Find A Nice Table By The Lake

What makes good food taste even better?

Just add water.

The lake season has officially arrived — and I thought it was worth revisiting a couple of waterfront places from last year’s list of my favorite restaurants.

Elkins on Priest Lake, which was No. 4 on my year’s Top 10, has taken a new tack with its menu this season. The kitchen will change the offerings regularly, to make the most of the freshest ingredients available.

Last week that meant Copper River salmon with a lemon beurre blanc, jerk shrimp with sticky rice, cracked pepper ahi, garlic and sesame wok-charred mahi-mahi, smoked trout tossed with alfredo-sauced pasta and oven-roasted halibut.

As summer arrives, more exotic seafood will show up on the menu, too.

Appetizers included a broiled portobello, sauteed morels and coconut and lemongrass shrimp drizzled with a ginger-lime beurre blanc.

Salads range from a traditional Caesar to a duck-noodle dish with bok choy and a spicy peanut dressing.

The ebb and flow of these innovative preparations will test the kitchen’s creativity, but longtime diners can take comfort that some things won’t change.

Elkin’s signature chicken Oscar — chicken topped with crab, asparagus and hollandaise — is there to stay. As is the popular rack of lamb and the baseball-size steak stuffed with crab and shrimp.

Prices range from $14 to $23 for dinners. Salads and appetizers start at $2.50 for house greens and top out at $8.25 for sauteed morels.

For reservations at Elkins, call (208) 443-2432.

At Bayview, on Lake Pend Oreille, MacDonald’s has revamped its menu, adding a smoked Mississippi catfish and a roasted duck breast served with a fruit demi-glace and braised lentils.

This casual spot where all seats are outside has got a fairly short list of entrees, but the kitchen aims high.

More than half the dinners are seafood — from the pan-fried Washington oysters to Gulf shrimp in a saffron cream sauce. The ubiquitous salmon is grilled and served with a caramelized onion balsamic vinegar cream sauce and served with horseradish mashed potatoes.

There’s also a cold-smoked ribeye steak that’s finished on the grill.

All meals are served with soup or salad, seasonal veggies and house-baked bread. Prices range from $17 to $20 for dinner.

If it’s offered, don’t miss the silky smooth creme caramel.

To reserve a table at MacDonald’s Hudson Bay Resort, call (208) 683-2211.

Go Hawaiian

Mango and Chili’s Chili Chili Cafe celebrates the first Saturday of each month with a Hawaiian Day feast and with summer just around the corner (we hope), tomorrow seems an especially fitting time to dive into island food.

The lineup includes such classics from the 50th state as laulau, chicken and long rice and Kahlua pig.

The kitchen will also cook up a dish with what chef J.R. Thomas calls Hawaiian filet mignon, Spam. He’ll dust the lunch meat with Japanese spices and wrap it in nori.

“It’s going to blow people’s minds,” he said.

Other Hawaiian Day specials include huli huli chicken, kim chee, tender shoyu chicken and sweet and sour pork, island style. Wontons and wonton soup will also be served.

Be sure and try the manapua, steamed buns stuffed with char sui, a barbecued pork.

Diners can order single entrees or combination plates from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Don your Hawaiian shirt and come prepared to wait if there’s a crowd. At the Chili Chili Cafe, they specialize in slow food.

It’s located at 410 W. Sprague. Call ahead if you’re in a hurry; the phone number is 747-5416.

Small bites

Red Robin’s newest location recently opened, just east of the Spokane Valley Mall. This popular burger joint also serves a variety of sandwiches and pastas and dedicates a page of its glossy menu to specialty drinks.

Look for Red Robin downtown to make its debut in August.

I was in Seattle last weekend and ate breakfast at a decidedly non-trendy restaurant in North Seattle that specialized in omelettes. Leena’s Cafe is owned by a Greek family, so naturally, I had to try the Greek omelette.

It was fantastic — a four-egg jobbie filled with seasoned gyros beef, feta cheese and onions. It was unusual, but not in a flashy way.

If you’re ever in the neighborhood, Leena’s is located at 17732 15th Ave. N.E. in Seattle, just north of 175th.