Ben's Yogurt and Deli

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Today, it was all about the deli.... I mean there I was hungry for lunch and there was Ben's, just waiting for hungry ol me.  So this time, instead of driving past, I went in.

 They have a great selection.  One customer who was eating saw that it was my first time here and told me he goes there often... loves the food, and that is really fresh.  He was right.  It is good.
I had a veggie wrap....with cheese and avocado.. and all the veggie fix-ins... "To Go."

Ben's is great.  It's clean, friendly fast and fun.... (I happen to think of frozen yo cream yogurt with toppings as "fun.")


I had driven past many a time in my travels around town and I had heard rumor too that this was a great little spot.  I just had to try it for lunch, and as advertised, it was very good!  But the best to me, is the frozen yogurt.... just ask Geo   Yo Cream frozen yogurt is become a once a week adventure for us.


Yo Cream is 25 calories per ounce, made with real fruit ingredients, uses no rBST and contains live cultures.... so it is good food!

Ben only has six flavors (as compared to some yogurt shops that have maybe twelve or ten, but he has toppings galore! The fresh fruit stand even offered blackberries that day, yum!  And I noted too that he has good sanitation practices.  He has signs requesting for parents to assist younger children and he keeps a hand sanitizing station right next to the self serve machines.  I liked that part a lot.


I found Ben's to be a friendly neighborhood mom-and-pop type of food stop with the added plus of offering self-serve frozen yogurt.

Paul Bunyan (Coeur d'Alene,Is)

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The sign for this place is as big as....well, need I say, Paul Bunyan.  On second thought, it is actually bigger than the legend says he was.  All I know is that this is one big sign!  You cannot miss Paul Bunyan's Pak Out when driving along Northwest Blvd in Coeur d' Alene.

Paul Bunyan, as you folklore buffs may know, was a very large lumberjack who traveled with his Blue Ox named Babe.  There are some photos of lumberjacks around the restaurant inside.  Evidently, the owners in the past have had connection to the logging industry, and those loggers work so hard, they probably needed a great little sandwich shop to eat at. back in the 1950's when this place got it's start.


 It's a small spot, looks and feels like it's been here a while, but I was truly surprised at how busy the place was.  I watched with amazement as car after car drove up to the "Pak Out" window and the little place filled up inside too.






 It's your typical burgers and fries kinda place....
We had burgers.  Geo had the Paul Bunyan Burger... on the right.... and I had the "Deluxe."
We also had onion rings and a huckleberry shake.



The burgers were.... burgers, but the shake was amazings as were the onion rings.










In typical local NW fashion, they had all the necessary dipping sauces  to offer too.




















So this is Paul Bunyan's. Coeur d'Alene.  However, I saw there is another Paul Bunyan burget place on my way to Sandpoint.  That Paul. He gets around.

Davenport Chef's in The Spotlight!

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Throughout the last month, The Davenport Hotel chefs have been particpating in events and making media appearances. This blog is dedicated to the Chef's and a huge thank you to all of them who help make the Davenport so special through the wonderful food that they create. A special thanks to Chef Bryan Franz who particpated in the National Tour Association's Reno Dinner Convention and received rave reviews as well as making appearances on KHQ and KREM!

Here are some photos and video from these events. Thank you Chefs!

New Year's Eve with the Montana Highway Patrol

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Trooper Patrick McLaughlin provides backup during a DUI stop.

Trooper McLaughlin types up a faulty equipment ticket.

In the well-below freezing weather, Trooper McLaughlin stops to check on a stranded motorist.

A DUI stop on New Year's Eve.

After a man was arrested for driving under the influence, the troopers move the violator's car off the road.

So I spent NYE doing a ride along with Trooper Pat McLaughlin of the Montana Highway Patrol. Overall, it was a quiet night - only one DUI, which we were backup on, and four broken headlights. But the 4.5 hours we spent with him were still very interesting. The scariest point of the night? When Trooper McLaughlin declared that the reporter and I were his backup if "stuff should go bad." He even showed us how to unlock the guns (a shotgun and an M4) in his car (a secret I'm not allowed to reveal). "They're hot, so you just have to pump a round into the chamber," he said. Ya.....okaaay.

So even though I was prepared for the worst, it turned out to be a tame, yet entertaining evening.

Traci & Jeff's Wedding ~ August 6th, 2011

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Yesterday I had the privilege of shooting a wedding for a couple who was not only photogenic, but had an amazing sense of humor. Here are just a few of my favorites so far.

Loved the rustic-chic venue, The Barn at Finley Point.

One of the sweetest 'First Look' moments I've had the privilege of witnessing.

Like I said, very photogenic.

Taylor, the flower girl, was adorable.

Lots of laughs and tender moments throughout the ceremony.

They hid their first kiss from the audience. How cute is that?!

Little bit of a cake battle (Traci won).

Traci got a bit of a booty dance from Jeff before the garter toss.

This was probably the funniest moment - Jeff went reaching for the garter and through some slight of hand, produced a pair of granny panties. Hilarious!

Traci's reaction to the granny panties bit. Don't worry folks, she's laughing.

Despite a nice breeze, the day was quite warm. The bride in front of the fan gave me an idea....

Love it!

Thank you, Traci & Jeff, for keeping me laughing throughout the day. Congrats and best of luck to you!

Anthony's

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Anthony's... at Spokane Falls.

One lovely summer day, while walking the bridge in Riverfront Park with some friends, we spotted it...Anthony's.  One friend said, "Oh, wouldn't it be lovely to sit under those umbrellas outdoors and watch the rapids on the river?" Well, all present agreed and the next thing we knew, we had an outing planned for lunch at Anthony's.  

Anthony's is located at 510 N. Lincoln, in downtown Spokane.  Their specialty is seafood.    I just learned that Anthony's is a chain of restaurants and while each is said to be unique, there are 22 of them.

I have often heard people talk fondly about this place and was kinda excited that finally I would get to go and see it for myself.

It was a great lunch, although even before making group reservations I had reservations... for the reviews I had read on the internet about this place were not exceptionally flattering.  I did feel better when I asked one man in the parking area how his lunch was.  He answered saying,  "Great!  I had the fish."

I laughed.

The place was busy and parking was a hassle.  I thought that they had valet parking, but they only have valet parking for dinner, although their webpage that I looked at did not tell me this.  It simply said, 
"""Anthony’s at Spokane Falls offers complimentary valet parking while dining at the restaurant."   
So, we had to spend a lot of time looking for a parking spot.  If your there for lunch and you do not park in their lot... the only parking around is parking you have to pay for.  It's a downtown thing, you know.

We had a large group and they had sat us indoors.  This was actually fine for us because we did go outsides and it was a rather hot day and it was cooler indoors.  But so much for sitting under one of those little green umbrellas overlooking the Spokane river for lunch.   We did go outside afterwards and enjoy the spectacular view.

Now for lunch....  did I mention, "It was great!"?

This is a soup bowl and salad... clam chowder.

 Fish Taco and Chips.. with salsa.
 Shrimp Alfredo....

 Chicken Caesar
Here is a beautiful salad.


 and did i mention, "It was great!"?

We also had some desserts.  Anthony's other specialty is peaches.  Pictured below is ice cream and cobbler.... both featuring fresh peaches.


And, if you are looking for that view...S P E C T A C U L A R !