It's been a busy week for the folks doing downtown food and drink leases. Last week the Peyton Building formally opened Cougar Crest Estate Winery.

This week the Peyton announced it will bring in two new eateries to fill the former spot of Niko's, the Greek restaurant that closed earlier this year.

Sometime in October, partners Connie Naccarato and Jason Rex will open Rex's Burgers & Brews and Fraiche Contemporary French.

Both will go into 14 N. Post; Fraiche will be the smaller venue, with about 34 seats in the former Niko's wine bar; Rex Burgers and Brews will fill the main room along Riverside.

Naccarato and Rex already run Scratch, at 1007 W. First, the Coeur d'Alene Scratch, and the Rain lounge, next to Scratch.

Rex Burgers and Brews will cover the waterfront of lunch and dinner offerings, including wraps, hamburgers, entrees and hot wings. It'll run seven days a week, with breakfasts planned for the weekends.

Fraiche Contemporary French will be an intimate dining room with a focus on French choices, said Naccarato. The cuisine will be high-quality choices, with local foods a major component.

It will be open 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday.

We'll have more details about the openings in Tuesday's stories in The Spokesman-Review and on Spokesman.com.

The leases for all three businesses were arranged through Cody George and Alison Bantz, broker and property manager with Kiemle & Hagood Co.

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