Considering I visit Oregon Wine Country regularly, I’m always on the hunt for the best restaurants in Willamette Valley. All wine lovers know you need sustenance to last the day through tastings. We shouldn’t have to just endure mediocre food, but rather savor it just as much as the wine!
So if you’re planning a day of wine tasting in Oregon, make sure to add these best restaurants in Willamette Valley to your itinerary!
Best Restaurants in Willamette Valley, Oregon
You’re going to need to eat between wine tastings, amiright? I’ve tried buzzy spots like La Rambla, Joel Palmer House, JORY, and Bistro Maison, but below are what I consider some of the best restaurants in Willamette Valley.
Overwhelmed by trip planning?
I’m a licensed travel planner and would be happy to create a custom wine tasting and eating itinerary throughout Willamette Valley. I can also plan day trips to Portland, the coast, or other areas around Oregon!
Want to plan your own trip? Make sure these best Willamette Valley restaurants are on your list!
Thistle
website | town: McMinnville, OR (directions) | vibe: cozy farmhouse French brasserie
Wine tasting can often feel like you’re sipping away the day in a French vineyard. If you want to keep that vibe going, head to Thistle for dinner. It’s one of the best Willamette Valley restaurants for a fancier meal, but not at the fine dining level.
Like any great French brasserie, the menu is written on a blackboard in flourished writing. The menu changes with the season, but you’ll often find classics like rillettes, bavette steaks, and more. One time I had a sort of life-changing fish dish with summer vegetables and a cucumber gazpacho-like sauce.
If it’s on the menu, don’t miss the steak tartare. It’s exceptionally executed and is a quintessential French dish.
Pura Vida
website | town: McMinnville, OR (directions) | vibe: casual Latin American food served in a mini art gallery
Pura Vida is a Willamette Valley restaurant right in the heart of McMinnville down the street from Thistle. It’s fairly casual, with white walls and simple furnishings. But all along the walls are bright paintings and art from local artists. Matched with the constant hum conversations pulsing from the crowded tables, it’s a lively place to be for lunch near wineries or dinner after a day of tasting.
You’ll find really yummy Latin American food influenced by Costa Rican, El Salvadorian, and Cuban cuisine. They make everything from scratch in house and source ingredients from local producers. I ordered the arepas with pork belly and was obsessed. Every bite was packed with flavor. And it wasn’t difficult to look at with it’s bright colors.
If you want to know where to eat near wineries in Willamette Valley, this place should be on your list.
La’s Hmong Food Cart
website | town: Aloha, OR (directions) | vibe: casual food cart
Just outside of Beaverton and the Tualatin Valley, a wine appellation at the northern part of the Willamette Valley, is La’s. It’s part of a small food cart pod in a parking lot that many people would drive by. However, she’s making some of the yummiest Hmong food in the Pacific Northwest.
If you’re not familiar, Hmong are Indigenous people in southwest China and southeast Asia. Their cuisine has influenced your typical Chinese, Thai, Laotian, and Vietnamese food. The menu changes, but if it’s on the menu get the pork banh mi. It’s huge and one of the best I’ve had, with super juicy pork, fresh herbs, and spice from the jalapeño.
Mac Market
website | town: McMinnville, OR (directions) | vibe: lively food hall
Mac Market is a fun concept right in the heart of McMinnville’s Granary District. It’s a 10,000-square-foot historic warehouse that used to be the manufacturing hub of Huberd’s Shoe Grease in 1929. Locals affectionally call it the “ol’ shoe grease building” as a result.
Inside you’ll find a community-driven eating, drinking and shopping gathering place. There are multiple businesses under one roof, including a bakery, eco home goods store, Wellspent Market food store, the fancier restaurant Hayward, and the pizza spot Honey Pie.
Honey Pie is perfect for a casual lunch or dinner. They serve really good pizza that you can split toppings on and try more things. On one side get whatever looks good to you, but save the other side for the ricotta, mushroom, and hot honey toppings if its available. The flavors are a satisfying blend of earthy and a touch sweet.
Tavern on Main
website | town: Springfield, OR (directions) | vibe: art deco Americana
One of the absolute best restaurants in Willamette Valley is Tavern on Main. It was recommended to me by multiple Eugene-area locals, but I put off visiting because I assumed from the name it’d be a dive bar. Boy, was I wrong.
Tavern on Main is still a casual restaurant, but you’re surrounded by cool art deco vibes when you walk in. There’s art that would fit in a Palm Spring home and tile, lighting, and molding from the art deco era. It has a bit of a Gatsby theme with a huge quote from Scott Fitzgerald on the wall and a picture of Leonardo DiCaprio playing Gatsby.
The menu is all American with classics like fried chicken, oyster ‘po boys, burgers, and more. However, their rendition of each dish is anything but basic. Instead, everything is met with flawless execution and has creative spins that keep things interesting.
