Duarte’s Tavern

They get super busy so I’d recommend a reservation. We had a 3:30 reservation and they were still packed. They do have a full bar so an easy wait if needed.
Love the half and half for soup. It’s not on the menu but it’s excellent. If I had to pick I like the artichoke soup a touch more. You would think they would mix together but the consistency is just right for the combo.
Service was excellent! I would definitely come back and recommend this place. It’s a tavern so don’t expect it to be super fancy.

Arrived at 11:15 and was told I needed to wait until 11:30 to put my name down for lunch. Stood around with about 5 other parties who were also waiting. At 11:20 a new customer walks in and asks to put his name down. The host and hostess took down the newcomer’s name and told her it was a 25 minute wait. Those of us who were told to wait are looking at each other wondering why they didn’t put our name down first. We all walk up and put our name down. It’s now a 30 – 40 minute wait. It wouldn’t have been so bad if the host and hostess could crack a smile or pretend to have sympathy for us who can’t understand their check in system. They were borderline rude. Hope the food redeems this place… just finished an over priced lunch. Yes, the artichoke soup was delish but the fish and chips leave a lot to be desired. Final remark: Don’t believe the hype.

Stopped in for lunch with my girlfriend. This was actually our destination because we love this place enough to drive 48 miles. Surprisingly, we found parking at the front. What was upsetting, however, is the long wait. This is my favorite restaurant of all time and I can hardly wait to come back. The green chile/​artichoke mix is the best you will ever have. The only reason I remove a star is because the tables are sticky, the floor is sticky, the silverware is dirty, and the service is mind-​numbingly long once you order. But it is worth it to sample their delicious meals.

Review for olallieberry berry pie only-​seriously, my favorite pie of all time. Get a slice to-​go and grab some Sightglass coffee across the street at Downtown Local.
So good!!!

Duarte’s is a must stop for me on any coastal road trip. It is a nice combination of dive bar and old school eatery, but with some real gems. The menu reflects the choices of a local community rather than a hot shot chef, so you can find traditional presentations of the California cuisine that came from its ethnic roots. This is one of my top five favorite spots for Cioppino. The local Portuguese community is reflected in a linguica sandwich that local Portuguese farmers used to relish for lunch. All of that is good.
But the real gem that everyone talks about is the berry pie. You can sometimes find the Duarte Pies in your local hoity toity market, but just come and get a slice! The only better local pie might be at Kozlowski Farms near Sebastopol (if you need pie tour ideas!).
Unilocal just sent a newsletter with ideas for a Pescadero Daytrip, and why this place was not included is a mystery, since I would designate Duarte’s as stop #1!

Had a very good experience sitting in the tavern/​bar on a Saturday early evening.
A local suggested the cream of green chile soup and I absolutely loved it! Homemade sourdough bread comes with it and is also very good.
I followed that up with a piece of Olallieberry pie and a scoop of ice cream, and I was in heaven.
The Mojitos were also very good, fresh, with lots of mint.

I’ve had this place bookmarked for years. Finally a few days ago, I stopped in for a late lunch. Finding a parking space my be tricky, I was able to score a spot front and center (lucky timing).
Hubs and I shared a bowl of cioppino. It was around $ 35. It came with a side of warm crusty bread and butter. The bread was delicious. I’m still thinking about that darn bread, it’s that memorable. The cioppino was hearty and the broth was deliciously seasoned. Not tomato tasting nor sweet, which I don’t prefer in a cioppino. I can taste how this is an award winning recipe. Yum! It had lobster, crab, clams, shrimp, and some sort of white firm fish. The claws were good sized and meaty. Both waitresses were sweethearts. Instead of plastic bibs, they provide cloth gingham print bibs to wear. After the meal, they provided us each a hot towel and a slice of lemon to clean our hands.
I will definitely come back. I want to try the ollieberry (sp?) pie, artichoke/​green chile soup, and deep fried smelt. But I guess the menu all depends on the season.
The interior was clean but charmingly trapped in time. I wouldn’t want it any other way. Even the women’s bathroom was clean and updated/​modernized enough to keep the old charm.

This is a must if you are in the area (and worth the detour into town if you are on the road. They make the most delightful green chili soup, which is almost like a cream of green chili — it has a great kick to it! Because of their proximity to the central coast, they have access to artichokes! We also got the cream of artichoke soup, and the artichoke ravioli — both were great, assuming you like artichokes.
But the real reason we came here is for the pie. They have several varieties on a regular basis, including olallieberry pie. What is an olallieberry? It’s a cross of two berries that are also crosses, but tastes like a blackberry. Their pies are really, really good.
Finally, they won a James Beard American Classic award, if you are into that sort of thing.

