Renovations underway soon for Cosmic Cowboy Grill in River Park Square

Renovations will soon be underway for Cosmic Cowboy Grill in River Park Square, which will be moving into the space formerly occupied by Tortilla Union.

The Coeur d’Alene-based restaurant company filed permits with the city last week to update the kitchen and seating areas for the more than 4,000-square-foot space between Nordstrom and Williams-Sonoma at the downtown mall.

Cosmic Cowboy Grill Owner Steve Eller said River Park Square approached him about opening a second location in Spokane.

“The mall called me and said, ‘You would be a great addition. I had been looking for a spot in Spokane for the last six to seven months and from a sales and demographic standpoint, it was ideal for us,” he said.

River Park Square is owned by affiliates of the Cowles Co., owner of Cowles Publishing Co., the publisher of The Spokesman-Review.

Eller signed a 10-year lease for the space at 808 W. Main Ave. after Tortilla Union – a sister restaurant to Twigs Bistro and Martini Bar – closed in August.

Cosmic Cowboy Grill serves healthy, farm-to-table and gourmet dishes. The Spokane location will also offer organic, non-GMO pure cane sugar sodas from Tractor Beverage Co., which will be used in recipes for signature cocktails.

Eller expects the restaurant to be a nice addition to downtown Spokane.

“We see a lot of people in Spokane in our restaurant in Coeur d’Alene,” he said. “We know there’s a pent-up demand for what we do.”

Spokane-based HDG Architecture is designing the project. Hayden-based NRCC LLC is the general contractor.

Cosmic Cowboy Grill is slated to open in January.