The Pine Tavern is a restaurant in
Bend, Oregon
Bend is a city in central Oregon and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is located to the east of the Cascade Range, on the Deschutes River.
The site became known by pioneers as a ford (cros ...
, United States. Opened in 1936, the restaurant is located in downtown Bend and is one of the city's best known landmarks. The main dining room was built around two large
ponderosa pine
''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine, is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is t ...
trees for which the restaurant is named. Both the main dining room and the restaurant's outdoor garden dining area overlook the
Deschutes River
The Deschutes River ( ) in central Oregon is a major tributary of the Columbia River. The river provides much of the drainage on the eastern side of the Cascade Range in Oregon, gathering many of the tributaries that descend from the drier, easte ...
. Today, the Pine Tavern is the oldest restaurant in the city of Bend.
History
In 1919, Maren Gribskov and Eleanor Bechen opened a restaurant in downtown Bend called the O.I.C Cafeteria.
["Bend Business Changes Hands", ''The Oregonian'', Portland, Oregon, 7 December 1967, p. 55.][Morris, Elizabeth, and Mark Morris, "Bend", ''Moon Handbooks Oregon'' (seventh edition revised by Judy Jewell and Bill McRae), Avalon Travel Publishing, Emeryville, California, p. 432.] In 1936, the two partners decided to move to a new location overlooking
Mirror Pond
Mirror Pond is an impoundment of the Deschutes River in Bend, in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is between Pacific Power's Bend Hydro dam and the Colorado dam, between RM 166 and 167. The pond is flanked by Drake, Harmon, Pageant, Brooks, Columbi ...
on the Deschutes River. They named the new restaurant the Pine Tavern because of two large ponderosa pine trees that grew in the middle of the restaurant's back patio.
["History of the Pine Tavern Restaurant"](_blank)
''Pine Tavern Restaurant'', Bend, Oregon, 15 March 2014.[Anderson, John Gottberg]
"Restaurants: Best outdoor dining"
''The Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 1 June 2012.["The pine in Pine Tavern At more than 150 years old, famous tree is in reasonable health"](_blank)
''The Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 9 November 2013.
Despite the economic hardships caused by the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, the Pine Tavern was a success, especially popular with local
timber workers and their families. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the restaurant became popular with soldiers from nearby
Camp Abbot. After the war, word-of-mouth recommendations brought tourists, travelers, and skiers to the Pine Tavern. In 1957, a major renovation expanded the dining area, incorporating the two giant pine trees into a new dining room.
In 1967, the Pine Tavern was sold to Dallas "Tex" Carter, a retired furniture manufacturer from
Tacoma
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, northwest of Mount ...
,
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
.
In the early 1970s, Carter sold the restaurant to Winifred Roley. She operated the Pine Tavern for a decade before selling it to Bert Bender and Joe Cenarrusa in 1982. Bender was an experienced restaurateur, having operated well-known dining establishments in
Sun Valley and
Ketchum Ketchum may refer to:
Places
United States
* Ketchum, Idaho, a city
* Ketchum, Oklahoma, a town
* Lake Ketchum, Washington, a census-designated place
Antarctica
* Ketchum Glacier
* Ketchum Ridge
Other uses
* Ketchum (surname), a surn ...
,
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
, before taking over the Pine Tavern. In the 1990s, Bender and Cenarrusa redesigned the garden and patio dining area that overlooks the Deschutes River. Cenarrusa was killed in an airplane crash in 1997. However, Bender continued to operate the restaurant until his death in 2009.
[Doran, Tim]
"New owner knows restaurant well Pine Tavern's Justine Bender Bennett has been involved since childhood"
''The Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 7 December 2010.
After Bender died, his wife, Christine, and his daughter, Justine Bender Bennett, took charge of the Pine Tavern. In 2010, the front dining area was remodeled, removing a large booth and replacing it with tables to open up the interior space. In the following year, bathrooms were renovated and the interior was updated with new carpet and upholstery.
Landmark
The Pine Tavern is the oldest restaurant in the city of Bend.
According to the ''
Bend Bulletin
''The Bulletin'' is a newspaper in Bend, Oregon, United States. ''The Bulletin'' is owned by EO Media Group.
History Establishment
To start a newspaper in Bend, a printing press and other publishing equipment items were brought overland from t ...
'' newspaper, the restaurant's success is the result of its unique character, picturesque location, and long-standing reputation for good service and quality cuisine.