If they’re on the menu, definitely get the burger and oyster ‘po boy. The burger was oozing with cheese and perfectly caramelized onions, and the fries were perfectly seasoned. The ‘po boy had beautifully crunchy oysters served on a bun similar to a lobster roll. It was topped with a pickle mix that was reminiscent of a remoulade.
We also had a lovely seasonal salad of arugula, watermelon, and charred corn off the cob the last time we went. If you see something like that on the menu, get it, as it’s super refreshing on a hot day of wine tasting!
PublicHouse
website | town: Springfield, OR (directions) | vibe: a renovated church turned into a beer-lovers playground
I’m obsessed with PublicHouse. It’s an old church that was transformed into the ultimate adult playground. There is a beer hall, food court, whiskey lab, and outdoor area for concerts. It’s one of the most fun things to do in Eugene, Oregon, so it makes a great lunch or dinner stop between wine tastes.
In the food court, there are six different food vendors to choose from. You’ll find cuisine like pizza, Indian, Hawaiian, and more. Get bites from a few places and find a seat for some epic people watching.
Pro tip: NorthWest Burgers makes addictive beer-battered fries. They used to be in 5th Street Public Market in Eugene, but now PublicHouse is the only place to snag them!
Red Hills Market
website | town: Dundee, OR (directions) | best for: picnic fare and foodie souvenirs
Red Hills Market is what would happen if a food hall and bakery had a baby. You can order pastries, breakfast, and coffee at the counter and also dine in as if you were at a bakery. But you can also peruse food goods from Pacific Northwest makers and pick up wine or souvenirs.
I’ve been here for breakfast and am obsessed with their coffee. I also think the breakfast sandwich is a great way to start the day (we couldn’t stop talking about the damn bread!).
Red Hills also serves lunch, including salads, soups, sandwiches, and wood-fired pizza. There are also baked goods, my favorite of which is the pot de creme.
What really makes this place shine is the ability to curate your own picnic to bring to any of the wineries. There’s meats, cheeses, baked goods, packaged goods, spreads, nuts, and more which you can mix and match to your liking. Or you can get yummy pre-made sandwiches to go.
All in all, this is definitely a Willamette Valley restaurant you’ll want to stop at before visiting wineries.
Pro tip: You can actually stay on the top floor of Red Hills Market! It’s one of the most unique places to stay in Oregon. I stayed here once and thought it was perfectly located for tasting the day away.
Good Company
website | town: Newberg, OR (directions) | vibe: bustling cheese shop
Another one of the best restaurants in Willamette Valley is Good Company in downtown Newberg. The front of the store has a cheese case and shelves lined with items perfect to bring on a picnic. However, you can grab a seat in back or at one of the sidewalk tables to enjoy creative cheese and charcuterie plates.
If it’s on the menu, definitely get the “fish and chips”. It’s a word play on the classic British dish, but instead of fried fish you get canned sardines. It’s served alongside potato chips and pickled onions and peppers. When you add a bit of everything to a chip it’ll whisk you away to the tapas bars in Spain!
Another standout is the burrata and artichokes if it’s on the menu. A huge piece of luscious, creamy burrata is nestled in a bowl of olive oil, lemon, olives, and artichokes. The zippiness of the lemon makes it brighter than you’d expect!
Lastly, a cheese and charcuterie plate is a must. You can create your own or ask them to curate one for you. We had them make the decisions and ended up with a lovely plate of duck prosciutto, Italian pork prosciutto, three different types of cheeses, some jam, and crostini.
We loved everything we got, particularly the duck, but next time we’d give a bit more direction so that we end up with crackers instead of bread and Oregon cheeses (as we had all international cheeses on our plate and were stuffed from the bread that came with the burrata). However, this was an awesome way to try things we wouldn’t have otherwise picked, so I would definitely put the decision in their hands again!
Pro tip: If you go here, head to Miss Hannah’s Gourmet Popcorn afterwards. It’s down the street and is a great spot to pick up creative snacks to bring to wineries. If you go on a Thursday evening, stop at Social Good Market down the street for trivia and great local brews!
Disclaimer: Taste Newberg offered me a free meal at Good Company and popcorn at Miss Hannah’s during a recent trip. I didn’t promise to include them in this article, but I enjoyed them so much I thought they should be added.
Cypress
website | town: McMinnville, OR (directions) | vibe: southern greenhouse meets Mediterranean cafe
Cypress is the restaurant connected to The Atticus Hotel, one of the most beautiful places to stay in Willamette Valley. Like the hotel, the restaurant is meticulously decorated with a ton of plants hanging from the ceiling.
The menu is Mediterranean leaning with dishes like falafel and hummus, but it’s fancier than your average gyro shop. I haven’t had a chance to go for dinner, but the breakfast is phenomenal.
My sister got the shakshuka, which was served with a fried pita. It was yummy, but the star was the ful mudammas.
This green garbanzo dish is kinda like a stew with a poached egg on it. I don’t think I would have ordered it without the server’s insistence, as I’m not big on soup for breakfast. But if it’s on the menu, you must get it. The lemony and cumin-forward flavors were soul satisfying and a great way to start the day!
