Trio breathes new life into Woods Bay restaurants

So when the opportunity presented itself for Wink to take over two dining establishments at Mountain Lake Lodge in Woods Bay, he found the partners he needed to make his restaurant dream a reality.

Wink recruited David May and Casey Engel as partners in running both Riley’s Pub, and the newly named Schafer’s restaurant. The varied skill sets of all three men combine nicely to add to the Bigfork area’s notably fine dining options.

Engel manages the culinary portion of the business while May takes care of the day-to-day operations and Wink looks at the overall picture.

“We complement each other,” Wink said. 

Engel moved to the Bigfork area about 15 years ago to help start Many Springs in Yellow Bay where he was the head chef.

“I was excited when Rob approached me about this potential opportunity,” Engel said. 

Engel knows his food and was excited to create new menus for the establishments. 

“He’s got an amazing talent about flavor and texture,” Wink said. 

Engel wanted to keep the menu as natural as possible and came up with the concept of “Northwest Fresh,” where nothing is deep-fried.

Schafer’s, formerly Terra, was closed in May before Wink and his team stepped in. They took over Riley’s Oct. 1, which never closed during the transition. They reopened Schafer’s in November with a revamped the menu and a lounge area in the upstairs restaurant. 

The lounge is a unique gem in Schafer’s, providing a different atmosphere, and different menu with smaller plates, that can be a full meal, or shared. It also offers an impressive wine selection with the option of about 15 different wines sold by the glass.

“It gives you a different dining opportunity,” Wink said. “It’s a really warm inviting place.”

Some of the lounge menu’s most popular items include Asian lettuce wraps and duck tacos.

If diners aren’t in the mood to dine in the traditional dining room, with menu items such as seafood tostadas or a cherry wood smoked double prime rib cut of pork chop, the lounge provides a nice alternative. And Riley’s Pub downstairs offers another option with pup style food, eight beers on tap and televisions showing sporting events.

“Once you’re here, there are plenty of choices,” Engel said. Riley’s menu features brick oven pizzas, Kobe burgers and cherry wood smoked baby back ribs.

Though the management is new and the menu is different, there are still some familiar faces in the kitchen.

Jeff Collins has worked at the Lodge restaurants for almost 16 years. “It’s been excellent,” Collins said of the change.

Pastry chef Carolyn Thomas has been with the Lodge restaurants for three years and is best known for her carrot cake. Thomas, who has been baking since she was a child and making wedding cakes for 30 years, offers a wide selection of fine desserts in the restaurant, including lemon huckleberry cheesecake and coffee chocolate mouse. 

Schafer’s and Riley’s are good venues for special events, Engel said, and offer special deals for occasions such as Valentine’s Day, which has already been almost completely booked.

Schafer’s is open Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to close and on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. for brunch. Riley’s Pub is open seven days a week from 5 to 9 p.m, though they will be open at 1 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday.

“We’re excited to add another quality restaurant to the community,” Engel said.

Rob Wink always knew that someday he wanted to own a restaurant. But he also knew he wouldn’t be able to do it alone.

So when the opportunity presented itself for Wink to take over two dining establishments at Mountain Lake Lodge in Woods Bay, he found the partners he needed to make his restaurant dream a reality.

Wink recruited David May and Casey Engel as partners in running both Riley’s Pub, and the newly named Schafer’s restaurant. The varied skill sets of all three men combine nicely to add to the Bigfork area’s notably fine dining options.

Engel manages the culinary portion of the business while May takes care of the day-to-day operations and Wink looks at the overall picture.

“We complement each other,” Wink said. 

Engel moved to the Bigfork area about 15 years ago to help start Many Springs in Yellow Bay where he was the head chef.

“I was excited when Rob approached me about this potential opportunity,” Engel said. 

Engel knows his food and was excited to create new menus for the establishments. 

“He’s got an amazing talent about flavor and texture,” Wink said. 

Engel wanted to keep the menu as natural as possible and came up with the concept of “Northwest Fresh,” where nothing is deep-fried.

Schafer’s, formerly Terra, was closed in May before Wink and his team stepped in. They took over Riley’s Oct. 1, which never closed during the transition. They reopened Schafer’s in November with a revamped the menu and a lounge area in the upstairs restaurant. 

The lounge is a unique gem in Schafer’s, providing a different atmosphere, and different menu with smaller plates, that can be a full meal, or shared. It also offers an impressive wine selection with the option of about 15 different wines sold by the glass.

“It gives you a different dining opportunity,” Wink said. “It’s a really warm inviting place.”

Some of the lounge menu’s most popular items include Asian lettuce wraps and duck tacos.

If diners aren’t in the mood to dine in the traditional dining room, with menu items such as seafood tostadas or a cherry wood smoked double prime rib cut of pork chop, the lounge provides a nice alternative. And Riley’s Pub downstairs offers another option with pup style food, eight beers on tap and televisions showing sporting events.

“Once you’re here, there are plenty of choices,” Engel said. Riley’s menu features brick oven pizzas, Kobe burgers and cherry wood smoked baby back ribs.

Though the management is new and the menu is different, there are still some familiar faces in the kitchen.

Jeff Collins has worked at the Lodge restaurants for almost 16 years. “It’s been excellent,” Collins said of the change.

Pastry chef Carolyn Thomas has been with the Lodge restaurants for three years and is best known for her carrot cake. Thomas, who has been baking since she was a child and making wedding cakes for 30 years, offers a wide selection of fine desserts in the restaurant, including lemon huckleberry cheesecake and coffee chocolate mouse. 

Schafer’s and Riley’s are good venues for special events, Engel said, and offer special deals for occasions such as Valentine’s Day, which has already been almost completely booked.

Schafer’s is open Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to close and on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. for brunch. Riley’s Pub is open seven days a week from 5 to 9 p.m, though they will be open at 1 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday.

“We’re excited to add another quality restaurant to the community,” Engel said.