Chimney Tree Grill

With a long road still ahead and hunger setting in before driving a fairly long stretch of mountain road, I searched on Google and found this place. In this quiet spot, I could also see the Chimney Tree and give my dogs some time to rest in the spacious outdoor area. As for the food, I would recommend the burgers made with local meat rather than the Fish & Chips.

Located at the southernmost point of the Avenue of the Giants, this is a great spot to grab a bite to eat before, or after, you drive through the beautiful redwood trees. Friendly service.

This place is pretty consistent only had a few times my fried food would be a little too cooked. Really enjoy the Ortega burger and you get to add your own fresh produce from an area on the counter. Great milk shakes. Wings aren't my favorite. It's nice to sit outside on the picnic tables when the weathers nice.

First time here so always max food at 4. Very nice fresh Caesar salad w chicken Chicken freshly cooked, tender Iceberg lettuce and tartar sauce. Do not ridicule the tartar sauce.Its good! Great place for the kids. Next to the chimney tree. They have indoor and outdoor seats plus picnic tables. Just a couple of miles from 101, and shame on you if you don't skip the freeway and drive the original 101 and the Avenue of the Giants. Down the road may lurk a fruit stand with blackberry popsicles.

What a lovely place to have lunch after driving through some gorgeous redwoods. The hamburger was very good, and they offer gluten-free buns, but what really took the cake for me was the bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers. It's so difficult to find jalapeno poppers that aren't breaded, and the bacon does a good job of making the crispy exterior without it. The outdoor seating is clean and comfortable, and the local welcoming committee (kitty) is very polite and doesn't try to sneak any food. Would absolutely eat here again if I ever travel back this way. It's worth the slight detour off the 101.

Impressive hollowed redwood you can walk inside. A quick and memorable stop, and it’s free, which makes it even better. However, the on-site grill was overpriced and the food quality did not match expectations.

Fun stop on the Avenue of Giants. Good burgers, great shakes, and a fun peek into the Chimney tree. Clean restrooms

We stopped here to eat while exploring in the Redwoods. I had the mushroom swiss burger and fried zucchini. I'm very picky with my burgers and this was cooked to perfection. The burger was cooked well done, but juicy. The mushrooms were just right.

Figured we should get some food before we started the Avenue of Giants and this was our first stop on the route. Stopped for two burgers and they had gluten free buns! This part was amazing but paying. The price for two burgers was steep. Burger tastes good and fries were okay. They have the vegetables all on the side for your own addition. Service was alright, but smaller operations so a bit slow at lunch time when everyone else also came to get food. Small eating inside with AC or outside under the trees.

Good spot. Interesting Chimney tree next to it with free entry was cool. Prices are reasonable. American comfort food menu of burgers and such. Milkshakes were very good.

Very happy with our stop here! Greatly appreciated their gluten-free buns and having a vegan veggie burger option (even if the ingredients were a mystery, I took a chance). Fries were also tasty, thanks for keeping the skins on, yummy. All tasted wonderful! Service was friendly and efficient. Tables and restrooms were clean. Setting is casual and beautiful in the redwoods with outside seating by the restaurant in a new semi circle shape or at picnic tables in the trees or at the counter inside. We met another patron who loves their burgers and raved about them to us (beef is grass fed, fyi). It's a restaurant all by itself, such a peaceful setting, on the Avenue of Giants drive through the redwoods. Worth a stop.

Nice surprise to find this little place after we got onto Avenue of the Giants. Friendly service and delicious Burger! Plenty of seating outside among the Redwoods and Chimney Tree is right there too. Fun place to stop. Easy parking.

After driving the Avenue of the Giants scenic road, I was starving for something other than snacks. I passed by this place just before getting onto the 101 and ended up turning back around to grab a bite. Chimney Tree Grill serves up basic American classics like burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, salads, and desserts. I ordered the Ortega Chile Pepper Jack Burger and it hit the spot. But I think my favorite part of coming here was eating on the patio and having someone's nice kitty cat come hang out with me. It added to my already great day. Chimney Tree Grill is named for the nearby 78 foot remnant of redwood tree that was hollowed out by fire. It is free to enter and you can see the sky from inside when you look up. It's sort of cool but not that big of deal. Chimney Tree Grill has gluten-free and vegan options.