Carlton Bakery
website | town: Carlton, OR (directions) | vibe: casual bakery and food gift shop
Carlton Bakery is a quaint bake shop on the tiny downtown main street in Carlton. It’s the perfect spot for grabbing a sandwich and goodies for a picnic, as the shelves are lined with pantry staples from small businesses.
Food wise I love their gougeres and prosciutto sandwich. The gougeres are pilllowy and cheesy while the prosciutto sandwich a great balance of bitter, fatty, and sweet thanks to a swipe of jam.
Pro tip: Grab dessert at the ice cream and candy shop connected to Park & Main down the street!
The Horse Radish
website | town: Carlton, OR (directions) | best for: sandwiches & salads
A lot of wineries in the Willamette Valley don’t serve substantial food. But the good thing is that most allow guests to bring outside food from some of the best restaurants in Willamette Valley. The Horse Radish a few doors down from Carlton Bakery is another great place to stop before you begin your Oregon wine tasting adventure. Or get a sandwich to go to bring to a picnic at a winery.
The Horse Radish has substantial sandwiches made with high quality ingredients. I was obsessed with the Carlton sandwich, which includes house-roasted turkey breast, peppered bacon, ham, horseradish honey mustard, swiss, lettuce and tomato. Definitely put this on your list of Willamette Valley restaurants to visit!
Abbey Road Farm
website | town: Carlton, OR (directions) | best for: fancy dining at a winery
Abbey Road Farm is a quadruple threat. It’s a working farm, bed and breakfast, winery, and dining experience. That means you can sip pinot noir while eating so you don’t lose any time wine tasting as you visit tasting rooms.
Oh, and did I mention it’s beautiful? There are a ton of outdoor seating nooks where you can get lost and enjoy the ambiance. This makes it a popular spot for weddings and events.
One of the options when you visit Abbey Road Farm is a ~$150 per person multi-course tasting menu created by a chef that used to work in Portland. I did this during our last trip and was blown away by the food. It was really inventive and expertly executed. I wasn’t expecting this level of craft at a winery, but they surpassed my expectation. My only qualm was that it was a bit pricey for a lunch, but it was definitely a highlight of our last trip.
Marché
website | town: Eugene, OR (directions) | best for: upscale French dining experience
Eugene is a great place to stop for lunch or dinner after exploring the southern Willamette Valley wineries. It’s a stellar food town with a ton of restaurant congregated downtown, particularly in 5th Street Public Market.
It’s hard to choose just one dining destination at 5th Street Public Market, but if I had to, Marché would be it. They make exquisite French food and have a strong cocktail program.
The last time we went we got this spring buckwheat crepe with excellent morels, peas, and other seasonal goodies. I find myself thinking about it often! I also think a lot about the salted fish beignets. Get those too if they’re on the menu!
Pro tip: They have a more casual food hall, bakery, and market nearby called Provisions Market Hall if you want something more casual.
White Rabbit Bakery
website | town: Aurora, OR (directions) | vibe: rustic bakery
The White Rabbit Bakery is an unassuming building on the main road into downtown Aurora, Oregon. Inside it’s rather sparse with a few tables, vintage couch, and board games. But what it lacks in grandeur it makes up for in tastiness.
We ordered the turkey chipotle sandwich and were really impressed with how yummy such a humble sandwich with chips could taste. This is a great place to stop before heading into Aurora for a day of antique shopping. It’s also one of the best restaurants in Willamette Valley to stop between wine tastings because it’s quick (which, you know, means more wine).
Other Willamette Valley restaurants to try
Here are some more Oregon Wine Country restaurants still on my list to try:
- The Painted Lady – Award-winning restaurant in a cottage you can stay at
- ōkta – Fine dining in McMinnville that looks Michelin star worthy
- Community Plate – More casual sister restaurant to Thistle
- Ruddick/Wood – Upscale gastropub recommended by Food & Wine
- Gathering Together Farm – Working farm I hear makes a not-to-miss meal
- Forage – Cafe recommended by Tiquette Bramlett, one of the only Black leaders in the Oregon wine industry
- Honey Pie – Pizza spot also recommended by Tiquette
- BG Food Cartel – Large food cart pod in Beaverton near north Willamette. I walked through it once and was really impressed with the variety.
More to do near Willamette Valley
While I’d like to say that you can just visit all of these best restaurants in Willamette Valley and be done with it, you’re likely going to get full and need to do things between eats!
Here are more guides to help you plan the rest of your trip. And remember, I’m here to help plan your trip if you’d like!
- The Wine Lover Guide to the Best Willamette Valley Wineries
- What to Do in Oregon Wine Country Besides Drink Wine
- Luxury Boutique Hotels in Eugene Near Wineries
- Magical Places to Go Glamping in Oregon Wine Country
- Take a Day Trip to the Oregon Coast
- Everything You Must Do in Portland
- Fun Places to Eat in Portland
- The Ultimate Guide to Visiting the Columbia Gorge
- Things to Do in Bend in Winter
