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National fast-food chains, local eateries, and some fine-dining restaurants can be found scattered throughout the region, or sometimes right alongside one another. As a huge agricultural area, the Yakima Valley supplies many of its local restaurants with fresh fruits and vegetables in season. Yakima Valley wines are a staple at virtually all the fine-dining establishments. Pacific Northwest seafood (particularly salmon) is another staple of the region. South-central Washington also has a fair share of Mexican food, from taco wagons to fine Mexican restaurants.
Helmed by James Beard finalist and ardent fly-fisherman Kevin Davis, this modern restaurant on a picturesque bend in Yakima River Canyon has tall windows and a covered deck overlooking the scenery. Stop for a hearty breakfast before a day of recreation on the river, or for a memorable lunch or dinner of artfully prepared contemporary American fare, such as grilled Idaho trout with roasted pecan–brown butter or tagliatelle with goat Bolognese and burrata.
The menu at this urbane farm-to-table downtown bistro changes according to whatever's fresh in the Yakima Valley, showcasing anything from braised short ribs with local cherries, horseradish, and pureed apples in summer to grilled albacore with a Thai chili vinaigrette, root vegetables, dried shrimp, and pickled ginger. Certain dishes you can always expect to find on the menu, like local oysters on the half-shell and wood-fired feta, along with seasonal sorbets for dessert.
Occupying a warmly decorated Victorian house in downtown Prosser, this charming neighborhood bistro offers a nice mix of casual comfort fare (Thai barbecue wings, French dip sandwiches) and more substantial cuisine to pair with local wines. Standouts include the San Francisco–style cioppino and rosemary-garlic rib eye steaks with a peppercorn demiglace. Save room for the flourless chocolate cake.
Smack in the center of Vintner's Village, steps from more than a dozen tasting rooms, this smartly casual bistro is part of Bunnell Family Cellar winery and offers delightfully relaxing meals, with its open kitchen, fresh flowers on the tables, and outside seating set among the restaurant's herb and vegetable gardens. Share a few small plates with friends—maybe a caprese salad, a charcuterie plate, or crisp-crust pizza with pesto and eggplant from the wood-fired oven—or consider a more substantial meal, such as wild Pacific cod with polenta and blueberry-corn salsa.
A beloved destination for hearty red-sauce Italian fare since 1966, elegant Gasperetti's sits like a diamond amid the uninspired strip malls north of downtown, doling out pasta, meat, and seafood entrées accented with locally grown produce—think filet mignon with gorgonzola-pecan sauce, and rigatoni with pesto Genovese. The cellar stocks an excellent selection of wines, with a decidedly Italian lean. For a more casual experience, sit in the G-Spot Bar. When the weather's nice, the intimate patio exudes charm.
In a modern, stylish building on the north edge of downtown, close to Prosser's two main winery districts, this unpretentious steak and seafood restaurant with black-leather booths and banquette seating offers plenty of great dishes to pair with Yakima Valley wines (of which it stocks a considerable selection). Filet mignon, steak frites, and classic Caesar salads star on a menu that also includes a variety of sandwiches, burgers, and taco plates.
