Bardenay Restaurant & Distillery

Bardenay Restaurant & Distillery
1710 N. Riverstone Dr.
Coeur d'Alene
765-1540

http://www.bardenay.com

There’s a bit of a social stigma about dining solo. Last week, I decided to pop down to Riverstone and check out the new Bardenay Restaurant and Distillery, but all my usual partners in crime had either already eaten or were leery, thinking the place was going to be beyond their budget. I nearly said “forget it”, but I had a lucid moment. If Rachael Ray can go it alone (with a camera crew) for $40 a day across the globe, then surely I could get away with a solo trip to Bardenay. The problem is, solitary diners are often recognized by perceptive restaurant staff as being food critics, especially when the suspected food critic immediately starts scribbling away in a little notebook and snapping photos as soon as he is seated. Ah well, I’ve never really been one for discretion.

I suppose it is preferable if the place under review is unaware that they’re being scrutinized. And for some reason, when I’ve got a dining partner, it’s less obvious what I’m up to. It was my affable waitress Casey who finally got me to fess up. She had already been by twice to take my order, but I kept denying her, stalling while I tried to absorb the menu and take notes. After I finally ordered, we were chatting and she steered the conversation toward Bardenay’s recent write-up in another local paper. “Did you see that article? Do you know the writer?” She was poking around for clues. “Okay,” I blabbed, “I guess you caught me, I write about restaurants, it’s true…”

Actually, at that point it didn’t matter because I was already impressed with the place. This was only their second day open and I expected it to be chaotic, but the cavernous building was actually quite mellow and inviting. There were plenty of patrons contentedly dining and chatting, but I had no trouble finding a spot to land after the hostess told me “Just sit wherever you like, hon.” There was seating up at the bar itself and also a row of tall booth seats dividing the room down the middle, but I chose a traditional table near the patio door with a surprisingly gorgeous view of the new man-made Riverstone Pond.

A host immediately brought water, something I always look for in a restaurant as the basis for a first impression. Water good, no water bad. I looked around, fascinated by the simple elegance of the high wood ceiling, with massive exposed beams and long hanging lamps. Bardenay owner Kevin Settles replicated the unique look of his two other Bardenays in Eagle and downtown Boise, and the result is classy and dramatic. A large outdoor patio provides additional seating and overlooks the pond and its giant spray fountain.

The bar is the main visual attraction, a huge cherry-oak monolith that takes up nearly an entire side of the room, with diagonally cut wine racks on each side, and a complete selection of liquors displayed in front of a grand beveled mirror. The place has a look that I can only describe as modern old fashioned. Sitting regally in the front window is an 18 foot tall copper still, which is used to concoct their own brand of distilled sprits including vodka, gin, and rum. Yes folks, you’ve heard of on-site breweries and wineries, well Bardenay took the concept a step further and started a distillery. In fact, their website mentions that the original Bardenay was the very first restaurant/distillery combo in the entire nation.

Casey was so patient while I pored over the food menu. I had expected something rather high-end but the menu is affordably casual and bar-appropriate rather than gourmet. Still, they offer some truly unique options, such as their selection of Satays, which are basically Indian shish kabobs, with dipping sauce. I finally decided on the , which was just the right amount of spicy and grilled to a perfect moistness, and came with one of my favorite dips, Peanut Sauce. The presentation was delightful, served atop a colorful slaw of garnish veggies. The order came with two large, delicious skewers for a mere $6.95, and I accompanied it with a mixed green salad with lime honey mustard dressing. It was a step beyond ordinary, thanks to the addition of flavorful red peppers and zesty home-made croutons. The dressing itself married the sour of the lime and the sweetness of the honey mustard to create a completely fresh taste.

Appetizers here include calamari, fish tacos, and a fun Mediterranean plate, which comes with hummus, baba ganoush, sundried tomatoes and olive tapenade. The bulk of the menu is made up of salads and sandwiches, and Bardenay takes an original approach to both. The Pear Spinach Salad comes with your choice of chicken, salmon, or prawns. Sandwich options include Charbroiled Steak, Portabello Mushroom, Oven Roast Corned Beef Reuben, and the Bardenay Club. If you’re the type that has trouble choosing a side dish, good luck. Each sandwich comes with any of the following: fries, salad, house greens, spinach salad, apricot-walnut cous-cous, cabbage slaw, soup, or garlic mashed potatoes and gravy. Phew! All salads and sandwiches are big, and nothing will set you back more than ten bucks. If you’re feeling like an even larger meal is in order, there is a small selection of entrees as well, including Rum Pepper Steak, Hagerman Trout Filet, and Fettuccini Alfredo.

