Big Bend National Park is one of my favorite places I have visited! I love the rugged terrain and the feeling of peace you get from being in nature and away from the noise of the city. Big Bend National Park is in a remote part of Texas along the Mexican border. There are limited options for restaurants here compared to what you would find in a more populous city. Despite this, we still ate at some great restaurants and some of the views we had while dining were amazing! I loved how so many of the restaurants were open air, which allowed you to enjoy your surroundings while dining. We did go in October though so I may not feel the same way in the summer when the temperature is often over 100 degrees! In this article, I will share with you about some of the restaurants we were able to try and what we liked about them!
Terlingua
The town of Terlingua is where you will find the majority of restaurants in the Big Bend area. Although it is considered a ghost town and has less than 200 permanent residents, it thrives with tourism.
Starlight Theater
If you are looking for a place to eat dinner after a long day of hiking or exploring, then Starlight Theater is a great choice! They open at 5pm and are housed in a historic theater building. They often host musical guests, which makes for a nice atmosphere at dinner. Starlight Theater is a popular restaurant and there is often a wait to get a table. They have a large front porch where you can wait, you can explore the area, or go to the next door gift shop. We explored the area around the restaurant(with some amazing views!) and also visited the gift shop while we waited. Once seated, you will be able to select your food from an enticing menu. I went with the chicken sandwich and it was quite good! You can check out their menu here:
https://www.thestarlighttheatre.com/pages/menu.html
DB’s Rustic Iron BBQ
DB’s Rustic Iron BBQ restaurant is considered fast casual BBQ. To order, you go up to the counter and they will bring you your meal when it is ready. While they did not have any music while we were there, they do have a stage and frequently bring in musical guests to entertain diners. Be aware that they are closed Mondays and Tuesdays, so be sure to plan accordingly.
High Sierra Bar and Grill
High Sierra Bar and Grill is a restaurant that is part of the Ghost Town hotel. When we visited, the restaurant was quite busy. After they sat us and another party, the tables were almost completely filled. There was only one waitress for the restaurant that evening but she was quite efficient. I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich. It was quite delicious. This restaurant also has live music occasionally. Check out their Facebook page to see what musical guests they have coming up: https://www.facebook.com/highsierrabar
Long Draw Pizza
Long Draw Pizza was one of my favorite restaurants we visited on this trip. The service from the staff was the best we received in the Big Bend area! We sat in the front part of the restaurant. This area is set up with long tables where different parties will sit at together. They do put space between parties so you are not sitting directly next to a stranger. This can be a fun way to meet new people though! The restaurant was not super busy when we visited, so there was only another group or two sitting in this area. They also had multiple tv’s showing different sports games. Making it perfect for us as we were wanting to watch the World Series while eating there.
When we visited, it was a bit difficult to find the restaurant because we went after dark. Big Bend National Park is certified as an international dark sky park. There are minimal lights throughout this entire area to ensure there is no light pollution. This is common with many of the places you go, but we always tried to get to where we were going before dark if possible. I would recommend taking this into consideration for your trip as well.
Long Draw Pizza is closed on Tuesdays and only open for dinner the other days of the week. They have fun names for their pizzas that reflect the surrounding area like “Big Bend” and “Rio Grande”. We ordered cheesy bread as well as our pizzas and it was all very good. They also had a space at the back of the restaurant outside where you could dine and enjoy live music. Check out everything they have to offer here: https://www.longdrawpizza.com/
Espresso Y Poco Mas
Espresso Y Poco Mas is a cute little breakfast and coffee spot. They open at 7:30am daily and are open until 2pm. We visited this restaurant for breakfast one morning and we went back the next morning. The food here was good and the view of the sunrise from this location made it worth it to get up early! When you go to order, you walk into a very small building. Only a few people can be in there at a time. Even though we got there right after it opened, there was already a small group of people waiting to order. After we received our order, we took our food to their outside dining space. We enjoyed our breakfast burritos while watching the sunrise. It was truly spectacular and a wonderful way to start our day!
