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Port Townsend reigns as the foodie capital of the Olympic Peninsula, where Pacific Northwest coastal cuisine prevails. For a small town, it features an impressive collection of casual yet upscale dining options, some with sweeping bay views. Influences include Mediterranean, Latin, and Southern American cooking. Many restaurants and pubs offer straight-from-the-farm organic herbs and vegetables as well as locally crafted artisanal breads and cheeses and, of course, shellfish and salmon from local waters.
The entire Olympic Culinary Loop—from Port Townsend, Sequim, Port Angeles, and Forks to the Long Beach Peninsula(www.olympicculinaryloop.com)—is best known for its seafood, fresh from local bays and inlets or wild caught in the Pacific Ocean by local fishermen. Many restaurants along the route feature fish-and-chips, chowders, oyster or salmon burgers, crab cakes, cioppino, clams, and mussels. The peninsula also offers many family-friendly and down-home eateries, from hearty burger and breakfast joints to authentic Thai, Japanese, and Mexican restaurants.
Pick up a baguette, loaf of fig-anise bread, chocolate-chip cookies, maple-pecan scones, or cinnamon buns at this top-notch bakery, tucked into a small storefront in the heart of the Uptown district. There's a selection of cheeses, jams, granola, kombucha, and other gourmet goods to go as well. Additional locations are on the Port Townsend waterfront, in Sequim, and on Bainbridge Island.
Since 1977 this venerable ice-cream parlor and candy shop has been a fixture downtown, doling out small-batch ice creams and Italian ices, and always featuring at least 30 flavors—many, such as pink gooseberry and strawberry-rhubarb, featuring ingredients sourced from local farms. If it's a warm day, bring your cone, shake, or sundae (or box of handmade chocolates) next door to Pope Marine Park and enjoy your dessert while watching ships in the bay.
An enjoyable stopover between Westport and the Long Beach Peninsula, this airy café with three walls of windows has panoramic views of the Willapa River and is decorated with colorfully painted chairs, hanging plants, and potted flowers. First-rate espresso drinks, chai teas, and light snacks—black currant scones, lavender-honey toast with goat cheese, bacon-tomato-avocado sandwiches—are offered.
Espresso, beer, wine, and a variety of sweet baked goods—including memorable cinnamon rolls and lemon bars—are served in this inviting roastery and bistro with a gas fireplace, cathedral ceilings, and a cozy upstairs loft with armchairs and sofas. The kitchen doles out creative fare such as blackened-prawn tacos and a harvest salad with hazelnuts and house-pickled beets.
Operated in partnership with the nearby Alderbrook Resort, this restored market at the Hood Canal Marina is open most days for gourmet snacks and to-go items, local beer and wine, and nicely curated nautical souvenirs, and its Hook & Fork waterfront eatery serves afternoon appetizers on Friday and leisurely brunches on weekends. A juice bar doles out freshly squeezed concoctions, and the rotating brunch menu features baked oysters, smoked-trout toast, and crab BLTs and Benedicts.
The entrance to this subterranean space can be difficult to spot—at the bottom of a Tyler Street staircase. There you'll find a sophisticated yet casual wine and cocktail bar that melds vintage Victorian with a rustic-industrial feel and sense of whimsy (concrete floors, reclaimed wood, antiques). Catering to the after-hours crew, it offers contemporary bites, handcrafted cocktails, and a distinctly steampunk vibe. Most of the sodas, syrups, bitters, and infusions are made in-house.