Patty melt was awesome but the fries were my favorite. Real nice, charming, and quiet setting with nice staff. Great stop on the way to/back from avenue of the giants or pit stop (me) off the highway.

Was really bad, the fish and chips was horrible. The fish smelled expired/old. It felt squishy and it reminded me more of a chicken nugget. Extremely low quality, do not eat. On the positive note at least they agreed and refunded the money. A bunch of people were there and to say the least I don't know how they got that many people with food like that. When we went to the counter to ask for a refund no one was there and we had to wait about a minute and even had to ring the bell, turns out the person that was supposed to be working at counter was outside chatting with people. Overall maybe it was just not the fish and chips day but considering it's by the nicest clearest river ever I expected better fish. On that note I do not suggest this place but if you do decide to go just make sure if the fish smells funny DO NOT EAT IT.

The actual living chimney tree was just ok. You can go inside it and it's just a hallowed out tree - that's literally it. It's not really well maintained either so it was underwhelming and kind of a waste of time to check out. As for the restaurant, none of the staff wore masks indoors where they prepared food, but they were friendly and service was fairly quick for an afternoon meal after the lunch rush. There's lots of outdoor seating and decent parking. Parking is a little tricky because there's not much space between the parking area and the highway so be careful. The serving sizes are fairly large, so large we had leftovers for dinner. Things like sauces, condiments, lettuce, onions, pickles, and tomatoes are in a buffet area. I don't 100% trust people to be sanitary, so this was a little off putting. On the upside, people can customize to their tastes and preferences. The zucchini sticks were really good and came with marinara sauce but also was good with ranch. The sandwiches and burgers came with a selection of sides. We had a patty melt and potato salad and fries + cheeseburger, mac salad, and fries. Fries and the patty melt were underwhelming. The potato salad was delicious. Also, the shakes are tasty. The price for a touristy place like this was manageable. Would I come back here? Maybe. If it was the only choice I had left. Which, might be the case next time. There's literally not a lot of places to eat in these parts.

Burgers are homemade, well seasoned and fresh. Lots of outdoor seating among the redwoods. It's a perfect stop through Ave of the Giants!

Consistently great food. Thank you for having a gluten free bun. Always clean, places to sit and very well kept spot.

Missed this place the first time from up from the South. I didn't realize avenue of the giants was the entire side of the highway. My family wanted to stop at chimney tree but I passed it driving too fast. There weren't many spots to stop as I was traveling with 3 cars. We ended up just skipping it all together. I made an effort to come on my way home days later. I love that we got to visit the chimney tree itself and got some food while we did the pit stop. The workers were so sweet and they served so much food per serving! Great prices too. Adding this place as a stop everytime I come back to the area! Lovely place to stop.

Had lunch here on a Thursday. Not busy. Burgers were over-cooked and dry. Inexpensive. Lots and lots of flavors for the milkshakes. The strawberry shake was awesome. Chocolate shake not so good. Very pleasant outdoor seating. Lots of tables in the shade.

This spot is one of the most thoughtful, kind, and great tasting restaurants I've had the pleasure of dinning. Let's list the ways that this place rocks: The freshest produce for the Caesar salad and burger toppings. Toasted hamburger buns for the excellent burgers. Two slices of cheese Beautiful plants and flowers throughout the restaurant and grounds. Pretty sure there is a mister, for hot days. Amazing cookies and and milkshakes. Bamboo tongs for putting fresh toppings on the burgers. Just, a really, really lovely place. We left full, happy, and wanting more.

We were camping but we forgot the propane tank to our little stove and we didn't want to deal with our tiny charcoal grill again so we decided to have dinner here after a day of hiking and exploring trees. There is actually a landmark tree here obviously called the Chimney Tree! We had an early dinner of burgers, chicken tenders, sweet potato fries, and Mac n cheese bites. I got a delicious strawberry milk shake with real strawberries in it. Each entree had fries and choice of Mac salad or potato salad so if you're about to run a marathon you can come here for carbs. I liked the Mac salad, lots of black olives. Mac n cheese bites was like battered Kraft Mac n cheese, I wouldn't get those again. But the sweet potato fries and chicken tenders were tasty and crispy. There was a pretty good band performing so we sat at a far table so our little one didn't hurt his ears, but we were also close to the little play set they have in the back. The picnic tables were spread out pretty far from each other, they could probably fit a few more. Seemed like a locals kind of spot and reasonably priced. I'd come back!

