My husband and I are spending 4-1/2 days in Oregon in late March. His first time in the beautiful state. The basic itinerary is set but I’m still clueless about restaurants. Given our short stay I want to make sure we hit the right places. We enjoy the more typical West Coast cuisine – which I think of as creative healthy – fish, veggies, etc. but we also love local dives with good food. We’ll probably only splurge on a really nice dinner one night – probably in Portland. Any suggestions appreciated.

Here’s our basic itinerary:

Day 1 – Cannon Beach
Day 2 – Newport/Florence/Yachats (staying in Newport)
Day 3 – Portland
Day 4 – Columbia River Gorge – day, Portland overnight
Day 5 – morning in Portland, head home

Portland would be the place to splurge on that nice dinner. Lots of great restaurants here. My current faves for a splurge would be Carlyle, Fenouil, or the "Chef's Whim" prix fixe menu at Alberta Street Oyster Bar & Grill. For food just as good, but in a MUCH more casual atmosphere, try Le Pigeon, where the chef/owner was recently named chef of the year.

Cannon Beach has a couple decent places, too. The best bowl of chowder (clam or otherwise) I've had anywhere has been at Gower St. Bistro, a few blocks south of the town center. The Wayfarer next door is pretty good too, with the widest range of seafood selections of any menu in town. My favorite "dive" is Ecola Seafood Market, where you have a wide selection of deep-fried seafoods. Bistro & Newman's are good too, but more upscale. And the restaurant at Stephanie Inn is okay, but I prefer other in-town dining venues.

I've not had any memorable meals recently along the central coast, but a visit to the original Mo's in Newport might be fun. Advice in general for this area would be, places are pretty much as they appear.

And I'm no help in the gorge, other than to recommend breakfast at the Columbia Gorge Hotel in Hood River. There's also a restaurant at Multnomah Falls, but don't set expectations too high for quality. The view from the atrium is quite nice though.

Have fun!

If it's not raining, take a picnic to the gorge and sit at the tables at the Lower Horsetail Falls, which is about 2.5 miles east of Multnomah Falls, just past the Oneanta Gorge. There's a great trail from the Falls that takes you under Upper Horsetail Falls. You can pick up good deli food in Portland. For gourmet fare, try Elephant's deli on NW 22nd near Burnside.

Sorry to not have included this in my earlier response. Here's a description of the little hike you could take after picnicing at Lower Horsetail Falls, if you are so inclined:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/getawa...83_hike26.html

We have repeatedly had good experiences eating at these moderately priced restaurants: The Wayfarer in Cannon Beach, Georgie' Grill in Newport, and Riverside Grill in Hood River.

They have been consistently satisfying while special meals at "in" places in Portland have sometimes been a let down.

One of my favorite meals in Portland is a salad and gnocchi with beef short rib ragu at Pazzo.

Sounds like a nice itinerary! There are several places we have enjoyed good meals in Portland. Fenouil, Carlyle, Paley's Place, the Heathman, clarklewis, Park Kitchen, Bluehour and Higgins and Wildwood are a few.

Cannon Beach has a few good places to dine, I would probably go with Newman's @ 988 for a really great meal. They also make an outstanding Chocolate Pot de Creme there for dessert. Bistro for the salmon and Greek Lemon Soup, Wayfarer for the clam chowder and salmon and if you're looking for a casual place Mo's is one of our favorites, they also do a great Blackened Salmon dish there that I like. Gower St. Bistro was our hangout last summer when we stayed several week at Seaside in our beach cottage. If you don't mind driving a little ways to Gearhart, there is a place there we really like called Pacific Way Bakery & Cafe for dinner.

In Lincoln City we liked the Blackfish Cafe and if you're around Gleneden Beach, check out the Salishan Lodge & Spa for a meal. We just had lunch there but it's worth going to just to check out the property and gorgeous grounds. This would be a very nice choice for a spa treatment if you want some pampering on your trip!

