Bar Rio

First of all- I just moved here and I keep hearing this is "the bad part of town" and no, it's not…read more We passed one unhoused person who was just minding his own business. Don't be afraid to come here! Lots of food truck options which is cool. My friend and I each got zero proof cocktails. She got the sweet hemptation and liked it so much she got a second one. I got the funky cold Modena which was tart and tasty. And we got to see Miz Cracker from RuPaul's Drag Race!! So fun! The drag show was high energy and a great time.

I'll preface by stating that this establishment is a bar with a food truck lot. It is not the…read moreDogwood downtown cocktail bar that is the subject of the prior hundreds of reviews. The owners closed up shop downtown and created this new place on 2nd Street in Bend's Central District. It's now called Dogwood at the Pine Shed. Why Yelp won't create a new, distinct page for the Pine Shed is beyond me. That said, the Pine Shed is a fine place for drinks and food truck fare. The open, spacious 'shed' has plenty of varied seating surrounding a nice bar with quite a few tables outside on the patio. Mobility-challenged folks have choices too. For those worried about 2nd Street's reputation for sketchiness, don't be. Revitalization efforts by the city have transformed the area. At times of good weather, with the big doors open, the Pine Shed is quite a nice spot to relax. Cocktails were the raison d'etre for the former incarnation of Dogwood and that emphasis transfers here to the Pine Shed. I particularly like their versions of a margarita but the other cocktails are uniformly good too. The beer tap offerings are not so spectacular, however, with only four (and a cider). On one visit shortly after they opened for business, two beer taps were tapped out, which can be chalked up to growing pains. In any case, the Pine Shed can't be seriously regarded as a tap house in the style of the many others in Bend (On Tap, River's Place, Crosscut, The Lot, The Podski, Midtown Yacht Club, etc.). Come for the cocktails. They do offer low ABV and zero ABV drinks. At present, the food truck choices are abundant and pretty decent. Being trucks/carts, and thus mobile and prone to relocating themselves, I'll not list them here. Best to check the Pine Shed's webpage for current offerings and then go to the relevant Yelp page for reviews. Parking is street only, no parking lot. The city has completed construction on 2nd Street so there are more spots available than before.

Funky Cold Modena non-alcoholic cocktail

Tiny beer with Tequila shot

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The Bar

San Simon

4.7(105 reviews)

The drinks are consistently great, always made with care. The atmosphere is a fun alternative vibe…read more When it gets busy, it gets busy--but that's why it's nice to visit on the slower days for even more attentive service, just like anywhere else. Thanks so much to the San Simon staff for all the wonderful experiences!

This is a great bar with ultimate ambience. Full altar to San Simon the patron saint of debauchery…read moreinside the main seating area. Outside seating in the alleyway with little "huts" so u don't just feel like you are at a table in the middle of the alley. Service was great with lots of recommendations because all the craft cocktails look amazing so it's hard to choose. We ended up getting the gin & juice number deuce, hibiscus spritz (mocktail), and some positive feedback- all very tasty. This is a great place to grab a cocktail and sit back and relax

Gin Gimlet

San Simon in Tin Pan Alley

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Flamingo Room

4.7(44 reviews)

1.0 mi

5 stars all the way, from the moment we walked in, the atmosphere was incredible. Joe the barman…read morewas absolutely brilliant, super friendly, funny, welcoming, and made the whole experience even better. Honestly, everyone in the bar was friendly and relaxed, which gave the place such a great vibe, and the decor is amazing, especially all the live plants hanging throughout the bar... thanks Joe for showing me the only fake one hidden in there.....try find it!! The attention to detail everywhere is unreal, including the restroom ceiling... covered in hundreds of little green toy soldiers, which was completely unexpected and hilarious, such a cool quirky touch!!! Great drinks, great people, great atmosphere, one of those places you immediately want to come back to, I would highly recommend.

Cool spot. Didn't have to wait too long. Cool mix of interesting flavors. Service was good. All the…read morefood options looked pretty weird so didn't end up ordering any.

Bar

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Velvet

4.4(169 reviews)

First day of my work trip arriving in town. The hotel highly recommended visiting here. Sunday 7pm…read moreis quiet but I'm not upset. Bartender was friendly and knew his mixology well! I didn't order food but I'm sure it's delish! My drink was yummy and the decor is rustic and modern. I liked that the place felt clean too.