A blurb on the menu mentions that the word Bardenay was invented by sailors as another term for “cocktail.” And it’s clear that these folks know how to throw a couple of boozes together. The drink menu and wine list is about thirty pages long and bound inside a solid wood cover. Among the mind-blowing multitude of specialty mixed drinks listed are the “Iguanabana”, made with Bardenay Rum and Guanabana nectar, and the “Basil Instinct”, which teams Bardenay Gin and Patron Citronge with fresh pressed lemon and lime and a sprig of basil. The bartender will shake up or stir any type of martini you can imagine, and there’s a rotating mix of 12 brews on tap at all times. If wine is your passion, this is your mecca, with literally hundreds of options ranging from the local flavors of the Pend Oreille Winery to a $450 bottle of Gaja Costa Rossi vintage 1998, all the way from Tuscany. Next visit I definitely plan on tasting some of the refreshments, but since I was solo, I chose to play it safe and be my own designated driver.

The service at Bardenay was remarkable and friendly; the atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable, even for a solitary diner like me. Casey the waitress was a delight, checking back often and providing timely soft drink refills and friendly chat. We wondered whether or not the man-made pond had been given an actual name – she even asked around, but no one knew. She told me they were going to be running a couple of trolley cars back and forth between downtown and Riverstone, so people can party it up, back and forth, which we agreed was a truly fun idea. I can be terrible with names at times and as we were chatting I realized I had forgotten hers. When she brought my check it said “Server: Hot Lips”, which was cute as heck, and I couldn’t resist asking her “So Hot Lips, what’s your real name again?” Bardenay is open seven days a week and food is served until 9:30 p.m. with the bar remaining open until an unspecified late hour.

Day Trips: Antler's Restaurant, Libby, MT

Antler's Restaurant
442 US Highway 2 W.
Libby, MT
406-293-6464

When the Spring rain finally lets up and the Summer sunshine takes control of the sky, there’s nothing better than getting out on a day trip and exploring the natural beauty of our area. One recent Sunday, with the iPod loaded with fresh music and plugged into the car stereo, Q and I headed up US 95, with no particular destination in mind.

We cruised through downtown Sandpoint and it was already a-bustle with eager tourists looking for an overpriced bottle of wine or a crystal healing experience. As we continued north, we noticed that we had pretty much crossed an invisible borderline: land as yet untouched by big developers. I'd only ever been to Bonners Ferry once, to the casino, at night. I'd never really had a chance to check out the town. On Sundays, they pretty much roll up the sidewalks and shut 'er down. The downtown area is time warp where seemingly nothing has changed since the Johnson era, and frankly, it could use a facelift. Literally the only people we saw down there were some totally un supervised orange-vesters from Boundary County Jail doing some light flower gardening in front of the police station. Spooky. We stopped at the only open gas station to fill up and got questioning looks that said "yer not from here, are ye?" as if we were some kind of wild riff-raff from the big city.

We decided to head east on US Highway 2 into Montana where we discovered a little campground that sits right on the gorgeous Yaak River. There were already a few spots occupied with hardcore campers. We pulled into a spot and parked for a while to enjoy the lush greenness of mother nature. The rush and babble of the river was so hypnotic we had to wander down to the shore. I put my toes in and the water was surprisingly warm for this time of year. I picked out a few pockets full of interesting rocks to go in the aquarium. We made a vow to come back and actually camp at this magnificent secret spot (which is probably not secret at all and is overflowing with obnoxious campers all summer long.)

We blinked as we passed through Troy and missed it, but right outside of town we came across a little parking area at the side of the highway with signs that said "Suspension Bridge" so we decided to check it out. A little cement pathway led down to an enormous enclosed footbridge over the railroad tracks and down five flights of dizzy-making stairs. These stairs were constructed of steel that had been cut full of holes, the edges turned up and spiky to prevent slipping, rendering the steps nearly transparent and giving the illusion that you're walking on air five flights up. It was an uneasy feeling to say the least. They were bad enough going down, but I knew that they were going to kill me on the way back up.

