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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Durkin’s: The wait was worth it

Dan Webster

Above: Wednesday night at Durkin's Liquor Bar, grilled pork chop at the top, fish and chips at the bottom.

As I've witten here in the past, one of the things I've most enjoyed about living in Spokane is that I seldom have to wait to be seated in a local restaurant. Because if I have to wait, I'm usually within five minutes of some other place that will seat me almost immediately.

That quality of Spokane life, sad to say, is changing. As new places open, and as they attract popularity, you can't just walk in anymore and expect to get the booth of your own choosing. But as they say, life changes, and you better change with it or you'll get left behind.

I took some baby steps toward change last night by accepting my wife's invitation to eat dinner at Durkin's Liquor Bar, which sits on a stretch of Main Avenue that used to house Dutch's Inc., once one of Spokane's best-known pawn shops. I'd called earlier in the day only to discover that the eatery doesn't accept reservations — a growing custom that I don't understand or like.

So, of course, when we showed up just after 6 p.m., the place was packed, and five or so other people were already waiting. But my wife calmed me down, we ordered drinks and, after waiting a little more than 10 minutes, we scored two seats at the bar.

While Durkin's is, technically speaking, a restaurant, it is set up like a bar. Seats run up and down the length of the room, facing the cooking area and the bar itself. On the opposite wall, a series of four-person booths offers more traditional dinner seating (but good luck snaring one of those). The place also offers a downstairs bar, though it was being used for a private function the night we visited, and a table near the entrance that — apparently — can be reserved for larger parties.

Anyway, after being seated, drinks still in hand, we perused the menu. Since Inlander Restaurant Week was still going on, and since Durkin's was participating, we split our order: My wife ordered off the set three-course meal (chopped salad, grilled pork chop, butterscotch pie dessert), while I opted for the regular menu (roasted tomato salad, fish and chips). We shared her dessert.

Our overworked server was polite, friendly and — for the most part — competent. Our salads came quickly enough, but our entrees arrived several minutes after others around us had been served (and only after I asked our server to check on our order). And when the bill came, my wife's meal wasn't listed (a fact we pointed out, for which the bartender thanked us).

So, overall, the experience was positive. My salad was perfect, the fish and chips better than I've had anywhere else in Spokane (and almost as good as what I ate last October in Iceland), and the bites I had of the dessert made me want more (a temptation I resisted). My wife's set-course salad was teeny, but that's a minor complaint, because the bite I had of her pork chop was scrumptious.

No, I have to admit that if Durkin's is a sign of how things are changing in Spokane, then the city — at least gastronomically — is headed in the right direction.

And I guess I'll tag along, too. I'd hate to get left behind.