The Best Restaurants in Walla Walla
Walla Walla’s restaurant scene reflects a small-town America that feels elusive. Nearly every place is independent, but also ambitious and creative. Set in ag country, chefs reach for fresh ingredients across menus that span Southern cooking and handmade pasta to artisan sandwiches under ten dollars. You could spend a week here and miss a few spots — unusual for a town that sits four hours from any major city.
Passatempo Taverna exterior. Courtesy of Lauren Mowery.
Bacon & Eggs
Best for: Large breakfasts with the locals
Location: Downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$
North Stars:
Co-owned by Michelle Adams and Michelle Giannunzio, Bacon & Eggs anchors downtown mornings with a menu built from scratch and focused on local ingredients. The thoughtfully decorated dining room doubles as gallery space for a local painter’s oil portraits. Order the breakfast sandwich — it’s legendary. Stay in town long enough and you’ll start to recognize the regulars, whether on the patio or inside over a breakfast cocktail.
Popular breakfast spot. Courtesy of Lauren Mowery.
Bar Bacetto
Best for: Tiny pasta-and-cocktail dinner
Location: Waitsburg
Price: $$$
North Stars:
In a tiny town 25 minutes north of Walla Walla, one of America’s most intriguing dining spots waits for those who scored a reservation. Four-time James Beard nominee Chef Mike Easton and co-owner Erin Easton run an 18-seat restaurant with a chalkboard menu listing the day’s handmade pastas. Evenings feel dark and ntimate, and if seated at the bar, proximity to your neighbors might ignite conversation – and a shared bottle of Syrah. Don’t miss a drink at The Royal Block Hotel across the street.
Wine service at Bar Bacetto. Courtesy of Stephanie Forrer.
Graze
Best for: Sandwiches and salads
Location: Walla Walla
Price: $–$$
North Stars:
Graze has built a small local empire of five locations since opening in downtown Walla Walla in 2009. The sandwich shop supports the community through donations to Ronald McDonald House Charities, with cumulative giving topping $91,000. The menu is simple and affordable, from house-cured pastrami to roasted pear salads and paninis made from scratch. When was the last time you found a turkey bacon sandwich for under nine dollars? Order ahead and pack lunch for a day at Jasper Mountain Reserve.
Graze café exterior. Courtesy of Patrick Record
Hattaway’s on Alder
Best for: Southern cooking with Northwest ingredients
Location: Downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$–$$$
North Stars:
Owner and Executive Chef Richard Hattaway spent two decades in top Southeast kitchens before bringing Gullah Geechee and Lowcountry cooking traditions to downtown Walla Walla. The dining room is cozy and warmly lit, with a small bar tucked at the back. Start with the pimento cheese or creole shrimp toast, then settle into the red crab and tomato butter pasta. Hattaway’s takes its Washington wines seriously, with a list that’s deep, broad, and filled with small-producer treasures.
Outer Dining View. Courtesy of LagoAlgo.
The Kitchen at Abeja
Best for: Dinner on a restored farmstead
Location: East of Walla Walla
Price: $$$$
North Stars:
On the Abeja estate, The Kitchen at Abeja offers destination dining in the truest sense. Four-time James Beard nominee Chef Mike Easton and Chef de Cuisine Frank Magaña change the five-course prix-fixe menu monthly, drawing on Tuscan technique and Pacific Northwest ingredients at their seasonal peak. Arrive as the sun drops for an aperitif on the patio, then head inside for a candlelit repast. Though the wine list touches each of the state’s appellations, focus on Abeja’s outstanding portfolio. Reservations required.
Exterior of Kitchen at Abeja. Courtesy of The Kitchen at Abeja.
The Marc Restaurant
Best for: Hotel dining downtown
Location: Marcus Whitman Hotel, downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$–$$$
North Stars:
Located inside the Marcus Whitman Hotel, The Marc Restaurant is a handsomely restored dining room with deep burgundy banquettes, marble tables, and a wine display built into the room. The menu draws from local farms and purveyors, including Frog Hollow Farm, Walla Walla Cheese Company, and St. Helen’s Beef. Carve out time for a drink at the bar—the Oaxacan Firecracker, crafted by bartender Kalani Cayaban, is not to be missed.
The Marc Restaurant. Courtesy of Lauren Mowery.
Maple Counter Cafe
Best for: Classic breakfast
Location: Walla Walla
Price: $$
North Stars:
Husband-and-wife owners Kory and Rachel Nagler carry three generations of breakfast tradition to the Maple Counter Cafe, a country diner with big booths, kitsch charm, and Tiffany-style pendant lamps. Batters are whipped up every morning at dawn, including a sourdough blend passed down through the family. The menu may overwhelm you with options. For the sweet tooth, the blintzes—fruit-filled and dusted in powdered sugar—are the move. Savory types, order the eggs and bacon. Come hungry.
Kids’ pancakes at Maple Counter. Courtesy of Maple Counter.
Passatempo Taverna
Best for: Pasta and cocktails downtown
Location: Downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$–$$$
North Stars:
Look for the vintage neon sign marking the entrance to Passatempo Taverna. Set in the historic Pastime Café, this cigar shop turned restaurant dates to 1920. The building’s brick facade hides an expansive interior, from a buzzy bar to an outdoor terrace. Executive Chef Aaron Mooney and his team make fresh pasta daily. Budget time for a pre-dinner cocktail at the bar; while the historical drinks from bartender Jim German are excellent, you can’t beat the Negroni.
Bar at Passatempo Taverna. Courtesy of Lauren Mowery.
Salted Mill
Best for: Dinner in a historic building
Location: Downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$–$$$
North Stars:
Owned by Jim Kiefer and led by Walla Walla-native Executive Chef Ian Williams, Salted Mill occupies the historic Whitehouse-Crawford lumber mill dating back to 1880. Oft-touted as one of Washington’s best restaurants, it offers a lively dining room and a refined New American menu. Staff are warm, attentive, and as talkative as you’ll allow if you’re keen for conversation. Order the ahi tuna or Carlton Farms bone-in pork chop.
Seasonal vegetable entrée at Salted Mill. Courtesy of Salted Mill.
TMACS
Best for: Downtown lunch or dinner
Location: Downtown Walla Walla
Price: $$–$$$
North Stars:
Owned by Executive Chef José Meza, TMACS occupies a 1930s auto showroom on Colville Street. The interior feels warm but modern with a long concrete bar and glass wine case doing double duty as decor. Meza’s menu highlights regional purveyors with global flavors, from achiote and miso to lemongrass coconut curries. The restaurant serves more casual fare at lunch; to get the most out of the ambiance, book a table for dinner and order the duck ragu, wild king salmon, or RR Ranch beef tenderloin.
