies galore and mouse traps everywhere. I understand «roughing» it, but if I were to rough it I would have camped out.
The cabins are also right on the highway, we could hear cars driving past us at night.
Look elsewhere if you can.

Patty at the front desk was so rude it ruined my stay. Mousetrap in the bathroom. Black hairs everywhere in the bath. Pilled linens. Never again.

Wow! Found this place completely by accident. Had the lunch buffet. Absolutely the best pot roast I have had. Amazing chicken, loved the buffalo stew, and my husband loved the peppery ribs. Best meal we’ve had on a very long trip across the country.

Lodging only review:
Over priced. We stayed in a cabin when heat was needed. The heater did not work. After calling the front desk, they sent a nice guy from housekeeping, but he could not fix it. He said he’d call maintenance. After another hour I called the front desk but no one answered. I had to go up there. The said they’d send maintenance, and handed me a space heater. The maintenance guy did show up, but also could not fix the heater. He called his boss who probably told him to just get out of our room which he did.
There was no offer of a reduced nightly rate, moving to another cabin, or any recompense. It was just kind of «oh well.» I just found the experience to be of a place that gets enough business where they really don’t care a whole lot. Also, be prepared for drunk people late at night making noise.

This review is only for the restaurant.
We’ve been through Custer State Park many times but never stopped at the State Game Lodge until this year. The lodge is beautiful and definitely fitting of a presidential getaway. They have a lot of beautiful artwork being painted inside where you can meet the actual artists. We came to eat at the restaurant but had no idea what to order. They ended up having a buffet during lunch time and it turned out to be perfect.
They had a huge assortment of foods, including buffalo. Everything we had was good and they had a large table filled with deserts as well. The eating area had a ton of amazing paintings in it and frosted glass with designs on it. They also have a dining room across the hall which is where the President and his guests sat. I would probably choose eating here over Blue Bell Lodge if passing through again.

We dined here twice for dinner and once for lunch. We enjoyed salmon, trout, buffalo stew, and buffalo burgers. Everything was delicious and the wait staff was efficient.

A friend and I stayed at State Game Lodge in June. Buffalo came right up to the grassy area by the lodge. Saw lots of animals on the loop roads. We stayed in one of the small sleeping cabins and was pleasantly surprised. The cabin was great! Just enough to feel like we were in the country, but with all the comforts of home! Had breakfast in the lodge and it was fantastic! The only complaint I have is during check-​in. We had to wait in line for about 45 minutes. TERRIBLE check in system. WAY too slow. Good thing I was in vacation mode or I would have been much more disappointed than I was. Have to say it was worth the wait though.

This is a MUST. Fabulous food and a very accommodating staff. I’m so glad we stopped instead of ending up at some sub-​par tourist trap. I would be tempted to stay at the facility in the future based on this experience at the restaurant.

This was a very nice place but when I made the reservation, they maybe told me I was in the ‘new wing’ but I didn’t realize we wouldn’t actually be in the historic lodge. The room was huge — you could sleep a dozen people in it but we were only in it for 8 – 9 hours so in the end not worth the price.
I’d consider coming back for a few days (not just one night) and sharing with kids/​grandkids.

Unfortunately, I’m going to have to leave this as a combined review. We stayed at the hotel two nights and ate at the restaurant one night.
Hotel: the room was fairly small but well furnished and the beds were extremely comfortable. The bathroom had a bit of a fishy smell but that was gone after the first day. We loved the location and saw several bison while staying there. Overall, the hotel was about a 3.8÷5
Restaurant: We were the sole diners at the restaurant and were extremely impressed with the service (as expected) as well as the food. We had the bison short ribs appetizer, a bison burger, and vegetable roulade. The vegetable roulade and bison short ribs were excellent. Unfortunately, my girlfriend ordered her burger well done so I can’t comment on its tastiness but she loved it. 4.5÷5

Really neat place to check out, lots of history and ambiance.

If you looking for a good Buffalo Dinner this is the place to go, they have some of the best Buffalo in the area. I had been here plenty of times during the year, a family member of mine used to work for the Park and she would take me there a lot, even had the pleasure to stay in one of the big Cabins there, was so muc h fun.
Anyways great service here and remember get your buffalo on!

It was nice dinner. Our waitress had charming smile and polite. I chosen elk steak as medium well done but I didn’t know the elk meat is hard to bite. Lol my boyfriend had a buffalo steak. It was nice choice because it was delicious. Everything was great except of mojito. The mojito wasn’t good. And we got a coin chocolate after the dinner. I wanna suggest the buffalo steak. The price was about $ 100 for 2people. I repeat it was dinner. Maybe the lunch time might be cheaper.

Exactly what I expected… a historic hunting lodge.
The manager was a delight. He obviously loved his job and loved the lodge.
If you are looking for modern conveniences in your room… this is not the accommodations for you. We stayed in the «T» room which is obviously the old summer porch. It was marvelous and my daughter declared the bed the most comfortable in her life. She wanted to take it home.
Our only regret… just one night in the inn. Of all the places we stayed on our road trip this is the only one we agreed that we would love to return to.
Thank You!

Clean modern, up to date rooms that are quiet, spacious and comfortable. The prices are also reasonable for a top notched place. The staff is friendly and very helpful. The restaurant is pleasant with excellent service and great tasting food. A beautiful location with South Dakota friendliness complimented with 4 star service.
A piece of paradise on the prairie.

I’ll have buffalo stew with a side of short buffalo ribs and I’ll finish it off with a buffalo burger. (no joke) The restaurant was pretty empty cause it was in the end of spring so this SD is still pretty cold. We went after Mt. Rushmore but be prepared that it’s pretty out of the way but you get to see some buffalo & great scenery. Back to the restaurant, our waiter was extremely nice who seemed to be in a foreign exchange program. (I’ve done that before but I was in the main city.) poor guy got stuck in South Dakota but he’s probably learning English a lot faster and probably knows how to say buffalo in various languages. I gave it only 3 stars because it wasn’t peak season so I don’t think we got the freshest of everything but highly recommended

This review is strictly for the restaurant located in the State Game Lodge.
I am thoroughly convinced the people working at this restaurant are aliens disguised as humans. How in the earth do they manage to have the United Nations working here, in the middle of nowhere? Our waitress was African, there were two Asian guys, one Indian, and one Latino. For f*cks sake, this is South Dakota. There aren’t supposed to be anybody here except for Native Americans and white people (I am only half-​kidding). How did these people end up working here?
After being puzzled, we ordered food. It was 2pm and we were starving. They also have a buffet. We decided to order from the menu because they were almost closing the buffet.
I got the Bison stew and a Bison burger. He had a roast beef sandwich. The Bison stew was phenomenal (yes, I just used a big word). The bison burger was delicious. He liked his roast beef.
We came to know that they raise their own Bison herd to make the stew and burgers. Excellent! Gives a whole new meaning to «burgers from the back yard».
Stop by and get the bison stew if you happen to visit Custer Park. You will definitely need it to sustain you through the long time you will spend admiring the wildlife.
P. S. A little history lesson for you:
The State Game Lodge served as the «Summer White House» for President Calvin Coolidge in 1927 and was visited by President Dwight D. Eisenhower for several days in 1953. It was built in 1920, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.