Smell the goodness at Timber Creek Grill Buffet

Paul Klinke sits quietly in the center of his latest restaurant, the Timber Creek Grill Buffet in a rejuvenated Argonne Village.
It’s late morning, and the lunch crowd is filtering in. If you listen closely, you can hear the conversations as people come through the big, glass doors and enter.
“Wow! This place smells great!” is the typical comment.
Hard of hearing these days, Klinke doesn’t hear the words, but he doesn’t have to. He can read the reactions.
When you learn the restaurant trade from the legendary Colonel, Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Harland Sanders, you know when you’re doing it right.
Quiet and dignified in the same way his mentor was, Klinke laughs.
“Colonel Sanders taught me how to fry chicken,” he said. “My wife and I were in Louisville learning the chicken business from him. One day the Colonel came in with his wife and was talking to all of us in the program. Next thing I know, my wife and I are invited to have dinner, just the four of us. We had a fabulous dinner. Each of us had someone standing over your shoulder, filling your glass every time you took a drink.”
Klinke breaks into a wide grin at the memory.
“Want to know what we had for dessert?” he chuckles. “Kentucky Fried Chicken. No kidding.”
The Klinke’s found themselves with three KFC franchises, but when they wanted to expand, opportunities were unavailable. Church’s Fried Chicken, however, was actively looking for people to power its expansion, and the couple jumped ship.
That’s what brought the family to Spokane, where they’ve owned and operated a number of restaurants over 30 years.
Timber Creek Grill Buffet is the latest venture, but the philosophy is the same as the one he learned from his original teacher.
“It’s all about providing good, family food,” Klinke said. “Everything is made fresh right here, and there’s always something new or different every day.”
Taking a walking tour, Klinke points out some of favorites.
“You have to have good mashed potatoes,” he says. “That’s important. We always have fish prepared several different ways. Chicken, of course – fried chicken, baked chicken, chicken fingers for the kids. Ribs, meatloaf – we have all of that. And in the evening, the steaks come out and are grilled to order.
“The dessert bar is popular, especially to the kids. Those cookies just came out of the oven.”
The roomy buffet also provides a large, 150-seat banquet facility in addition to its airy front seating area.
Moving into Argonne Village, an area that has stood empty for many years on the corner of Argonne and Montgomery, was an easy decision, Klinke said.
“Look at all that traffic out there on Argonne,” he said. “There’s a lot of traffic on that street, and on Trent right behind us. That’s our market, right there.”
Especially if he can get them to open the front door and smell the food.