I've loved Velvet for years, at least the idea and aesthetic of it. Really well curated interior…read morewith a great ambiance. The owner is the only person I've felt good vibes from. The rest of the team, especially recently, have unfortunately always had frankly unwelcoming, bored, avoidant, unenthusiastic, dead expression attitudes no matter the time or stress level. I've even been in when zero customers were in the entire building and based on the sole interactions with the bar, or lack thereof, the magic gets leached away from the place. Without the bartenders, it's just an empty building after all. A welcoming attitude or some conversation is the warm hearth that brings cold travelers back over and over again; people remember how they feel. Then again, even when the place is packed with people, I don't feel any warmth or connection from anyone here. Maybe it's a sign of the times, maybe it's Bend in general. I'll keep trying and coming back nonetheless.

Great GiClee art prints on the wall in the upstairs lounge.

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View from the top in the upstairs lounge.

WildWood

4.6(42 reviews)

0.6 mi

Love this place! Great food, atmosphere and friendly staff! Very welcoming and highly recommended!read more

The restaurant looks nice and has a good vibe but that's all it has going for it. We can hear a…read morewhile back and the food was great but they changed the menu and it's horrible. I ordered the chicken and fries. The chicken is super dry with no flavor and tastes like it's fried in old dirty oil. Also the beer options are seriously lacking. Whatever they were doing years back they need to return to. The baked mac and pulled pork sando they used to serve was out of this world.

Downstairs seating

Upstairs seating area

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Beer and fire, what's not to love

Dear Irene

4.7(86 reviews)

0.0 mi

From the decor and atmosphere to the unique cocktails and attentive service, Dear Irene is one of…read moreBend's best restaurants. They offer a fixed menu with great starters, salads, and entrees. We ordered the scallops which were full of buttery deliciousness, the chicken which was cooked to perfection with crunchy breading on the outside, and a creamy polenta dish. You can't go wrong but be sure to order one of the salads. Our favorite was the baratta and citrus salad with olives and pine nuts. It has all the textures and sweet-salty goodness you could want. As for cocktails, our favorite was the pear and side piece drinks. The presentation is beautiful and they really are one of a kind. We'll be back!

I randomly stepped inside this place noticing the pretty decor and classy interior. The service was…read moreexceptional from start to finish. I was served by a tall male bartender who was incredibly personable--we talked quite a bit, and honestly, I'd go back just for that experience alone. That said, the drinks he crafted and the food that came out of the kitchen gave me plenty more reasons to return. I ended up ordering an impressive amount of food, and by the time I hit my fifth large course, he joked that he'd have to pinch himself if I actually finished it. I couldn't help it--everything was that good. He also pointed me toward the owner, who clearly knows exactly what he's doing in the kitchen and carries himself with confidence and intention. Every aspect of this place felt immersive, like stepping into a classy, well-directed film. The atmosphere, the food, the service--it all came together seamlessly.

Fun bathroom art

Scallops

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Cocktail

Zydeco Kitchen & Cocktails

4.4(1.5k reviews)

•$$$

The waiter was very attentive and knowledgeable, even memorizing the drink menu and helping guide…read moreour orders. The baby back ribs were absolutely to die for, tender and full of flavor. I had them and was very satisfied. Drinks were great, and we appreciated the non-alcoholic mocktail options for part of our group. The fries were a bit salty and the steak was slightly overcooked, but that wasn't my plate. Overall, still a great experience. The ambience was great and made for a comfortable, enjoyable meal.

