Still strong after 25 years

COEUR d'ALENE - The patio at the Greenbriar Inn offered just enough shade late Thursday afternoon as Gina and Bruce Bodtker sipped martinis and dug into steak dinners.

"It's cheery, quaint, friendly," Gina said of the Greenbriar, which houses the 315 Martinis and Tapas restaurant they have frequented for years. "You just feel at home."

"You feel comfortable here," Bruce agreed, adding that it was the Coeur d'Alene couple's top choice for an end-of-summer outing.

After 25 years, the Greenbriar Inn has plenty to attract patrons.

Evolved far beyond its original function as a bed and breakfast, the business at 315 Wallace Ave. in Coeur d'Alene had continued to adapt with new features, providing a low-key hang out with an expansive drink menu.

"We see it as a meeting place for people," said Kris McIlvenna, who owns the Greenbriar with her husband, Bob McIlvenna. "Basically we're going more for after-work types."

With the addition of its restaurant in 2008, the Greenbriar has accumulated regulars with 50 kinds of martinis, and light meal options that she said are popular on the West Coast.

The Greenbriar's intimate martini bar had added to that draw, she said.

"Lots of people like to sit at this little bar. I think because it's pretty cozy," Kris said.

The McIlvennas built on that comfy feel this summer by adding a patio and 80 outdoor seats, with one concrete section that doubles as a dance floor.

"We pour sand on it for swing dancing," Kris said, adding that free live music is still provided on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday nights.

The business has also added a Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"We can sit 80 people in a garden setting that's really, really relaxing," she said.

In July, the business opened a new wine bar, too, which Kris dubbed as unique because of its selections from myriad wineries.

"It's a very affordable way to learn something about wines," she said.

The other businesses the couple run, Greenbriar Catering and Wildbeary Huckleberry Products, are still thriving, she said.

There are Wildbeary products stocking shelves in more than 200 stores in the Northwest, she said.

And seasonal traffic continues to fill the five rooms of the bed and breakfast, which the McIlvennas opened on April 1, 1985.

"We do get an awful lot of repeat people, like people who were married here 20 years ago and come back for their anniversaries," Kris said.

Running all the separate businesses can have its challenges, she admitted. But it's worth it to count all the years of success.

"It's really necessary in this part of the country to have more than one business to bring in income," Kris said. "The building has adapted to the times and needs of the community."