Get out! Nightspots reflect city’s blooming sophistication

POST FALLS – For much of its existence, the town of Post Falls sat next to Coeur d’Alene like a scrawny little sister, not quite as worldly and hip. She was a little awkward and gangly, not having much of an identity in the shadow of her larger sibling, so full of resort glamour and bustling nightlife.

However, in the past 10 years or so, Post Falls has experienced an enormous growth spurt, pushing past urban puberty and blossoming into a city that can stand on its own merits.

Traditionally, a night out in Post Falls frequently would evolve into a night out in Coeur d’Alene, where the selection of lounges and nightspots was considerably more diverse.

There always have been a handful of places in Post Falls where country music and cheap domestic beer combine to make for a distinctly rowdy North Idaho experience. If that wasn’t your kind of scene, you likely were headed east to investigate the happenings in the City by the Lake.

I’d like to hope that people party responsibly and call a cab to get from one town to the next, but the reality is that Seltice Way is ripe on weekends with dangerous drivers trying to sneak home after a boozy night of barhopping in Coeur d’Alene.

Fortunately, some fantastic nightspots have emerged recently within the borders of Post Falls, rendering trips eastward for a night out pretty much unnecessary.

Surely the most obvious sign of Post Falls’ new uptown vibe was the opening in November of The Oval Office, an elegant bistro and martini bar.

Owner Raci Erdem already was famous and beloved by many for creating huge, delicious clouds of garlic aroma that waft from his White House Restaurant, located a block up Spokane Street from The Oval Office. Erdem is the local guru of garlic, and his gourmet creations are so hard-core that one can smell them from nearby Interstate 90 while just passing through.

The Oval Office wittily continues the political theme of the White House, complete with martinis named the President, the Vice President and the First Lady. If you like your martini spiked with extra olive juice, then, of course, you’ll want to order a Dirty Monica. The Watergate is a tart and delicious treat made with raspberry rum and watermelon liqueur.

There are 25 martini varieties available starting at $7.50, and each is a masterfully delightful concoction.

The atmosphere at The Oval Office is upscale but laid-back and inviting. The martini bar is cozy and lends itself to intimate conversation over a drink and an appetizer.

If martinis aren’t your thing, a full range of cocktails and brews also is available.

The menu here is not nearly as garlic-centric as at the White House, focusing more on American cuisine and drink-friendly appetizers. I’ve heard that the mango swordfish is legendary and that the Will Barron steak is worth getting carried away over, but at nearly $25 per entrée, these items are beyond my budget.

Try the simple yet elegant cheese and grapes plate or the deliciously addictive honey brie phyllo cups, several of many affordable appetizers to chase down with your Hillbilly President, a huckleberry-infused martini and Oval Office specialty.

This place, like the White House, is bustling, so reservations are recommended.

The Blue Grotto is the lounge portion of the Blue Bay Family Restaurant at Seltice Way and Greensferry Road in the building formerly occupied by the Dugout.

Tony Orozco and company remodeled the property extensively and opened their doors for business this year.

They’ve done an amazing job of rejuvenating the place. Gone are the darkness and clutter of the Dugout, replaced by natural light and wide-open spaces. The main restaurant is a bit like an undersea world, with an expansive blue ceiling and fish pictures everywhere.

Blue Bay is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, serving traditional family-style cuisine and specializing in Mexican food.

When I walked into the Blue Grotto lounge, it was perhaps a little early in the evening for much excitement. The place was cavernous and empty but extremely well put together.

Dozens of long black tables are lined with elegant high-backed chairs; a large stage sits at one end of the room with two pool tables at the other. Defying the simplicity of the décor was the chaos of 12 big flat-screen televisions, each tuned to a different channel.

Nothing here has been broken in yet – everything is new and pristine, free of the beer stains and cigarette burns that decorate the fixtures of so many local lounges.

I pulled up to the handsome granite bar and ordered a drink. As I chatted with the bartenders on duty, Darcy and Amy, the sole other customer piped up from his whiskey sour and told me that the Blue Grotto was “the classiest bar in Post Falls, hands down.”

He’s pretty much on the money. With karaoke every Sunday and Monday, live local bands on Fridays and Saturdays and happy hour every day from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., the Blue Grotto has the raw space and potential to turn into one of the busiest, most happening places, as well as one of the classiest, in North Idaho.

Several longtime Coeur d’Alene food and drink establishments recently have decided to get in on some of the action in Post Falls.

Capone’s has been king of the microbrew scene in its Lake City location since Tom and Teresa Capone cracked open the first bottle of beer there in 1991.

The Post Falls location, on Ross Point Road behind the KFC restaurant, sticks to the same formula that made the original spot so popular: a mind-blowing variety of microbrews on tap and fuss-free delicious bar food in a nonsmoking environment.

It’s a sports bar at heart, with a ton of TV screens to watch the game and always a rowdy crowd to enjoy the game with. Occasionally the sports mania comes to a halt to make way for some live music.

Capone’s Post Falls location has 25 micros on tap, including my all-time favorite, Pyramid apricot ale, the sweetest and most-refreshing brew on Earth, served ice-cold.

For those who choose to dabble in the harder stuff, a full liquor bar is available as is a variety of subs, pizzas and burgers to help fill your tummy so you don’t get too tipsy too quickly from your beverage of choice.

Also migrating over from the east is Paddy’s, which has opened Paddy’s Too in the massive strip mall that seemed to pop up overnight at state Highway 41 and Mullan Avenue.

When I was much younger and the Coeur d’Alene Paddy’s was under a different owner, we knew it as a place that was pretty lackadaisical about checking IDs; since the place managed to be an all-ages establishment while serving beer, it was Grand Central for underage drinking.

But since current Paddy’s owner Rich Hanlon took over several years ago, the place has gone from a scrappy pool hall for rowdy young boozers to a swanky sports bar.

Paddy’s Too continues the upscale trend by adding a giant three-pillared full-liquor bar, 10 plasma-screen televisions and seven huge pool tables – more pool tables than anyplace else I’ve heard of, possibly setting a record.

Like the Blue Grotto, everything is fantastically new and crisp, and the no-smoking policy will help keep things that way. (For those who just have to puff, there is a heated smoking porch.)

Paddy’s Too offers a different drink special every night, including Tequila Tuesdays, and free pool on Irish Sundays. Karaoke is on Wednesdays, a DJ is in residency on Fridays and live music happens every Saturday night.

Unlike the Coeur d’Alene Paddy’s, the new place offers a full lunch and dinner menu as well as breakfast on weekends.