The Star - News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area

There's a new restaurant in town.

The Coulee Dam Casino's Spillway Bar and Grill had its "soft" opening May 15 and is now open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The Casino's new format upstairs, where Colville Tribal Federal Corporation offices were once located, is a mixture of gaming and food service. The tribal business arm offices have moved to the new tribal headquarters building on the Colville Indian Agency campus near Nespelem.

Meanwhile, the casino downstairs is getting a facelift.

The Spillway restaurant will seat 32, with additional seating for 70 on an outdoor balcony, during good weather.

The bar section upstairs, which opened last weekend, adds another 20-30 spaces.

The gaming and restaurant area is accessed through a remodeled entrance with a choice of going up in an elevator or stairs. It can also be accessed from a parking lot at the rear of the building.

The restaurant, the bar and the outside dining areas all have a good view of the Grand Coulee Dam spillway.

The remodeling of the upstairs, a lengthy project, provides a more sophisticated dining approach for the Coulee Dam Casino. Prior to this opening, the casino had a limited lunch counter downstairs.

Tribal officials said the new gaming area and the casino at large will be open 24 hours a day.

Assistant Manager Mark Caldwell said last week that the upstairs occupancy, the restaurant, bar and gaming combined, is limited to 377 people.

Breakfast service will be offered from 8-11 a.m., with lunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and dinner going from 4 to closing.

Breakfast menu prices range from $8-$13; the lunch menu from $5-$14; and dinner from $8-$28.

The casino allows smoking in all areas, including the dining area.