Delicious food! Expect a wait, go and enjoy nature while you do. Food is worth it. Patty melt w/fries were delicious.

quality local grass fed beef. perfectly cooked to medium. add lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, jalapeño to your burger yourself at the condiment station. yum!

STOP! Read this immediately!!! THE STEAK SANDWICH IS A MUST HAVE! We were up in the Redwoods for a few weeks and stopped by the grill a few times! It was a nice cozy place. Nothing fancy. Just a good ole "Local small business!" And they greet ya with a smile! The steak sandwich was our favorite! It was large enough for us to split! And I ain't skinny! If your up there enjoying the Redwood, sneak in for a bite! The owner is friendly and accommodating! Wishing you happy travels!

Had my 70th birthday party with around 40 guests last evening at The Chimney Tree. What a wonderful experience! Manager Chris was so helpful and easy to work with as were all the employees. Food was just incredible! They really go out of their way to ensure you're well cared for! Many many thanks!!!

A fun stop if you are driving through the "Ave of the Giants". Order your meal and then go visit the living Chimney Tree. You'll have time, as staff is limited. The food is tasty. I enjoyed a shake that was worthy of 5 stars! Surrounded by those large trees as you eat outside it is such a great experience.

I liked how they had every condiment you could think of tang would need for your burgers

The people here are super nice. We had the fish and chips which was nice. The chicken strips were tasty. Then tried the beef steak sandwich which was massive. Overall good food on the Avenue of Giants.

Was recommended to come her by a family member so I decided to give it a try. I tried a Bigfoot burger and man was it a hefty burger, it was probably the biggest I've personally ever had. The patties themselves had a good flavor that charbroiled taste I was looking for. Every burger also comes with fries and your choice of macaroni salad or potato salad. Each burger is on average about 10 dollars. They also had a wide variety of milkshake selections, unfortunately I didn't get to try one because it was too cold out but I'm looking forward to trying one next time around. I would definitely come back whenever I'm in town and in the mood for a good burger!

Such a great find in the middle of the redwoods. I've been gluten free since 2014 and it's definitely the best hamburger bun I've eaten. We also traveled with kids who got allergies with eggs and tree nuts. They're more than accommodating.

Wasn't expecting much, but I was quite surprised! Best burger I've had in awhile! The prices were especially good and low, surprising for California. Best gluten free bun I've ever had. Excellent fries.

This for only the tree as a separate venue from the yummy grill. The tree is magestic. Large and hallow. Great photo place for the fam bam and all.

A wonderful gem along the Avenue of the Giants. This restaurant was clean, COVID safe, and had great food and milk shakes. This is actually the first restaurant I've eaten at in over a year because we felt so safe at the outdoor, well spaced picnic tables. The burgers are truly homemade (not frozen patties), the toppings (onion, tomato, lettuce, pickles) are super fresh, the milkshakes have real ingredients (chunks of strawberries in the strawberry shake), and the staff is really friendly. We will definitely visit this place again!

They have a pretty large menu and the food my husband and I chose was delicious! It is a very cute little place with lots of outdoor seating and some indoor seating. Because it was very windy outside we chose to sit indoors. We will definitely go back again.

We visited this establishment for lunch just before driving the Avenue of the Giants. We ordered food to go. The burgers, onion rings, Oreo milkshake, staff and outdoor dining were awesome. The burnt out chimney tree (an old redwood) on the property was interesting to look at too. Would have given 5 stars except the fries and the corn dog were burnt.

Dog friendly outdoor seating in the middle of the Avenue of the Giants. Beautiful redwood forest scenery. The food was AMAZING! The hamburgers tasted so fresh! Fries are the perfect crisp.. similar size/shape to McDonald's but better. You get your patty and cheese and dress the veggies yourself. The veggies they had set out were perfectly cut and very FRESH! Did not personally get a dessert but there were plenty to choose and they looked so good. If I didn't eat a massive hamburger I would have went for an ice cream cone or shake.

We just stopped for a quick snack. We got French fries and it was a huge portion and everyone was super friendly. Stop here if you are hungry!!!

