Travel advice for Coeur d'Alene and Spokane, please!

September 8, 2016 2:49 PM

Hi everyone! I am traveling to Coeur d'Alene via Spokane next week. I have never been there before and am a special snowflake traveler.

I am vegetarian with gluten and soy allergies. I will eat nearly anything within those parameters. What's in that area?

Where can I get tea?

Are there cool museums or other things to check out that are accessible to someone who can't walk super far or handle a lot of stairs?

Is there a zine community or indie bookstore?

What should I know about area friendliness or unfriendliness to LGBT people?

I am flying through Spokane since that's where the airport is, and staying in Coeur d'Alene since that's where I have to be in the morning. I will have a car.

Thanks in advance!

posted by bile and syntax to Travel & Transportation around Coeur D'Alene, ID (10 answers total)

Uh, where are you staying?
posted by DarlingBri at 2:59 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

River front park! A great attraction there. And The White Elephant ... No idea on food though.
posted by tilde at 3:10 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I am staying in Coeur d'Alene. I do not remember what part of town.
posted by bile and syntax at 3:13 PM on September 8, 2016

In Spokane, I highly recommend Main Market Co-op for stocking up on food that meets your needs. They are also super nice there.

I recommend Atticus Coffee and Gifts for tea. They have a wall of it.
posted by Pearl928 at 3:23 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

Have a white coffee somewhere. It's a local specialty.
posted by jackbishop at 3:44 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

You can take a boat ride on Lake Coeur d'Alene: CDA Cruises. The Coeur d'Alene city park next to where you'd catch the boat is close to a parking lot. So you wouldn't have to walk far to just sit on a bench and have a beautiful view of the lake.

In Spokane: Auntie's Book Store is the best indie book store in town. I love it. Boo Radley's Gift Shop, and Atticus Coffee Shop are my other favorites which are close to Auntie's. And there's the Sky Ride. That takes you out over the Spokane River.

I'm sorry, I don't know a thing about places for you to safely eat.

I live in Spokane, so if you have any other questions while you're in the area feel free to memail me. :-)
posted by ilovewinter at 4:04 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

So, per Trip Advisor the best vegetarian restaurants in Coeur d'Alene are a crepe food truck with gluten free options, Coeur de Breizh, a Latin American lunch cafe called Cafe Carambola, a Greek restaurant in a strip mall (often the best place to get great ethnic food) called Santorini's Greek Cuisine, a quick lunch place with gluten free options called The Pita Pit, and Soul, a soup and coffee house.

I'm a pescetarian who is picky about local sourcing. My practice is to get there and then check for well reviewed nearby restaurant listings on OpenTable, Trip Advisor and Zagat. I also take a look at menus at the online website. You can alternately call ahead to ask a few questions as well as make your reservation. I find these days any decent restaurant will cater to people who don't eat meat, soy or gluten. P
posted by bearwife at 4:08 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

Auntie's is a cool independent bookstore. Seconding Boo Radley's and Atticus nearby.

For places to eat, you might look at Gluten Free Spokane. White Box Cafe and Bakery says they're aware of the need for soy-free etc. on their about page. (I don't have any personal experience with eating out GF in Spokane.)

Another grocery store that would serve you well is Huckleberry's. (It's on the list on the GF Spokane website.)

Spokane is pretty conservative IMO, but has gotten more tolerant over the years. Here's a guide from 2012 from a local.
posted by purple_bird at 4:26 PM on September 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

I live in Spokane too! The Annual Manual is my favorite local resource for things to do. The county fair started today as well. :) Memail questions welcome here as well.
posted by teslacoilswoah at 7:45 AM on September 9, 2016 [1 favorite]

Thanks to the advice from some folks here on AskMe, had a great vegan breakfast at Boots Bakery (they are vegan/gluten-free) on our last visit to Spokane.

I have an awesome shirt I bought at Boo Radley's (depicting a giant squid wrapping its tentacles around a ship).

Nthing Aunties for indie bookstore - very awesome. Another t-shirt find there: one with a Vonnegut quote on it.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 8:48 AM on September 9, 2016