We ate here on a recent trip from Eugene and we're excited to see a cajun style restaurant in Bend…read more The restaurant is nice inside and has a low key upscale feel. The menu isn't very large and I think we both settled on choices quickly, deciding to try the most "quintessential" entrees to share. I chose the Blackened Redfish, and my boyfriend the Jambalaya. Even though we had already decided, the waitress went on her whole spiel through the menu highlights, including what we had already had planned to order. Awkward, but it was fine, and we didn't stray from our original choices. The Blackened Redfish was perfectly cooked and flaky. It was served on a bed of mashed potatoes with a slightly tangy sauce. All of it was tasty, but I was a bit disappointed in the lack of spice to the blackening seasoning and the sauce. Also, serving it on grits instead of mashed potatoes would have made it feel 100% more Cajun, even with lack of seasoning. The Jambalaya fared a bit better, although my boyfriend was also left puzzled by the lack of spice to this classic dish. In all ways it was a very good representation of New Orleans style red jambalaya, with the andouille sausage being particularly notable for flavor. The cornbread it came with was pretty good. We shared a piece of chocolate cake for dessert. A very decadent concoction of chocolate, peanut butter, and caramel. It was one of the better $12 slices of cake I've had. Overall? The service was good, if not a bit awkward with the menu spiel. The food was all very well prepared, but for a Cajun style restaurant they sure could stand to spice things up a bit. It's not cheap, but at least the entrees are a full sized meal and you don't have to order many "tiny plates" to cobble together a dinner.

BBQ shrimp

Oh the carrot cake, rich, smokey, walnuts, coconut ... Cream cheese frosting... You'll dream about it!

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Please sir, may we have some more sir?

Lady Bird Cultural Society

4.2(157 reviews)

0.8 mi

Very wonderful happy hour; and...the best espresso martinis in town!!…read more Went back for dinner; delightful experience!

Unimpressed. Loved the interior, the drinks were fine, the brussel sprouts were good...but service…read moreis what makes a spot and a cute interior can't make up for lack of good service. We were seated at the low seats at the bar but weren't given menus, so I had to walk up to the hostess stand for them after waiting for a decent amount of time. The red-headed bartender/server tried to walk away after taking our drink order and had to stop him from walking away to order food. There were no check-ins at the table, a hostess walked around once filling everyone's water but that was it (so we had empty water for about half the time we were there), I had to flag down the bartender by staring at him from across the bar to get his attention for a check, once I got the check he again tried to immediately walk off even though I had the card & wallet on the table and nearly immediately put it in the book, and in general he was not amiable. I actually asked my friend after the first interaction of 'do you think he's having a bad day or hates it here?'. Lastly, the oysters are listed as 'oysters' with no description but they are not normal oysters - they have green vinaigrette, some roe type orange topping, and personally weren't enjoyable. 2.5 for service and not listing ingredients. 3 because the brussel sprouts and drinks.

The pictures do not do this place justice.

Bone marrow & escargot

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Old Fashioned

The Stihl Whiskey Bar

3.9(187 reviews)

Classy place but also laid back and relaxed. Wasn't overly loud so we could carry on a conversation…read morewithout a problem (which isn't the case at another bar around the corner). Good drinks and appetizers. Nice staff.

Great little bourbon bar in Bend. Outdoor seating makes it pet friendly. Good French 75's as well).read more

Entrance

Whiskey Flight

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Bar RBC

4.6(32 reviews)

0.0 mi

Absolutely the best restaurant we went to while we were in Bend for a long weekend. The service was…read moreamazing, recommendations were on par with expectations and food is second to none (at least compared to other restaurants we tried). Highly recommend any of the potato dishes and the pork. Place is sharable plates and made it great to have a family style with the group. got to try everything we ordered. When I'm back in Bend, i will definitely be coming back here even if its just me.

Shout out to Corrine and Kim for taking care of us. Thank you Corrine for all the great…read morerecommendations! Swung by here after spending a day at Crater Lake National Park. Parking is a bit challenging. Inside the space is a little dark, and it had a nice ambiance. The noise level is a medium. You need to speak up a little but you don't need to shout to be heard. We came without reservations, luckily for us two seats at the bar opened up so we were seated right away. Since it was our first time here we asked Corrine out for some recommendations. She talked through some of the popular dishes and also some of her personal favorites. We ordered... Food - El Bulli Olive: Fun bite if you're an olive fan. Creative gastronomy creation. - Toro Radicchio: Really tasty salad, with great flavors. - Fried Anchovies and Artichoke: Delicious! If you're an anchovies fan, get this dish. One of my favorite bites of the night. - Iberico Secretto: Meat imported from Spain. Great flavors. Drinks - Pamplemousse Spritz: Refreshing n/a cocktail. Definitely would get again. - Strawberry-White Peppercorn Shrub: One of my favorite n/a cocktails I've had to date, would recommend. Dessert - Tarta De Santiago: Solid dessert.