Restaurants

Unlike hunters and fisherman who value quantity and portion size above all else, the things that eco tourists value most in their eating are authenticity, new/adventurous elements, quality, and healthy lifestyle choices. This means fresh ingredients made from old family recipes that have been updated to reduce cholesterol and fat content without sacrificing flavor. It means homemade breads made form whole grain flour. It means taking advantage of the things that are unique to our region that travelers most likely have not have experienced before – sunflower seed butter instead of peanut butter, kuchen instead of pie, kneffla soup rather than dumpling and other such choices. Freshly made beef, venison, or bison jerky is preferable to the mass produced variety found in convenience stores across the country. Homemade gooseberry jam at breakfast will be more appreciated than the jar off the grocery shelf. And, by all means, make sure you have extra jars of homemade jelly to sell!

Restaurants will also want to make sure to offer a variety of box or picnic lunches for eco-tourists who want to spend the day out of doors.

Hours of operation may have to be extended along with months of operation. Seasonal closings should be closely coordinated with eco-tourism operations to assure that early arriving birders, or late season hikers have a place to stay and food to eat.