Comfort food served with a side of cowgirl kitsch

Each time I go to Chaps I tell myself this will be the day I order their signature baked oatmeal. Everyone swears it’s the heartiest, tastiest stuff they’ve ever eaten, but each time I approach the counter something other than, “I’ll have the Chaps Baked Oatmeal” comes out, and I wonder if my subconscious has discovered a way to keep me in a state of constant craving.

Saturday morning my chum-since-high-school, Michelle, and I moseyed out to Chaps with a hankering for custard-style oatmeal. But neither of us could deny the fact that our mouths started watering when the friendly fella behind the counter suggested Pumpkin French Toast. I put in my order, it was a no-brainer. The Banana French Toast was just as tempting, and my famished friend was not about to let the opportunity pass her by.

Michelle planted herself on a pink church pew and I sat across the old farmhouse table on a black ladder-backed chair. We drank water from half-pint canning jars and sipped rich, black coffee from sweet pink “chapsgirl” mugs. Our French toast – hearty slabs of scratch pumpkin and banana bread – came topped with a generous dollop of soft, cinnamon-y cream cheese. A heap of grilled red potatoes and a couple thick slices of meaty bacon sealed the deal. It was pretty much like eating dessert with a side of meat and vegetables. That’s right, a perfectly balanced meal.

There’s no denying this place does comfort food up right. But Chaps brings much more than emotionally gratifying cuisine to the table. A witty collection of bodiless bovines, vintage furniture and distinctively chic accessories help create a homestead hominess that feels cozy, comfortable and instantly familiar, even to city slickers.

It’s a place that, although you never leave hungry, you always leave wanting more.

Chaps is located about 10 minutes outside downtown. Take I-90 exit 279 south toward Pullman/Colfax; travel 195 about 2.5 miles and veer into the Latah shopping plaza: 4237 South Cheney-Spokane Road; 509.624.4182