Why “it’s hard to go to work” in this Oregon town
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Bend, Oregon
CNN
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There’s a reason this town experienced a population boom during the pandemic that still hasn’t stopped. Given the freedom to work and live anywhere, thousands have followed their bliss to a ruggedly beautiful oasis of seriously fun activities, food and beverages in central Oregon.
It’s a combination that lures visitors, too.
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“I think Bend just has this magnetic pull and it’s full of adventure, but still small enough to feel like home. There’s insane natural beauty in every direction, a super sophisticated food and drink scene, and an outdoorsy, go-play-all-day energy that’s kind of infectious,” said Bend resident Todd Clement, owner of Monkless Belgian Ales.
“There’s also this big entrepreneurial spirit here, so you’re constantly surrounded by people doing cool things,” he said.
Logging was what initially drew people to establish this town on the edge of the Cascade Mountains. Bend was named after that feature in the river that runs through it. Long before that, Indigenous peoples hunted and fished this land.
America’s Best Towns to Visit 2025: Bend
Dozens of nearby lakes offer fishing and boating recreation. There’s whitewater rafting, kayaking, rock climbing and much more in a 60-mile radius. The prominent Bend fashion look is of active leisurewear; you feel as though you’ve stepped into an REI or North Face catalog.
You don’t even need to leave the pretty town to soak in the nature and recreation. A walking and biking trail lines the winding, picturesque Deschutes River through town, a popular destination for campervans and picnickers. The riverbed was even engineered to create a river surfing wave in the Old Mill District.
The recently upgraded Hayden Homes Amphitheater, the town’s outdoor music venue, lies along the river. Don’t be surprised to see a family of deer strolling its empty parking lot while a gaggle of geese hang out on the big lawn, waiting for the next show. James Taylor, Sting and Mumford & Sons are among the Hayden headliners this summer.
Across from downtown’s Tower Theatre, a leading performance space for live music and theater in the region, is a Birkenstock store — a classic Bend juxtaposition.
A 10-minute drive south of town, at the edge of Deschutes National Forest, is the entertaining High Desert Museum, with up-close wildlife experiences and detailed, life-size dioramas depicting the region’s Native peoples and the waves of settlement that followed. It’s a great primer for exploring Bend.
Museum visitors walk through exhibits depicting campsites, a dark mineshaft, a saloon and a town main street where you may be greeted by a fact-filled docent in period “teacher” costume. There are artifacts and sound effects as well as live native animals, including bobcats and porcupines. Outside, visitors can peer underwater to see the graceful swimming of playful otters.
Another five minutes farther south on Route 97 is the Newberry National Volcanic Monument with a lava tube cave you can explore. Deeper into Deschutes National Forest is Mount Bachelor, the best skiing and hiking you could ask for just a 30-minute drive from town.
There are more than 100 ski runs to tackle during the long season, but you can also explore on foot, or pedal, off-season. A wide 4.5-mile Evergreen Trail on Bachelor opened up to hikers and downhill bikers just last year. Bikers take a ski lift to the top to cycle down and hikers have the option to take it either direction.
Bend’s outdoor ethos extends into accommodation offerings. The Deschutes riverside Tumalo State Park Campground is a 15-minute drive north of downtown and includes yurts.
In town, the campy, rustic-chic Campfire Hotel (motel, really) has a saltwater pool that’s heated up to 100 degrees in winter and emblazoned on the bottom with a campfire logo, and the branded items in its swag shop include a flask, metal camp cup, a marshmallow roasting fork and a s’mores kit for use at the hotel’s outdoor fire pits.
Rooms come with portable vintage camp chairs and acoustic guitars. There’s a hot tub next to the pool, and the lively, wood-paneled Canteen cocktail bar sits just off the lobby; the hotel hosts DJ pool parties throughout the year. Across the street, Campfire’s restaurant neighbor, Fire on the Mountain, serves fried Oreos and Twinkies along with beer and their signature Buffalo wings.
If you stay in a house rental, you may want to find one that has a DVD player, for the excuse to patronize the World’s Last Blockbuster. Bend is home to the last location of the once-ubiquitous movie rental chain. Anyone can sign up and get a membership and then browse for titles (new releases too) like they used to do back in the Wild West of pre-streaming. The store is a destination even without renting a movie, with informative displays on staff favorites such as “Back to the Future” and the Indiana Jones series, as well as plenty of Blockbuster-branded clothes and cups for sale.
Beer is the leitmotif of McMenamins Old St. Francis School, where classrooms-turned-hotel rooms take up a full city block, including a half dozen drinking establishments — one pub behind a hidden door, like a speakeasy. Guest rooms are named after staff of the former Catholic school. There’s a theater (with first-run films for guests and visitors), and a heated soaking pool that features water-spitting lions and mosaic depictions of St. Francis doing good animal husbandry works.
At Monkless Belgian Ales Brasserie, you can genuflect before the Shepplekofeggan, a Witbier in honor of “friendship,” the cleverly named “Dubbel or Nothing” and many more. But its biggest asset may be the location. Overlooking the Deschutes River just across from the Hayden, the brasserie offers customers a chance to strategically book a table on the deck to enjoy a free outdoor concert, along with all the resourceful tubers on the water.
