Restaurants in Idaho

The sun is a constant presence at Twisp Cafe & Coffee House, flooding in the windows in the morning to shake the drowsiness from commuters and hovering overhead as diners stop in for lunch. The recently retooled menu spills over with Mediterranean-inspired options, including pizza dotted with olives and fresh basil, falafel sandwiches, and flaky baklava made in-house. These pair with energizing drinks, such as salted-caramel lattes and huckleberry white mochas. Visitors can make use of the free WiFi or stop by for frequent events, including acoustic musicians, book signings, and chances to take a ride in the bean roaster.

Seasoned barkeeps fill glasses with the aromatic pours from a rotating selection of 12 wines, and the cellar stocks a slew of bottled vintages from Idaho wineries to far-flung international locales. Guests can also indulge in sips of 38 domestic and international beers. It's all a part of the new ownership at Corkscrews, who complement their libations with a freshly concocted menu that showcases pizza, salads, a spread of cheeses, and desserts, from cheesecake to ice cream with almonds. On top of filling Corkscrews' cozy environs with daily live entertainment, the owners enjoy renting out the facility and its team of wine handlers for private events such as holiday parties and Flat Earth Society meetings.

Taxidermy buffalo and deer heads oversee GW Hunters Steakhouse's rustic wood-paneled dining room, where tables strain beneath the load of hefty steaks, seafood, and pasta. In addition to the traditional hearty steak-house fare, the chefs at the family-owned establishment dish out a wide range of unusual meats, including elk, buffalo, and alligator—each of which are personally wrestled into submission by the head chef, Rex Shank. Every Sunday, a country breakfast buffet spans the restaurant's event hall with a smorgasbord of skillets and steaks. The steak house also opens its elegant, 50-year-old banquet facility for private events, where parties of up to 50 folks can feast amid gold-stained floors, golden walls, and a sophisticated absence of chimpanzee waiters.

Acapulco Mexican Restaurant's menu unfurls with authentic, south-of-the-border fare in a charming environment with clay shingles, murals, and old-style lights. Perform palate Pilates with the Acapulco platter, a bountiful sample of appetizers that includes nachos, quesadillas, hot wings, miniature tacos, and more ($11.25).

Four Insider Pagers give Pizza Factory's Post Falls location an average of four stars:

At Fiesta Chicken, diners can savor charbroiled chicken in a variety of ways. Cooks layer the meat in quesadillas, stuff it into tacos, and roll it into burritos with ingredients such as roasted corn and creamy chipotle sauce. They also toss it in crisp salads and simmer it in flavorful lemon-chicken or tortilla soup.

Just as Thomas Edison stumbled through useless prototypes of light bulbs and movie cameras before perfecting the phonograph, the alchemists at Qdoba Mexican Grill took 47 attempts before landing on the franchise's signature blend of three cheeses, known simply as queso. That attention to detail still pervades every aspect of the menu, as employees spend hours each day chopping, dicing, and simmering the fresh ingredients that find their way into burritos, taco salads, and grilled quesadillas. Beyond the marinated bites of chicken, beef, and pork and hand-crafted tortillas, cooks protect their ripe, fragile avocados from harm by smashing them into batches of fluffy guacamole.