A Unique Culinary Experience Takes Spokane By Storm
One of Spokane's favorite restaurants, Gander & Ryegrass’, now features an evolving chef’s choice menu, which invites guests to sit back and let the master chefs guide them through a dining experience unlike anything you've seen before.
![Dining out in Spokane, Gander and Ryegrass](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=7b460d88a0ec5ebf85b7f530b12be298 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=2e367ce969ba7bfb023fe7f6f733b0f3 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=bbf168f48343fa80e701e7cb3fe99d03 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=5994fc7ac7163300686a9f9aa3535b7b 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=6555e9a381f73631fe21fab82ca35b09 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=9a3b74c78b1f598521b71c4cbbc82611 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=c7c38786ebf437999045609d91fe1425 1500w)
When it comes to most things in life, we don’t want others to decide for us.
But if we’re talking about the “Chef’s Marathon” dinner at Gander & Ryegrass, diners should gladly cede all freedom of choice to chef Peter Froese and his culinary team.
During one of my own visits, for example, I was utterly delighted by the quaintness of a tiny, lidded casserole dish served as part of a flight of appetizers. Inside, a few spoonfuls of pea and duck cassoulet. The presentation was so charming it nearly overwhelmed my appreciation of the carefully crafted dish within.
Offered since Froese opened the downtown Spokane fine-dining restaurant in late 2019, Gander & Ryegrass’ multi-course meal consists of between 10 and 15 total dishes of varying portion sizes on any given night. None of these dishes are listed on the menu. Instead, diners enter into an agreement with the kitchen to continuously send food to their table throughout the two-hour-or-so meal.
![The best food near Spokane, Gander and Ryegrass](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=54961fffaec00220f8e090074090a853 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=976f91dcde69bfc93e57fe8741dad232 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=33be275fc80fed2a209ba42451c45164 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=782aa911b8ec3f817c7792cbb0b7d759 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=668fe2f206d74bad33d067c846e16e64 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=824991ab4cd82ef9bdde89465f944b55 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-3.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=89e57d320368ae4aafd929d15e60caea 1500w)
“I think that’s a little bit of the challenge that we’ve slowly been overcoming, the sense of ‘What? How are you just gonna feed me and I don’t know what it is?’” Froese says while taking a break to chat with me between lunch and dinner service on a recent Friday afternoon.
He anticipates it’ll be a busy night, as it usually is on weekends. An hour before dinner begins at 5 pm, there are eight cooks in the kitchen prepping for the night: cutting veggies, making sauces, prepping their stations.
“I think we got a lot more pushback early on,” Froese continues. “There are a lot more people settling into the marathons, and they are like, ‘Yep. Cool. I don’t even want to think about it.’”
![Dining out in Spokane](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=cb0c3790b62cc251e6c165075a51dc2e 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=924e7f96692f135a45a4645c8d92c3b9 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=b18ce0de93390001a755be341525a20b 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=b6a33b07efad388e74a56333df061861 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=cc0b33af0edc4474bc1d0cea0aa21ab4 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=44e60630156c9fe0d624505fcfb7476d 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-2.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=11a2f7af73cab2ea39fa7f9470e3298e 1500w)
If you’ve never experienced a chef’s choice meal before, the thought of leaving all decision-making up to the chef may be intimidating. But even selective eaters can rest assured that the culinary journey they’re about to embark on at Gander & Ryegrass will be full of surprises, delights and even familiar sensations.
Take it from me. Since initially trying the marathon in early 2020 for my birthday, it’s now tradition for my partner, Will, and I to treat each other for the occasion.
Froese’s dining marathon has caught on with other diners, too, and he estimates between 60 and 70 percent of all diners on weekends come to Gander & Ryegrass solely for the experience.
He hopes even more diners come to embrace the concept so that his team can direct most of their focus there, resulting in more creative freedom to change the menu on a whim while also giving diners a reason to return more often.