So yummy!!!! No complaints, their vibe is a perfect match to the environment surrounding! I love the build it yourself motto, all condiments and sides are available to create what ever combo you'd like! I got the vegan burger and my boyfriend got the chicken strips! Both amazing! Would travel here again if passing through! The tree was a great sight as well for some history!

Our first time up that way, and we spotted this place, it was delicious! I had the cheese burger, fries and went with the chilli (it was cold out) very good! It was busy so we ate in the car, no biggie, we were used to driving anyway. Enjoy

I'm glad I stopped here to grab a quick bite to eat while driving home from vacation. Hubs and I got here around 2pm on a Wednesday. There seemed to be a steady stream of customers, a mix of locals picking up call in-orders and travelers, which is a good sign. The young staff was refreshingly efficient and sincerely friendly. Hubs and I shared a bacon cheeseburger. They use local 100% grass feed beef. The patty tasted fresh and was flat grilled perfectly. Other highlights are the homemade potato and macaroni salad, and slices of fresh pie. Only downside for us was the limited seating. And I can't vouch for the condition of the restrooms only because we didn't use them.

Decent food, conveniently located. A little pricey. There's a nice picnic area and playground for kids to stretch their legs after a long drive. There is also the Chimney tree next to the restaurant, which is kinda cute. The port-a-potty is vile though. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat here but if you're looking for a place to stop along the way, this is OK.

Food was good, not much choices around here but this would definitely be our first pick each time now.

This review is only for the pit stop we made to see the actual "Chimney Tree". The tree is free to view, which is nice, because quite a few other tourist 'traps' have some sort of fee attached. This was an easy and quick pit stop, right off the side of the road, with easy parking. It's worth a quick 1 minute stop to see. It's basically just a tree with a hollowed center, and a door attached, but it's roomy and cute, and you can look up to the sky from inside. It's probably not much different from other trees off the Avenue of Giants, but it has little steps leading down to the tree and a cute painted door. It's really big inside too. It's pretty difficult to take pictures inside of it though (it's quite dark), so it doesn't really make a good photo stop though.

Would give them 10 stars if I could! Place is very clean and well laid out. They clearly pay attention to details. It is a very nice setting to eat, and the food was good. Food was ready quickly and was delicious. Extremely reasonably priced as well. Then, got go check out the amazing Chimney tree next door afterwards. Will definitely be back next time through.

We stopped here before entering the Avenue of Giants. I guess we thought this was the only place to eat before entering. There were 3 adults and 2 kids. The place is nice and small. There were tables outside on the patio and around back they had picnic tables. The menu is pretty simple. The food was good (I just had a burger) and the people working there are really nice. There will be a bit of a wait for food even if it isn't crowded. Luckily there is a little play set for the kids and right next door is the Chimney Tree. If passing through again I would probably stop if hungry.

I was surprised after seeing other reviews when I ordered a burger and it was SOAKING with grease. As in, the bottom bun was completely saturated, the paper in the basket was saturated, and I could STILL produce a significant quantify of grease by squeezing the meat patty. EWW. It's unfortunate that the burger was nearly inedible because it was a wonderful location and had fantastic outdoor seating options. The staff were friendly and the prices were unbeatable. It did take a little time for the food to be ready but the view was great and if you have kids, there is a play set and the chimney tree to entertain them while waiting. Maybe I was just unlucky with the burger, which is really too bad.

Decent enough little burger stop next to The Living Chimney Tree, which is a tall hollow, living tree that you can step inside, look up and see the sky at the top. While it's mildly fun, the tree seems poorly maintained. The glass is broken on the entrance door window. There is graffiti both outside and inside the tree. There's no charge to go inside the tree, but given the poor condition of the tree itself, I couldn't see stopping at it again the next time we're in the area. The grill is only so-so. I had a bite of my husband's teriyaki burger and it was pretty good. However, the chicken in my grilled chicken salad was as dry as the Sahara. It was also pretty small for the price. The burgers my kids got were just standard burger-shack fare. Nothing all that special. The outside dinning area is also crawling with yellow jackets. While none of us got stung, the yellow jackets kept constantly getting in our food. It was pretty annoying. If you're curious, this place isn't a bad one-time stop when in the Redwoods, but I wouldn't say it's a place you'll want to visit frequently. Also, eat inside.