Years of desk jobs and lack of time to exercise have rendered me tragically out of shape. I do enjoy walking and hiking, but I tire easily and my lower back gets unbearably sore after a while. Anyway, we followed a rocky little path that just kept going and going, with no suspension bridge in sight. I started to huff and puff and sweat and thank god there were nice rocks to roost on every few hundred feet. I felt even worse when little old ladies began passing me on the trail, "Get outta my way!" By the time we made it to the actual bridge we must have covered at least a mile and a half of winding mountain path.

The suspension bridge was worth the trek, but even cooler was the Kootenai River and Falls: I sat catching my breath overlooking one of the most gorgeous tableaus I think I've ever witnessed. I sat rapt and Q continued on the path, but I needed to relax a while so I stayed and waited. I laid back in the sun on a nice flat rock and was intoxicated by the heady sounds of raw nature until some lame teenagers came along and shattered the peace by loudly trying to push each other of the bridge. We slowly made the trek back to the parking lot, one bit at a time, and when we made it back to the bench at the top, I was out of breath and dying but actually felt good that I'd gotten in some much-needed physical activity. Now that I know it won't kill me, maybe I'll do it again.

Back on the road, our sudden thirst and cottonmouth became a primary issue, so we decided to cruise over to Libby for a bite. A big '70s sign that said "Antlers Restaurant" caught our attention. The giant menu was huge and colorful, varied and vivid, like Denny's. Is "Antlers" a chain or do they just have a really well-designed menu? We begged the waitress for a pitcher of water, and it was the best water we'd ever tasted in our entire lives. I was so parched, I couldn't get enough. I ordered a burger with swiss cheese and tomato on sourdough bread, and it was absolutely one of the most perfect creations I'd ever had the pleasure of enjoying. Seriously, I'd drive all the way to Libby again just for one of these. The fries were crisp and plentiful, hell, even the dill pickle spear was exceedingly green and crisp. Q agreed his Bacon Burger was worth getting moisty-eyed about. Maybe Montana cows just taste better, I don't know.

We had asked our waitress if she knew a cool route back to Idaho and she recommended heading down Route 56, then back over through Hope to Sandpoint. Dubbed the "Highway to Heaven", Route 56 cuts right through the gorgeous peaks of the Cabinet Mountains and the entire stretch is untouched by homes and buildings, just ancient forests. Deer meandered in every clearing, we had to slow down a few times to avoid them in the road. Further on, the view of Lake Pend O'reille from the Hope area was breathtaking. Low purple clouds hung over the deep blue waters, making it nearly disorienting to drive due to the distraction of the natural beauty. I'd never been through here and always wondered what the hype about Hope was all about, now I understand.

We decided to make it a point this summer to get out and explore or own backyard a bit more. As long as I've lived in Coeur d'Alene, I'm ashamed and amazed that there are so many places right in the area that I have never really spent the time investigating. Look out, Loon Lake, Genesse, and Polson, here we come!

Get Out Mailbag June 15

I'm always afraid to open the emails I get in response to certain columns - what if it's a business owner threatening my life after a bad review? What if it's someone telling me I'm a worthless writer and I should just give up and crawl in somewhere? Thankfully, I've gotten mostly nice feedback so far. I thought I'd take a moment to reply to a few random letters here on the blog:

Dear Get Out!
I always enjoy your column very much. I especially liked the information about Pho Thanh. Shortly after it opened I tried it and became very ill afterwards, so I have not been brave enough to go back, but I see it is remaining in business so I will give it another try. From your information I will know what to order. FYI Pho thanh is not the first Vietnamese restaurant in CDA. Back in the seventies a Vietnamese family arrived here, barely escaping the tragedy of war. They opened a restaurant with very good food-a lychee nut flan type dessert was very good-unusual. The restaurant, however, was short lived.

Nancy Decker

Wow, a Vietnamese place in CDA back in the seventies? I'll bet people here weren't quite sure how to react to such exotic fare back then, when the Resort was still called the North Shore and was known for it's chicken fried steak. Or even better, Tony's Supper Club with it's lazy susan full of veggies and pickled herring.

Too bad Pho Thanh made you ill, sometimes you just have to play it safe and find a menu item you like and stick with it. I could never stomach even the mere idea of trying the pho with tripe and various entrails, although my ex was never afraid of such things, and he lived to tell about it. Then again, his favorite food is Menudo, so that tells you what kind of iron tummy he has. Bleurgh! Thanks a lot Nancy, now I want to try some lychee nut flan dessert and have no clue where to find it. Another quest to add to the list, I suppose...

