14 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
THE BEST PATIOS
OUTSIDE EATING BEATS INDOOR SEATING WHEN WEATHER’S HEATING
Story by
THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA
MOUTH@COASTWEEKEND.COM
FACEBOOK.COM/MOUTHOFTHECOLUMBIA
A
las, the longest day of the
year has come and gone.
Summer solstice was June
21. Sunsets are now in retreat. But
let the shortening of our glorious
and all-too-brief summer days serve
as a reminder: soak them up.
Do it with picnics and BBQs.
Champagne, cheese and strawber-
ries. Burgers, brats and beer. Do it
with walks on the beach, by laying
in the sun, by slowing down time.
Squeeze them by blowing off work,
taking a long lunch and turning off
your phone.
And, of course, do it by eating
— outside.
City by city, here are some of the
best patios. If I’ve left any out —
and I’m sure I have — let me know!
CANNON BEACH
Surprisingly few restaurants on
the entire North Coast have ocean
views. Of those that do, even fewer
have outdoor seating. I get it, to a
point; the wind can be a beast. But
on the right day, little compares
to the luxury of being waited on
beachside.
To that end, the Wayfarer
Restaurant & Lounge’s patio is the
only game in town where the food
competes with the view.
While the rest lack such proxim-
ity, there are plenty of restaurants in
Cannon Beach where you can enjoy
an afternoon in the sun.
The Bistro’s bricked, green patio
offers a measure of secluded peace
and elevated happy-hour snacks.
The Cannon Beach Hardware &
Public House’s outdoor seating,
tucked around its south side, is
shielded from the wind and the
perfect place to share laughs, beers,
wings and calamari.
While the Driftwood Restaurant
COLIN MURPHEY PHOTO
Patrons of The Bistro restaurant in
Cannon Beach who bring their dogs
with them have a menu of their own
to choose from. Owner/chef Jack
Stevenson decided to offer gourmet
dog food as an option in the already
canine-friendly community.
& Lounge’s deck is hardly seclud-
ed — it is, rather, the epicenter of
Cannon Beach’s tourist bustle —
the gas fire pit warms revelers late
into the night.
On the Tolovana end of town,
Surfcrest Market and Pizza has a
grassy backyard with picnic tables
that’s great for kids. Plus, you can
bring food and drinks from the
market out there, too. Across the
street there’s the deck at the Warren
House, where I recently found my-
self wishing I’d brought a hat to go
along with the under-the-radar good
chicken sandwich. Keep an eye out
for that chubby seagull though …
he’s not shy.
SEASIDE
As I mentioned, restaurants
with ocean views are bewilderingly
rare in these parts. You can proba-
bly count them on one hand — at
least if you don’t count the views
where you have to crane your neck.
Among the few is Maggie’s on
the Prom, and from what I hear,
chef Jason Lancaster has the place
humming.
While it’s not quite as close to
the water, you can certainly still
hear the surf at U Street Pub & Eat-
ery. U Street gets points not only for
the neat details of their sandwiches
and the spiciness of their clams,
but for being nestled off Seaside’s
beaten path.
U Street (the street), which
dead ends at the ocean, is a respite
in a town with a tendency to feel
clogged. But if you do happen
to find yourself in the vicinity of
Broadway Street’s thrumming
tourist magnet, Seaside Brewing
Company is the spot for a burger
and beer in the sun, especially if the
upstairs deck is open. It’s like pok-
ing your head above the clouds.
ASTORIA
There’s something both extraor-
dinarily calming and otherworldly
about the cargo freighters bobbing
on the Columbia River. At rest,
waiting to be loaded or cleaned,
and even when they’re in motion,
they put me at ease and fill me with
wonder.
There are plenty of restaurants
along the piers from which to watch
the lumbering giants, though most
of the outdoor seating is precious,
weather permitting — especially for
things like exquisite dinner entrées,
the likes of which you’ll find plenty
of at Bridgewater Bistro.
For a more blue collar experi-
ence — or, simply a beer and a big
floppy slice of NY-style pizza —
the Inferno Lounge deck at happy
hour is hard to beat. And by virtue
of facing east and being shielded
from the ocean wind, it can be more
reliably comfy.
Oft-heavy gusts can be make
the patio at La Cabaña de Raya
a non-starter, but get lucky and
Young’s Bay will feel like your
own. To whatever you’re having,
add the spicy, fruity, blended Man-
goneada cocktail as desert.
Though it isn’t on the water,
you can certainly spy the Columbia
from atop Fort George Brewery’s
new-ish second story patio (built
this spring). I’m particularly fond
ERICK BENGEL PHOTO
Diners enjoy Bridgewater Bistro’s deck overlooking the Columbia River
in Astoria.
of the Wednesday burger special
upstairs, and just about everything
else that comes out of that 700-de-
gree wood-burning oven.
And while plunked ground-lev-
el in the center of downtown, the
Astoria Station pod at the corner
Duane and 13th streets boasts an
enticing variety of craft. Clustered
around the brick and mortars of
Reach Break Brewing and Reveille
Ciderworks are three carts: the lus-
cious, moan-inducing sandwiches
of Hot Box BBQ; the spicy noodles
and supple wings of Mai Tong
Thai; and the tradition-mashing
newcomers, Hong Kong Taco Cart.
Altogether it’s a veritable quandary
— one of the more exciting devel-
opments in North Coast dining.
ILWACO
Salt Pub is pressed up against the
Port of Ilwaco, the bridge between
land and dozens of small commer-
cial fishing boats. By the time you
read this, a number of those boast
should be beginning their summer
tuna season. The few tables out
back of Salt, along the port’s prom-
enade, are a perfect place to ponder
that mysterious world of seafaring
life.
While you’re doing so, the fish
and chips — or anything with tuna
— would be a splendid choice.
Indeed, you might catch a glimpse
of the very boat that caught your
dinner.
WHEELER
Wheeler’s Salmonberry Saloon,
too, is perched above boats. But
compared to Ilawco’s port, the
Nehalem Bay is pretty quaint, more
day trippers and hobbyists than
commercial vessels.
Nonetheless, over calm waters
the Salmonberry’s deck is one of
the most serene on the whole North
Coast. And by making a point to
feature the products of the Nehalem
River Valley’s many marvelous
farms, the Salmonberry’s fare will
have you floating, too.
LONG BEACH
As far as I can tell, Long Beach
is a little short on great patios.
But, rest assured, one of their best
restaurants has your back.
The Deport Restaurant has a
cute, intimate, covered deck, com-
plete with heaters and ivy-covered
trellises. Just like inside, the Depot
balances the best of both worlds: an
impeccable fine-dining experience
that retains casual charm.
The Shelburne Inn Pub has a
garden area that matches the histor-
ic hotel’s interior — wonderfully
artistic, with flora as colorful and
ornate as the antique stained glass
inside.
Speaking of plants, the many
farmer’s markets scattered through-
out the region are wonderful places
to eat outside. They boast terrific
food carts and fantastic purveyors
that can’t be found anywhere else.
And the markets, like the long
summer days, won’t last forev-
er. So get out there and seize the
daylight. CW