The best Italian food can be found at Taste of Tuscany in Seaside, about 10 minutes from Cannon Beach. Very good food and beautiful presentation here. Enjoy! ***kim***

***kim*** Taste of Tuscany in Seaside sounds tempting, but I can't find a web site or other information about the place. Is it new? Can you give more details? HTTY

Happy, Taste of Tuscany is on the same street as the Big Foot Pub. You can read kims review on portlandfood.org , but someone else also reviewed it and gave it a so-so review.
I will just agree with beachbums favorites, since we have similar taste in Portland restaurants..I will add a new place on NW 21st-North 45 if you like mussels & frites, and 23 Hoyt ..on NW 23rd as well as Ten01 on NW Couch & 10th.
These are the newer places in town ( or on the NW side) ..
I listen to mms and beachbum when we want to know where to eat out at the beach, Gower St Bistro and I still like Mo's for chowder and to sit by the window and watch the beach and the waves.

HI happy, yes it is fairly new, we have only been once for dinner shortly after they opened but my son dined there last month and really enjoyed it. We were very impressed with the presentation and the quality of food, I have some photos of our meal posted on the TripAdvisor travel forum for Seaside. They are closed on Mon & Tues, so plan accordingly. Enjoy! ***kim***

I love Fodor's...it never ceased to make me smile and laugh on occassion

RS--I'm right there with ya!

Now, onto places to eat. I agree with many of the recommendations so far.

In Cannon Beach, the Wayfarer and Ecola Seafood Market are our usual stops. I do not care for Dooger's there at all though. The coffee place next to the Surfsand Resort is good for a quick breakfast as well. There are pizza places, etc around town, but since you will be on the coast, indulge in the great seafood.

Portland has tons of great places! I won't repeat them all, but Scarlett lives right there and trust me, she knows all the good places. When she and I do lunch I just ask her where we are going and it has always been good. A couple great places for breakfast are Mother's, Lorn and Dotties, and Everett St. Bistro.

The Lodge at Multnomah Falls, yes, the views are the best part, but we have had a good brunch there so no complaints. Definitely sit in the atrium, that way you can see both the falls and the massive fireplace. Be sure to walk to the top of the falls...there are some nice views along the way. Some people stop at the little bridge, but if you do that you will miss a lot.

CAnnon Beach great place to splurge Stefanie Inn. Very small but 5*

1JAR, have you been there since Crystal Corbin took over for John Newman? I agree, Stephanie Inn is very nice. You must make advance reservations and they will require a credit card to guarantee your ressie. No children under 12 are allowed in their dining room, either. There are two sittings for the evening, excellent choice for fine dining in Cannon Beach. ***kim***

Several posts were removed from this thread due to their rude nature. Fox2, I hope that you continue to receive thoughtful replies to your question. Have a great trip!

I loved the crabcakes at Mos on Cannon Beach and the view was great as wll. Don't think it was that expensive either (but haven't been there in a few years.)

On your way down the coast, you may want to consider a dinner in Nehalem at the Nehalem River Inn. The food is amazing, the restaurant is very romantic and cozy and the scenery around this area is gorgeous. They have a website if you want more info! ***kim***

http://www.nehalemriverinn.com/restaurant.htm

Also, I suggest if you are near or in Manzanita, which is 10 miles South of Cannon Beach, to have a bite at Bread and Ocean... those little towns along the Coast are each in their own way, charming and wonderful.
After staying a short spell in Arch Cape, we considered buying a house there but the tales of winter storms and tsunami warnings changed our minds ( we are wimps )..

Another thought...if we have good weather when you are at the coast, go to Ecola Seafood Market and get some items for a picnic. Then head over to Cannon Beach Bakery (on the north end of Hemlock, near JP's) and get a loaf of their Haystack Bread to go with.

Tidal Raves in Depoe Bay, Blackfish in Lincoln City, Doogers in Cannon Beach or Seaside. Can't go wrong at any of these places.

They also have a Dooger's in Warrenton, across from the Shilo there. We have only been to the one in Seaside which is usually very busy, especially in the summer months. ***kim***