Ashland

For dinner and a show in one harmonious — and often hilarious — package, the Oregon Cabaret Theatre can't be beat. This distinctive theatre is housed in a former church, but don't expect hard pews and harder sermons. Instead, you can arrive early to enjoy a menu crafted with the show in mind. For example, one of their shows was Guys on Ice, in which Wisconsinites sit around an ice-fishing hut, talking. This doesn't exactly sound like a knee-slapper until you learn that one of the songs was titled "Ode to a Snowmobile Suit." The menu for this show read, in part, German Roast Pork ("perfect comfort meal after a day on de ice"), Chicken Paprikash ("just like de old country"), and Pan-Fried Steelhead Trout ("in case yer line came up empty"). Other shows for this season include Western Civilization! The Complete Musical (abridged) (in the same vein as The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (abridged)); Smokey Joe's Cafe; I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change; and Plaid Tidings.

Suggested restaurants to dash into before or after the show (other than at the Cabaret Theatre itself):

Chateaulin, 50 Main St., (541) 482-2264: Chef and co-owner David Taub was named one of the best chefs in the Northwest by Pacific Northwest magazine. This cornerstone of the Ashland dining scene has an equally impressive wine and gourmet food store next door.

Amuse Restaurant, 15 N. First St., (541) 488-9000: The New York Times called the decor "thoroughly stylish" and proclaimed that the food "comes to your table looking almost too good to eat."