Sierra, an upscale firewood kitchen, opened in late 2017 next to the Cabela’s in Lone Tree at 10680 Cabela Drive. It is a mix between an American and Southwestern style restaurant with many home recipes as food choices. The hours open for business are 11am to 10pm everyday, serving lunch and dinner. There were both good and bad parts about Sierra, with waiting time and quality of food.
At first glance, Sierra has an odd design with half of the building being a sort of A-frame while the rest is a brick box. Inside, the walls were brick with southern decor scattered throughout. There is an outside seating area that has a measly view of the parking lot. There is also a patio where there is a much better view over the Lone Tree area.
There was a bar area in the center. The bar is nice for if you don’t have a reservation because you can have somewhere to sit and drink while you wait for a table. For small groups, this can be good, but larger parties will have trouble finding seats in the bar without being seperated.
If you don’t make a reservation, you could be waiting for 30-50 minutes depending on the time and date. Even on a Tuesday night arriving at 6:20, there was a 50 minute wait because all the other people that had reservations would be seated first. If you do make a reservation, there was a 5 minute wait at max.
The servers were friendly and didn’t constantly bother during meals which was nice, but they were also readily available for questions. They handed us simple menus with 6 sections: starters, salads/soups, wood-fired grill, house favorites, sides and desserts. Plenty of options in each category. When the food was ordered, it took about 30 minutes for the food to arrive, which was good considering that the place was packed.
The food that was served was a good size, so you weren’t left needing more. The plates were organized and presented well. A lot of the items on the menu were fresh and different bringing a new blend of flavors. While there were some menu items that were common at other places like mashed potatoes, the main dishes were distinguished from common dishes, like their Louisiana Killer Shrimp.
The waiters came soon after you finished to grab your plates and wasted little time with getting the check. The food was on the pricey side, though, with the main dishes averaging $25; some of their specialties being expensive. They returned your card fast, but they might have just wanted you to leave fast to open up a table for others that are waiting.
For how new Sierra is, they have managed the kitchen well and the food is prepared on a high level. Their food is distinguished from other similar restaurants, and they have their own blend of seasoning and flavor that fulfills most desires. People that didn’t reserve a seat had almost an hour wait time. Getting a good view was luck with half of the seating facing the parking lot and the other half facing the patio. Overall, Sierra would be a 3.5 out of 5 because of how long the wait can be and the expense of the food.
Connor Gilpatrick, Staff Reporter
