7 Best Restaurants in The Northern Black Hills, South Dakota

Leones' is the kind of quiet, locally beloved, hole-in-the-wall place you could easily miss but definitely shouldn't---its handcrafted and ever-evolving ice cream flavors are the best in the Black Hills. The owners pour their passion into creative creations that often incorporate locally produced beers, produce, and other novel ingredients. Leones' is the ideal place to treat yourself after a day of exploring the Black Hills.

While many other Sturgis "restaurants" are essentially biker bars that also serve food, Louie's is a true hometown diner offering good, simple, affordable food. The menu focuses on hearty breakfasts, burgers, and a selection of Mexican-inspired dishes.

For a change of pace from Deadwood's upscale dining options, try this affordable, comfort-food café with a small-town, unassuming atmosphere and a menu full of traditional options like eggs, hash browns, burgers, and chicken salad sandwiches.

Recycled barn wood decorates this casual bar-and-grill establishment in the heart of downtown, where steaks are the star of the menu and big-screen TVs are tuned to ballgames.

Located at a crossing that can take you west to Wyoming, north into Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway, or east to Lead, this country café with simple decor serves up hearty, home-cooked food without pretension. It's 8 miles southwest of Lead on a site that also includes a small lodge and gift store.

Pub food is served up in a relaxed setting in this downtown Lead establishment, located in a lovingly preserved 1897 building with exposed-brick walls, wood floors, high ceilings, and a fireplace. There are two Victorian-style rooms for rent on the upper floors.

This restaurant with a simple menu focusing on buffalo meat, beef, fish, soup, and salads is built in a log-cabin style with a stone fireplace and animal heads on the walls. It's in an unbeatable setting 14 miles from Lead, next to Spearfish Canyon Lodge in Spearfish Canyon. If the weather is good, no diner should miss walking the short trail behind the restaurant to Spearfish Falls, a 50-foot waterfall.