Taqueria el milagro
Taqueria El Milagro is an open air restaurant not far from Espresso Y Poco Mas. They are open Wednesday through Sunday and are open from 3pm-9pm on these days. We ventured to this restaurant after a long day of hiking to grab a late lunch. We ordered a sampler of tacos and I even got a Nopales (prickly pear cactus) taco!I love getting to try new things and it was all very good! I highly recommend this restaurant if you want an unique taco experience.
Venga Cafe
One of the things I loved about Venga Cafe was the interior! It was spacious, nicely decorated, and had a coffee shop vibe. We went to breakfast here and ordered coffee/tea along with a bagel and breakfast burrito. They had many other tasty looking options to choose from as well. You can access their menu here to see all they have to offer: https://www.vengacafe.com/s/order?location=LYM4KBKPHGRFM&menu=true#6JIQJT2W5QBRA4NPCU4NZNC3
Study Butte
Cottonwood General Store
A general store might not be what you think of when you think of places to grab food, but I was so impressed with this grocery store! It looks small from the outside but it is packed with so many essentials. I try to eat dairy free and I was pleasantly surprised with how many options they had for diary free items that I could purchase. If you are staying in an Airbnb with a kitchen, in an RV, or camping I highly recommend stocking up at Cottonwood General store and making a few of your meals if you want to save some money! You can also stop in to get some snacks to enjoy while exploring Big Bend
Lajitas
Candelilla Cafe
Candelilla Cafe is on the property of the Lajitas Golf Resort and it is open to the public until 5pm. If you are staying on the resort or at their RV park, you can also enjoy dinner here, but make sure you make a reservation. When we visited, we were not guests of the resort, so we ate here for lunch. The day we visited was a beautiful day and we sat outside on the patio. The views from lunch were gorgeous and being able to enjoy the weather and beautiful surroundings added to the experience.
We ordered the three amigos appetizer which includes a red and green salsa along with queso. The appetizer was good but not spectacular. We then ordered a burger and the taco salad. My husband and I both enjoyed our main meals. Candelilla Cafe changes their menu seasonally so there will always be something fresh to choose from. I highly recommend coming here to enjoy the food and the view. However, beware that the restaurant was a bit pricier than some of the other restaurants we visited.
Lajitas General Store
Another general store that we visited while at Big Bend was the Lajitas General store. While I found Lajitas General Store (run by the golf resort) to be a bit pricier than Cottonwood general store, it was still nice to hop in and grab some essentials. We decided to roast hot dogs on the fire pit at our Airbnb and we did not want to have to drive to the other store. Lajitas General Store had all the supplies we needed, including firewood. While it was not a full fledged grocery store like Cottonwood General Store, it still had some essentials that you can stock up on if needed. Lajitas General Store and Cottonwood General store are about 20 minutes from each other and that may also determine which one you would go to. Lajitas is near Big Bend Ranch State Park and Cottonwood is near Big Bend National Park. They are both easily accessible though if you are in the area.
Big Bend National Park
Chisos mountain lodge restaurant
Chisos Mountain Lodge restaurant is located inside Big Bend National Park in the Chisos Basin. This restaurant is very convenient if you are staying at the lodge in the Chisos Basin or doing one of the hikes in the area. We ate here after hiking the Lost Mine Trail. It was a perfect respite after hiking all morning and a great place to warm up. We were visiting right after an ice storm and there had limited supplies at the restaurant, but it did not stop them from opening and still serving what they had available. I ordered the grilled sandwich and it was delicious. My favorite part of the restaurant was the large windows we sat next to that overlooked the mountains. I could have stayed there all day enjoying the view! They also had patio seating which would have been wonderful for warmer days.
As of June 2025, the lodge and restaurant are currently in renovation and they are not open. They do have a food truck called the Big Bend Chuck Wagon that serves guests from 8am-8pm. Check out their menu here: https://www.chisosmountainslodge.com/dining/chisos-mountains-lodge-dining-room/. I look forward to seeing how they renovate the area and look forward to going back!
There are quite a few great restaurants around the Big Bend area and many we have yet to visit. I plan to add to this list as we go back and try even more restaurants. Have you been to any of these or have other suggestions? Let me know in the comments!
Hiking in Big Bend? Check out three great hikes we went on when we visited!
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