Best eats of 2011: Las Vegas to Oregon Coast to Canada

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Best new restaurant:  Salmon n’ Bannock, Vancouver, B.C. (see previous post for full story)

Favorite romantic restaurant on the Pacific Coast:  Albion River Inn, Albion, California (still our all-time favorite hotel, anywhere)

Best seafood with river views:  Bridgewater Bistro, Astoria, Oregon

Best seafood with fresh-from-the-boats catch:  Local Ocean Seafoods, Newport, Oregon

Best halibut anywhere, with Golden Gate Bridge view:  Murray Circle, Cavallo Point, San Francisco

Best salmon and chips:  Bell Buoy, Seaside, Oregon (best outdoor picnic tables, riverside)

Best BBQ oysters:  Nick’s Cove, Point Reyes, California (Nick’s: top romantic discovery of 2011.)

Best chowder: High Tide Cafe & Espresso Bar, Charleston, Oregon

Best cedar-planked wild salmon: Spinner’s Restaurant, Gold Beach, Oregon

Most romantic restaurant with best chance of whale-spotting:  Tidal Raves, Depoe Bay, Oregon

Favorite tapas restaurant:  Firefly Tapas Kitchen & Bar, Las Vegas (the original, on Paradise)

Best-priced international cuisine:  The Waterfront Depot, Florence, Oregon (fine cuisine at astonishing prices; history-with-water view)

Best roadside eats:  Bear Creek Artichokes, Tillamook, Oregon (fresh, local, seasonal produce in abundance; and lots of free samples — try the smoked salmon dip)

Best dockside seafood cafe, market:  Fisherman’s Seafood Market & Cafe, Coos Bay, Oregon (no website; call the fisherman-owner at 541.267.CRAB;  best outdoor seating, with history)

Best seven-course, homemade breakfast with ocean views and history: Heceta Head Bed & Breakfast, Heceta Head Lighthouse, Oregon

Best homemade breakfast with garden views and history:  The Old Tower House Bed & Breakfast, Coos Bay, Oregon

(ALL PHOTOS BY HADI DADASHIAN)