Restaurants in Bethany

Max's Wine Dive is renowned for its culinary-chutzpah-filled dinner menu, which turns chili dogs and burgers into gourmet flavors. Their fried chicken was deemed one of America's Best by Travel + Leisure. Try the signature Texas haute dog (a Strube Ranch Wagyu hot dog topped with your choice of beer-braised sauerkraut, Dijon mustard, pickles or chili, jalapenos, and cotija cheese, served with fried onion strings and frites; $14). Or opt for the Kobe beef burger (a Strube Ranch Wagyu Kobe beef burger with Belletoile triple-cream brie, in-house pickled jalapenos, local hothouse tomatoes, and organic Bibb lettuce, served with frites; $17), another favorite. If you're feeling ravenous, hang a fang in the all-you-can-eat fried chicken and waffles (chicken thigh, leg, and breast with jalapeno and buttermilk marinade, deep fried, served with a waffle; $19) during Sunday brunch. Woman's Day once named Max's grilled cheese (Gruyère, provolone, and roasted red pepper, served with a cup of tomato soup; $13) one of the 10 best in the nation.

Upon wandering into Spints Alehouse and seeing the plates of schnitzel and Bavarian-style pretzels, visitors might assume they’ve been magically transported to a German pub. But after scrambling to produce their passports, they realize that a slice of Germany has come to them, not the other way around. In true European tradition, diners feast on selections from a seasonal menu chock-full of spaetzle, a german pasta, and pork schnitzel before washing them down with carefully crafted mead cocktails that attracted the attention of the New York Times. As in kitchens across the Rhineland, desserts revolve around rich flavors such as those found in the likes of chocolate-almond layer cake and butterscotch pudding, and just like in the Rhineland, they must be eaten from a knight’s helmet.

Hamburger Mary flipped her first burger in 1972 in San Francisco’s SOMA district. From her humble origins as the lovably eccentric icon for a late-night beer-and-burger joint, she has now crisscrossed the nation with her brand of family dining, which welcomes all open-minded people and focuses on members of the LGBT community. With cleverly mismatched dinnerware, diners dig into a menu rooted in Angus beef burgers such as the Buffy the Burger Slayer or the 1-pound Proud Mary. Bold colors splash the walls, and colorful collages and artwork frame a fun, quirky space to encourage diners to get out of their comfort zone and finally attempt to bench-press their family members.

H5O bistro & bar executive chef Ron Baker crafts innovative dishes with local and organic ingredients and sustainably sourced seafood. His efforts helped earn the eatery—located inside Hotel Fifty—a 2012 Diner’s Choice Award of Best American Food from OpenTable. Ron's recipes roster includes salmon covered in a shrimp cracker crust and beef tenderloin paired with duck-fat-roasted fingerling potatoes. Even his breakfast menu features myriad eclectic dishes, from the fried-chicken benedict to the french toast made with challah soaked in Grand Marnier custard.

The restaurant itself is as innovative as the menu, with touches such as an oversize painting of colorful koi on one wall and flames that erupt from a bed of rocks in the modern open fireplace. In the lounge area, a white table shaped like a face holds seasonally changing cocktails and vinos from the wine cellar. During the warmer months, outdoor seating proffers sweeping views of the waterfront located a frisbee toss away, which means it's 14 miles away if you're really good at frisbee.

Pow Pow Wings, a casual sports bar written up in The Columbian and Clark College's The Independent, serves up 13 styles of wings and 10 sauces. A raspberry-chipotle sauce was recommended by The Columbian, whereas the ghost pepper-infused Super Pow was reported to create "an inferno on the palate" by The Independent. Pow Pow Wings also grills burgers that can be doused in any wing sauce or topped with a stack of fried-mozzarella sticks. A full bar supplies beer, soft drinks, and other libations, and pinball machines and foosball distracts patrons from shouting curses in Esperanto at the sportsmen on TV.

Gaberielle Gonzalez has been cooking since she was a child, but she didn't start out with Mexican recipes. Her interest in Mexican cuisine blossomed when she met the man she would marry. His fond recollections of the cuisine in his hometown—Tepic, Nayarit—inspired her to try and re-create those memories for him.

Years later, Gaberielle has mastered the cuisine of the Nayarit region. Inside the Tamale Mama's food truck, she fashions from-scratch tamales and enchiladas while prioritizing local ingredients, including Draper Valley chicken and hormone-free, antibiotic-free pork from Tails & Trotters. Sourcing the best catches local fishermen and mermaids, Gaberielle stuffs fresh crab and bay shrimp go into zesty tacos. Grill-sizzled pork chops and citrus chicken round out her south-of-the-border repertoire.