If you want to go all-in on just the breweries, you can make a game of it (with prizes), along the Bend Ale Trail.
“Bend has become one of the best beer towns in the country, not just because we have a high number of breweries, but because of the genuine community and collaboration that exists among us,” said Clement of Monkless Belgian Ales.
Located in the up-and-coming Eastside area of town, Dogwood at the Pine Shed opened in February and quickly became the cool new hangout, whether it’s in their designated book nook area or under the disco ball. The cocktails are inventive, tasty and delightful to order, with names such as the Juan Connery (Scotch, pimms and chipotle), Beetnik (made with an “earthy” beet vodka), and the Absinthe Minded. The menu also represents the local trend in zero proof and low-ABV cocktails, so those cutting down on alcohol don’t need to cut down on fun.
A standard 10 p.m. weekday closing time is a feature of Bend nightlife that has its fans and detractors, but there are several choice options to keep the party going “after hours.”
Among them, San Simón is a romantically dusky lounge located off Tin Pan Alley (next to the indie movie theater of the same name). The drinks, such as the locally inspired Last Blockbuster (jalapeño-infused tequila and Mexican grapefruit soda), compete for your attention alongside the large shrine to the legend of Saint Simón, “the patron saint of debauchery.”
Bend is spoiled for great coffee hangs to get the day buzzing.
The bright and airy Sparrow Bakery has full breakfast options to pair with its legendary pastry, which is called an Ocean Roll — a fluffy cinnamon bun but with cardamom and vanilla, served warm.
Looney Bean is a cute wooden cabin of a coffee shop with lawn seating that stretches down to the river’s edge while you sip a chai-espresso Dirty Hippy. On a recent bright spring morning, Looney Bean staff and customers shared their exploits at a recent local music festival, of which Bend hosts many.
And the cozy-hued Lone Pine Coffee Roasters downtown, with apple pie among its pastry options, lets fresh air into its stuffed leather-couch seating when its garage door is open.
The Podski food cart lot is an ideal introduction to Bend’s strong food truck game. This particular postcard-sized picnic area has a bar and a large wood-burning outdoor heater. Friends in matching bike outfits, out-of-towners and families all mingle over pierogies, Thai dishes, cheesecake, Italian street food, oysters and a quirky vending machine selling magic tricks, romance novels, sunscreen, rose-colored glasses and whoopee cushions. The plant-based Toasty food truck is a stand-out lunch choice; their Buffalo (faux) chick’n crunchwrap is pure mouth joy.
“The many food truck pods are a nice bonus to the overall vibe of Bend, where people with different tastes can coalesce in an outdoor space,” said Toasty owner Brooke Preim-Tobias. “The food is often more affordable and you can soak up some sun while you eat and drink.”
Mondo Pizza, which can start getting crowded as soon as they open at 11 a.m., makes for a great fuel stop to explore downtown, where a bookstore cafe (Dudley’s) sits next to a wool shop, next to a store that specializes in crystals and advertises tarot readings.
The colorful and justly popular El Sancho Taco Shop Westside takes the food truck spirit to the next level. The small kitchen and patio seating create a convivial space from which to enjoy excellent tacos and tamales alongside freshly squeezed margaritas.
And a high-end representation of the trend in buzzy chefs hanging their shingle in Bend, is the neo-cowboy steakhouse, Hawkeye & Huckleberry Lounge, near El Sancho on the Westside. Chef Brian Malarkey (of “Top Chef” fame) and his brother James have created a nearly theatrical space with Chinese lanterns hanging over the big bar; cowboy-themed wallpaper, Western photos, cowboy hats and guitars adorning the walls; and large private tables under tents.
Signature drinks at Hawkeye include the bourbon-led Doc Holliday and a lavender gin concoction topped in a barista-like floral froth design called the Goodbye Earl. Beyond the steak options, the kitchen is known for its woodfired pizza, cast iron mac & cheese, beef fat fries and creamy Campfire Cornbread.
It’s high-end dining, for sure, but Bend is such a casual town that it’s as appropriate to wear a flannel shirt and Vans as a button-down shirt and jacket.
Bend is still growing and evolving. The restaurant and bar scenes are playing one-upmanship, each new spot trying to outshine what came before. The Eastside is in a revival, and downtown is expanding into what’s being called the Bend Central District.
Recreation options are becoming more accessible, with more kayak launches being built for the river and new adaptive mountain biking trails designed for those with mobility limitations. Whenever you visit Bend, there is going to be a new, hip place to go, mixed with the classics.
That popularity does come at a price — the need for reservations at many restaurants now, for example, and crowded parking lots at nearby lakes.
Bend’s remoteness, while part of its appeal, also means that getting there takes some effort. Portland is the nearest major city, and it’s more than a 3-hour drive away. Redmond Airport, just outside Bend, has direct flights to and from cities such as Portland, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles, but travelers coming from most other cities will have to take a connecting flight.
But with a little determination — in the true spirit of the West — you can access this wondrous expanse of nature and the town that grew up inside it. Bend is an outdoors playground with a deep appreciation for the finer things in life.
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