A longtime South Hill dining destination has entered its next chapter.

Little Euro opened this month at 1235 S. Grand, in the building that housed Lindaman’s Gourmet-to-Go bistro for over three decades and most recently was occupied by Summit Kitchen & Canteen.

“We’re really thrilled to be in this neighborhood,” says Tami Sevier, who owns the new Little Euro with her husband, David, through Grand Euro LLC.

The Seviers also own the Little Euro restaurant in Spokane Valley, at 517 N. Pines Road, and Old European Breakfast House, at 7640 N. Division, in North Spokane, through separate LLCs.

“We have a totally different customer base everywhere,” she says. “It’s working out really well.” 

Little Euro and Old European feature the same menu, but the former has a new logo and is smaller, with more of a neighborhood feel, Sevier explains.

Old European was founded by Sevier’s family in the 1980s. The chain of brunch establishments pays homage to her grandmother, Marie Mekklesen.

“She left Denmark when she was 18 and said ‘bye’ to her parents and never saw them again,” Sevier says of her grandmother’s immigration to the U.S. “Her last meal was aebleskiver."

Aebleskiver, the spherical Danish pastries described on the Little Euro menu as “pancake balls hand-rolled in specialty cast iron pans,” are a staple of the three eateries.

Grandma Marie, as Sevier refers to her, brought with her to America her specialty aebleskiver cast iron pan, which is now on display at Old European.

Grandma Marie died when Sevier was 13, but her signature dish remained a family tradition and later a popular choice for patrons of the Old European and Little Euro establishments.

Other Scandinavian-inspired dishes, like the Swedish crepes, also pay tribute to Grandma Marie, Sevier says.

Along with a variety of other traditional breakfast and lunch dishes, Little Euro serves freshly brewed coffee from Spokane-based Indaba Coffee LLC.

At the South Hill location, Sevier is considering adding menu items that will meet the needs of the many nearby health care workers.

“We also maybe want to start doing protein bowls and things like that for nurses and other hospital workers who work just down the hill,” she says.

An expansion to Spokane’s South Hill has been a goal of Sevier’s for a long time, she says.

“I’ve actually made offers on a few buildings up here, and it just hasn’t worked out,” says Sevier.

The South Grand building is owned by The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist church, which is located at 127 E. 12th, just north of Little Euro. The church owns numerous properties in the area between Sumner Avenue and East 13th Avenue.

Little Euro underwent extensive renovations after moving into the space, Sevier says.

“The only thing we saved here was the floor, because it came from Roosevelt Elementary School,” she says. “Everything else is brand new.”

Sevier also renovated and expanded the patio along Grand Boulevard, increasing its capacity by dozens of seats. She says it opens the patio up to the neighborhood and exposes the building more.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic slowing some of Sevier’s planned growth, the restaurateurs were ready to take on another location.

“We came back really strong after COVID,” she says.

The growth isn’t expected to stop at the South Hill, however.

“Our hope is to open more locations,” Sevier says, mentioning the Tri-Cities as an area she’s eyeing.

There are also Old European locations in Post Falls and Pullman owned by some of Sevier's extended family, but she and her husband aren't involved with those.

The South Hill Little Euro location has about 25 employees. There are over 80 employees between Sevier’s three brunch houses.

The Seviers' son, Logan, is training to join the management team at the South Hill location.

Little Euro is open 7 a.m.-2 p.m. seven days a week.

Small Bites

*Post Falls-based Konala LLC has signed a five-unit franchise agreement with local entrepreneur Conrad Manfred, who owns Kodiak General Contracting LLC. Manfred has already secured a lease for his first location, at a former Carl’s Jr. site in North Spokane, located at 6740 N. Division. He expects that location will open by year-end, and plans to open eight Konala locations in Spokane County by 2026, before expanding across Washington.

*Spokane-based clothing boutique Rebel Hart Co. will hold a Pink Friday celebration noon-6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, at 2218 N. Monroe. Pink Friday is a nationwide shopping movement that encourages people to shop small businesses on the Friday before Black Friday and Cyber Monday.