![](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=d783cc5e87e921216c05ed997ff9398a 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=cde7cd3d8640937f8e1a1e528e6715c2 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=e832ff17209d4720c58fa40fb5a66ce5 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=bf3b2d6e2bf45825c48e4fe5a738de75 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=b7fd3c8ad27b007622bb76ee88c80b4b 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=883db6849304e58eef7538ccaf532e7c 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-4.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=c281da7cfed6c6ea301c6f6c40816038 1500w)
Gander & Ryegrass’ Chef’s Marathon menu is currently priced at $107 per person, with the option to add wine pairings for $65 more, or $104 more with the expert guidance of its sommelier team. For diners seeking a lighter option, both in quantity and price, the restaurant also offers a three-course meal — with a few bites in between — for $75 per person, and with optional wine pairings for $50 more.
Diners are given their choice of the Chef’s Marathon or three-course dinner menu (the latter has two or three options per course) as they’re seated for dinner. At this point, the server also explains any optional upgrades or nightly specials.
Reservations for the marathon are not required, but Froese encourages them, especially for those with dietary requests that may depart from what he’s planned. Additionally, all guests in the group must participate in the marathon.
“If we know you’re a vegan coming in, even with an hour’s notice, that totally changes everything,” Froese says. “I love eating things with butter and meat and cheese and all that, but we also really love vegetables, and we spend a fair amount of time locating good vegetables.”
To kick off the marathon, the kitchen sends out four to six amuse bouche “bites” to warm up the palate. Some are very small, like a wine cork-sized slice of fingerling potato topped with salmon roe and a creamy sauce, garnished with a tiny pea shoot. Or a smear of duck liver pate between two tiny circular cutouts of soft, crustless white bread, topped with sweet jam, Froese’s elevation of the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
![](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=2118f6db9db10d0353967e51a2f09c79 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=bd7d0b9189941b2b3cc8d1b9f8962a76 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=0ac23ae115fe854ddd1bdcfdef05a5a9 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=f690b44ca200da2df2b1d8e1e36a8176 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=9f4d7e885de4ffd0179b7d811fd64aad 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=8341a25cc51a2b3c8122e3a1d0d9359b 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=02d20df9ae48ac38c312318c1726c0a4 1500w)
“One of my mentors said, ‘Food should be delicious, it should be beautiful, and it should be fun,’” he says.
A few larger portions begin appearing next, each perfectly timed with the intent that diners can slowly savor and enjoy, and even reflect about it — each bite, ingredient, texture and flavor — among themselves before the next plate comes out. Each dish is complex yet nuanced, and I often feel compelled to take handwritten notes — and definitely photos, which Froese says are always welcome — to record what the server tells me I’m eating lest I forget.
For these early courses, Froese likes to start with a few vegetable-forward dishes, which arrive before the middle of the meal: a bowl of house-made pasta to be shared by the table, like his unctuous pork-shoulder ragout in ribbon-like tagliatelle noodles. House-baked bread and infused butter accompanies the pasta.
Before the “main” entree, usually a turf-based protein like steak, duck, pork or chicken, is a chilled cup of tart and icy housemade sorbet to refresh the palate.
What’s served for each iteration of the marathon
varies by season and availability, as Froese and his team seek to highlight what’s regionally freshest. This summer, for example, oil-poached tuna with heirloom tomatoes was a menu standout, crafted by one of the restaurant’s sous chefs, Wyatt Campbell.
“We have a lot of conversations about how dishes get built,” Froese says. “I love that. And I want people to be able to cook their food within our [restaurant’s] parameters. I think that’s really important. You get the best of people when they’re shooting after what they’re excited about.”
![A new restaurant experience in Spokane, WA](https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=e13121ddb7791a8b6a89f6ead7466af5 320w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=ee33b181eaba7bae1dc38c085f8d7961 540w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=05ccf28f27a775f5b8d3928102240d75 768w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=39ff0d025ad0106818c03eb19ca325c6 1024w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=1eaa6b56b9bf5b42ee31e17bffa0e6ca 1200w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=39b4bea17bc3699a267dfbc099fd5b80 1440w, https://visitspokane.imgix.net/images/inlander-blog-content/GanderandRyegrass-6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=02b3fd302b2bba78f929743f8391f929 1500w)