Many things come to mind when hearing "fire", often times with positive associations: Beavis and Butthead; Michael Stipe singing "Orange Crush"; and now Fire Artisan Pizza in Coeur d'Alene. 

This is a good pizza spot, one we'd rank up with South Perry. Consider that high praises. Is Fire worth the trip to Coeur d'Alene alone? Yes. A forty minute drive to get a good pizza in a really nice locale? Why wouldn't you want to do that?

Here you have a wood fired oven which makes a bubbly crust crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. In terms of the almighty bite, Fire gets it right. The flavor might not be quite up there with, say, Veraci's, but it's still perfectly serviceable, just a wee bit on the light side.

That aside, we have no complaints about the toppings. Our "Parma" came with some nice slices of prosciutto, and we really liked the gorgonzola and mozzarella cheese mixture. It all balanced out to a a creamy texture with a mellow taste, flanking the meat perfectly alongside the truffle oil.

The "Crimini" was a bit more subtle on the flavors. It was fresh tasting, for sure, and I'm guessing the garlic olive oil was supposed to give it a kick, though a bit more garlic would have been appreciated. Still, that's nitpicking, and we enjoyed this pie too.

Fire's pizzas remind us a lot of what we see around the Valencia region of Spain, which is somewhat of a rarity in these parts. Again, consider that high praises.

Finally, a special mention of the interior. This is a wonderfully designed restaurant, one that mixes a bit of the Northwest with a potpourri of European styles. The space is comfortable, and when mixed with excellent service and quality pies, we will add Fire to our pizza rotation. A great spot.

Three Seattle coffee spots fared so-so; surely their beer markets will do better? This time we skipped our default go-to, Bottleworks, and looked at three other reputable spots. The results, again, were a bit of a mixed bag.

Chuck's 85th St Market

Located in a building that'd make JB's look luxurious, Chuck's has two things going for it: A tap selection and a huge selection of cider. I don't particularly care much for cider and as the interiors are less than inviting, I probably wouldn't want to spend much time drinking pints here either. That leaves the bottle selection which is serviceable. Not stellar, but perfectly fine if you live in the neighborhood.

It's not worth the trip from Spokane by itself though, and, for the most part, I have a hard time justifying this as a stop for most beer hounds. Bottleworks would have all of this covered, no problem.

Seattle Beer Authority

Again a beer store with a tap selection, and this spot feels a bit more inviting than Chuck's. The bottle selection is OK, again one of those places it'd be nice to have in your neighborhood. Would I recommend making the stop if you were traveling from our side of the state? No. As with Chuck's you can find about 90% of what they carry without leaving town, though I will give them bonus points for having a couple of bottles of Boundary Bay.

Big Star Beer Market

Then there's Big Star, which finally is a home-run. Here you can find a large selection of international beer—all grouped by country—as well as some more out of the ordinary Americans. The light is dimmed and the temperature is on the chilly side, meaning the bottles can safely be displayed on shelves as opposed to coolers.

Bonus points for carrying Pliney the Elder. I'd say Big Star would make an excellent second stop after Bottleworks. Find it on 1117 N Northgate Way.