The Best Places to Eat in Pigeon Forge, TN

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee has made quite a name for itself as a popular tourist destination in the Southeastern United States. Throughout the year, tourists flock to this area for the mountains, plethora of attractions, and theater shows. In addition to those activities, they also enjoy their fair share of shopping and of course eating. As it turns out, there are some pretty fantastic places to eat in Pigeon Forge. Following are some of the best places to eat in Pigeon Forge.

Best Places to Eat in Pigeon Forge

Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant

Apple fritters galore!! YUM!

Okay, so this one is not located in Pigeon Forge exactly, but it is just a stone’s throw away in Sevierville. The Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant is simply too fantastic not to mention. To begin with, they have an amazing breakfast. Every table gets a large basket of apple fritters, muffins, and some apple julep to wash it all down with. The julep is fantastic and if you ask for the recipe, they’ll give it to you. However, I’ll include it right here for you. Make it and I promise that you’ll love it!

Apple Julep Recipe (serves 6):

1 quart apple juice
1 cup pineapple juice
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice

After drinking the julep and enjoying some fritters, try the Farmhouse Special for your entree. It’s certain to fill you up and prepare you for the day ahead. You get two eggs cooked however you like, home fried potatoes, cinnamon apples, grits, sausage gravy, a biscuit, and a choice of a meat. You can also get your potatoes farmhouse style (which I highly recommend!!), which means they’re topped with tomatoes, cheese, green peppers and onions. They also have an excellent selection of pancakes and waffles, particularly the bananas foster waffle, as well as breakfast skillets filled with a variety of eggs, meat, and vegetables. Throw in some coffee and juice, and you have a feast on your hands.

Don’t just stop there though. Head next door to the Apple Barn and Cider Mill, and take a bit of the farmhouse home with you. There, you can purchase great items like apple butter, cider, apple fritter mix, cookbooks, and more. This is widely considered one of the best breakfast stops in the Pigeon Forge area and it is my personal favorite.

Dixie Stampede

This is what all you’ll be eating. It’s magical.

If you’ve ever wanted dinner and a movie, this comes pretty close. It’s actually dinner and a live show, complete with Wild West antics, enthusiastic cowboys and cowgirls, horses, and plenty of food! The show is fantastic and all, but the food is exceptional and some of the best you’ll ever eat.

Waiting for the Dixie Stampede to begin with my sis and niece! We LOVED it!

Begin the evening with a competition between the North and the South, then get ready for the antics to begin. While that is happening, be prepared to have your appetite hugely satisfied. The meals are amazing, served up with items such as rotisserie chicken (everyone gets an entire chicken for themselves!), barbecued pork loin, corn on the cob, big fat buttermilk biscuits, a potato, and creamy vegetable soup (this is my favorite and it’s worth the show price just for a bowl of this soup!). You also get a tasty dessert, as well as your choice of tea, Pepsi, or coffee. The meal ends with dessert, and the show ends with a lot of pomp and circumstance. A fun way to have great entertainment at dinner, put this place on your list! And even if you’ve been before, it’s worth checking out again as they just recently underwent a $2.5 million dollar renovation. I’ve been to Dixie Stampede at least a dozen times in my life, but I still love going every time that I visit Pigeon Forge because it is one of the best places to eat in Pigeon Forge.

Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen

What a spread!!

If you are looking for southern food kicked up to an entirely different level, you have to try Paula Deen’s restaurant. She is a southern food icon from the south. In fact, she lives in Savannah, Georgia and has a restaurant there of her own that she operates full time called The Lady & Sons. This one is no different. You can score amazing breakfast, lunch, or dinner and you can ask for free refills on anything that you order! Whatever you do though, you have to try the fried green tomatoes and the chicken pot pie. I died a little and went to heaven when I ate them. Saddle the side of those plates with a bit of corn casserole and macaroni and cheese, and you have a good time on your hands. Finish with some of her Ooey Gooey Butter Cake or peach cobbler made with sweet Georgia peaches. This restaurant has the ability to pull you back several times during your visit.

Tip: They have a lot of the same offerings on their lunch and dinner menu, the only difference is that for lunch you choose two entrees for your table, while dinner service includes three. Going for lunch would be a bit cheaper and you’ll still be stuffed – trust me! For something completely different, try their breakfast menu which includes items such as chicken and waffles, cheesy scrambled eggs, and Ooey Gooey Butter Pancakes. They also have incredible breakfast meats and do amazing things with hash browns!

Flapjack’s Pancake Cabin

Mmmm… I want pancakes now!

This is another place famous for their breakfast. Tourists and townsfolk alike come to eat at Flapjack’s Pancake Cabin. They have amazing breakfast platters featuring eggs, biscuits and gravy, bacon, link sausage, or patty sausage. You can also build your own omelet if you’re feeling brave, or enjoy specialty pancake creations such as Reese’s peanut butter and chocolate chip, or grandma’s peanut butter and banana pancakes. They even have a healthy menu if you feel like eating a bit lighter, but what fun is that?? I just can’t say no to a Reese’s pancake. If you’re looking for this place, you won’t have to look very long as there are several of them located in Pigeon Forge. There’s a reason there are so many – it’s just one of the best places to eat in Pigeon Forge! There is a gift shop on site if you want to take a bit of Flapjack’s Pancake Cabin home with you, and they also offer recipes on their website for some of their more sweeter treats. You can never go wrong with something like that! best places to eat pigeon forge tn best places to eat pigeon forge tn

Mama’s Farmhouse

This is another place that is worth a visit. Their fried chicken has won several awards, as well as their biscuits. In fact, they were the winner of the International Biscuit Festival held this year. You can get them now served up with chocolate gravy (!!!) on their regular breakfast menu. In addition, other such popular offerings are okra and tomatoes, country fried steak, and of course mashed potatoes that will melt in your mouth. This is cooking at its finest.

The Old Mill

This place features something fairly unique. There is an 1830 Gristmill that anchors a restaurant complex involving two eateries, retail shops, and a candy/toyshop. A great experience, and good food, The Old Mill is where you get your money’s worth at one of the most unique and best places to eat in Pigeon Forge. Be sure to try the corn fritters and corn chowder when you are there, they make some of the best. They also have amazing fried chicken too! Eat up because you can walk (or roll?) it off while you shop the rest of the complex.

Alamo Steakhouse

Say it with me – hand cut, aged, Angus beef. Nothing gets better than that, right? They also have an extensive seafood and chicken menu in addition to their steak offerings. Open for lunch and dinner, you don’t want to miss this one, as almost everyone agrees that it’s one of the best places to eat in Pigeon Forge. As a bonus, the Alamo is locally owned and operated. If you are going to try one thing here, it has to be the flame grilled oysters, or steakhouse nachos, or maybe the bacon wrapped shrimp. Nah, just go for the Peppercorn New York Strip and you should be good… unless of course, you want to go with the Orange Brown Sugar Ribs. I don’t know, it’s all good, just pick something you like and try to keep your chin from hitting the floor when your entree arrives.

These are some of the best places to eat in Pigeon Forge. There are a ton of chain restaurants with mid-tier food. However, when you vacation, you want to leave that behind and experience the best of what is unique to that area… or I do at least. All of the places in this list are local to Pigeon Forge and that’s one of the many reasons why you should visit them. Enjoy these restaurants during your visit and post a comment below of how good the food was when you are finished! Bon appetit!