Best Dining Bets

The Herbfarm Restaurant (Woodinville; tel. 425/485-5300): This restaurant northeast of Seattle is adjacent to several wineries. Once little more than a roadside farmstand specializing in herbs, over the years it has become the most highly acclaimed (and most expensive) restaurant in the state.

The Chef's Kitchen Restaurant (Langley; tel. 360/221-3033): Set in a quintessentially Northwestern inn on Whidbey Island, this is one of the state's most memorable restaurants. It serves some of the best (and most expensive) multi-course gourmet dinners in Washington.

Christina's (Orcas Island; tel. 360/376-4904): For more than 25 years, this has been the premier restaurant on Orcas Island. The food is innovative, the ingredients fresh and seasonal, and the water view unforgettable.

Bay Café (Lopez Island; tel. 360/468-3700): Classy and casual, this epitomizes the Lopez Island experience -- quiet, comfortable, and unpretentious. Even if you aren't staying on Lopez, meals are so good that it's worth catching the ferry to dine here.

Molly Ward Gardens (Poulsbo; tel. 360/779-4471): Housed in an old barn in a small rural valley outside the Scandinavian theme town of Poulsbo, this restaurant sums up Northwest lifestyles with its country gardens, eclectic decor, and creative cuisine.

The Ajax Cafe (Port Hadlock; tel. 360/385-3450): With excellent food, live old-time music on the weekends, and silly hats hanging from the ceiling (and frequently worn by dinner guests), this hidden gem of a restaurant is south of Port Townsend. Housed in an old wooden waterfront building, it's a favorite for those with something to celebrate.

The Ark Restaurant & Bakery (Nahcotta; tel. 360/665-4133): Oyster lovers note: This restaurant on the Long Beach Peninsula is just down the road from Oysterville, adjacent to oyster farms and an oyster packing plant, so the shellfish is as fresh as it gets.

Sun Mountain Lodge (Winthrop; tel. 800/572-0493 or 509/996-4707): If you get vertigo easily, you may want to forego meals at this precipitously perched dining room overlooking the Methow Valley. However, if you relish creative cooking accompanied by dizzying mountain views, this restaurant should not be missed.

26brix (Walla Walla; tel. 509/526-4075): Foie gras? Caviar? Veal sweetbreads? Walla Walla has broken into the culinary big time with this wine-country restaurant. Chef Mike Davis was formerly executive chef at the Seattle area's luxurious Salish Lodge.

Whitehouse-Crawford Restaurant (Walla Walla; tel. 509/525-2222): In downtown Walla Walla, at the heart of Washington's fastest-growing wine region, this restaurant in a former mill building shares space with a winery. The scene and menu have a true Seattle feel.