standard tourist food, overpriced food (burgers, chicken nuggets, fries, etc). Staff very friendly (the manager was our cashier). Clean.

I was told by someone to go there for Bison Burgers....they were more like standard pressed burgers ... the atmosphere was nice and the people were nice and they had inside or outside seating but I wouldn't go out of my way to go there again.

We stopped at the Balanced Rock Cafe and Trading Post after our trip to Pike's Peak. There was a group of 24 seniors who were touring the Colorado Rockies. Our tour guide brought up here for lunch and a shopping experience. My husband and I had the extreme burger at $8.95 including french fries. My husband also ordered the chili fries at $6.25. With a coke at $1.99 our total came to $28.50 with tax, a hefty amount for lunch. The food was just okay. It was all served hot but was nothing special. I guess you cannot expect real good food at tourist attractions. Our group was there on 10/17/13 and no one claimed the food was special. I wouldn't go back there and would recommend that others seek a better eatery. We did not stop at Manitou Springs itself, but there were lots of sights to see and various restaurants. It looked nice and quaint. If I go back, that's the place I'll stop for lunch. Our tour director informed us that our tables were reserved and to look for the "reserved" signs or area. It was not there. We were on our own to find our space. Our server was "Admin" and although she was very polite and friendly (tour guide bucks) it was clear she missed the boat on our reservations. I guess our tour guide knew her from previous trips here and gave her the "royal" treatment. The tables were scattered all over the place. The place did not look clean. You had to help yourself to drinks, etc. The menu was very limited so there was not much of a choice. My advice: Don't go there!

Not gourmet dining. We found very limited menu items. The atmosphere, view and adjoining gift shot were worth the visit.

We went to the cafe today. We first went gemstone mining with kids. I brought my 2 year old boy. He wasn't that excited about it but a lot of the older kids 3 and up were. Plus the outdoor patio is really pretty. The kids all had a lot of fun running around outside. The menu looked wonderful and I was so excited to try the buffalo cheese burger. I got it and was surprised to see what it looked like. The fries looked like they had been under a heat lamp for 20 minutes and pretty hard. The burger looked like something at McDonalds. So the food wasn't awful but it wasn't that great either. For $8.50 I would rather go some place else. You order cafeteria style and the staff was really nice and quick. So if you want mediocre quick food but it does have a fun atmosphere this is the place.