There are about ten places to eat in Mentone. The problem is never choice, it is hours. Several places close at two in the afternoon, two shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and a good number of the restaurants still listed on the big travel sites burned down or closed years ago.
Lunch is easy here. Dinner is the one that catches people out, so both are below.
Lunch, by the day of the week
| Day | Open for lunch |
|---|---|
| Monday | Wildflower, Cafe Pilates, The Hatter, Helena’s, Mentone Market |
| Tuesday | Wildflower, Cafe Pilates, Helena’s, Mentone Market. The Hatter is closed |
| Wednesday | Wildflower, Cafe Pilates, Helena’s, Mentone Market, Seabolt’s. The Hatter is closed |
| Thursday | Wildflower, Cafe Pilates, The Hatter, Helena’s, Mentone Market, Seabolt’s |
| Friday | All of the above, and Cafe Pilates stays open until five |
| Saturday | All of the above, plus lunch at the Mountain Inn in DeSoto State Park |
| Sunday | Wildflower, The Hatter, Helena’s, Mentone Market, Seabolt’s, and the lunch buffet at DeSoto State Park. Cafe Pilates closes at two |
Dinner, by the day of the week
Serving after five, in or near the village. This is the short list, and it is much shorter than the lunch one.
| Day | Open for dinner |
|---|---|
| Monday | Elevation Bistro, Helena’s, Mentone Market until seven |
| Tuesday | Helena’s, Mentone Market until seven. Elevation and the Hatter are closed |
| Wednesday | Helena’s, Mentone Market until seven, Seabolt’s until eight |
| Thursday | Elevation Bistro, Moon Lake Kitchen, Helena’s, Seabolt’s, the Market |
| Friday | Everything. Wildflower, Elevation, the Hatter, Moon Lake Kitchen, Helena’s, Seabolt’s, and the Mountain Inn at DeSoto State Park |
| Saturday | Everything, same as Friday |
| Sunday | Elevation Bistro, Helena’s, Mentone Market. Most of the rest closes after lunch |
The short version. Lunch, you will be fine any day of the week. Dinner on a Tuesday or a Wednesday comes down to Helena’s, and Mentone Market will feed you until seven. On a Friday or Saturday everything in town is open and you should book the ones that take bookings.
Where to eat in Mentone
| Where | What it is | Hours | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wildflower Cafe 6007 Highway 117 |
The one people drive up for. Southern cooking with a bohemian streak, and a tomato pie it is known for. Voted best cafe in Alabama by readers of Alabama magazine in 2015 and again in 2025. Booking advised | Mon to Thu 11 to 2 Fri and Sat 11 to 3, then 4 to 8 Sun 11 to 2 |
(256) 634-0066 |
| Helena’s Mountain Market and Restaurant 6010 Highway 117 |
Market with a full restaurant behind it. Breakfast from six, burgers, pizza. The longest hours in town and the reason nobody in Mentone goes hungry on a Tuesday | Mon to Sat 6 to 9 Sun 7 to 9 |
(256) 634-2068 |
| Cafe Pilates 5704 Highway 117 |
Coffee, breakfast, acai bowls and lunch, with a drive-thru, and a heated Pilates studio attached. Opened August 2026. Seven in the morning is early enough to get you to DeSoto Falls ahead of the crowds | Mon to Thu 7 to 3 Fri and Sat 7 to 5 Sun 7 to 2 |
(256) 634-5920 |
| Mentone Market 5872 Highway 117 |
General store and grocery with a kitchen in it. Pizza, beer on tap. Where you go when you want to feed people at the cabin rather than sit down somewhere | Mon to Sat 7 to 7 Sun 7 to 6 |
(256) 634-4686 |
| The Hatter Cafe 4277 Highway 117 |
Alice in Wonderland themed tea house, breakfast and lunch, with a country inn attached. The highest rated restaurant in Mentone on the review sites | Thu to Mon 8 to 2 Dinner Fri and Sat 5 to 8 |
(256) 634-2018 |
| Elevation Bistro 5951 Highway 117 |
Farm to table dinner, chef Kevin Dunlap. Moving into a larger space at the rebuilt Hitching Post when it opens | Mon and Thu to Sun 4 to 8 Closed Tue and Wed |
(256) 634-3001 |
| Moon Lake Kitchen Moon Lake, East River Road |
Cajun and Creole, in the old school building. Dinner only, three nights, and small enough that you should call | Thu to Sat, evenings | (678) 850-8327 |
| Seabolt’s Street Tacos 5172 Highway 117 |
Tacos out of a converted Airstream | Wed to Sat 11 to 8 Sun 11 to 3 |
(256) 465-1807 |
| The Village Ice Cream Shoppe Log Cabin Craft Village |
Ice cream counter in among the cabin shops. Seasonal, so check before making a special trip | Fri 11 to 5 Sat 10 to 5 Sun 10 to 4 |
(256) 601-3421 |
Worth the drive
- Mountain Inn Restaurant, in the lodge at DeSoto State Park. Friday dinner five to eight. Saturday breakfast buffet seven to ten, lunch half eleven to two, dinner five to eight. Sunday breakfast buffet seven to ten and a lunch buffet half eleven to two. Closed Monday through Thursday, which catches out more midweek visitors than anything else on this page. (256) 845-5380.
- Tigers Inn, 132 Commerce Avenue, Valley Head. Country breakfast and a meat and three. Monday to Thursday seven to two, Friday from six, Sunday ten to two, closed Saturday. (256) 662-0984.
- Rib Shak, 8669 Highway 117, Valley Head. Pit barbecue, takeout. (256) 674-1099.
- MI Pizza, 74 Winston Street, Valley Head. (256) 662-0966.
- Mountain Top Country Store, 12510 Highway 48, Cloudland, Georgia. Store and gas with a pizza counter, handy if you are out at Cloudmont. (706) 862-6179.
The Hitching Post is coming back
The Hitching Post stood in the middle of the village for more than a century as a store, a post office and the place everybody met. It burned in 2023.
Ground was broken on the site on 17 September 2026 for a community center and a restaurant, led by Rick and Mary Gresham Barr, with Elevation Bistro moving into a larger space inside it. Construction runs through 2027 with a summer opening expected. Until then, expect to drive past a building site in the center of town.
Closed, and still on the lists
Every one of these turns up on travel sites and in search results. None of them will feed you.
- Green Leaf Grill, 6080 Highway 117. Closed. The building sold in August 2024 and was listed mid renovation.
- Log Cabin Restaurant and Deli, in the same building. Permanently closed.
- Cragsmere Manna. Closed.
- Kamama Art Gallery and Cafe. Closed. Elevation Bistro has the address now.
- Shorty’s Cafe, Valley Head. Closed.
- Mentone Springs Hotel. Burned in 2014 and never rebuilt. Still listed as a place to eat and stay in more directories than you would believe.
Hours move around, and we would rather be corrected than wrong. If something here is out of date, or your place is missing, tell us and we will fix it. Checked 23 September 2026.