River & Rye Restaurant Coming to Downtown Coeur d'Alene in Spring 2026

Elevated dining is coming to downtown Coeur d'Alene this spring, and it's arriving through a door most Cricket's regulars have never used.

River & Rye is a new, separate concept from the same ownership behind Cricket's Restaurant & Oyster Bar, with Cricket's itself set to remain operating in the back portion of the building with its entrance off Fifth Street. The arrangement means Sherman Avenue's most established bar and grill is effectively making room for its own sibling, carving the existing footprint at 424 E. Sherman Ave. into two distinct dining experiences under one roof.

Cricket's Restaurant & Oyster Bar has been Coeur d'Alene's go-to for fresh oysters and cocktails since 1985, making River & Rye the first new brand to emerge from that decades-long operation. The new restaurant's own website bills the project simply as "elevated dining in downtown Coeur d'Alene."

River & Rye is listed as planned for Sherman Avenue in downtown Coeur d'Alene, placing it squarely in the heart of the city's most active commercial corridor. The Fifth Street entrance for Cricket's, meanwhile, keeps the legacy operation accessible during what appears to be a broader renovation of the front-of-house space. Cricket's has already reopened in the back space with hours running Thursday through Sunday starting at 11:30 a.m. while construction continues on the front.

The dual-concept model is an unusual pivot for a restaurant that has anchored downtown Coeur d'Alene for four decades. Rather than expand to a second location, the owners are betting that the same address can support two distinct identities: the familiar Cricket's that generations of North Idaho diners know, and a new upscale offering positioned to compete at a higher price point in a market that has grown considerably more competitive in recent years.

No opening date beyond spring 2026 has been announced for River & Rye.