Melissa Valdovinos’s latest business venture is developing just two blocks south of the coffee stand that marked the beginning of her entrepreneurial career.

Eats on Spokane Street LLC, a food truck and restaurant court, will be located at 106 N. Spokane, just north of Post Falls Brewing Co. and south of Brew Bar PNW, the coffee stand that Valdovinos owned and operated under a different name for more than a dozen years.

Eats on Spokane Street, which Valdovinos owns with her husband, Iggy, will feature a bar and restaurant located inside a 1,500-square-foot building that is currently being constructed, and spaces outside for seven food trucks.

It will be open year-round, she says.

The restaurant and full-service bar, MelFit Healthy Kitchen and Nachos Cantina, respectively, will be owned by Valdovinos, and the food truck spaces will be leased out to vendors. MelFit Healthy Kitchen will serve protein bowls, salads, paninis, gluten-free desserts, and avocado toast, while Nachos Cantina will serve sheet-pan nachos.

The restaurant and bar are expected to share about 10 employees between them.

“Our first priority is to make sure that our vendors are taken care of, and that they’re in an environment where all of them are profiting,” Valdovinos says.

Construction on the $300,000 project is underway at the Eats on Spokane Street site and is expected to be ready for tenants next spring.

Valdovinos says she currently is considering applications from food truck owners and operators.

“We have a waiting list of 30 people,” she says.

So far, the only food truck to be announced is Charcuteria, which will serve charcuterie boxes and boards, sandwiches, salads, and soups.

Valdovinos says three others have been selected and lease agreements are being finalized. 

As part of the lease agreements, the food trucks will be required to operate the same days and hours as one another.

“It’s something that we will not tolerate if people aren’t open, because it’ll hurt everybody,” Valdovinos says.

She doesn’t want to have a situation in which customers have to look up the hours for each individual food truck.

“They’re not going to need to pull their truck to go out to a festival,” she says as an example. “They’re going to profit here.”

Food truck vendors will have access to power and water sources at the site.

“They’ll pay their own power and water, and then we’ll pay for all the maintenance of the building and snow removal,” she says.

Valdovinos, who was born and raised in Post Falls, says she wants Eats on Spokane Street to be more than a food court. It’s intended to be a platform for small businesses in the community to thrive.

Some of the food truck owners may be operating their first business, so Valdovinos plans to help vendors with business practices, like bookkeeping, renewing permits, and hiring, for example.

“So many people can cook,” she says. “So many people have the passion, but so many people do not know how to execute and run a successful, cash-flowing business. That’s where we come in.”

Valdovinos owns or has owned numerous businesses in Post Falls, including the coffee stand, a personal training studio, a clothing boutique, a meal-prep and delivery service, and MelFitCoaching LLC, a health and fitness app. She and her husband are also real estate investors.

Located on over a third of an acre, Eats on Spokane Street also is meant to be a community gathering place with a diverse lineup of food options.

Josh Melior, director of operations for Eats on Spokane Street, says, “We wanted to make sure there were no repeats, and there’s seven different varieties of food."

In addition to the restaurant, bar, and food trucks, there will be an area for dogs, space for kids to play, igloos to dine in during winter months, fire pits, TVs, indoor and outdoor seating, and three pop-up booths, like those at a farmer’s market, that other vendors can rent.

Restrooms will be located in the building.

Valdovinos plans to host movie nights at Eats on Spokane Street, using a projector and large screen on the south side of the building. She also hopes to feature live music performances.

There’s a need for more dining options and things to do in Post Falls, Valdovinos contends, particularly in that part of town on the south side of Interstate 90.

“This is a good way for us to keep our money in our community,” she says.

Small Bites

*San Francisco-based fast-food brand Starbird has announced a franchise agreement that will bring 17 new locations to Washington state, including two in Spokane. The first of the Washington locations is expected to open in 2025, according to a press release from the company. Founded in 2016, Starbird is known for its “chef-driven innovation and feel-good crispy chicken.” Its menu includes a variety of chicken tenders, sandwiches, salads, and wings. Starbird has nearly 20 locations in California, and recently announced a franchise agreement that will bring seven locations to the Denver area.