We booked it a few days out after it surfaced in pre-trip research. The Instagram photos looked different from anything else around Zion and reminded us of dinner at Miami’s Peruvian hot spot CVI.CHE 105 so we had to try it. We showed up having deliberately eaten light — peanut butter and jelly at the Narrows, as one does — and found the dining room nearly empty early in the evening.

The ceviche and beet salad both came out delightfully sharp with acid. Allison’s salmon over risotto, finished with a wild blueberry wine reduction and aged sheep’s cheese, reads wrong on paper but worked completely. The lomo saltado was rich, salty, deeply satisfying; not a dish I shared willingly. Warren had a cheeseburger, as he does. We finished with desert, enjoying a tres leches cake with just the right amount of sweetness.

Recommendation: The lomo, beet salad, and ceviche.

Oscar’s is an institution. I’ve been coming here since 2014, again in 2017, and again this trip (2026). Springdale changes around it, but Oscar’s stays the same. The premise is simple: come off the trail hungry, leave full. Large portions of Tex-Mex staples and burgers, served promptly in a room that’s loud and a little chaotic. Not a quiet dinner spot, but exactly right after a long day outside.

We came in off the Emerald Pools trail and started with chips and guacamole, which didn’t last long. Allison went with the cheeseburger, one of the better burgers of the trip. I went back to the green chili patty melt, always the reason I return. One full roasted chili on each half of the sandwich, cutting through the salt and fat on toasted marble rye and making an absolutely delicious mess.

Recommendation: The green chili patty melt (or any of their cheeseburgers); the chile verde burrito gets a lot of praise.

Restaurant inside Zion Lodge with a captive audience and dinner demand to match. It may not look busy, but tables are held and fill quickly once people come off the trails. Reservations matter here, as we found out trying to return for the salad a second night and were turned away.

We went in with the right expectations and were pleasantly surprised. The white chicken chili stood out, tangy, a little spicy, and richer than expected. The salmon and kale salad was the best dish on the table, with a sharp cider vinaigrette, apples, pecans, and good crunch throughout. Warren’s mac and cheese needed salt and was rejected for not being Kraft.

Recommendation:The chili and the salad with your protein of choice. Make reservations.

I’d seen pictures of the ham sandwich the night before and had already decided to grab a sandwich from the Hangry Goat and coffee from Canyon Coffee. Thick-cut, smoked, stacked the way BBQ should be. We had an e-bike ride in the morning and I needed something real.

While Allison waited in line at Canyon Coffee, I took my detour and got the breakfast sandwich, ham and cheese on a bagel. The ham was excellent, somewhere between honey-baked and proper BBQ and good enough to overcome a decidedly average bagel. I was halfway through it by the time Allison made it back with the coffee.

Recommendation: The ham, egg, and cheese bagel.

Sol Foods isn’t a restaurant, but we stop in every trip without fail – sometimes for supplies, sometimes because we want to see what swag is being offered, or sometimes just because you need salty snacks after a trail. It is a Zion institution. An all-purpose store with grab+go options, an excellent deli, and a surprisingly good selection of groceries and produce. It’s basically a camp store on steroids, with prices to match.

This trip we stocked up ahead of a travel day, picked up vegetables for lunch, Gatorade, salty snacks. Warren came away with a hooded sweatshirt he’s still wearing.

Recommendation: Visit for the deli, grab+go options, swag, and miscellaneous snacks. Don’t be surprised by the prices; you’re paying for location.

MeMe’s is the easy, unhurried stop on the main strip. Patio seating with canyon wall views, a menu that runs breakfast through dinner, and some of the better prices you’ll find in Springdale. We stopped in on a previous trip and came away satisfied. The crepes are what kept coming up when we looked into it more: sweet and savory, generous portions, and the thing most people come back for.

Recommendation:MeMe’s Veggie Delight Crepe or MeMe’s Hawaiian Sandwich on the patio.

Bit & Spur – a Springdale institution since 1981 – has been on our short list because we know we crave salt and comfortable chairs after a long hike. The chips and tacos were always going to work for Warren. The margaritas were always going to work for us. Live music works for everyone. We only had two evenings in Springdale and both were spoken for. We’ll fix that next trip.

Recommendation: The sweet potato tamales

Zion Pizza & Noodle sits in a converted 1930 Mormon church on Zion Park Boulevard, and every time we drove past, the place was packed. That’s a signal worth paying attention to when Springdale has so many good options on the same street.

The pizza is the reason. Stone slate ovens, fresh dough daily, and consistently praised crust. We didn’t make it in on this trip, but it’s been on the list since we first heard about it.

Recommendation: The Cholesterol Hiker or the Rosemary Garlic

Of the three places I always stop in Springdale, Deep Creek Coffee is first. It has been my go-to coffee shop here for over twelve years and it has never disappointed — whether that’s a morning cappuccino and croissant before a trail, a more filling BRO-rito when I need something that’ll actually stick, an after lunch pick me up iced latte, or one of their specialty lattes just because. I’ve been known to go twice in a day. It’s that kind of place.

Deep Creek roasts their own coffee. The notNeutral mugs stacked on the espresso machine say the rest. This trip was an iced latte and a cortado, which we got on our way to Kolob Canyon, both excellent.

Recommendation: A cappuccino or iced mexican mocha. Don’t skip it and don’t rush it. Sit upstairs on the deck and enjoy the canyon wall views. If you’re not staying, order ahead online.

Canyon Coffee is a great and convenient stop before heading into the park — good coffee, local pastries, and an everything avocado bagel that keeps coming out of the kitchen. A front patio with canyon wall views and Zion Peddler next door if you’re renting e-bikes.

We waited out the line as the baristas were working hard to keep things moving and sending a constant stream of everything avocado bagel boxes out. The cappuccino and iced latte were good, the chocolate croissant was dark and buttery and the ham and cheese croissant was delicious. Warren approved of his bagel with cream cheese.

Recommendation: Ham and cheese croissant and an iced latte. Everything avocaod/egg bagel if you’ve got the patience.