TAHOE CITY, Calif. — Savoie, the latest venture from chefs Mark and Alison Sullivan, aims to bring an intimate alpine dining experience to the West Shore, blending European mountain cuisine with locally sourced ingredients and a carefully restored historic setting.

The restaurant is set to open in Tahoe City on July 1.

The husband-and-wife team brings decades of culinary experience to the Tahoe Basin. Mark Sullivan trained in Michelin-starred kitchens and has built a reputation as one of Northern California’s most accomplished chefs, while Alison Sullivan’s career has focused on regional French cuisine, working alongside acclaimed chefs in both France and the United States.

For the Sullivans, however, the restaurant is more than just a new business. It represents nearly six years of work restoring one of Tahoe City’s most recognizable historic buildings.

For roughly 70 years, the Pfeifer House had welcomed diners. The German-style restaurant had been serving schnitzel, escargot and traditional European dishes since 1939. It was part of an earlier era of North Shore dining, alongside iconic establishments such as Bacchi’s Inn, Swiss Lakewood and River Ranch. After closing in 2019 and coming under Sullivan ownership, the building sat vacant while the couple worked to bring it back to life.

Rather than completely reinventing the space, the couple chose to preserve much of its character.

“We wanted to keep it simple, but elegant, while keeping some of the historic feeling of the original property,” Mark Sullivan said.

The renovation retained several of the building’s defining features, including the original fireplace and some of its historic taxidermy displays, while updating the restaurant for a new generation of diners.

The project also became a family affair.

The restaurant’s interior was designed by Mark’s sister, Annie, while Alison’s brother-in-law, a British artist, traveled to France’s Savoie region to create more than 50 original paintings inspired by the landscape. Those works now hang throughout the restaurant, reinforcing the alpine atmosphere that inspired its name.

Tahoe itself has long been personal for Mark Sullivan, too.

He recalled visiting the area throughout his childhood, when his family would rent cabins to ski during the winter and return every Fourth of July in the summer.

“As a younger man, I took a job as a chef at PlumpJack when they first opened,” he said.

PlumpJack is a restaurant in Olympic Valley. Although his culinary career eventually took him far beyond Tahoe, those early experiences helped shape his connection to the region and ultimately inspired him to return.

Now, through Savoie, the Sullivans hope to create a restaurant that honors both the traditions of the European Alps and the history of Tahoe City while offering a fresh dining experience for locals and visitors alike.