Dear Get Out!
While I have not eaten at Senor Froggy (and now I likely will not), bravo on your review.
There are many restaurants in town ( Coeur d’Alene ) that could use the wake up call to remind employees that there is a reason it is called the service industry. I appreciate great service, but lately, I am pleased when I get general treatment as a fellow human being, not an interruption. Unfortunately, that is all too rare. And I applaud you highlighting that it is the owners who need to smooth the wrinkles. Attitude starts at the top. I believe if employees are treated as irrelevant specs of humanity, it pours downhill quickly to the customer.

Cheers,
Jenna Botkins

Well Jenna, I guess there's no reason to totally boycott the place. You should at least try the Frog once if you never have. The food still might be passable, it’s just the staff that seems to need a swift kick in the nether regions. I always wonder if maybe I just happened to pop in on a bad day. Or a series of bad days in this case. Good customer service is rare, but does still exist. I guess when you’re working for someone who is paying you $5.25 an hour, you don’t really care if the customers have a pleasant experience or not.

I was sure I’d hear something pissy from the owners of Senor Froggy but haven’t yet. Really, I just wanted to do my part to get the place back to its glory days and send the message that they shouldn’t hire snot nosed little creeps to work in a job that requires a bit of common courtesy and politeness. If someone gets off on being rude to customers, they should get a job at a call center for a cable company or something.

Dear Get Out!
I thought I would respond to your Nightspot editorial. I haven't been around here for a lot of years, I moved back here in this area to be near my children about 3 years. I want to tell you that those country music places you speak of and the cheap beer. They were the fun places years ago, where everybody had a lot of fun. The Slab Inn was one of those. The state line village had 5 or 6 clubs, I guess the freeway ruined that. When People start paying these high taxes that are sure to come, and waiting in lines of traffic and generally waiting for everything you will see how the populous likes it. It will be great for the rich, not so much for the common man. Already property values are unreal. The great lake Coeur d' Alene is becoming a rich man's recreation area. Upscale I hate that word it goes with developers.

Frank in Post Falls

Ah Frank, you can’t turn back time – not even Cher could do that! Post Falls has tripled it’s population in 10 years, so the urban perils of which you speak are inevitable. Deal with it or move to Garwood, I guess. In reality, PF still ain’t no booming metropolis by any stretch of the imagination. Having lived in large cities, I know we still have a LONG ways to go before we really have to start worrying about real issues with traffic and overcrowding. Certain byways here do get backed up, but it’s nothing like the gridlock that ties up Seattle roads for most of the day.

I love how you say the freeway “ruined” State Line. Ha ha. As if it were ever somehow cosmopolitan to begin with. I mean, The Saddle Sore in used to be the giraffe's necklace back in the day, I’m sure. From what I’ve gathered, State Line has never been anything but a bunch of rickety shacks of ill repute. Nothing wrong with that, but I don’t see how the placement of Interstate 90 in nineteen-sixty-whatever had to do with it’s “downfall.” With the coming of Cabellas, the shanties in that area will soon be reduced to rubble anyways, distant memories replaced by strip malls and chain motels.

As far as Post Falls going permanently “upscale”? I wouldn’t worry. As long as there is an Idaho, there will be joints like the Slab and Big Al’s for old-timers to drink cheap beer in. See you there in about 35 years!

5 Live: Local Original Rock Bands

Five Opportunities to See Original Live Music in North Idaho.

Traditionally, in certain local night establishments it works like this: coupled with a few fruity cocktails, cover bands make the ladies happy by putting them in the mood to dance. And as they say, if the ladies are happy then everyone’s happy. Whether it’s a pop tune by Neil Diamond or by No Doubt, many people in North Idaho just want to go out and dance to the songs they’re familiar with.

Then there are those of us who are far more impressed by the idea of the live act actually writing the music they’re performing. For nightclub owners, it can be a risky proposition to book original acts in an area where it seems like not a lot of bar-goers are eager to step outside of their comfort zone and forgo the slickness and familiarity that a cover band provides. If the music turns out to be too out-there, monotonous or just plain rotten, customers will start running for the exit. But if the music is good, and the act starts to develop a following of fans, a crowd of customers is nearly guaranteed. Fortunately, more and more local venues have opened up to the idea of hosting original Northwest musicians on their stages.

