Lantern Tap House

RestaurantsSpokane

Not a tavern anymore and thank god for that. We didn't dislike the old Lantern or anything, but with the place literally being too small to get into, it was at a point to have my claustrophobia kick in.

With the expansion into the next door diner things have drastically changed, and the Lantern has become a bona fide tap house. It might not be quite up there with Manito, but does that actually matter? I don't think so, and with ten taps and a decent bar menu, it fits well into the burgeoning South Perry district. Kind of a bridge between South Perry Pizza and Casper Fry.

Food wise you get pretty much what you'd expect -- bar food, the standard kind, and well executed at that.

The hot wings, where we went with the basic spiciness, has a good kick to them, with a nicely flavored sauce. It might have been just a bit too sweet, but it also didn't taste like a basic Frank's, so that's good enough for me. Plus the sweetness does a good job at masking the heat up front. Don't get me wring, it does hit a couple of wings down, but it's not a total killer. Add the crumbled blue cheese on top, a good dipping sauce, and these aren't bad wings at all.

We were told the fries here were excellent, and they truly are. Go with the salt and pepper ones, and you will have a good, straightforward fry-experience. Just like we like it -- fries shouldn't be too complex.

There are ten taps, all with good stuff on them. Other places might have more of a selection -- though the Lantern's bottle selection is impressive -- but as long as what they have is of a high quality, I'm just fine with that.

Good food, good beer. The extended Lantern truly is a tap house and a good addition (or expansion) to South Perry. It might not be a huge neighborhood, but its "downtown" has taken a very good form. We like seeing the Lantern being a part of it. Good stuff.