While many Inlander Restaurant Week participants again are offering some form of beverage as one of their course options, usually for the first or third, each spot also showcases locally made wine, beer, craft spirits, cider, coffee and more under the Drink Local menu section. These special highlights are an optional add-on as you dine, and we definitely recommend diners take advantage of them as many feature special pricing or were chosen by restaurant staff to perfectly complement your meal.
Each recommendation below is from either that Drink Local portion of the menu or included as a course, and we've made sure to clarify which is which.
BEER
A handful of breweries with on-site kitchens are on the participant list this year, including IRON GOAT BREWING, which, naturally, is showcasing its lineup of craft beer for its Drink Local section. Try the Wallonian Farmhouse Ale, a crisp saison with hints of spice, or the fruity Hazer Quest Hazy Double IPA.
With 26 tap handles, it's also natural for Post Street Ale House to offer a craft pint or a sampler paddle of three beers for its third course. Local breweries YAYA, RIVER CITY (both in Spokane) and ICICLE BREWING (Leavenworth) are also in its Drink Local lineup.
After a starter and entree, if you're feeling too full for more food, consider a pint of craft beer (or glass of wine) for your third course at South Perry Lantern. New Restaurant Week participant Haymaker Kitchen & Tavern in Spokane Valley also offers a pint of rotating beer from the local BRICK WEST BREWING CO.
WINE
Local wineries are showcased on nearly every Restaurant Week menu this year, so those who prefer a glass of vino with dinner are in good company.In addition to wine by the glass, many spots also are offering bottles as their Drink Local specials, like Globe Bar & Kitchen, which has a $20 bottle of MARYHILL WINERY's sauvignon blanc. Maryhill's Viognier and Winemaker's Red are also featured by the glass or bottle at Radicci Italian Bistro. HELIX WINE by the glass or bottle is also a special offering at Osprey Restaurant & Bar.
In Coeur d'Alene, the recently opened CRANBERRY ROAD WINERY is hoping diners try some of its 15-plus Washington-made wines, offering three- or six-pour tasting flights as one Drink Local choice.
Leftbank Wine Bar, meanwhile, clearly specializes in a diverse selection of wines from around the region and the world. Thus you can pick a dessert wine for your third course, or enjoy a red or white from BARILI CELLARS as part of its Drink Local showcase.
COCKTAILS + SPIRITS
Creative cocktails from some of the local scene's best bartenders are perfect for the beginning, middle or end of any Restaurant Week meal.Consider sister eateries Durkin's Liquor Bar and Casper Fry's tongue-in-cheek reference to the real world with "The New Variant" cocktail, with house-made coconut-infused Mezcal, charred pineapple juice, lime and caraway. Both also serve "The First Variant," with Warrior Liquor gin, sake, honey-lime juice, fresh basil and sesame chili oil.
The Lady Baba, at no other than Baba Restaurant in Kendall Yards, meanwhile, is a bright and frothy concoction of Dry Fly gin, Cointreau, limoncello, Campari, lemon juice and egg white.
Head straight to the source at DRY FLY DISTILLING, which serves a food menu from its new kitchen that pairs perfectly with its award-winning whiskey, gin and vodka, all featured Drink Local pairings. A Drink Local flight of Dry Fly spirits is also highlighted at the recently opened Purgatory Craft Beer And Whiskey.
Regionally made spirits also stand out at BARDENAY RESTAURANT & DISTILLERY in Coeur d'Alene. Its own spirits are featured in all three of its Drink Local pairings, including the refreshing, tropical Wobbly Pineapple.
OTHER
Hard cider, coffee and even nonalcoholic options are featured on several menus, too.At Smokeridge BBQ in Spokane Valley, dessert comes with a straw in the form of a root beer float with hand-dipped vanilla bean ice cream.
At Vine & Olive Eatery And Wine Bar, Drink Local features include beer and wine, plus locally made, seasonal hard cider from ONE TREE CIDER. Its sister eatery Vicino Pizza, meanwhile, is showcasing PEAR UP CIDER and French press coffee from Spokane's ROAST HOUSE COFFEE.
Coffee is also on the menu in a unique form at Cascadia Public House, which is featuring in its third course the locally co-owned KÄMÄ Hard Coffee in a martini that also includes local distillery WARRIOR LIQUOR's vanilla vodka.
At Little Noodle, Tawainese milk tea from the local producer BOBA PROPER is showcased both in its honey paloma green tea sorbet, a third course dessert, and as a Drink Local choice with the option to add traditional brown sugar boba.
