18 Best Restaurants in North Central Washington, Washington

With a festive sidewalk seating area and a rustic timber-clad dining room, this trendy spot offers some of the best craft beer in Leavenworth. There are several great IPAs on hand, as well as a rich Maple stout. The menu includes tasty pizzas such as the Hot Mama, topped with thick-cut bacon, Mama Lil's Peppers, aged mozzarella, and arugula.

A sylvan hilltop overlooking the Methow Valley sets the scene for an extraordinary dining experience featuring upscale Pacific Northwest cuisine with local and often organic ingredients, artfully presented and served in an elegant yet unpretentious, wood-filled setting. Highlights include chicken curry soup, mushroom strudel, prime beef tenderloin, and Columbia River steelhead. Desserts vary by the season: apple pie with house-made ice cream is a fall favorite, while pavlova with sugared cranberries is refreshing in winter. Beignets make an appearance on the breakfast menu, along with a tasty BLTA croissant. The 3,500-bottle wine cellar is one of the best and most extensive in the region.

Set in a buttery yellow cottage with a touch of gingerbread trim, this unfussy eatery offers a refreshing break from Leavenworth's Bavaria-on-steroids exuberance. The kitchen presents artfully plated five-course meals (reservations required) of mostly organic, farm-sourced Northwestern fare. The food during these leisurely, two-and-a-half-hour repasts is simply sublime. Covered, heated outdoor dining offers privacy, and indoor dining gives a full view of the kitchen.

A beloved downtown gastropub with rustic brick walls and soaring wood-beam ceilings, McGlinn's serves elevated comfort fare, including cavatappi with chipotle sauce, lamb tzatziki burgers, and wood-fired pizzas with inventive toppings (the blueberry-prosciutto is a favorite). There's an extensive craft-beer list, and desserts are worth saving room for. Hearty breakfasts of beer bread French toast, fried chicken with biscuits and gravy, and scrambles are served weekends.

The first thing you're likely to notice upon walking into this festive trattoria is the mammoth wood-fired brick oven, in which personable chef-owner John Bonica prepares such mouthwatering dinner fare as roasted veggies over polenta, blistered-crust pizzas with creative toppings, and wine-braised roast beef. Several excellent pasta dishes are offered, too.

A significant player in Leavenworth's steady transformation into a hipper and more upscale destination, this warmly lighted farm-to-table bistro with hardwood floors and exposed-brick walls feels appropriate for celebrating a special occasion as well as perfect for an unpretentious meal. The menu changes regularly, but typical creations include Oregon buffalo carpaccio and curry-rubbed wild cod with peach relish, wonton crunchies, and sweet-chili butter.

Merry "oompah" music bubbles out from marching accordion players at this festive, long-running restaurant, where the theme is "Germany without the Passport"; it adjoins two sister establishments, Mozart's Steakhouse and Gingerbread Factory bakery. Laughing crowds lap up strong, cold brews and feast on a selection of wursts—bratwurst, knackwurst, and weisswurst, among others—Polish sausage and beef goulash, all nestled into heaping sides of sauerkraut, tangy German potato salad, and thick, dark rye bread. Service can be slow at times, so just sit back and enjoy the ambience. You just might get called to stand up and do the "chicken dance."

Locally sourced farm-to-table meals are the draw in this airy, casually elegant restaurant on the edge of downtown Winthrop. Notable examples of the deftly plated, sophisticated fare you might find here include braised lamb shank with lemon farro, grilled pork chop with savory pear sauce, lemon and feta risotto, and mushroom cassoulet. The starters and mains on the shorter bar menu are equally ambitious 

The name of this upbeat, contemporary downtown bistro reflects the kitchen's globally inspired approach in dishes from Thailand (clay pot prawns with glass noodles),  Italy (mushroom risotto), and the American South (shrimp and grits). Creative preparations, a full bar with an impressive wine and spirits selection, and knowledgeable service are further reasons this buzzy spot has found a loyal legion of fans.

These two restaurants have adjacent spots in the Pybus Public Market and a shared seating area, where you can enjoy pizza, pasta, antipasti, salami boards, soups, and sandwiches from Fire, and crepes, espresso drinks, and house-made gelato and sorbetto (sorbet) from Ice. Both are part of Visconti's Restaurant Group, which began in 1985 with classical Italian Visconti's in Wenatchee and now includes several restaurants in Wenatchee and Leavenworth.

This buzzy, wood-paneled ciderhouse and taproom on the road to North Cascades National Park stands out for both its bright, crisp ciders and its elevated pub grub. Tuck into a plate of baby back ribs, Thai chicken sausage, or pulled-pork pizza, and consider a sampler of ciders—all of these sippers are produced with apples and other fruit grown in the immediate vicinity.

Bratwurst, beef franks, and brews abound at this casual outdoor Bavarian grill and beer garden, tucked into a cozy corner in downtown. It's perfect for hungry travelers seeking an affordable but filling meal. The atmosphere is laid-back and family-friendly, and seating is at picnic tables outdoors. You can doctor the dogs and pretzels at the mustard bar.

Located in a long red building designed to resemble an old-time, one-room schoolhouse, this craft brewpub sits between the town's main drag and the Chewuch River. While waiting for a burger or a bowl of chili, sip an Epiphany Pale, Hooligan Stout, or Ruud Awakening IPA. Live music plays on the outdoor stage in the riverbank beer garden on summer weekend nights. In winter, make a reservation to dine outdoors in the heated Geodomes with your family or small group for a unique experience. Other locations of the brewery in nearby towns are the Old Schoolhouse Taproom in Twisp and the Mazama Public House in Mazama.

Opened by two women with extensive experience cooking Thai food, this casual spot in downtown Wenatchee turns out some of the best Southeast Asian cuisine in the region. Traditional khao soi egg noodles, pineapple fried rice, stir-fried seafood, and hot and sour soups are among the most popular dishes from the extensive menu.

A fusion-y menu of modern Latin American (primarily Mexican) dishes provides a nice—and slightly spicy—alternative to Leavenworth's wealth of Bavarian food. Enjoy sweet-potato-and-roasted-poblano-chili enchiladas, baby shrimp tacos, and Michoacán-style carnitas platters, along with chicken poblano enchiladas and grilled steak burritos. There's a sister location in Pybus Market in Wenatchee.

This old-school roadhouse on the north side of downtown Wenatchee, topped by a windmill and built in 1931, is all about home-style food, particularly steaks, which include 18-ounce rib eyes and slow-roasted prime rib: lobster tail and jumbo prawns are available as add-ons. Other mainstays include wild-caught salmon with compound lobster butter and Alaskan Amber beer–battered cod fish and chips. The look is rustic, but prices reflect today's times. Splurge on a slice of fresh-baked pie or cheesecake to end your feast.

Head to this North Shore winery and bistro for wine tasting and dining on the terrace overlooking the Spaders Bay section of Lake Chelan. The lunch and dinner menus feature herbs and produce grown in Vin du Lac's own gardens, as well as meats, cheeses, and seafood sourced regionally as much as possible. Southern French and Northern Italian fare stars at this romantic, wine-focused restaurant where the menu changes quarterly to feature what's in season. Families are welcome, and you can even bring your pooch while you dine on the terrace.

In winter, this eatery's stone walls and varnished-wood tables impart a warm vibe, and in summer the sprawling beer garden with grand river and mountain views puts everyone in a happy mood. This hipster-approved, counter-service purveyor of fragrant, flavorful Asian-style bone broths and creative pub fare seems always to draw a big, chatty crowd.