Seafood Dining in Florence, Oregon

My wife and I make the trip to Florence, Oregon three or four times per year. We often drive over for a weekend getaway, or a day trip, or, since it's just an hour away, sometimes just for dinner.

A one-hour drive for excellent fresh seafood? You won't have to try very hard to convince me.

If you haven't made it to Florence, I highly recommend a trip. The small coastal town is about 170 miles southwest of downtown Portland, tucked in between Newport to the north and Coos Bay to the south.

Like pretty much every town along the Oregon coast, Florence has a charming historic district. In Florence's case, that area is down by the bay, near where the Siuslaw River meets the Pacific Ocean. It's in this area you'll find my favorite restaurants in the Florence area.

Waterfront Depot Restaurant

Waterfront Depot is my favorite of the Florence seafood restaurants. Housed in an old train depot station building, Waterfront Depot is somewhat obscured at the front end of Bay Street in Florence's Old Town, nestled alongside the bay. The dining area is small, but I like to think of it as cozy. There's a nice big bar in the main room, as well. The food is excellent - the crab-encrusted halibut is my favorite dish - and the prices make it one of the best values on the entire coast.

Waterfront Depot Restaurant
1252 Bay Street
Florence, OR 97439
541-902-9100

Weber's Fish Market

Weber's is alongside Highway 101, just on the edge of Old Town Florence. We typically stop here to pick up some fresh seafood - halibut or salmon fillets - to take home, but we have, on occasion, eaten in the adjacent dining room, which is completely walled off from the actual market but is, indeed, the same establishment. This is more of a lunch-type place than a sit-down dinner, but I've had the clam strips and fish and chips, and both are pretty good.

Weber's Fish Market
802 Highway 101
Florence, OR 97439
541-997-8886

Mo's

Oregon's coastline is dotted with Mo's restaurants, which are famous throughout the region for their clam chowder. Mo's atmosphere is more cafeteria-style than dining room, but sometimes that suits us just fine. Particularly if we're aiming for great clam chowder. The rest of the menu isn't bad either, although I've learned from servers that most of the fish fillets are flash-frozen. No matter; the cajun-blackened halibut is still pretty dang good. As long as it comes with a bowl of that clam chowder, that is.

Mo's
1436 Bay Street
Florence, OR 97439
541-997-2185

The Bridgewater Restaurant

Bridgewater sits in Old Town Florence, just across Bay Street from the bay. The restaurant's atmosphere is charming, and it's housed in a historic Florence building that looks like it might've been an inn at one time. On weekend nights, we've been treated to live piano music from the adjacent parlor, and the food is pretty good and the prices are reasonable.

The Bridgewater Restaurant
1297 Bay Street
Florence, OR 97439
541-997-1133

Sources:
Restaurants and Delis, Old Town Florence
Mo's
Waterfront Depot