Where to Eat in Buena Vista: A Local's Guide to Restaurants, Coffee and Brews

Main Street is the dinner strip

Most of Buena Vista's best eating sits within a few blocks of Main Street, so you can walk to dinner and back. Simple Eatery (402 E Main St) is the everyday favorite — fresh, local plates for lunch and dinner daily, with a bakery case and a kitchen that skips MSG, preservatives and added sugar. Crave (300 E Main St) does house-made focaccia and sourdough pizza with big windows facing the Collegiate Peaks. The Buena Viking (418 E Main St) started as a food truck in 2017 and now has a brick-and-mortar courtyard with 7-oz Colorado beef burgers, loaded tots and sweet potato fries with a honey drizzle.

House Rock Kitchen (421 E Main St) is the easy answer for bowls, burritos and soups with a full bar, and Sushi Thai BV (328 E Main St) covers sushi and Thai bento boxes. For dinner with a soundtrack, The Lariat (206 E Main St) is part restaurant, part music venue — seasonal plates, signature cocktails and live shows, first come first served.

Breakfast and coffee before you head out

Cool River Cafe (505 E Main St #110) opens at 7am seven days a week and serves breakfast and lunch all day, plus a homemade bakery case — an easy stop before a day on the river or the trails. The Buena Vista Roastery (409 E Main St) is the town's coffee anchor, and Joyful Bakery & Coffee is the go-to for creative breakfasts and lunch.

For a proper sit-down breakfast, Jan's Family Restaurant and Lounge (304 US-24 N) does chicken fried steak, biscuits and gravy and waffles, and Roosters Crow Cafe (527 US-24 N) is the classic diner stop on the north end.

South Main: a whole evening in one place

South Main, on the river between downtown and Highway 24, packs a full evening into one walk. Eddyline Restaurant at South Main (926 S Main St) is the anchor — a microbrewery and restaurant with wood-fired pizzas, barbecue and grass-fed Colorado beef. Sorelle Delicatessen (303 US-24 N) is an Italian-style deli with house-made meats, cheeses and sandwiches. Wesley & Rose, the Surf Hotel's restaurant at 1012 Front Loop, sits right on the Arkansas and serves seasonal small plates and cocktails, first come first served, with Sunday brunch.

Asian Palate Marketplace, part of the South Main dining roster, cooks family recipes from across Asia and does catering, and The Blend and Bread + Salt cover smoothies, grab-and-go lunches and a classic breakfast plate. You can easily eat three different dinners here without starting a car.

Pizza, tacos, burgers and quick plates

Elkhorn Pizzeria (601 US-24 N) and Godfather's Pizza (115 Harrison Ave) are the local pizza go-tos. For Mexican, Casa Sanchez 3 (314 Charles St) serves tacos, fajitas and breakfast in a warm, unpretentious room, and La Herradura is the long-standing neighborhood Mexican spot. Biggies (234 US-24) is the sandwich shop for turkey-cheese bites and tenders, Wayno's (12985 US-24) is famous for oversized breakfast burritos and cheesesteaks, and Quincys Steak & Spirits (605 US-24) covers a steak dinner.

High Country BBQ (328 Charles St) is the pulled-pork and ribs answer, and a handful of smaller kitchens and food-truck alumni, like Blackburn Oven and Fancy Wiener, round out the list around town and at local events.

Brews, distilleries and a nightcap

Eddyline Brewery & Taproom (102 Linderman Ave) is where the beer actually gets made, with pub food and wood-fired pizza. Strange Craft Beer Company (324 E Main St) is a small, well-run local taproom on Main Street. The Jailhouse Craft Beer Bar (412 E Main St) has a rotating wall of taps in a room with real history. Deerhammer Distillery, at South Main, is the award-winning rye distillery right by the river.

For a slower drink, Terrace on Main (330 E Main St) is an open-air rooftop bar above downtown with handcrafted cocktails, cheese boards and live music from local musicians in the warm months — the best sunset seat in town.

Sweet stops for the walk back

Chocolatté (505 E Main St #120) is the chocolate shop and ice cream counter with a playground inside, so kids stay happy. Louie's Ice Cream Shoppe (414 E Main St) and Swift River Ice Cream (421 US-24) handle cones and sundaes, and Ollie's Ice does shaved ice on hot afternoons.

Riverside grills and a short drive

If you're already on the water, Browns Canyon Riverside Grill at River Runners (24070 CR 301) is the lunch stop after a rafting day. The Golf Cabin Bar & Grill (404 Grant St) sits at the local golf course, and The View Cafe & Gifts (733 US-24 N) is the north-end coffee and breakfast stop on the way out of town.

What to know before you go

Buena Vista's dining scene is almost entirely independently owned, and hours follow the season. Many places close one or two weekdays — Crave closes Tuesdays, Eddyline closes Mondays — and summer hours run longer than winter ones. Check a restaurant's own page the day you plan to go.

Most spots are first come, first served, and The Lariat asks large parties to call ahead. In July and August, plan for a wait at the busiest patios or eat a little earlier. Dogs are welcome on many patios, and downtown parking is easiest on the side streets off Main.

Eating your way through town if you're moving here

One of the things buyers tell us they love about Buena Vista is that you can walk to dinner. Homes within walking distance of Main Street and the river are some of the most requested in town, and they aren't all expensive — a few in-town cottages and smaller lots sit only a few blocks from the coffee and the pizza.

If you're thinking about making the move, tell us how you like to eat and we'll point you toward the neighborhoods that fit. This guide is general information: menus, hours and owners change, so always check with the restaurant directly before you go.