Highlands Golf and Pub — Local services in Bella Vista

I spoke with several residents of this little town – none of whom were actually from the area – and everyone said pretty much the same thing: “Bella Vista is a great place to live, and with so much to do, it never gets boring.” For starters, the town features 108 holes of championship golf, over 50 miles of hiking and biking trails and 7 scenic lakes. With so much to do, you’ll feel like you’re on vacation every day! For those who are actually there on a vacation, there is an RV park and campground.

For the majority of people, the main attraction seems to be golf and with 6 high quality courses to choose from, I can see why. The Highlands Golf Course is the longest and most challenging course in Bella Vista; it also seems to be the favorite of those I spoke with. Highlands is the home course for the Bentonville West, Gravette High School and Life Way golf teams. The course is carved out of the rolling terrain that surrounds the area and requires not only length but a lot of accuracy and control. Five sets of tees make Highlands a challenge regardless of skill level. Highlands boasts a full practice facility including a driving range, putting green and short game area.

The 2nd hole is the course’s Number 1 handicap and is considered by most to be the toughest hole on any of Bella Vista’s layouts. From the Blue tees, this monster par 4 plays 432 yards - albeit downhill - from an elevated tee box, through a narrow chute of trees lining either side. A good drive will still leave most players with a long iron or hybrid into a small green with a lot of undulation. As you can guess, par is a great score here.

When it comes to eating, members, guests and visitors to Bella Vista won’t go hungry! The Food and Beverage department is anchored by Chef Jerry James who attended the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, NY. Chef Jerry has worked at both private and nonprivate country clubs including Fairfield Glade in Crossville, TN, where he worked as a corporate chef for several of their venues and claimed the title of Best Overall Taste five years in a row in local restaurant competitions. Chef Jerry joined the POA as Head Chef of the BV Bar & Grill when it opened in 2018. The grill has since proven to be a tremendous success and Chef Jerry was promoted to Head Chef of Lakepoint, allowing him to bring his casual, yet southern flair to his dishes.

Each golf course has a bar and grill, some are very popular. In addition to the aforementioned Scotsdale Clubhouse & Pub, The Highlands Pub is the perfect neighborhood hangout and features soup, nachos and grab-n-go items from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. They also carry all of your favorite adult beverages. The Snack Bar over at the Dogwood course serves traditional clubhouse snack food including hot dogs, cheeseburgers, bacon & cheese biscuits, soda and beer.

The BV Bar & Grill - located in the clubhouse of the Bella Vista Country Club - is a great venue for both lunch and dinner. The ambience is excellent and the food even better. BV Bar & Grill is open daily from 11 AM – 9 PM with $3 Wines, Wells & Brews during Happy Hour from 3 to 6 PM. There are daily specials every day of the week, such as a Chef Jerry’s $20 prime rib dinner on Tuesday nights. The BV Bar & Grill offers a variety of appetizers, salads, hot and cold sandwiches and several entrees. If you’re still hungry after your main course, try their Big Brownie Sunday, but you better have someone to share it with!

Bella Vista’s flagship dining venue is the beautifully appointed Lakepoint Restaurant. Happy Hour at the Patio Lounge is a great place to watch the sun set over the lake during the winter months and their Tasting Room offers wine and appetizer specials with indoor and outdoor seating with a lakeside view. Lakepoint’s Sunday Brunch is a very popular event and often requires reservations.

Although there is a lot more to do at Bella Vista than golf and eat, these may be the only reasons you need to think about relocating...

We’ve been in Bella Vista 1.5 years and love it. The POA places we like best are Lakepoint and the Country Club near Tanyard Creek.

There is something really lovely about the team at the Country Club. They’ve always been so helpful, happy and all about ensuring members get what they need. Lakepoint has been enjoyable on multiple occasions and we only just discovered the bar “around the back” (where did that spring from??) We were never overly impressed by the BBQ place and heard that may be changing. After just a few visits I cannot say I will miss it! The Highlands Pub is the one that we sometimes love and other times is a shocker. Most of the staff team are great but there is one bar server who seems to think they are the German Gestapo 😆 - seriously, how can it be so difficult to welcome folks and stay friendly throughout service at the bar, remembering to give a food menu out? I’m hoping just a mention here might prompt someone to watch/observe more. In our last visit we were quizzed about buying 4 drinks for my friend’s wife and I, plus her husband and my other half who were following us into the bar. Apparently I might give the drink to someone under 21. I know the law (and the responsibility a bar tender has to follow it) - it’s right to be careful, there are just ways to do it, but this particular member of the team lacks some tact. Like I say, we went to the patio and when the other two arrived we went back to the bar for their drinks. Then back again for menus since she never brought them. Felt like we inconvenienced her really. Nice pool tables and shuffle board (two pool tables since they reconfigured for the space, and...

Highlands is hands down the nicest course I've played, well worth my hour plus drive. I walked in and was instantly questioning my decision of going there but as soon as i talked to the woman behind the desk, that feeling was eased. Typically nice course's have snobby people that makes the experience unpleasant. Everyone was very nice and helped point me in the right direction and get us going. I talked to pretty well every worker that was at the course today and everyone was very friendly which was a first. I've played several courses around SW Missouri and this is hands down the best over all experience I've had. The club house and pub is very nice and a nice stop for making the turn. The course was well maintained and everything was top notch. The grounds keeper was busting it trying to keep the moisture level optimal in the greens which was the first time I've seen. His hard work and everyone else's that has to work the grounds is paying off especially in this 100⁰+ and flash drought we are experiencing. Thank you guys for a wonderful golf experience today! I will be back! I wished I was closer to be a member. Very nice...