1. Minnie’s Montana Cafe, Thompson Falls
Minnie’s is a local favorite, serving good old-fashioned American breakfast and lunch staples. Whether you go for a morning meal or an afternoon melt, try and save room for pie.
2. Pop’s Place Family Restaurant, Seeley Lake
Pop’s Place is owned by the Clarks, a family who works hard to serve delicious burgers, fries, wraps and pies in a cozy setting.
3. The Western Cafe, Bozeman
Bozeman has more than its share of delicious dining options, especially for breakfast. But most locals will assure you that The Western Cafe is one of the best spots to get a good old-fashioned home cooked meal.
4. Driftwood Cafe Family Restaurant, Polson
Walk into Driftwood Cafe on a quiet morning and you’re likely to see a group of older locals hanging out and enjoying coffee. Their hearty breakfasts and prime rib specials taste like true home cooking.
5. Blue’s Barbecue, Billings
You might not think that BBQ in Billings would be very good, but you’d be very, very wrong. Blue’s owners, Ken and Kim, cook everything from scratch, and you can tell when you bite into their savory dishes.
6. Wagon Wheel Cafe, Ekalaka
A place called the Wagon Wheel Cafe in small town Eastern Montana must be something special—and it is. This is no-frills family dining at its best.
7. Hob Nob Cafe, Missoula
Hob Nob on Higgins offers the best of both worlds: a quaint, relaxed mom & pop atmosphere and home cooking with fresh, local ingredients.
8. Joe’s Pasty Shop, Butte
When you’re craving a hearty and authentic meat and veggie pie, head to Joe’s. They’ve been a staple in Butte for many years.
9. Audrey’s Pizza Oven, Bozeman
Once upon a time in the 1960s, Audrey Anderson developed a pizza recipe that the Bozeman locals loved. Though the original Audrey’s closed its doors in 1994 and Audrey passed away at the age of 88 in 1996, the current owners have worked hard to recreate her original recipe. They know perfection can’t be improved upon, and now new generations are enjoying the same delicious pizza as before.
10. Char’s Family Dining, Havre
Char’s is a family run business serving classic American staples (breakfast, lunch and dinner) in a friendly environment. It doesn’t get better.
11. Paul’s Pancake Parlor, Missoula
Paul’s was founded in 1964 by Paul Gjording. Mike Ramos, a local Missoulian, owns it now, but in order to purchase it he had to follow his mother (the last owner) around for a year and learn everything that Paul had taught her about the restaurant. This is definitely THE place for pancakes in Missoula.
12. Red Rooster Cafe, Billings
Red Rooster is locally owned and operated by Misty and Kenneth, and you’ll probably see one of them working if you go enjoy a meal there. They’re open for breakfast and lunch, and it’s impossible to say which meal they do better.
13. Family Affair Restaurant, Great Falls
This restaurant gets a lot of things right, but there are two things they get really, really right: the homemade soups and the homemade pies.
14. Sir Scott’s Oasis Steakhouse & Lounge, Manhattan
For over 30 years, Sir Scott’s Oasis has been serving delicious steaks and seafood to locals and tourists from Big Sky Resort and Bridger Bowl Ski Resort.
15. Friday Night Pizza, Philipsburg
Here’s where you can get New York style pizza in Montana—and it’s as good as pizza gets.
Did this list of mom & pop restaurants make you hungry? There are similar restaurants in almost every Montana town, so visit your favorite today.
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