Escargot and duck l’orange in Florence. Mango-barbecued pork ribs and enormous onion rings in Coos Bay. Gnocchi in Gold Beach. Swordfish ‘n chips and smoked salmon in Brookings.

Noshing one’s way down the southern Oregon coast can be a fulfilling experience.

Hasty departure

Can we drive as far as Florence before we eat anything? That’s what my traveling companion Chris and I wonder when we depart Astoria for our 360-plus-mile jaunt down the coast. Nope. The lure of Manzanita’s Bread and Ocean bakery (387 Laneda Ave., Manzanita, (503) 368-5823) proves too tempting; we veer off U.S. Highway 101 for hot beverages and sticky buns.

We also refuel our still-growling tummies two hours later in Yachats (where Chris buys a another sweet treat), and soon enough we’re descending the precipitous slopes of Heceta Head in view of towering sand dunes, the geographic mainstays of Oregon’s coastline from Florence to North Bend, another 50 miles down the highway.

Because I’m doing research for a Portland newspaper and a Seattle guidebook, we need to explore numerous restaurants and lodgings. Instead of announcing my agenda, I simply wander into places, as might any intrepid tourist. Unfortunately, one of the Florence restaurants I want to visit has gone out of business; another is closed until dinner time. No problem, we explore Old Town, inspect a bed and breakfast and chat with a few locals, then continue our journey south.

Oregon’s Bay Area

Traffic dissipates south of Florence, then intensifies when we cross the Coos River estuary, spanned by the sweeping 1936 McCullough Memorial Bridge. We’d like to see the remains of the New Carissa, the infamous freighter that came ashore on the North Spit in February 1999. Most of the vessel was later destroyed, but the battered stern section remains, testimony to the ferocity of winter sou’westers. But the day is getting away from us; instead of a long hike, we opt for a shared plate of pork ribs slathered with mango barbecue sauce and a prodigious portion of onion rings at the Cedar Grill (201 Central Ave., Coos Bay, (541) 267-7100) and wonder at the lack of vitality in Oregon’s Bay Area. The twin cities of North Bend and Coos Bay share the finest natural harbor between San Francisco and Seattle, yet lack of investment and high unemployment has kept their downtown areas from experiencing the revitalization happening on much of the coast.

Gold Beach bonus

Back on the road, we hustle to Bandon, one of Oregon’s cuter beach communities. A quick drive-through is all we can manage; our bed and breakfast accommodations await in Nesika Beach. On our way, we pass numerous cranberry bogs, then the landscape opens up dramatically for a few miles north of Cape Blanco, Oregon’s westernmost point named in 1603 by Spanish seafarer Martin Aguilar.

We stop in Port Orford so Chris can eye the “harbor,” a unique-on-the-coast arrangement where boats are placed in and hoisted out of the water by heavy-lift machinery. There’s barely enough light to enjoy the next 20 miles and some of the world’s most scintillating scenery.

In lieu of a personal welcome, our hostess Sue leaves a note attached to the hulking wooden and beveled-glass door of the Inn at Nesika Beach. The key’s in the planter, it reads; come inside and make yourselves comfortable. We do, and she arrives a short while later, only to depart again. There are no other guests here tonight, so we have this gorgeous neo-Victorian (built in 1992 on a bluff above the beach) all to ourselves.

After stowing our gear, we make a beeline for Chives (29212 U.S. Highway 101, Gold Beach, (541) 247-4121 or (800) 4CHIVES), the South Coast’s finest restaurant. Gold Beach is all abuzz about this place; and no wonder, with dishes such as gnocchi awash in a garlic cream sauce and a homegrown beet and asparagus salad. We try both, along with a veggie risotto and chicken breast stuffed with brie and hazelnuts, followed by currant bread pudding for dessert. All are yummy.

Basking in the “banana belt”

Next morning Sue returns to cook breakfast, then Chris and I head south to Brookings, capital of Oregon’s banana belt, a strip of coastline that claims the state’s warmest winter temperatures. Sure enough, Gold Beach is cloudy and misty; Brookings is warm and sunny. The town’s restaurant scene is lukewarm, however. Best of the bunch is The Great American Smokehouse & Seafood Company (15657 U.S. Highway 101 S., Brookings, (541) 469-6903 or (800) 828-3474), a retail-restaurant combo boasting an incredible assortment of fresh and smoked salmon, sturgeon, tuna, calamari, cod, shark and more, plus broiled halibut, blackened snapper, albacore wrapped in bacon and a dozen varieties of fish ‘n chips.

Florence redux

A leisurely trip back north takes us to the top of Cape Sebastian (via a curvy access road); past Port Orford Breadworks (190 Sixth St., Port Orford, (541) 332-4022), a gem of a grocery store that unfortunately is closed; and to the South Coast’s biggest draw, Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (Round Lake Drive, Bandon, (541) 347-4380 or (888) 345-6008). This is golfers’ heaven – the soul of the game is said to reside in the two walking, 18-hole Scottish links courses, Bandon Dunes and Pacific Dunes (a third course is under construction). Both have garnered worldwide acclaim (according to resort literature, virtually every golf publication has named Pacific Dunes the best new course in America). Neither Chris nor I are golfers, but we appreciate the laid-back atmosphere.

Continuing north, we detour along Seven Devils Road and tour Charleston, where the Bay Area fishing fleet is moored. An hour later we’re back in Florence. Dinner at Cafe Francais (3056 U.S. Highway 101, Florence, (541) 997-6767) features a feast of fancy, fussy food (escargot, duck l’orange, crepe flambe), all prepared by Francois Pere, a finicky-about-freshness Frenchman. Next morning, after spending the night in Old Town at the unpretentious Riverhouse Motel (1202 Bay St., Florence, (541) 997-3933), we repair to the Firehouse Restaurant (1263 Bay St., Florence, (541) 902-8675) for fried grits, sweet potato home fries and quiche; yes, real firemen eat it, according to the menu.

Back home in Astoria

After traversing the Oregon coast in both directions, I’m struck by how Astoria stands out – no other coastal community matches its current vitality or selection of fine restaurants. Next day I engage a 50-something married couple exploring Astoria for the first time in a coffeehouse conversation. Considering relocating here, they pepper me with questions concerning restaurants, law enforcement, weather and the price of real estate. The two now live in Brookings (they originally moved north from California to escape the urban sprawl). “It’s crazy in Brookings these days,” the guy says, adding that the price of homes has skyrocketed.

As many Astoria watchers have said, it’s not a question of if Astoria will become a hot zip code; it’s a question of when. Guess what? When is suddenly now.

Contact the Mouth at The Daily Astorian, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 or phone (503) 325-3211 or e-mail mouth@dailyastorian.com