3 Best Restaurants in The Far North, California

This restaurant in a white-clapboard home, framed by a picket fence and arched trellis, offers an eclectic menu, starting with bananas Foster French toast for breakfast. The varied lunch and dinner selections might include spicy Mongolian chicken salad, herb-stuffed fresh trout, pad Thai, filet mignon, and always several burgers.

The chef-owner at this light-filled restaurant in a strip mall 1½ miles southwest of downtown incorporates seasonal organic produce, free-range meats, sustainable line-caught fish, and cage-free eggs in his cuisine. Staples include salads, fish tacos, pasta dishes, and burgers (standard, veggie, or teriyaki mushroom Swiss) for dinner daily and lunch except on Sunday, when buckwheat pancakes, French toast, and two variations on eggs Benedict headline the brunch menu.

With its burgundy carpet, white linen tablecloths, and mellow lighting, this is one of Chico's coziest restaurants. The Mediterranean-influenced menu, inspired by fresh local produce, with vegetarian and pescatarian fare in addition to meat and poultry dishes, changes seasonally—steak au poivre, bucatini and clams, grilled meat loaf, and pan-seared halibut are among recent offerings.