This is a classic restaurant and has some delicious food! It gets busy and is a definite local favorite. You must make reservations even in the middle of the day. The soups are great and they have a good selection. Cream of artichoke is one of my favorites as is the chili. The pies are also outstanding. I love the olallieberry pie. Here’s an article about it in AAA magazine:
There is good parking, and comfortable seating. I highly recommend this local favorite!

Duarte’s is one of maybe two restaurants in town, and so it’s kind of a must eat at place if you’re staying in the area for awhile. That said, i liked it a lot better the first time I visited, about 12 years ago. I do have to say the warm, crusty bread was outstanding… but then everything else ranged from mediocre to really disappointing. Especially so the coconut cream pie, which was a weird gelatinous meringue topped catastrophe. Stick with the olallieberry pie, if you need a slice of pie, I suppose.

Overpriced and under seasoned.
I was part of a group of 6 for dinner. I ordered the cheese burger $ 7 and it was child size, I felt like the old lady in the Wendy’s commercials, «where’s the beef?».
The local tomato salad with goat cheese was ok but not $ 12 ok.
My friend ordered the pork chops and he was pleased however it came with steamed broccoli & cauliflower which had zero taste and not completed cooked.
The place has the corner market only because the selection in town is limited to 2.
I am sure the wait staff knows something is up with 25% of the dishes are uneaten.

I usually stop by this place every time I go fishing to Pescadero, and I always get great service and Delicious food but today was totally different…
I was on my way to Pescadero I called this restaurant to place and easy order of 3 turkey sandwiches with all the ingredients separate…
The lady who answered the phone said NO we can’t make any lunch until 11:30am! Honestly I was shocked because I have bought my sandwiches before at 7am… And than I thought maybe their policies changed I asked her to transfer me to her manager and she did…
When her manager picked up he was RUDE… He said we have been making you a favor by making you sandwiches so early I was in shocked because as far as I know I pay for my sandwiches I’m NOT asking for anything free!
When I told Tim the Manager that all I wanted was 3 sandwiches with everything separate he said again «We are not willing to make that favor for you today.»
I told him I was going to share my experience on Unilocal and he said «I don’t care about your stupid reviews write my name on all the websites if you want!»
I would love an e-​mail from the real management for this place, because that Tim that answered today sounded very unprofessional and if he is really the manager to that place, I feel sorry for that place!
Unless I hear from a real manager I won’t visit this place again! Because their favors are NOT cheap, expensive restaurant for bad customer service!
Tim should be FIRED!

Pescadero is not usually in the realm of places I frequent. In fact, I’m certain this was my first time visiting this part of the Bay Area. However, the name Duarte’s Tavern was very familiar to me.
It could have been because I recalled an old episode of «Bay Area Backroads,» a show I wish I hosted that explored eating here.
It may have been that a friend or two has told me about this legendary place. I seem to recall conversations about the amazing soup and the wonderful seafood.
I don’t know where the inkling came from but I know this: Duarte’s Tavern is good.
First, leave an pretensions you have at the door. The second part of the name «Tavern» should tell you all you need to know.
Also, this eating establishment has been here for a very long time. I saw pictures on the wall from the 1940’s which should be a good sign to those who come here: The place keeps attracting folks!
Personally, and getting right to the food, I started with the half and half soup (Artichoke and green chili): It was awesome!
I then moved on to the crab melt… thank God, this was real crab and it tasted wonderful. I topped it off with cobbler which was tart and tasty.
Needless to say my party and I waddled out of the tavern!
I don’t know when or if I’ll be back but I know where Duarte’s is now. And should the mood strike me in making my way out to Pescadero again, I know where I’m going to eat!

I have mixed feelings about this café: it’s dark and down-​at-​the-​heels and the service is not personal but the food is solid and showcases local produce.
That it was the weekend of the Pescadero Fair and the place was packed and everyone harried, I’m going to give Duarte’s (pronounced «Do-​Arts») the benefit of the doubt and be a bit more generous in my review.
The prices were kind of steep but it’s not like they have much competition in the area and they do also use fresh ingredients. The delicious artichokes were in peak season and perfect in the artichoke ravioli which was terrific. The ravioli’s tomato cream sauce was a little too heavy but it was very savory and complemented the artichokes perfectly.
We were too full to order dessert but a «must» order item is their famous olllaieberry pie which we took to go. Warmed with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, it’s pretty spectacular — and that’s how Duarte’s serves it.
The food, service and atmosphere are 3, maybe 3.5 stars but for their pie alone, I’ll bump ‘em up.
If you’re a small party of 2 or 3, ask to sit at the counter. It has the best seating in the house and this weird, yellow light that’ll make you feel that you’ve stepped into a Hopper painting.

