Healthy Eats to Fuel Your Northwestern Wisconsin Adventures
Northwestern Wisconsin, we might be partial, but we think you’re amazing: a four-season, forested arcadia that is stunning all the way from the St. Croix River right up to the shoreline of Lake Superior. With so many active folks traveling to the region seeking adventure in the water and woods, it’s no surprise that following our post about healthy eating options in the Northwoods, you asked us about more healthy options to the west. Well, northwestern Wisconsin travelers, here are five restaurants in the region with healthy options, just for you.
Brick House Cafe – Cable
Although Brick House Cafe’s Lake Owen panini and espresso BBQ pulled pork, featured on the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives," make for a hearty lunch, the cafe also offers several lesser-known but healthy options. Try the delicious garden wrap or, our personal favorite, the redberry wrap, made with fresh turkey, brie, and cranberry-orange relish. Image from facebook.com/brickhousecafecable.
Cafe Wren – Luck
This cafe is all about supporting a healthy, happy, creative community. It is the perfect breakfast or lunch stop for hikers and bicyclists who are traversing the Gandy Dancer State Trail, which runs adjacent to the cafe. You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. Cafe Wren’s offerings are chock full of elevated staples, like organic maple nut oatmeal—topped with homemade granola and other fixins—or their black bean wrap—featuring organic quinoa, mixed greens, and Castle Rock raw cheddar. Or if you’re feeling adventurous, try their bahn mi, featuring all-natural chicken, fresh cucumbers, and zesty pickled carrot slaw. Image from facebook.com/cafewren.
Hope & Anchor Cafe – Chetek
Right around the corner from beautiful Lake Chetek sits this relaxed and cozy cafe, which offers several healthy breakfast and lunch options to accompany your latte. For breakfast, warm your soul with the anchors away oatmeal with apples, walnuts, and cranberries. Hope & Anchor Cafe's hummus veggie wrap and apple walnut salad are great healthy picks for lunch. Image from facebook.com/hopeandanchorcoffeehouse.
Rookery Pub Fine Dining – Cable
Located in the heart of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, Rookery Pub Fine Dining offers casual gourmet fare. This award-winning restaurant’s dinner menu changes with the seasons to bring the freshest selections to the table. The Sunday patio menu features many healthy options, including the grilled watermelon salad, the sweet and savory wrap, and the yellowfin tuna, served with wasabi on a toasted pub bun. If you’d like to stick around Cable to enjoy the bountiful waterfalls, bike trails, or many other natural attractions, you can head just upstairs to the Cable Nature Lodge for a serene night's sleep after your meal. Image from facebook.com/rookerypub.
Watershed Cafe – Osceola
This place has it all: a great location (nestled along Geiger and Cascade Falls), history (it’s located where the office for the original Osceola Mill was located), on-trend aesthetics, art (Watershed Cafe is adorned by the works of local artists), and, of course, delicious, nutrient-dense, locally sourced foods. We recommend trying the funky wrap for breakfast, the housemade (vegetarian) wild rice burger for lunch, or the river runs through it bowl (pan-seared Star Prairie trout, wild rice, roasted veggies, and more!) for dinner. Image from facebook.com/thewatershedcafewi.
Healthy Grab-and-Go Options
Looking to take your healthy fare to go so you can go about your adventures in beautiful northwestern Wisconsin? You're in luck! Northwestern Wisconsin has several stellar natural food grocers with prepared items ready to go. Stop in at Natural Alternative Food Co-op if you’re in the Luck area, Fine Acres Market if you’re in the St. Croix Falls area, or Wild By Nature if you’re in the Bayfield area.