Photo by Alicia Watkinson
Top Hat is a local favorite on all counts. Known for it's great seasonal menu and excellent happy hour, Top Hat is so much more than pub fare. They work with local farmers and ranchers, including the Mannix Family for all their beef, to insure that their menu is packed full of local options.
Eating local meets Italian flair at the locally owned and operated Ciao Mambo. Located in downtown's Hip Strip, this Missoula staple serves up comforting pasta dishes, thin-crust pizzas, and new takes on Italian classics. The lively atmosphere is a great fit for date nights and family dinners alike, making it a great choice to gather with your favorite people and settle in for a delicious evening of food and drink.
There is something incredibly relaxing about kicking back at the end of a day with a local brew. It is even more relaxing when you know that the apples in that drink were grown just a hop, skip and a jump down in the Bitterroot Valley. Western Cider, Missoula's only cidery, uses apples from their orchard just south of town to create many of their ciders. As a bonus, be sure to try the Great Bear ciders when they are on tap—used from otherwise-discarded apples from neighborhood tees right here in Missoula Valley.
We can't mention local food restaurants without mentioning Biga Pizza. Their menus are seasonally crafted to reflect what ingredients they can get locally, which means basically everything on the menu is on the table when it comes to local ingredients. Hand crafted pizzas, sandwiches and salads await you at this Missoula downtown classic.
A little taste of Bavaria meets a whole lot of Montana at Edelweiss Bistro. Located at Bayern Brewing, this German eatery sources meats and eggs from Montana farms and works with local suppliers for vegetables and sausages. Add freshly baked pretzels and a Bayern lager, and you have plenty of reasons to kick back and stay awhile.
Photo courtesy of the Good Food Store
We would be remiss to mention local foods without mentioning the O.G.: Missoula's Good Food Store. Since it's origins in the 1970s, the Good Food Store has strived to sell as much local as possible. Today, that looks like produce, breads, milks, cheeses, meats, desserts, and prepared items like jams, hot sauces, honey and more. This more-than-a-grocery-store serves as a hub for the local foods movement in Missoula and is worth a visit for any who wants to sample all that our valley (and beyond) has to offer.
When it comes to eating local, Double K Ranch keeps it close to home by bringing a taste of the Bitterroot Valley to two Missoula tables. Double K Ranch Deli on Paxson Street serves sandwiches, charcuterie and seasonal specials featuring locally raised meats processed at the ranch in Darby. Double K Bar in downtown Missoula dishes up burgers and pizzas with their own meats in a welcoming western setting in additional to a full bar with delicious, and often seasonal, drink options.
