In a town known for eccentric charm and winding hillside streets, Grotto Wood-Fired Grill is Eureka Springs’ most grounded pleasure—literally and figuratively. Set inside a 19th-century stone building where a natural spring trickles right through the wall, Grotto offers something you don’t find every day: a dining room that’s part wine cave, part geology exhibit, and fully committed to good food.
This is Eureka Springs, after all—a town that’s more vertical than horizontal, where Victorian buildings lean into limestone bluffs and historic hotels loom above switchback roads. It’s a town that attracts artists, oddballs, bikers, and bathers in equal measure. And while it’s full of kitsch and color, Grotto stands apart for its calm confidence. No gimmicks. Just oak fire, excellent ingredients, and a kitchen that knows exactly what it’s doing.
Start with the quail poppers, little bacon-wrapped bites of smoke and salt that disappear too fast. The shrimp ciabatta is hefty and sharp with horseradish yogurt, and the Brussels sprouts are roasted to oblivion, crunchy on the edges and drenched in chipotle aioli that deserves its own spoon.
The grill is the soul of the place, burning local oak that gives each dish a signature kiss of smoke. The Creekstone ribeye is rich and loud, dripping with herbed butter and cooked just shy of reckless. The duck breast is smoked, sliced, and blushing pink in the center, paired with vegetables that feel fresh and necessary. Even the vegetarian plates—stuffed squash, grilled portobello with goat cheese—get the same reverence and firepower.
Seafood fans have plenty to love. The cedar-planked steelhead salmon is a standout, crisped skin, citrus glaze, clean finish. Every plate arrives with intention—no frills, no distractions, just bold, elemental flavor. Portions are generous, seasoning is fearless, and you get the sense the kitchen is feeding people, not playing dress-up.
Desserts hold their own. A flourless chocolate torte hits like ganache, dense and dark. The house-made gelatos rotate but never disappoint, striking that elusive balance between creamy and clean.
Drinks are handled with care. The wine list lives in an actual cave—naturally climate-controlled and loaded with regional and international picks. The cocktail program doesn’t scream, it speaks: basil gimlets, mezcal sours, minty mojitos that actually feel fresh.
For all its fire and polish, Grotto still feels like it belongs to Eureka Springs. It doesn’t pretend to be anywhere else. It leans into the strange beauty of the town—into the rock, the water, the history—and builds something worthy of it. Eureka is where you can buy crystals, get a tarot reading, and soak in a clawfoot tub all before lunch, Grotto is where you go when it’s time to sit down, eat something excellent, and remember that sometimes the best surprises are the ones that come with a steak knife.