This week, summer starts off packed with opportunities to stretch your musical horizons by catching some of these fine original Northwest acts in action:

Mistress and the Misters were recently called Spokane’s strangest band by the Inlander. For sure, they are currently the hottest, most hyped band making the River City scene, and deservedly so. Last year’s excellent Conflagration album was thirty years of blues-soaked garage punk, tightly compressed into a tense little ball. The new Emic EP loses the lo-fi grunge factor and adds some 80’s gloss and more spacious production work. Guitarist Chris Henderson’s guitar riffs are still stickier than Bubble Yum and singer Seth Swift trades his in-your-face shout for an enigmatic croon. It’s music that is quirky and jerky and highly imaginative. The mistress? She quit the band after the last record, but they decided to keep the name, so now the guys trade-off cross-dressing duties for their shows. Mistress and the Misters are sure to create a fine ruckus on their tour of the west coast this summer, and they’re warming up in Coeur d’Alene today with an all-day, all-ages show at O’Shays Irish Pub. Recommended if you like: The Hives, The Mars Volta, The Gossip.

Exit Zero have been churning out their brand of melodic hard rock since forming in Coeur d’Alene in January of 2002. As evidenced by the nearly 16,000 hits on their MySpace page, they’re one of the most name-recognizable bands in the region. Post-Grunge is truly the Energizer Bunny of rock-n-roll, its popularity never seems to wane for very long. Truly, Exit Zero knows the formula by heart – they’re not trying to make any kind of artistic statement, they just wanna rock you, and hard. Singer/guitarist Don Burkett has the quintessential Seattle-throat singing style and enough soaring, angsty riffs to make lighters and fists raise above heads and start swaying. Catch a special “unplugged” show on Friday night at the new Blue Grotto Lounge in Post Falls. Recommended if you like: Alice in Chains, Tool, Hinder.

Dan Purser has been penning tunes since he was a wee tot, and began performing in front of audiences at age 14. Currently he leads a full band called, cleverly enough, the Dan Purser Band. Listening to the recent Live in Seattle album, I get the clear impression these guys have been influenced by Dave Matthews and his band in ways that run deeper than a similar name scheme. It’s jangly everyman guitar pop with confessional, heart-on-sleeve lyrics sung in Purser’s crystal clear tenor. The band throws in the occasional funky moment to keep things edgy, like on the effervescent “Feeling You”, but they also aren’t afraid to bust out the tender love ballads that make the girls weep and swoon. The Seattle band will be making monthly visits to Paddy’s Too on Highway 41 in Post Falls all summer, starting this forthcoming Friday and Saturday. They’re also playing this week on Thursday at Moon Time on East Sherman in Coeur d’Alene. Recommended if you like Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer, Counting Crows.

The Shook Twins are, appropriately enough, two identical twins named Shook – Katelyn and Laurie, from Sandpoint. They both play acoustic guitar and sing in nearly the same voice, making for some amazing harmonic moments. Occasionally, they throw in some subtle electronic rhythm loops. Their songs are haunting and folksy, creating the kind of late night ambience that makes you want to relax with a glass of red wine in a candlelit room. These sisters write serious music that’s both fragile and tense and they cut a captivating presence onstage. In concert, they’ve been known to let their angelic blonde locks down a bit and perform their amazing “Beatbox Medley,” in which Laurie beatboxes wildly (makes percussive sounds with her mouth) to accompany Katelyn, who sings a medley of R&B/Rap hits. On paper it sounds like they might be trying to be silly or ironic, but witnessed live its clear these Idaho girls have got some serious soul. The Shook Twins perform this Friday at Café Doma in downtown Coeur d’Alene. Recommended if you like: Sarah McLachlan, Tegan and Sara, Ani DiFranco

Lithium.ID are quite possibly the only band from Hayden, Idaho whose fan club has its own MySpace page. Zac, Ryan and Steve grind out old-school grunge rock, the kind that disillusioned young men made back before the big corporations caught onto it, back when it seemed like every garage in the great Northwest had a band practicing in it. Nirvana’s influence seems to be everlasting in these parts, and Lithium.ID are clearly Kurt Cobain devotees. However, unlike so many bands out there who emulate the Seattle sound, they manage to inject enough originality that they end up sounding like no-one but themselves. Live, they make a nice big noise that steamrollers over everything, and they bring a certain undeniable energy to their performance that makes audiences respond in kind. It’s driving, melodic punk that makes you want to start jumping up and down. I think these kids are onto something. Lithium.ID rocks The Grail in Coeur d’Alene on Friday, when they play with Spokane hard rock act Shoved. Recommended if you like: Nirvana, Pennywise, NOFX