[Johnson, Julie]
"Pine Tavern dishes up taste of Bend history"
''The Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 31 December 2002.[Anderson, John Gottberg]
"Bend's Pine Tavern still going after 74 years"
''The Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 27 August 2010.
The two large ponderosa pines in the restaurant's main dining room give diners the feeling of being in an outdoor terrace with a view of the Deschutes River from large windows on three sides. The smaller of the two pine trees that are the centerpiece to the Pine Tavern's main dining room, was killed by
mountain pine beetles in 1983. The lower part of that tree's trunk still rises through the dining room roof, giving the impression of a living tree. However, the upper part of the tree has been removed. The larger pine tree is estimated to be up to 300 years old. It is healthy and still rises through the roof of the main dining room to tower above the restaurant.
The Pine Tavern's garden overlooks Mirror Pond, an impoundment of the Deschutes River. The garden's brick patio is open for dining in the summer. The garden area is covered by
maple
''Acer'' is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the soapberry family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated si ...
and
birch
A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...
trees and landscaped with
hosta
''Hosta'' (, synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Funkia'') is a genus of plants commonly known as hostas, plantain lilies and occasionally by the Japanese name gibōshi. Hostas are widely cultivated as shade-tolerant foliage plants. The genus is placed ...
s and
geranium
''Geranium'' is a genus of 422 species of annual, biennial, and perennial plants that are commonly known as geraniums or cranesbills. They are found throughout the temperate regions of the world and the mountains of the tropics, with the gre ...
s. There is also a large birdhouse built to look like the Pine Tavern in a corner of the garden.
Dining in the garden area is very popular with both tourists and local guests.
Over the years, the Pine Tavern has been a popular venue for special events. It has hosted local civic groups, wedding receptions and anniversary dinners,
political gatherings,
museum
A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
fund raising events, and art shows. Because of its history and location on the Deschutes River, the Pine Tavern remains one of Bend's most popular restaurants.
["Pine Tavern Restaurant Review"](_blank)
''Visit Bend'', Bend Visitor Center, City of Bend, Bend, Oregon, 15 March 2014.
Menu
The Pine Tavern's menu is based on locally produced foods and ingredients. For example, prime rib and the flat iron steaks served at the restaurant are from ''Oregon Country Beef'', a
Central Oregon
Central Oregon is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Oregon and is traditionally considered to be made up of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Other definitions include larger areas, often encompassing areas to the north towards t ...
ranching operation that raises
hormone
A hormone (from the Ancient Greek, Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of cell signaling, signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs or tissues by complex biological processes to regulate physio ...
-free cattle. The restaurant's lamb is from a sheep ranch near
Shaniko, Oregon
Shaniko (, ) is a city located in Wasco County, Oregon, United States, on U.S. Route 97 and about north of Antelope. The population was 30 at the 2020 census.
Geography
Shaniko is in Wasco County, in north-central Oregon, at the intersecti ...
, north of Bend. Their salmon is line-caught
chinook
Chinook may refer to:
Chinook peoples
The name derives from a settlement of Indigenous people in Oregon and Washington State.
* Chinookan peoples, several groups of Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest
** Chinook Indian Nation, an organiza ...
from the
Columbia River
The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...
. The chef uses Oregon
hazelnut
The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus '' Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according to ...
s for the crust on
brie
Brie ( ; ) is a soft cow's-milk cheese named after Brie (itself from Gaulish ''briga'', "hill, height"), the French region from which it originated (roughly corresponding to the modern of Seine-et-Marne). It is pale in colour with a slight gre ...
appetizers while pears, apples, and
marionberries served in various dishes are from
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...
orchards and berry farms. As a result, the Pine Tavern's menu helps to support local ranchers and farmers as well as serving dinner guests.
Location
The Pine Tavern is in downtown Bend, Oregon. It is at the end of Oregon Avenue with Brooks Street passing in front of the restaurant. The front of the Pine Tavern looks directly up Oregon Avenue while the back overlooks Mirror Pond.
[Pratt, Gerry, "Bend Finds Winner In Recreation Boom", ''The Oregonian'', Portland, Oregon, 7 March 1967, p. 16.]
References
External links
''Bend Visitor Center'', Pine Tavern restaurant review
{{coord, 44.0600, -121.3141, type:landmark_region:US-OR, display=title
1936 establishments in Oregon
Buildings and structures in Bend, Oregon
Companies based in Bend, Oregon
Restaurants in Bend, Oregon
Restaurants established in 1936