A good vacation includes good food! If you’re visiting the Black Hills, you’re in luck, because there are many great restaurants to eat at!
There are MANY good places to eat all over the Black Hills; you’re never far away from good food. Custer has the greatest amount of popular restaurants, but the most popular restaurant in the Black Hills is the Alpine Inn, located in Hill City. The most common dishes in the Black Hills are steak and bison burgers.
We have eaten at some of these restaurants, but we compiled this long list of places to eat based off of:
Let’s go!
The reviews here are insanely high. People love the chefs, Joseph and Eliza, but they love the food even more.
A little less formal and costly than Skogen Kitchen, people really do love the burgers here!
We ate here and had no complaints at all. With pictures of the presidents “pounding” their beer and burgers, what’s not to like?
This is a simple little grill that seems to be quite popular, located in an old-timey strip mall.
The reviews were off the hook here, so we had to try it! It serves the crispiest chicken you’ve ever had.
NOTE: Dakota Chicken is takeout only.
One of our viewers really liked the Buglin Bull for its bison burgers!
After you’ve had your fill of bison at one of the local joints, head on over to the Purple Pie Place (you can’t miss the bright purple building!) for some Peanut Butter Pie or Raspberry Rhubarb ice cream.
There are four restaurants located in lodges run by the state in Custer State Park. They offer fine dining, chuckwagon cookouts, and lake-side snacks.
These are Blue Bell Lodge, State Game Lodge, Sylvan Lake Lodge, and Legion Lake Lodge.
This is located inside the Mount Rushmore Memorial. It is the only restaurant inside the memorial, though next door is Memorial Team Ice Cream, where they serve a vanilla ice cream recipe created by Thomas Jefferson!
Carver’s Cafe claims to be the only certified 4-star green restaurant in the Black Hills. It’s run by Xanterra, a major concessionaire for the National Park Service. This company manages restaurants in many national parks, and they do a great job.
NOTE: Carver’s Cafe closes early, at 4:30!
Opened in 1886, this restaurant and hotel have been around for a LONG TIME. It is unique in that it serves German food.
People really rave about this place! One of our writers, Brandi, loves it! You can read all about her dining experience in her article A Gem in Hill City, South Dakota; Alpine Inn.
Walleye, New York Steaks, Bison Burgers, and Chili Fries are some of the favorite dishes for those who eat at this western-themed restaurant.
The outside doesn’t make it look special, but this is a popular and well-respected restaurant that has been around for a long time. We’ve eaten here and we recommend it.
Breakfast is popular here.
Customer reviews for restaurants in Deadwood aren’t as good as Custer, but here are a few places that stand out.
Bully’s is located in the historic Bullock Hotel and only serves breakfast. It’s named after Teddy Roosevelt, who used to say “Bully!” when he was excited. Teddy was a friend of Seth Bullock, who was one of the first sheriffs in Deadwood and founded the Bullock Hotel.
Located in the Silverado Hotel and Casino, this serves breakfast and dinner in the only Las Vegas-style buffet in town.
Located in nearby Spearfish Canyon, this offers fine dining in a gorgeous setting, with a nearby waterfall you can check out before your meal to work up your appetite.
Fine dining in a low-key city. Really, people just rave about this place.
You wouldn’t think a Louisiana Restaurant would be found in Rapid City, SD, but there is one here! And it gets really good reviews.
This is an unassuming little ma-and-pa place that gets the highest reviews in Sturgis and seems to be the place locals like the most.
A popular beer and burger place where some crazy stuff happens during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally!
Cedar Pass Lodge is the only place to eat inside Badlands National Park. It can be a nice little stop in the middle of your Badlands day. Their popular dish is Sioux Indian Tacos – fry bread topped with beans and bison meat. They also have vegetarian dishes.
Located in Wall, SD, just outside of Badlands National Park, the store named Wall Drug is a fully immersive tourist trap experience! It’s famous for being tongue-in-cheek tacky.
It has a cafeteria, and the donuts are popular. We don’t really enjoy the restaurant, but it’s part of the insane Wall Drug experience.
Located between Devil’s Tower and Deadwood, the Buffalo Jump Steakhouse gets really high ratings and is a welcome pit-stop on the way into or out of the Black Hills.
It’s named after the Buffalo Jump nearby, an actual place where Native Americans spooked bison into running off a cliff. You can visit the Buffalo Jump to see the excavation and bones.
This little cafe is located right at the base of Devils Tower. It really doesn’t have any competition, which makes its high reviews quite impressive.
A local told us this is easily the place to eat near Devil’s Tower! But it is a little out of the way.
There is so much to do! The Black Hills can be confusing because it is a HUGE area.
Most travelers want to visit the most popular sites, yet still avoid crowds. We have a detailed itinerary that gives you a step-by-step game plan so you can get to all the best places at the right times!
But that’s not all! Our itinerary includes a free audio guide to listen to while driving, with over 2 hours of stories about the park!
BLACK HILLS TRIP PLANNER: To read or watch all of our content about the Grand Canyon, check out our Black Hills Homepage
AREAS: The Black Hills is home to some amazing national parks and monuments: Mt. Rushmore, Wind Cave and Jewel Cave National Parks, Badlands, and Crazy Horse. Plus, the amazing Custer State Park
THINGS TO DO: There is much more to do than hike and look at Mt. Rushmore. Explore the 1880 train, Reptile Gardens, slip down a natural waterslide, or go on a scenic drive
GREAT CITIES TO STAY OR CHECK OUT: Explore some amazing mountain towns including Deadwood, Keystone, Hill City, and Rapid City.
GET QUIRKY: Want something REALLY different? Check out Devil’s Tower and Wall Drug
WHERE TO EAT: Check out the best places to eat in and around Mt. Rushmore plus where to eat in each city
WATCH: Enjoy videos of the amazing Black Hills while learning our best tips for visiting by watching our Black Hills YouTube Playlist
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