Duarte’s Tavern is renowned for its American country cooking with a Portuguese twist, courtesy of the Duarte family’s heritage. The tavern specializes in cooking local fish, based on the weekly catch, and offers a menu of straightforward, unpretentious dishes. Emphasizing farm-to-table freshness, most of their vegetables and fruits are sourced from the restaurant’s own garden or from local growers. The tavern also takes pride in featuring wines from the Santa Cruz mountains and is known for crafting an exceptional Bloody Mary at its fully stocked bar.
In 2003, Duarte’s Tavern was honored with the prestigious James Beard Award for American Classic Restaurant, a testament to its enduring culinary excellence.
As a family and community-oriented business, Duarte’s Tavern is currently run by the fourth generation of the Duarte family. Established as a local staple in Pescadero during the 1920s, the tavern has a long-standing tradition of brewing the first cup of coffee for local farmers each day. Over the years, multiple generations of families have worked in the restaurant, tavern, or garden, with most of the full-time staff having been part of the team for many years and residing within walking distance.
The business was originally founded by Frank Duarte in 1894 as a saloon and barbershop. It soon expanded to offer food to locals and weekend visitors. The Duarte family’s passion for food is evident in their history, notably with Emma Duarte starting the tavern’s pie-making tradition in the 1930s. In the early 1960s, Frank’s grandson Ron Duarte, along with his wife Lynn, first created their famous Cream of Artichoke soup. Ron’s handwritten recipe book remains a cherished resource in the kitchen to this day.
Visitors should not miss the chance to see Frank Duarte’s original tavern bar, a survivor of the fire that devastated much of Pescadero in the late 1920s. While the tavern no longer produces its own whiskey, it remains one of the few restaurants in California with an off-sale license.
