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Lake Tahoe's Best Spots for Hot Cocoa, Coffee and Cider

Cuisine, Destinations / by

Sipping a steaming hot drink to quell the chill is one of the great pleasures of a winter vacation. Whether you warm up before, during or after hitting the ski slopes doesn’t matter. What does make a difference is how good the hot concoction tastes, how it makes you feel and, of course, the way it looks on your social media feed.

Below are the best coffee shops around Lake Tahoe for piping hot (and seriously ‘gram-worthy) beverages.

Get Your Brew On: Go-To Local Coffee Shops

Sometimes, just the aroma of freshly roasted coffee is enough to get your blood pumping. Clyde’s Coffee Roasting Co. is only a short drive from Tahoe Beach & Ski Club, Tahoe Seasons Resort and Lake Tahoe Vacation Resort, as well as to the base of Tahoe’s premiere mountain slopes. You can smell the beans brewing as soon as you walk into the coffee shop’s cabin-like structure. Start your engines with the adorable Double Bear Latte and a tasty Tahoe Bear Claw for good measure.

Revive Coffee & Wine, also located in South Lake Tahoe just minutes from the resorts, is a must-visit during your Tahoe vacation. Their unique menu offerings range from various types of brewed coffee — drip, pour-over, cold brew, French press and more — to a terrific tea selection. Those with adventurous palates can sample Rose Cardamom Lattes or seasonal specialties like the Maple Sage Latte or Chai Cider, while cautious consumers can stick to reliably delicious hot chocolate. Versatile in its offerings, Revive is just as appealing for small plates and light fare as it is for a coffee pit stop.

Less than two minutes away from Diamond’s properties, Heaven’s Little Café specializes in steaming cups of Alpen Sierra Mountain Roasted Specialty Coffee. Make it mocha for a little extra power on the slopes, or go straight hot chocolate all the way. Hot apple cider is also a sweet treat here. Pair a drink with one of the establishment’s breakfast or lunch burritos, and you’ve got fuel for a full day of winter sports.

Greg Buchheister, Coffeebar founder and champion ski racer hailing from Colorado, has a nose for excellence. This local coffee shop has more than half a dozen locations, and it has become an institution, featuring frothy standards skiers and snowboarders love. Coffeebar also introduces new concepts regularly, such as the zesty and creamy Mexican Mocha — made with single-origin cocoa and cinnamon — and the Matcha Latte with collagen peptides for additional protein. A visit here is certainly one way to make a coffee break worth your while.

Mocha, Whipped Cream and Sweat Treats Galore

Located on the north side of the lake, the long-standing Tahoe House Bakery & Gourmet is a great meal spot to hit when you take a morning or afternoon to explore historic Tahoe City and Truckee. While rustic in appearance, it’s also sophisticated, churning out lattes and mochas with Swiss machines that grind the locally sourced, organic Alpen Sierra Coffee beans to order. The cookies, pastries and breads — baked from scratch — are irresistible accompaniments.

Known for its Northern California flair, Squeeze In‘s menu contains an impressive roster of omelets. Named for its tiny, 11-foot-wide interior, this heritage restaurant in downtown Truckee opened in 1974 with a distinct Grateful Dead vibe. It now has 10 locations and is famous for its signature Blind Dog Coffee. The mochas and hot chocolates are practically snow-capped with whipped cream and a generous shake of colorful sprinkles.

Like many cafes in California, The Dam Cafe offers plenty of healthy breakfast and lunch options. But that doesn’t stop the staff from loading up your specialty drink with a hearty amount of foam and whipped cream. From traditional Illy espressos and vanilla Chai teas to seasonal pumpkin spice and caramelized buttered pecan lattes, this charming cafe offers a warming journey in true coffeehouse style.

Add “coffee shop hopping” to your list of winter vacation ideas, and treat yourself during your Lake Tahoe vacation. Start planning your winter getaway by booking one of Diamond Resorts’ Tahoe properties today.

Diamond Resorts International Marketing, Inc., its parents, sister companies, and subsidiaries, make no warranty, express or implied, as to the condition, capacity, performance or any other aspect of the activities, events, or service providers listed herein. No inquiry has been made into the activities or events, or the qualifications or the quality of services offered by the providers. Do not consider this an endorsement of or recommendation for any of the activities, events, or providers.

About Jen Karetnick

Jen Karetnick is an award-winning Miami-based writer, poet, critic, editor, and educator. The author/co-author of 19 books, including Ice Cube Tray Recipes: 75 Easy and Creative Hacks for Freezing, Cooking, and Baking with Ice Cube Trays (Skyhorse Publishing, June 2019) and The 500 Hidden Secrets of Miami (Luster, 2017) as well as nine volumes of poetry, she has been published in TheAtlantic.com, DailyWorth.com, ForbesTraveler.com, FSR Magazine, Miami Herald, Racked.com, Relish, Southern Living, TalesoftheCocktail.com, Today.com, and USA Today, among many others. Her poems and prose also appear widely in journals including Guernica, Michigan Quarterly Review, The Missouri Review, One, Painted Bride Quarterly, Prairie Schooner, Verse Daily, and Waxwing. She works as the dining critic for MIAMI Magazine and as a freelance lifestyle journalist. She earned an MFA in poetry from University of California, Irvine, and an MFA in fiction from University of Miami. Jen is also co-founder of the not-for-profit organization SWWIM (Supporting Women Writers in Miami) and co-editor of the daily online literary journal, SWWIM Every Day (swwim.org).

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