WADDELL'S
Waddell's serves two variations on the wood wrap: steak and chicken. The meat is spiced and marinated while nearly paper-thin pieces of wood (hickory for the former, cherry for the latter) are soaked in water. The meat is then cooked inside the wood, making it moist and chewy and permeated with wood smoke. Unfurl the thing, fork the meat and dip it into the sauces: a delicious teriyaki for the steak, a nice sesame vinaigrette for the chicken. Very impressive. We also had the Irish nachos -- potato skins filled with cheese, sour cream and bacon bits. They're dense, heavy in the palm. They were good at the table and even better out of the fridge the next day. And we tried the "That's a Tasty Burger" -- one-third of a pound of beef sandwiched with jalape & ntilde;os, pepper jack cheese and a hell of a lot of that mysterious Squirrelly Beaver seasoning. The flavor was explosive. The taste lingered and grew. There are 20 taps here, and about 50 more beers in bottles behind the bars. 4318 S. Regal St., 443-6500 (JS)
MAGGIE'S SOUTH HILL GRILL
The interior at Maggie's is bright and sunny, especially in the morning, with rough-hewn sunflower-yellow walls and stained-glass upper windows. Brunch is a weekend treat. The crab benedict ($11) is a highlight -- hollandaise-topped poached eggs perched on generous and distinctly crabby crab cakes, with a light crunchy crust yet moist and savory inside with colorful flecks of minced celery, peppers and onions, and the requisite English muffin underneath. The pumpkin pancakes ($5.75), a stack of four fluffy cakes at least six inches across, entice with the aroma of pumpkin pie. For lighter appetites, there's the yogurt-granola parfait, layered with fruit in a pint glass ($4.50), along with kids' breakfast choices ($4). Maggie's is the kind of place where you don't have to dress up to go out and get a weekend breakfast that's comfortable and familiar but just different enough to be special. 2808 E. 29th Ave., 536-4745 (AC)
ANGELO'S RISTORANTE
The dim interior at Angelo's is decked in nostalgic Italiana and religious iconography, and the menu features handcrafted foods, mostly organic. Starters like calamari saltate, antipasto misto and grilled eggplant parcels with goat cheese, basil, tomato and pine nuts in a sun-dried tomato vinaigrette sounded delicious, and the list of entr & eacute;es is impressive. The lobster ravioli ($21) was a highlight -- al dente pasta pillows stuffed with lobster, whose flavor sparkled. The half order of the grilled polenta cake salad, with sun-dried tomato vinaigrette and a lump of creamy goat cheese was filling but yummy for $7 more. Our young companion shared his zesty spaghetti with meatball ($8 for a kid portion -- but it would have been nice to include a drink or little dessert for the price). Cr & egrave;me br & ucirc;l & eacute;e and tiramisu, made on the premises, were both rich and creamy and not too sweet. 846 N. 4th St., Coeur d'Alene, (208) 765-2850 (LM)
