Three Pizzas in Three Days

To say that we relied heavily on our GPS during the trip to Spokane would be an understatement, but despite my geographical ignorance, I had fully researched different restaurants to sample while we were there. The debate on "Best Pizza" seemed to center around Bennidito's or David's, so both places were definitely on the itinerary. But how did that plan become three pizzas? Well, as we were passing through Coeur d'Alene Idaho we were surprised to spot a MacKenzie River Pizza company, and within the distance of one block, made the decision to go back.

According to the writing on my glass, this is the only MRPC located outside of Montana but we were pleased to find that it was just as tasty as those found in the home state. We ordered a half and half Good Ol' Boy (Pepperoni for the kids) and Hot Hawaiian (Sweet & smoky BBQ sauce, roasted chicken, bacon, pineapple & jalapeño peppers for us). Our server was first rate, she gushed over Deacon, had cups with lids for the children to prevent spills, and then gave them free ice cream for desert. In a show of appreciation, Heather and I also ordered a slice of cheesecake.





The next night we tried Bennidito's where we ordered their Meat Primo (mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, salami, italian sausage, prosciutto ham, panchetta bacon, meatballs & canadian bacon). This pizza justified the trip down. Simply amazing. The meal was even more special due to the fact that we ate it on the patio in the warm sun. The trip to Bennidito's also took us to the South part of town and I don't think I have ever seen such beautiful streets or such stately homes as those found in the neighborhood surrounding Manito Park.







At supper time on the third day we found ourselves in the parking lot of David's Pizza, debating whether or not we really wanted to have pizza again. My vote was for the dinghy looking Vietnamese place across the street but we finally decided to try David's just so we would know for ourselves which was better. The restaurant had kind of a pub-feel to it and I'm sure it is a regular haunt of Gonzaga students. The Garlic Chicken and Mushroom pizza we had was a New York Style thin crust that was purportedly hand tossed (although we couldn't see it made from where we sat in our giant booth behind a basketball-court-hardwood table). The pizza was very good and if it had been our first stop instead of our third I may have been more excited about it, but on the other hand, it was a little pricey compared to what we had received at Bennidito's and our server tried to short me $5 when I got change for the table-top Pac-Man machine.





The arcade game was a nice touch by the way - it brought back fond memories of a similar machine that used to be at the used-to-be-Tops restaurant in Claresholm where I would sit and watch dad get the kind of play/$ mileage from of one quarter that would blow the mind of any modern arcade gamer. David's also has a "Pizza Response Team" emergency vehicle that would be the envy of any small town fire department, and which is reportedly capable of catering for up to 3000 people. If I was throwing a party, or was a college kid (with more pizza-money than the average college kid), I would pick David's. Otherwise, Bennedito's was our family favorite.



On the fourth day we actually made it back to that dinghy Vietnamese place (I never did catch the name). Despite the appearance, it turned out to be pure gold. The "Bun" vermicelli was the best that we have had - handily beating our local standby. We also ordered some Western-Chinese sweet-and-sour breaded chicken and almond breaded chicken (covered in plain old gravy if you can believe it) with sides of chow mien and fried rice. It was a feast and we still had enough leftover to fill a takeout container. We had a good laugh reading each member's Chinese Zodiac from our place mats (Dad and Ella - Snake, Mom - Horse, Mason - Sheep, Tyson - Rooster, and Deacon - Ox).





But the best part about the unnamed Vietnamese restaurant...?






... It wasn't pizza!!


- C