Forget the sad gas station snacks and soggy fast food burgers. These restaurants along Interstate 5 offer everything from healthy salads to juicy burgers to perfectly brewed coffee.
Mix Bakeshop, Ashland, Oregon
If ever there was a compelling reason to detour about 10 minutes off the freeway, Mix Bakeshop is it. Located in the heart of charming downtown Ashland, this bakery’s artisan pastries and breads rival those from the best establishments in San Francisco and New York. Orange-scented, spiraled morning buns shatter with flaky shards at the first bite. Sugar-topped brown-butter tarts brim with seasonal local fruit. Fresh-baked baguette sandwiches come slathered with thyme butter and piled with slices of Niman Ranch ham. The coffee is on point, too, with beans from Portland-based Stumptown Coffee Roasters.
Yaks Shack, Mount Shasta, California
With its color-splashed building and playfully named menu items, the family-owned Yaks Shack is big on personality. Most everything is made from scratch, including the Asiago cheddar roll that’s the foundation for the Pastrami Mami breakfast sandwich stuffed not only with sliced pastrami, but scrambled eggs, and melted cheddar; the Thai peanut sauce on the Vegan Thai Me Crazy breakfast burrito with black beans, hash browns, and fresh greens; and the crisp onion strings and chipotle sauce atop the mile-high Smiley Riley local grass-fed beef burger with melted Jack cheese, and smoked bacon crumbles. Enjoy it all with a juice or peanut butter latte at a seat on the outdoor patio, where on a clear day, you can see Mount Shasta.
Fresh Fire Grill, Redding, California
Southern barbecue married with Asian influences is sure to tickle taste buds at Fresh Fire Grill. Its specialties include grilled teriyaki chicken bowls with crunchy Asian slaw, garden lettuces, avocado, and house-made sriracha aioli; and customizable Hawaiian pulled pork bowls heaped with grilled fresh pineapple, slaw, macaroni salad, rice, and sauce options such as wasabi ginger. There’s also a design-your-own poke bowl, tofu taco, and even a kid’s Aloha Bowl with teriyaki chicken, pineapple, white rice, and—yes—a cherry on top.
Zocalo, Sacramento, California
At Zocalo you’ll find modern Mexican cuisine that’s impressive enough to earn a shoutout from the Michelin Guide. The home-grown restaurant by Ernesto Jimenez and Jimmy Johnson opened in 2004, and has since grown to four locations, including a Midtown one at 1801 Capitol Ave., about 7 minutes from I-5, that boasts a spacious outdoor dining patio. The restaurant’s Baja fish tacos are legendary, featuring Mexican beer-battered fish and chipotle aioli. Made with dried chiles, fruits, nuts and chocolate, the deeply savory mole blanketing the chicken and cheese enchiladas is a recipe from the Convento de Santa Clara in Puebla, Mexico, the birthplace of mole poblano.
Almond Wood, Patterson, California
When the Modesto Bee asked its readers two years ago to name their favorite barbecue joint in Stanislaus County, Almond Wood reigned supreme. A master of Texas-style barbecue, chef-owner Steve Ceron smokes low and slow over local almond, apricot, and cherry wood, including Angus prime brisket, pulled pork shoulder, free-range whole chickens, jalapeno cheddar sausages, and wild king salmon. The substantial menu also includes salads, sandwiches, and customizable pasta dishes. Make the stop a twofer by visiting the adjacent farm retailer, Stewart & Jasper Orchards Company Store, to pick up apricot preserves or apricot pepper sauce to commemorate Patterson’s notoriety as the apricot capital of the world.
Harris Ranch Resort, Coalinga, California
The sprawling Harris Ranch Resort offers many reasons to stop. First, it’s impossible to miss right off of I-5. Second, it operates the largest Tesla Supercharger Station in the world with 98 superchargers, a boon to anyone driving a Supercharger-compatible EV. Third, it is a beef lover’s paradise that offers multiple ways to dine. For those in a hurry, there’s the Harris Ranch Express BBQ, where you order online and pick up at the mobile smoker near the gas station. For a sports-bar-like vibe, there’s the Horseshoe Lounge for burgers and steaks. For comfort food, the Ranch Kitchen offers all-day breakfast specials of corned beef hash and eggs, and chicken fried steak and eggs. And for a leisurely, elegant experience, head to the resort’s signature restaurant, Prime Steakhouse, for a 12-ounce lobster tail, prime rib with au jus, or a massive 24-ounce cowboy-cut ribeye on the bone.
Tita’s Pupuseria Lonchera, Buttonwillow, California
A permanently parked food truck with covered picnic tables, Tita’s Pupuseria Lonchera hits the spot if you’re craving authentic Central American specialties. Best yet, since the large, thick griddle cakes known as pupusas are typically made with cornmeal or rice flour, they’re perfect for those who can’t eat gluten. Get them stuffed with pork and cheese, squash and cheese, or loroco, a Central American flower bud with a taste akin to a tangy asparagus. Don’t forget to try the quesadilla Salvadorena, which is actually a gluten-free, pound cake-treat made with rice flour, sugar, butter, and cheese.
Pink Salt Grill, Valencia, California
The family-owned Pink Salt Grill gets its name from the salt from the Philippines that flavors its Filipino dishes that include lumpia with sweet chili dipping sauce, soothing chicken rice porridge with ginger and scallions, braised chicken or pork adobo, and the crackling crunchy pata (deep-fried pork knuckle). Because Pink Salt Grill also has a sister bakeshop Jamblossoms, don’t sleep on the desserts here, including the coconut ube cassava cake.
Pizzeria Bianco, Los Angeles, California
Don’t miss the chance to try what some consider the best pizza in the world. Owner Chris Bianco’s original Phoenix restaurant, which doesn’t take reservations, is infamous for its long lines. Luckily, his Pizzeria Bianco outpost in the Row DTLA not only takes reservations for lunch and dinner, but has a multi-story garage for easy parking. The pizzas are made with organic high-protein flour, house-made mozzarella, locally farmed ingredients, and Bianco’s own canned tomatoes. The crust is a marvel of crispiness, airiness, and lightness. Savor the Wiseguy, topped with wood-roasted onions, puddles of fresh smoked mozzarella, and crumbles of fennel sausage; or the Rosa, a novel pie strewn with red onion slivers, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Santa Barbara pistachios. For a quicker bite or food to-go, head steps away to the no-reservations, counter-service Pane Bianco for pizza slices, chop salads, and mortadella focaccia sandwiches.