I know many of us feel like 2020 has been full of challenges with the restaurant industry having more than most. We love to support businesses who are making the best of a tough situation and figuring out ways to still serve the community. Our latest taste of the town was the Brown Owl in the Box Factory above the Old Mill.
Despite a strict order to not allow indoor dining, The Brown Owl has managed to create several intimate outdoor spaces that provide for proper social distancing and spacing around a wonderful center fire pit that keeps the whole space toasty despite temperatures being in the 30's. We were on the hunt for a quick bite and a drink and The Brown Owl absolutely delivered.
For beverages, we went for the classic Hot Toddy which featured wonderful honey and lemon flavors that were on point for a cold winter day and we also tried their featured "Snow Fall"...
We were very excited to be able to try out this new little wine shop, tucked away in downtown Bend. It has only been open for about 6 weeks (what a time to open!), and Dave has done an incredible job of putting together a diverse portfolio of varietals at reasonable prices.

We made a reservation for one of two outdoor dining tables to do the weekly signature flight. The seating was appropriately distanced, and each table came with its own heater; we hardly used our blankets we brought. This week's selection was Gamay- a varietal we are personally not very familiar with, so this was an extra treat!
Our tasting experience had us traveling from France to the Willamette valley...
Today in our never ending quest to find Bend's Best Bites, we came across an absolute gem of a lunch stop. Located in an Old Bend Neighborhood off the beaten path, we found a wonderful small batch vegan restaurant called Root Down Kitchen. This entirely plant based restaurant really packed in the flavors we love and made us forget there was no meat. Root Down Kitchen calls themselves "Vegan comfort food" and we absolutely agree.
We began our flavor journey with the Red Lentil Fritters. This dish offered two large fritters topped with pickled onions, cilantro, pesto, spicy aioli, and avocado crema over a bed of spicy slaw. Not only was this dish packed with such a myriad of flavors, it was also so gorgeous to look at that we hardly wanted to dig in... but we are so glad we did.
After leaving no trace behind of the fritters, we started in on our mouth watering sandwi...
At Bend Premier, we are always on the hunt for the next best bite in Bend, and today, we found an absolute gem. Tucked away in the back side of the popular Box Factory above The Old Mill, Valentine's Deli does have some "Seriously Good Sandwiches."
When it comes to vegetarian options, we always look for big flavor and an experience that makes you forget there is no meat. The Sierra sandwich at Valentine's Deli did just that. Each bite was an explosion of flavor and had me going back for more. This sandwich was toasted to perfection, giving a nice aromatic experience before even taking a bite. Featuring sun dried tomatoes, provolone, black olives, pepperoncini, arugula, lettuce, onion, tomato and red wine vinaigrette, this sandwich was packed with so many good flavors that married perfectly. We would highly recommend this sandwich to veggie and meat lovers alike.
I'm going to share a little secret with you. Stihl Whisky Bar is the new hot spot.
In Bend, sometimes its all about brunch. This fresh menu and iconic setting will stun you. After visiting Stihl Whisky Bar for several happy hour sessions we noticed that they'd started doing Brunch! Obviously we had to go check it out and we were blown away. Not only were there some great twists of brunch classics, there also was no wait! This is Bend's best kept secret and it wont stay that way for long.
Which dish was our favorite? That's hard to say. Each item we ordered had stand-alone qualities that would leave any brunch goer thrilled. Lets dive into what we ordered!
The biscuits and gravy, even without eggs, is INCREDIBLE. Wow, we didn't know you could take a classic and redefine what it should taste like. This is a dish you could literally eat everyday. Mezcal-...