Wild Berries! Café is located on First Avenue, a few doors down from local favorite Sweet Basil Pizzeria. Wild Berries!, which is also a catering company, is owned and run by Judith Henderson, an award-winning chef and author from San Francisco.

Wild Berries! first opened in 2002 in neighboring Dayton, and relocated to its current location in Walla Walla a year and a half ago.

Henderson specializes in cooking with organic and local produce, grains, meat and seafood, all of which is grown by small family farmers. Her café’s standard of excellence is to, “educate ourselves daily to the needs of the people, sustainable agriculture, our family farmers, local growers and vintners.”

“Wild Berries! is the only restaurant in Walla Walla that offers organic vegetables as a staple throughout the year,” Henderson said.

The café as a whole is relatively small, and most of the space is taken up by the kitchen area, leaving little room for seating. A small bar faces out toward the window, and there are a few small tables in front of it. There is also outdoor seating in front of the café, but with the approaching colder weather this seating isn’t very functional.

Wild Berries! offers the best dining experience when it is relatively un-crowded, for the small space can begin to feel quite overwhelming when it is packed with a large number of diners.

Henderson and her small staff make each meal upon order, and the wait for food can be rather long when there are a lot of customers. This is especially true when Henderson is the only one working.
Aside from the limited seating, the only other downside to Wild Berries! is the hours. It is only open for lunch from Monday to Friday between the hours of 11 a.m. –– 3 p.m.

The lunch menu at Wild Berries! is more upscale than other local eateries, yet all of the menu items are reasonably priced under $10. The menu consists primarily of salads, soups, and roasted sandwiches. The soups are handmade daily, and the sandwiches are made of house baked bread.

The salads and sandwiches feature a unique array and combination of flavors. They are made with fine meats and cheeses and feature vegetables, such as eggplant, not typically found on sandwiches.
There are menu items that contain meat as well as vegetarian options, and Henderson is more than willing to customize salads and sandwiches to fit each diner’s tastes and preferences.

Popular dishes on the menu include the Roast Chicken Caesar Salad, the Caramelized Tofu and Dried Cherry Salad, and the Honey Ham, Apple and Melted Brie Cheese Sandwich.

Since Oct. 23 Wild Berries! has also been open on Saturday mornings for breakfast from 7 –– 11 a.m. Items on the menu include omelets, french toast and coffee cake.

Henderson’s friendly personality and genuine interest in her diners paired with the emphasis on local food make Wild Berries! Café a perfect place to have lunch with a real community feel.