Best Outdoor Pizza Restaurant in Wisconsin

This October we’re heading down the Mississippi River to our favorite outdoor pizza restaurant in Wisconsin: The Stone Barn. The family-owned farm and restaurant is nestled in the rolling hills of Nelson, WI - just over an hour and a half outside of the Twin Cities. You’ll take a beautiful drive along the river, then through the country - it’s especially pretty right now as the colors change. This area is known as the Norwegian Valley which reminds us of our Scandinavian heritage.

Out of nowhere, the beautiful stone farm will appear, dotted with families and maybe even some horses nearby. The restaurant opened in ‘06 and has been a hotspot ever since. You can even get married in one of their barns.

Upon arrival, you’ll select your table. Everything is outside, with some shaded options. We loved that we could bring our dogs. With the rolling hills as your backdrop paired with the beautiful brick building, it definitely reminded us of a place you’d find in Scandinavia. 

The menu has a variety of thin-crust, wood-fired pizza options with creative toppings. Each pizza is HUGE, serving 2-3 people. We ordered the Modena, the Southwest, and the Margherita. We were obsessed with the Modena it has balsamic chicken, onions, mushrooms, sugar snap peas, feta, and a garlic olive oil base. The Southwest was equally delicious with chorizo, onions, jalapenos, black olives, and cilantro. 

The evening ended with a beautiful golden sky and we couldn’t help but feel so lucky to live in such a stunning area. We’ll take a country drive to pizza any day!