PIER 290

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

PIER 290 holds a straightforward distinction that matters on Lake Geneva: it is the only restaurant sitting directly on the water. Set at the edge of the lake in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, the address puts guests within reach of the shoreline whether they choose a table in the dining room, a seat beneath the covered canopies, a spot on the front deck, or a place on the Palm Beach — a sandy lakefront area with fire pits and open sky overhead.

The Setting and the Experience

The restaurant is part of the broader Gage Marine family of Lake Geneva businesses, which includes boat services, lake cruises, and catering — a network built around the idea that the lake lifestyle should be accessible to everyone, not just those with a home on the water. PIER 290 is where that philosophy meets the table. Guests arrive by car or by boat, settle in, and stay. As one regular put it on Google: "One of the best dining experiences anyone can have in Southeast Wisconsin. The hospitality always exceeds our expectations."

Live music plays every weekend, both outdoors on the Palm Beach and inside the dining room, and weekly specials keep the rhythm going through the quieter months — half-price wine bottles on Thursdays, a Friday fish fry, and weekend brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.

The Food and Drink

The American menu spans brunch, lunch, and dinner, rotating with the seasons. Weekend brunch brings dishes like Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict over crispy potato pancakes with 290 hollandaise, a Steak and Eggs Benedict with grilled sirloin and red wine drizzle, and Summer Blueberry Pancakes made with Michigan blueberries and Wisconsin maple syrup. The summer dinner menu leans into seafood and produce: Seafood Ceviche with Gulf shrimp, yuzu, and aji amarillo; a Lobster Roll with chilled Maine lobster on a grilled New England roll; a Grilled Peach & Burrata Salad with local arugula and crispy prosciutto; and a 12 oz Prime New York char-grilled and finished with Gage compound butter.

The cocktail list matches the season — a Dragon Fruit Paloma, a Hibiscus Margarita with Fortaleza Blanco and house-made hibiscus syrup, a Watermelon Mule. The wine program earned a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in 2025, recognition that reflects a list curated well beyond what the lakeside setting might suggest. Special wine dinners — including evenings featuring Kosta Browne and Quintessa — bring that program to the foreground in a more intimate format on the Upper Deck.

Year-Round, Whatever the Season

Winter brings its own character: heated igloos on the property can be booked for Saturday and Sunday brunch, with a complimentary bottle of sparkling wine waiting at the table for early reservations. The restaurant's own description of the off-season is simple — "the fun doesn't stop when summer ends." For a lakefront American restaurant in the upper Midwest, that is a commitment worth noting.