Bank on The Bank

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

All it took was one bite from The Bank’s family style menu and a sip from their innovative cocktail bar to convince me this wasn’t your ordinary restaurant. For owner Nick Nizzoli, the plan was always to serve fresh food from local farmers in a simple, elegant manner. Paired with craft cocktails and a swanky atmosphere along the west bank of Sand Creek, the future certainly looks bright for this new start-up.

Fried green tomatoes were a hit with the whole table. Photo by Racheal Baker.

Fans of La Rosa — and later Beet and Basil — will enjoy seeing life back in the historic building along First Avenue. A few small changes have updated the feel of the building, including a new entryway installed along the north wall, a cocktail bar in the back room facing Sand Creek and new modern tile work and décor inside the dining room.

Flipping through The Bank’s menu, it’s evident that Nizzoli has focused his business on supporting local farmers and vendors every step of the way.

“Working with local farmers is one of our cornerstones,” Nizzoli told the Reader. “The quality of the product is far superior, but more importantly, they are in our community. … We wanted to start with those in our community and represent the food coming out of North Idaho, which isn’t known for its mass production. We have one of the best farmers’ markets in a town of 8,000 people and we feel the need to celebrate that a little bit.”

The Bank has partnered with a host of local farmers and food producers, including bread from Bluebird Bakery. Other vendors include Woods Meats, Pack River Farms, Mountain Cloud Farm, cheese from Selle Valley Creamery, chickens and wildflowers from Grumpy Chicken Farm, the Red Wheelbarrow Farm and many others.

“A lot of our menu is inspired by Alice Waters and her book, The Art of Simple Food,” Nizzoli said. “There is an emphasis on identifiable ingredients from local fields, but put together in a way that’s new and exciting. It pairs with our cocktail program well — which is not overly complicated ingredients, but instead, simple spirits and ingredients presented well.”

They say a bar can be judged by the quality of its Old Fashioned, so that’s the first cocktail I ordered. I was pleased with the result — an aromatic Bourbon served with a single large ice cube, accompanied by an orange peel and Luxardo cherry. Another favorite was called Spring in Europe, a refreshing mixture of Kettle One peach and orange blossom vodka paired with St. Germaine, aperol, lemon, saline and rosemary. The result was a light, not-too-sweet creation everyone will enjoy. Anything ordered from the bar is sure to be a winner, as they handcraft these quality concoctions with love.

“I’m certainly passionate about the cocktail side of things,” Nizzoli said. “I think it can be an art form and there’s a certain chemistry and creativity and attention to detail that we look for.”

Nizzoli is no stranger to the food industry, with his father Jeff running Eichardt’s, one of Sandpoint’s most successful pubs and eateries, for the past 28 years.

“Both of my parents owned successful businesses in Sandpoint,” he said. “Especially with Eichardt’s having the legacy it does, that instilled in me from a young age what it takes to operate in this industry.”

Nizzoli plans to keep the food menu engineered as shareable, but update it often with new items for particular seasons.

“I think it’s the most authentic way of dining,” said Nizzoli of the shareable menu. “It pairs really well with good company and good cocktails. As we shift to a more winter-focused menu, the idea is to keep a small menu that we can rotate frequently with whatever cool ingredient we can get that week. We want to have that flexibility to always be innovating and trying something new.”

The addition of new chef Eddie Sneva of Dish at Dover Bay fame is an exciting new development that will lead to a few small changes in the coming months.

“Eddie and I know each other personally and communicate really well,” Nizzoli said. “I wanted to have him come on because he has more talent than he’s getting to display on a day-to-day basis. Being a smaller volume venue, he’ll be able to explore some areas of cooking he enjoys more.”

Regarding the board of fare, the Bank Board features a refreshing collection of local cheeses, spiced chevre and hummus, toasted nuts and market crudites and pickles. The choices were comforting and delicious, but some items such as watermelon radishes were a pleasant change from the norm. 

The Woods grilled smokie sausage dish featured an assortment of grilled squash, corn relish, roasted peppers and Woods’ famous smokies, culminating in one of my favorite dishes so far. It has a rustic, farm-to-table appeal, with fresh, tasty ingredients cooked just right.

One special that everyone loved was the fried green tomatoes from Pack River Farms, served in a crunchy polenta crust and delicious vadouvan yogurt dipping sauce.

The only order that didn’t stick the landing was the prosciutto wrapped cantaloupe, served with burrata cheese, pickled Fresno chilis and breadcrumbs from Bluebird Bakery. All of the ingredients were delicious individually, and a gentle spice was welcomed, but the combination of juicy cantaloupe and savory ingredients didn’t work for me. This was impressive, because having a daring dish that does not work means the kitchen is experimenting with new, innovative flavors, not just relying on the same old, same old. It shows their dedication to take risks and explore intriguing new arrangements, which we don’t see too often. Kudos to their effort.

Topping off our experience was the hibiscus pavlova for dessert, a unique compote with a fantastic texture served with lemon curd, rose cream and fresh fruit. The cosmic apple walnut cake was also a warm, comforting way to finish our experience.

Dinner usually begins at 4 p.m. most nights of the week, but check The Bank’s website for updated hours of operation, which are expected to adjust in the winter season. Also to come is the opening of the dining room on the south side of the building with a fireplace, which will serve as a private area for events, gatherings, wine dinners and cocktail pairings. Finally, Nizzoli plans to add lunch service at some point soon, with weekend brunch also in the works.

Whether looking for a great date night eatery or a cocktail with friends after work, you can bank on The Bank becoming a favorite haunt for foodies looking for an experience off the beaten culinary track.

The Bank is located at 105 South First Avenue, at the corner of Pine and First. Visit their website at thebanksandpoint.com or call 208-948-2952.