In the main restaurant our chef, Craig Miller, provides
meals consistent with the goals of the Slow Food movement, which
began in Italy in the mid-1980s. It’s a movement dedicated
to the sustainable practice of using foods native to a given region,
ensuring not just fresh, wholesome fare, but a means of utilizing
and supporting Mother Nature at her best. This commitment to Slow
Food is what makes dinner at The Willows a fine-dining experience
any season of the year.
Click here to view the menu.
Meals
are served in the main dining room which offers a 180° view
of Rosario Strait and the San Juan islands. Breathtaking sunsets
are not to be missed and whale spotting is not uncommon during
the summer months. The covered deck allows dining al fresco during
spring, summer and fall.
Farm
Fresh and Local
The Inn’s Nettles Farm supplies the kitchen with
organic produce and pastured chicken eggs, while Riley’s reef
net fishing brings in fresh-caught salmon and other seafood for
the freshest, healthiest gourmet meals imaginable. Local waters
also provide live spot prawns, the basis for a Willows summer
favorite; “Sunday prawns on the deck.” The prawns
are kept alive in a large salt water tank on the premises, ensuring
the highest quality possible. There are very few places in the world where you can experience the Northwest's answer to the lobster as it should be served - sauteed head-on in olive oil and garlic.
A sumptuous breakfast
is served daily. Often what appears on the plate was harvested hours before. Our eggs are picked each day and their rich golden yolks are the first clue to their amazing flavor.
Our famous Spot Prawns on the Deck
Each year on the first Sunday in May, we serve up one of Rosario Strait's most delectable residents, found in cold, fast moving waters 300 feet deep. Spot prawns are not like other shrimp; because they don't have a digestive vein, they are more like lobsters. In fact, we call them Puget Sound lobsters. We keep them live on-premises in our special tank, and saute them head-on in olive oil as you watch. Spot prawns are best when cooked live and whole, and not steamed. Relax with our house- made margaritas and enjoy an experience as unique as the Willows Inn.
Reefnet Salmon "Chefs in Raingear"
The inn is in a unique position to provide a hands-on reefnetting experience to chefs and others. Click on this "Chefs in Raingear" program, and find out more.
Our ingredient sources
• Our greens come from Nettles Farm as early and late in the season as our farmer Adam Childs can coax them from the soil. Eggs we supply all year round.
• Our milk is organic, from a local dairy in Lynden, Fresh Breeze. Remember next time you have a tall latte that 83% of it is milk!
• Our beef, pork and poultry come from Skagit River Ranch, an organic farm owned by George and Eiko Voikovitch. Their committment to grass fed meat and poultry have made them Puget Sound's outstanding restaurant meat purveyers. Much sought after, we are fortunate to be among the few they are able to provide for. Imagine feeling good eating beef, knowing that it is good for you!
• Our oysters come from Drayton Harbor Community Oyster Farm, a project created by Geoff Menzies and the Puget Sound Restoration Fund. These oysters are an integral part of the cleanup of Drayton Harbor, in Blaine, which was on its way to destruction due to poor development practices. As you enjoy the amazing flavor of these delicate shellfish, imagine what a treasure would have been lost without this project. We think they are the best we've tasted.