This is another nice family owned place along highway 1. They have been around for more than 120 years! That is a long time for a restaurant in California, heck, even in America! If you drop by, you must taste their cream of artichoke or green chile soup. The fish is always good, and the pies too! If you have room at the end, try their bread pudding or olallieberry pie.
For more information on the history of this place listen to this NPR special:

Came here over the weekend with a group of 24, and we were split into two tables. We made reservations in advance, which is highly recommended since this is not a big restaurant. We were spending the weekend in Half Moon Bay, and this place is about 15 miles away and was recommended to one of my family members. Checking out the reviews on Unilocal,I was super excited to check this place out, and it did not disappoint!
I had a really hard time deciding on what to order, because everything looked amazing! My BF and I decided to go with the half green chile/​half artichoke soup which was highly recommended, and it was really good, especially when you dip the complimentary warm sourdough bread provided. The bread was so good and filling that I ended up not being able to finish our entrees, which was even more breaded items… abalone sandwich ($ 25) came with fries and crab melt ($ 17) and served by itself. I preferred the crab melt. I read high reviews about the abalone sandwich, but it was nothing special to me. I even took it off the bread and sprayed some lemon on it and it just kinda didn’t taste like much of anything. I don’t recommend ordering it.
I got to try some of the calamari appetizer, which was good. The mussels appetizer was also great. One of my family members got the crab cioppino and said it was totally worth it!
I’m so sad that we didn’t have time to eat the pie, because the first table was done way before my table and were waiting for us to get going.
Service was pretty good, and it was a total mom and pop restaurant, which I LOVE!
If you’re in the area or passing through, I definitely recommend this place! :)

According to my sister, you have to know what to order at different restaurants. True enough, but if you go to a restaurant that has fresh seafood as a staple of its menu, and it is in a town called «Pescadero» (fishmonger in English), you would think that seafood would be a good option. And you would be sadly mistaken.
I had the calamari, which was bland and overcooked, and the fish-​n-​chips, which was also shockingly bland. No flavor in the batter, no seasoning of the fish. Really some of the worst calamari and fish-​n-​chips I have ever had. (The fries were good enough, but that is not the star of the dish.)
According to my sister, if you eat at Duarte’s you have the artichoke and green chili soup (half and half) and pie. Which is true enough. Duarte’s is a 5 star diner for its expensive soup and pie. But there is more on its menu than that, so it has to be judged for the food I ordered. Averaging the 5 stars with the 1 star seafood makes 3 stars.
You don’t have many options in this part of the world, so if you’re in Pescadero, why not? But I would not drive out of my way to go to Duarte’s unless I had a hankering for soup and pie.

The soups and pies are the high points at this family owned restaurant. The food and décor are throwbacks to another time.
The artichoke soup is a long time favorite and the green chile soup was added to the menu about 25 years ago. Now they serve a half and half bowl with the two soups. It was good but a little expensive at $ 9. However, they do serve sliced warm sourdough rounds so you could make a meal out of soup and bread. There is also a seafood soup that was ok.
DH had the Bloody Mary and thought it had too much horseradish.
The crab sandwich, which is made with fresh crab through the end of June this year, was ok. Served on toasted white bread with shredded lettuce. Second or third time I’ve had it – I should stick to the hot entrees. I would prefer the sandwich on French bread. Pork chops with homemade apple sauce are good. The fried oysters are very good. Calamari steak is good.
We had ollalieberry pie, peach pie and apricot pie. All were made with fresh fruit and very good.
A nice place to bring out-​of-​town guests to since it is so near some beautiful, easy access beaches. If you time it right, you can see the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean on the drive. It’s a refreshing change from fashionable California cuisine.

We stopped here for some soup to go with our artichoke bread. I got the veggie, and my friend got the cream of artichoke. The soup wasn’t bad but not great, either. For $ 8 a tiny cup, it should be great.
3 stars for the soup
1 star for the price (–10 stars, really)
I would pass on this place. There are other options.