(SpoCOOL) A Spokane Blog

Brick City Pizza has the somewhat dubious honor of being the hardest to locate restaurant in Spokane. Oh, finding the building is easy enough -- it's the glorified strip-mall on 29th, the one made out of bricks -- but once there, things get a bit more complicated. In fact, for your convenience, here's a map.

You're welcome.

A map might be something Brick City should consider actually. We were the only people there during our lunch-hour Friday visit. One confused man tried to enter the front door after having walked back and forth for about five minutes. Then the door was locked. Doh.

That aside, is Brick City a spot you want to dump South Perry for? Not quite, but it's not too bad for what it is: a good step above the Pipelines of the world, though not up there with the aforementioned South Perry or Veraci or whatever.

There are many things Brick City gets right, mind you. In fact, I'm not sure there's anything it gets downright wrong. 

The pizza crust, for example, has a nice flavor to it while being decently charred. I'm not sure if the pizza oven is the same as the former tenant, Villagio, but I do think there are obvious similarities between the two crusts.

I wouldn't necessarily run around praising the toppings from the top of my lungs, but they're still serviceable. Decent pepperoni and all. It is all a bit too greasy for my liking though, and a good patting down with a paper towel wouldn't be completely out of place.

Oh, and try the breadsticks, if only for the marinara sauce. It's nice and tangy.

I don't know, is there really that much more to say about Brick City? It's not bad at all. It's not great, but not bad. We'd go back. The service is good, and they have a handful of decent taps.

Brick City is just fine then, and it's worth visiting if you can find it. It might not be a spot that'll place too highly in your rotation, but it might just find a spot in it anyway.

Do you remember the Picnic Company Gourmet Cafe? Of course you don't, seeing that it was neither gourmet nor cafe nor very picnic-y. It was a company though, we'll give it that.

A business license has been submitted by Chapala revealing that they're about to move into the location. It might not be an amazing addition to 3rd Ave, but it's a step up from Carl's Jr. at least. (I think.)

Did we ever mention PowderKeg? I don't think we did mention PowderKeg. This will be a part of the Snowlander Expo, and will run from November 8th-9th. And as the name suggests, it will be all about beer.

Seventeen breweries have signed up -- at least by our count -- and we're all about more beer festivals hitting Spokane. The Inlander has more information.

Finally, everyone and their sister have already seen this and posted it to Twitter, but what the hell... Selkirk Abbey hits it big with Triumph on Conan!

Deschutes has unleashed the Chasin' Freshies on the world, a beer that is exactly what you'd expect it to be. A fresh hopped IPA, which means you probably should run to the store to get one, punching out the guy in front of you if necessary to make sure you can drink it as fresh as possible.

Not that we endorse violence, but... Well, you just do what you need to do.

Is it worth the violence though? Not quite, but this is still a very good beer. It carries a proud golden look, crowned with two fingers worth of crispy white head. The hops lure you in through its nose where you're warmly welcomed by the smell of citrus.

This is, in other words, a dapper beer right up front.

Sip, and the hops and citrus dance a seductive tango across the tongue, followed by a very light maltiness which finishes off with a dryness not unlike a joke told by Jim Gaffigan.

Is the Chasin' Freshies anything you haven't tasted before? Good as it is, it's actually quite straightforward and familiar. There's nothing wrong with that, though, as that is probably exactly what it should be.

So don't punch out anyone to try the beer at its freshest. Rather politely ask if you can go ahead of the person in front of you. That it is worth.

It's that time again: What restaurants do you consider the best in Spokane? And this time we see some movement, with the average scores moving very, very close.

Want to affect the list? Go vote!

1. Casper Fry (-)
2. Manito Tap House (-)
3. South Perry Pizza (4)
4. Sante Restaurant & Charcuterie (7)
5. Central Food (6)
6. The Flying Goat (5)
7. De Leon Foods  (13)
8. Bennidito's Pizza (9)
9. Saranac Public House (12)
10. Atticus Coffee & Gifts (8)
11. Veraci Pizza (11)
12. Bon Bon Lounge (3)
13. Coeur Coffee (15)
14. Jones Radiator (10)
15. Huckleberry's (20)
16. Mizuna (-)
17. Italia Trattoria (14)
18. Main Market Co-op (17)
19. Atilano's (18)
20. Wild Sage Bistro (19)