Drove past this place on our way into the Avenue of the Giants figured we would stop on our way out. Good decision on our part. Very small enclosed gazebo type of structure. 4 picnic tables immediately outside and about 10 stools inside. 4 or 5 more picnic table set further off the road. On a nice day, like we had, sitting by the road was nice. We could hear the river flowing. Food was really good. Both my husband and myself ordered the bacon cheeseburger. Crisp bacon and good flavored burger. All the extras, lettuce, tomato, onions etc you put on yourself. Fries were nice and crisp. You also get potato salad or macaroni salad. The potato salad was AWESOME! Reminded me of my moms. Would stop here again for sure. Not sure if they take ATM or not we decided cash would be better just in case.

Stopped here on our honeymoon road trip and it was the first restaurant we found after deciding we were hungry. Was NOT disappointed! The burgers were amazing! Juicy and flavorful. Highly recommend the fried jalapeños! They are magnificent! Friendly staff and great food - what more can you ask for? This place is seriously a gem.

What a great place to stop, have a burger, and enjoy the beautiful surroundings!!!!! I had the bacon cheeseburger and was blown away by the flavors!!!!! The staff was very attentive and very proud of the business! I also some onion rings as well, again, outstanding!!!!! If you're in the area of the Land of the Giants and want one of the best burger experiences, give this place a try as it will deliver and not disappoint!!!!!

Good food in a cute location. Located right next to the chimney tree - burgers, dogs, and such with shakes and snacks. Took awhile to cook, but there were picnic tables to wait at and it's a beautiful area. Pretty reasonably priced. Porta-potties were pretty full and the only restroom available.

Delicious burgers and friendly staff. Beautiful view of the redwoods. Burgers are made of local fresh beef. And yes you can tell! My favorite little burger stand

It seems that every vacation I go on, I happen across a hidden little family-owned gem that ends up being the most memorable part of my trip. This summer, it was the Chimney Tree Grill. We stopped here as a nostalgia trip so I could see the ancient ruins of old Hobbiton, USA. I'd never been able to go, and if all i could see was some left-over broken statues, that was still worth it by me. While we were here, we realized we were really hungry. So let's eat at the cafe. I mean, no one's come out and had me arrested for looking at old Wizard statues, so I should give them my money. Now, I'm not gonna lie. When we first looked at the menu, we got a bit of sticker shock-- "That's the most expensive hamburger I've ever seen..." But then I realized the burgers were local, grass-fed beef, and the price was actually pretty standard for that. I ended up getting the 1 lb burger, and splitting it with the wife. Came out to $8 each for a half-pound burger of grass-fed beef. That's a steal. It's true that your food is going to take a while. So if you're in a hurry, this isn't for you. But who comes to tourist stops just to leave? Order your food, check out the chimney tree, go excavate the ancient ruins of Middle Earth [without violating any laws, of course], breathe in some fresh air, uhm... repeat 3 times, and then eat. Food was fantastic. Grass-fed beef is hard to work with-- it'll often come out dry and stringy if you don't know what you're doing. Not a problem here. Burger was perfectly juicy, with a toppings bar so I could make the burger exactly how I liked it. It was so refreshing to have real food and meat! The thing that was the icing on the cake that lead me to leave this review was just the fantastic customer service. The woman running the cafe was remarkably friendly and helpful. She provided myself and some other customers with complimentary maps of the area, and highlighted which stops were worth our time. She indulged my curiosity and questions of all things Hobbiton, and gave me a parting gift of a set of post cards from the old attraction. Overall a very positive experience. Thank you!

Great stop along the Avenue of the Giants! The burgers were very tasty and the location is stunning. On a nice sunny day, there's no better place to eat a locally sourced grass-fed burger! Not to mention, I haven't been given that much soft serve ice cream for $1.50 since 1998. Pies looked good too. Excellent!!

GREAT STOP and a MUST for all travelers. The burgers are on point, sweet potato fries were tasty but best of all...the Oreo Shake was the best!

The absolute BEST burgers, fries and cookies! Not to mention the server workers and beautiful surroundings. My go-to in the Humboldt Redwoods Debby Dotson