Lake effect is inspired by a collective love for great cuisine, culture, fine wine and cocktails in a cozy, casual setting in the north woods of Minnesota. We want people to come in and have the joy of relaxing with family and friends while deciding on the perfect pairing of food and drink. Our intention is to both satiate cravings for a really burger and fries and challenge people’s taste buds to try something new. Whether your relaxation comes in the form of weekend brunch, watching the game on our bar televisions, enjoying a quiet dinner near the fireplace with a bottle of reserve wine, or using our private dining room for catered events, we have you covered.
Based on 50 reviews, the restaurant has received a rating of 4.3 stars. Price
✔️ Dine-in ✔️ Takeout ✔️ No delivery
Address:
7055 Rice Lake Rd, Duluth, MN 55803
Phone: (218) 591-4013
Social Profile: 
Hours
| Monday
(Labor Day)
|
12–10 PM
Hours might differ
|
| Tuesday | 12–10 PM |
| Wednesday | 12–10 PM |
| Thursday | 12–10 PM |
| Friday | 12–10 PM |
| Saturday | 10 AM–10 PM |
| Sunday | 10 AM–10 PM |
Menu Photos
Photo Gallery
Order and Reservations
Reservations: opentable.com
Reviews
Haley Sederberg
My husband and I came here for dinner, we indulged ourselves in flavorful and intriguing cocktails, the spinach artichoke garlic honey dip as an appetizer, savory entrees, and homemade cheesecake for dessert. The food did not disappoint. The wait staff were very friendly and prompt. The atmosphere was modern and lively. We will definitely be back to try the rest of the unique cocktail menu!
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Brian Orcutt
We got invited out with a group that tries different restaurants monthly. This month was Lake Effect Restaurant and Bar at Island Lake. Walking in, the outside and decor are definitely new. The restaurant is extremely clean. We were greeted and seated immediately. The menu seems a bit small, but don’t let that fool you. We started out with and old fashion and a Lutsen Sunset. The old fashion was decent. The Lutsen Sunset was delicious. A perfect amount of sweet and tart. For dinner we got the Jerk Pork Stroganoff. This is smoked shoulder, brussels, squash, kale, cream sauce, duck fat vin, micro radish. Amazing flavors with a tiny hint of cinnamon on the back side. Large portions and I’m not a fan of pasta but this pasta is a must! We also got the Sausage pizza this is house made Italian sausage, caramelized mustard sauce, sauerkraut, mozzarella. This is the best sauerkraut we’ve tried. A little sweet and a little sour. The sausage is definitely homemade and delicious. This is by far my favorite sausage and sauerkraut pizza to date! This place is a must!
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Audrey S Erving
Nice wedge salad and great individual gourmet pesto, roasted tomatoes, balsamic glaze pizza! The ladies room was a pleasant experience, too.
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Barbara Steen
Lake Effect is such a great vibe and experience. The food is so inventive and possesses such original flair. I love the Pad Thai (great flavor combinations), and the pesto pizza with sausage is amazing! Kudos to the chef and kitchen staff. What amazing food. Thank you to our server, Rebecca, who was so personable and efficient, and the awesome bartender (who was kind enough to bring our doggy companion a fresh bowl of water on the patio). If you have yet to experience this great gem of a restaurant, be prepared to be wowed. Thank you!
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Ron Mortti
I went there for the first time lastnight. I ordered the market price steak. The sides were interesting, edible, but not great. The steak was tough and not cooked to medium. When you order a market priced steak (especially at what the mp was) I would expect a filet or rib eye. The steak served may have been a sirloin at best. The place was empty and I can understand why when you price food way above what you are serving. It was a $20 steak at best.
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Heather Muster
The atmosphere is comfortable upscale bar. The drink menu has a nice selection of cocktails, wine, beer and non alcoholic options. We started off with chicken wings and curried hummus. I am not a wing fan as they are usually slimy and more like compressed chicken product: however these were actual bone in whole wings. The skin was blisteringly crisp and the side of ranch was good. The curried hummus was declared ‘fantastic’ by one member of our table. Ultimately we all ordered the burger. The burger is served on a Hawaiian bun with housemade pickles and sauce. All of us ordered ours medium rare but each of the burgers was overdone (no pink on any) yet weren’t dry and were still very good. I removed the pickles as they were sweet and I am more of a sharp dill fan with my burger. A dill spear was provided with the meal and this easily remedied the issue. The sauce was also sweet. The fries were crisp and well seasoned with salt and pepper. We will happily return to try the more adventurous items on the menu.
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Martha Happy
The remodel is fantastic. We ordered the wings and they were great. We had an amazing experience and definitely will be back again soon!!
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Dev OB
We had a wonderful meal! I had the breakfast burrito and my husband had a barbecued pulled pork sandwich. Very good! Service was outstanding! I had a breakfast cocktail they called a “Clamenchela” (it is a Mexican drink called “Michelada”) Yummm!!!!
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Lindsey Mattson
Visited for dinner tonight with my significant other. We sat at the bar, and I ordered the smoked pork sandwich with fries which was very good but more bread than meat. The fries were good. My boyfriend ordered 1 lb of wings which is only 3 jumbo wings for $12. They were good, but not what you would expect for a “pound of wings.” I will say it was extremely loud due to the acoustics, the metal ceiling, and the music playing. Leigha our bartender/server was AMAZING. You could tell she was busy but definitely tried to be attentive and make sure we had a good time.
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Allie F
I was very excited to give this place a try. I was disappointed with a few things. Firstly, the remodel looks very nice. However they installed a metal ceiling in the interior making it very loud. So loud that we could hardly understand what our waitress was saying. We ordered the cheese curds and they were fine. Standard state fair cheese curds and we enjoyed them. Then came our ribs. An order of a full rack of ribs gets you baked beans, corn bread, corn and coleslaw for 39 dollars. The corn and the corn bread were inedible. I had no idea corn on the cob could be that dry. It was so severely overheated that there was no juice in the corn kernels left. The cornbread was just eating crumbs. No moisture left. The baked beans were made with kidney beans, which I personally don’t care for so I won’t comment further on them. The coleslaw was tasteless. Cabbage and mayonnaise. That’s it. The ribs were also dry, but quite meaty. I’m sure if they weren’t so severely reheated they would have been better. I had high expectations for this place as they have a relatively small menu which to me says that each item will be made with care. I was wrong. I will never go back.
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