Restaurant reviews: a trip to Oregon.

I have another website.  It's mainly for comics, drumming, and general blogging, but last year my wife and I took a trip to Oregon and we, of course, stopped at some local joints to eat.  In chronological order, we ate at:

Louies's Bar and Grill - Ashland, OR

Marché Café - Eugene, OR

Pietro’s Pizza – Salem, OR

Mo’s Annex – Newport, OR

Harbor Light Family Restaurant – Reedsport, OR


Chain restaurants are easy to visit when you're looking for something to eat.  They're plentiful and you pretty much know what you're getting into when you order from their menu; everything you're familiar with promises to be there.  And, being a chain, the quality of the food is fairly consistent from location to location.

There's nothing wrong with eating at a chain restaurant if you like their food.  However, when traveling, I think it's important to stop at a local restaurant, especially if the restaurant deals with local cuisines.  Places like Mo's Annex and the Harbor Light Family Restaurant are along the coast and serve seafood dishes, so we had a chance to try some of the local seafood.  Some chains are unique to an area, like Pietro's, a pizza chain found only in Oregon.

Then there are places like Louie's and the Marché Café, a bar and grill and French-style cafe, respectively.  Restaurants and eateries like these may not seem unique when you look at the menu: burgers, fries, steak baguette, salad... these are foods you can get at almost any other similar restaurant across the country.  But what's important to consider is that every restaurant is unique.  First, some local restaurants use local foods.  Check the menu.  Second, a burger joint in one area of town isn't going to be the same as another one across town.  Places like Louie's is unique to Ashland because, though they might sell a simple cheeseburger, that cheeseburger is going to be very different from the one you'll get from Ford's in Sacramento, CA.  Every restaurant does things just a little bit differently.  Sometimes, a lot differently.  Eating at a local restaurant lets you in on where the locals like to eat.  It gives you a clue as to why the locals are attracted to the place.  Maybe it's the decor.  Maybe it's the service.  Or maybe the food.  Perhaps all three.

True, maybe you do have a place like Louie's or Mo's or Pietro's in your town, but the adventure is in seeing what the differences are.