These are the best restaurants in Pigeon Forge in 2025, says Smoky Mountain local
The Pigeon Forge dining scene is in an interesting place. Despite having the most restaurants of any Sevier County municipality, it is being outpaced in quality by both Gatlinburg and Sevierville.
The Pigeon Forge dining scene relies too heavily on gimmicks and experiences over the quality of food. There are some fun mom-and-pop’s but for the most part, eating in Pigeon Forge is to eat food designed to appeal to the masses. It’s designed to maximize profit. What is the least they can spend and still have the customer walk away satisfied and happy? That is the Pigeon Forge way.
But there are some gems. There are some places where you feel like the people in charge have a passion for the artistic side of the business. And yes, they want to make a profit, but they believe the way to that profit is by serving the best meal they can. They want more than customer satisfaction.
Here are the best Pigeon Forge restaurants of 2025
1. The Local Goat
The once and future king. The Local Goat – aptly named – has been ruling the Pigeon Forge dining scene for a while now. Yes, parking can be a bit of a pain as it remains quite popular. The menu isn’t especially high-end. However, there are interesting choices from drinks to apps to main courses and desserts. Everything is expertly prepared and very good. A suggested meal? Start with a Bloody Mary and some deep-fried deviled eggs. Follow with either the Elvis – a burger with peanut butter, smoked bacon and fried banana – or the bison meatloaf and finish with the white chocolate bread pudding and seasonal ice cream.
2. Puckett’s
A Tennessee chain with roots south of Nashville, Puckett’s started as a community grocery store and transitioned to an excellent restaurant and music venue with eight locations across the state. Puckett’s serves up artisanal country food. It’s BBQ, fried catfish, chicken and more. Be sure to try Puckett’s signature fruit tea – blackberry-citrus southern sweet tea.
For a suggested meal? Start with the sampler – smoked boudin bites, fried green tomatoes, pimento cheese bites, hot smoked sausage, crackers, pickles, remoulade & pepper jelly – for the table. Follow with Piggy Mac – cherry wood-smoked pulled pork in an iron skillet, topped with white cheddar mac n’ cheese and biscuit crumbs. Dessert options are many, but I’m a cobbler man. Cobbler of the Day is the way to go.
3. Wild Bear Tavern
I don’t know if spiritually there’s a bigger jump in Pigeon Forge than from Puckett’s elevated country dining to the Wild Bear Tavern, which brings the taste of Germany to East Tennessee. The Wild Bear offers an excellent breakfast, but it’s the lunch and dinner menus heavy with German favorites that stand out.
Suggested meal? Get a Dunkel on draft and start with the Sausage Sampler – German brätwurst and a selection of sausages served with Rotkohl, sauerkraut, an assortment of dipping sauces and a Bavarian demi-loaf. For the main course, it has to be the traditional schnitzel – seasoned boneless pork cutlet, breaded, lightly fried and topped with a light lemon butter sauce. Lastly, for dessert, the black forest cake is tempting, but the apple strudel is wonderful.
4. Alamo Steakhouse
The Alamo is, in my opinion, a step behind the Gatlinburg steakhouses, The Peddler and The Greenbrier. But since we’re sticking to Pigeon Forge, the Alamo, with steaks prepared over an oak fire grill, is the best steakhouse in town.
Start with bacon-wrapped shrimp and follow with steak selections – there are a variety of other entrée choices. I’m a fan of “The Steak” a 20-ounce ribeye cooked with the bone-in for added flavor. But also, I just like to order “The Steak” as if there’s only one. For dessert, I only have two words for you: Chocolate Burrito.
5. Calhoun’s
An East Tennessee landmark, Calhoun’s has consistently great barbecue and ribs based on an award-winning recipe that was decades in the making.
Start with the burnt ends and follow that with the trio – Baby back ribs, chicken tenders and hickory smoked pork. The Ale Steak is also an excellent choice. Dessert? Nanner pudding is the only way to go.
6. The Old Mill Restaurant
Of course, there are a lot of places that try to traffic in homestyle cooking in Pigeon Forge. In our opinion, the Old Mill is the best of the lot. Throw in the nearly 200-year history of the mill itself and you’ve got a winning recipe.
Country fried steak is the play here though there are a lot of delicious options. For dessert, I’m not opposed to the Old Mill Creamery vanilla ice cream made fresh on-site. Sometimes, a little vanilla ice cream hits the spot.
7. Junction 35 Kitchen & Bar
If we’d made this list a year ago Junction 35 – a restaurant and distillery – would have been much higher on the list. Our first dining experience at Junction 35 was one of the best dining experiences we’ve had in the Smokies. I can’t say subsequent experiences have lived up to that billing and our most recent time at Junction 35 was almost depressing. An overwhelmed staff struggled to keep up in a half-full restaurant. But we haven’t written it off just yet. We’re hoping our bad experience was just an off day. But come this time next year, Junction 35 may be relegated to the lower tiers. The first time I had the Country Reuben, I was pretty sure it was the best sandwich I’ve ever had. So that’s the recommendation here.
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