The Willows Inn dining room has a seasonally inspired menu created by our chef Blaine Wetzel. Ingredients come fresh from our own Nettles Farm, are foraged in our nearby fields, reefnet-caught from marine waters just outside our door, and bought from local purveyors. Our philosophy in the kitchen is consistent with 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. This is what eating from your landscape is all about!
Our main dining room offers a 180° view of Rosario Strait and the San Juan islands. Breathtaking sunsets and whale spotting are all possible from our dining room. The covered deck allows dining al fresco during spring, summer and fall.
Breakfast
A sumptuous breakfast is served daily and is made from the same fresh, organic and local ingredients as our dinners. Our eggs are picked each day and their rich golden yolks are the first clue to their amazing flavor.
Our famous Spot Prawns
Every Monday and Tuesday from June 1 thru August 31, the Taproot Cafe serves up one of Rosario Strait's most delectable residents, spot prawns. Found in cold fast moving waters about 300 feet deep, These shrimp aren't like others because they don't have a digestive vein, they are more like langostinos. In fact, we call them Puget Sound lobsters. We keep them live on-premises in our special tank, and sauté them head-on in olive oil as you watch. Spot prawns are best when cooked live and whole, and not steamed. We serve them on the patio at the Taproot Cafe and on the Willows front deck. Enjoy them with our house-made margaritas!
Our ingredient sources
• Our greens come from Nettles Farm as early and late in the season as our farmer Becky Seward can coax them from the soil. Eggs we supply all year round.
• Our milk comes from a local organic dairy in Lynden, Fresh Breeze. When you have a tall latte about 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 commitment to grass fed meat and poultry have made them Puget Sound's outstanding restaurant meat purveyor. Because of their limited production, we are fortunate to be among the few they are able to provide for. You can feel good eating beef, knowing that it is raised sustainably!
• We also get organic grass-fed Lummi Island beef from Phil Tucker, of Fourth Corner Farms, and heirloom organic chickens from Bernie Nash, owner of Mad Hatchers, of Euphrata.