What a dish

Located at the corner of Highway 2 and Division, DISH is a quintessentially Sandpoint restaurant — funky and family-friendly, with a little play area for kidlets, open seating, lots of light, and bright walls of lime, teal and avocado. There’s a good buzz about the place, which focuses on “affordable gourmet dining for the whole neighborhood,” according to owners Gary and Laura Peitz.

The menu holds a mix of traditional American comfort foods and unexpected spices from Cajun to curry, all served with gourmet panache.

Breakfast reflects the southern stylings of Chef Gabe Cruz (formerly of Café Trinity and Chimney Rock), with dishes like crawfish etouffee benedict ($10), served with a heap of homefries. The Almost Joe’s features sausage from local Woods Meats, as well as herbed mushrooms, spinach and Asiago cheese ($8.45). Pancakes Banana’s Foster ($9) — topped with a sauce made of orange juice, brown sugar, Myers rum, bananas and butter — will appeal to your sweet side while house-made organic granola ($5) packs plenty of energy.

For lunch, make friends with the Rachel — hot, thin-sliced turkey breast with melted Fontina cheese on grilled rye with slaw ($8.45). Salads range from traditional Caesar ($5) to the JFK ($10), with dried cranberries and apricots, toasted walnuts, Stilton cheese, red onion, bacon and baby mixed greens. Both the curry chicken potpie ($9) and capellini pesto ($10) include Dish’s rotisserie chicken, which will be featured in the dinner menu slated to come online later this spring.

Many breakfast and lunch items are available at the drive-thru, which opens at 6 am daily and features Doma coffees served by a proper barista, not some fly-by-night coffee-cutie in your average drive-up window. There’s also a to-go menu, giving new meaning to the idea of “home-cooked” as your family will be impressed with the gourmet meal you were clever enough to pick up on your way home.

— CARRIE SCOZZARO

Dish, at 1319 Highway 2, Suite A, Sandpoint, Idaho, is open daily 7 am-2 pm; drive-thru opens at 6 am. Visit www.sandpointdish.com or call (208) 265-6100.