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Don't Miss Food between SF and Seattle?

I'll be taking a road trip this July from San Francisco, up the Pacific Coast Highway to Seattle, and I need any advice and recommendations for must-see (or must-eat) on my way. Our itinerary is loose, so we're willing to go off the beaten track. One caveat, money will be tight, so high-budget restaurants are probably gonna be out of our reach this trip. Thanks in advance.

12 Comments:

Quilcene is a great spot with cheap food - I recall eating some crab and oysters at this roadside shack that were marvelous. I'm not sure if it's in between SF and Seattle though....

Portland is a foodie paradise, but the place I always want to go back to is Fire on the Mountain, a funky little place that serves fabulous wings (in different flavors - try the Thai Peanut), amazing french fries, and local microbrews.

SF to Seattle covers a lot of ground

In the area around Point Reyes National Seashore (a truly beautiful place) north of SF: Tomales Bay and Hog Island Oyster companies -- oysters fresh from the waters around the point. Cowgirl Creamery in Pt. Reyes Station.

In Petaluma, Della Fattoria bakery makes artisan bread and other goodies. In Sonoma, Artisan Bakers is another great bakery.

Stone fruit are being harvested now, so you can find amazing apricots, peaches, nectarines and cherries. Find Farmers' Markets for your trip here. Sonoma County has great cheese, but I'm not sure where to find it all. Perhaps at Sonoma Farm Trails.

A great post on 96 hours of eating in Portland over at Bay Area Bites.

One of the best road trips I've ever taken was down the Oregon coast from Seattle. We made it our mission to stop at a different greasy spoon diner every day and eat pie - to this day, I still crave pie on road trips.

Also keep an eye out for wineries along the way, those are pretty fun diversions. And, I know it sounds lame, but make a stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory, it's actually pretty fun.

Definitely stop by Pacific City and eat at the Pelican Pub. The food is good, relatively cheap and the beer they make in house is fantastic. The views out across the ocean are amazing.

Whatever you do, don't be hungry when you hit the mid-OR coast, it is a cultural wasteland and has a major restaurant deficit. The best you can do if you get a hankering for fish and chips is Roy's Blue Whale about 20 minutes north of Florence. Lots of places advertise, but they don't cut the mustard. We have lived in large, cultured cities and know food......I cook at home all the time and that is a sad state.

While in Portland Oregon.
Go to Bluehour in the Pearl
Great Happy Hour

My wife and I did the Coast Highway from Seattle to Crescent City, CA., last fall. The adventure (trip) was fantastic!

But, I agree totally with dmzapp that much of the Oregon coast is a wasteland . . . restaurant-wise, cultural-wise, and otherwise! We could find no decent food along the mid-Oregon stretch of coast highway.

However, we did find a unique, interesting diner in Florence, Oregon (Bliss’ Route 101 Diner). The building is covered with 1950's automobile halves (real front-section of the vehicles) and the inside is like a memorabilia museum. "Diner-type" food was good, too!

Washington State and California, on the other hand have wonderful places to eat.

If you get to Hood River (on the Columbia River, near the Oregon/Washington state line), don’t miss the Best Western Riverside Inn – fabulous food.

Now, now. Having spent several weeks between us on the mid-coast of Oregon, my sister and I (she's also a foodie) have found a couple of not fancy but not exactly roadfood places we can comfortably recommend. Rogue Brewing Co. in Newport has a decent, casual restaurant (and do try the beers), and The Blow Hole in Depoe Bay is a small-ish, tasty cafe. Do Not order clam chowder elsewhere in the area.

There's also a really good Swedish bakery in Astoria, and you should try Gunderson's Cannery Cafe there - a little more spendy than some of the other places, their food is modern and delicious.

Don't miss stopping at a Burgerville! Reasonable prices and good food. I don't know if it's late enough in the year for Marionberry shakes, but PRAY that it is! Still, they alwyas have Tillamook cheeseburgers and Walla Walla onion rings. Lots of seasonal specialties, too.

If you see an Elmer's, give it a try. I had what they call German Pancakes there and they were divine. It's a big, thin Dutch Baby and served with a heavy dusting of powdered sugar and lemon wedges. MMMMMMMMMM!!! Order some bacon, too. That pancake is not quite enough when you're hungry. Again, resonable prices.

These are great. Just what I was hoping for. Thanks very much.

Crave's Wine and Tapas Bar on Laural Street in "old town" Florence, Oregon is fabulous! We live a couple of thousand miles from there but plan to return to Florence next summer to enjoy this jewel.

Last June I took a drive up highway one from Ca. I stopped at the Surf Shack in Port Orford Oregon. I had the BEST ribs I have ever had there. Cool layed back spot!

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