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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Love By The Spoonful When It Comes Time To Show Appreciation For Mothers, Families Head To The Restaurants

Patsy Clark’s Mansion must serve a heck of a brunch.

Pat Fitzpatrick and Darlene Salisbury came all the way from Los Angeles. They stood outside Patsy Clark’s for more than a half-hour on Sunday with their mother and Salisbury’s son, waiting to be seated.

It was Betty Summerville’s first Mother’s Day in the Inland Northwest. She moved to Post Falls April 10 when her company moved from Los Angeles.

Her daughters decided to make this Mother’s Day special.

“All that distance for dinner at Patsy Clark’s,” said Betty Summerville, the family matriarch.

Well, brunch probably is a more correct term. One table was filled with fruit, another with mounds of shrimp. There were custom-made omelettes served at one spot, and another table with serving bins of sausage, spinach souffle, chili and duchess potatoes.

Across Spokane, thousands of people took their moms out for Mother’s Day, and restaurants prepared for the onslaught.

At Patsy Clark’s, it meant lots more flowers and about 500 customers. Reservations were booked three weeks in advance.

“It’s probably No. 1 as far as the Sunday brunches go,” said Mitchell Ross, assistant manager. “On Father’s Day, I think it’s their day and they go golfing.”

At Clinkerdagger, Sunday meant close to 1,000 customers, 14 slabs of prime rib and a special brunch featuring a Spokane scramble and a special country ham and egg dish.

Workers came in at midnight to prepare for the brunch. Clinkerdagger serves brunch only on Mother’s Day and Easter.

“We don’t have a large kitchen,” said Paul Furiosi, the head chef at Clinkerdagger. “I have to clean over 160 pounds of fruit for Mother’s Day. I need 150 pounds of potatoes cut. On salmon alone, for the whole day, we’ll probably go through 40 pounds.”

The Red Lion in the Valley served a brunch to almost 900 people. The centerpiece for the brunch was a dark chocolate sculpture of two cherubs. The food included seafood platters, chicken, fresh fruit and vegetables.

The food wasn’t the big draw for some people out for brunch Sunday.

“It’s not what we’re eating,” Ann Quinn said. “It’s who we’re spending the day with. They’re good parents. We’re very, very lucky.”

Quinn and her sister, Jan Quinn, took their parents to Patsy Clark’s. Lorraine and Jack Quinn have been married 52 years.

It was Lorraine’s day. She wore an orchid pinned to her dress and a necklace with a cross that she received for her birthday May 7.

Even her husband gave her a Mother’s Day gift. First, he went to the General Store and picked up a small hoe.

“I said to the clerk, ‘Do you think that’s OK for Mother’s Day?”’ Jack Quinn said. “She threw it in the wastepaper basket.”

He still bought her the hoe. He also bought her a box of chocolates, special for Sunday.

Other families had more of a quickie brunch experience for Mother’s Day. Fitzbillies sold out of scones after offering a special two-for-one scone deal after a morning rush.

Mary Wilkins took her three children there for bagels, root beer, Snapple and cream cheese.

“They’re very special, wonderful children,” Wilkins said.

As if illustrating the point, 4-year-old Mark Wilkins gave himself a sloppy lipstick job with cream cheese and scooped fingerfuls of it into his mouth.

“Only on Mother’s Day,” Wilkins said, shaking her head.

MEMO: Changed from the Idaho edition

Changed from the Idaho edition