BOISE
The Best Restaurants in Boise: Pasta, Chorizo, and One Brontosaurus Rib
By Maria Rodriguez | July 13, 2025
AUTHOR BIO: With a day job that requires constant travel, Maria Rodriguez is likely a frequenter of your favorite restaurant. She’s reviewed restaurants since 2007 in publications from Barcelona to Bakersfield.
I come to Boise more often than I admit, mostly for work, which sounds like a complaint but isn’t. These trips mean I get to check in on what’s quietly become one of the most exciting food cities in the West. Every time I’m here, there’s a new spot worth tracking down—whether it’s a chef turning out handmade pasta in a 12-seat dining room or a modern diner rethinking what breakfast can be. If you're searching for the best Boise restaurants or just Googling restaurants near me in Boise while circling the downtown blocks, here’s where to start.
1. Kin
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KIN is the brainchild of chef Kris Komori, whose five-course tasting menus use Idaho ingredients in unexpected ways—sockeye carpaccio, porcini dumplings, a dessert that might riff on corn nuts or milkweed. The dining room is built for conversation, with just 28 seats and a communal rhythm that feels more like a dinner party than a restaurant. There’s a cocktail bar next door and, if you’re lucky, a secret late-night Supper Club that pops up when the team feels inspired.
2. Alavita
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ÁLAVITA is a cozy, brick‑walled trattoria serving fresh‑made pasta—think carbonara, bucatini alla vodka, pappardelle with spicy pork sausage—all crafted daily using Northwest flour and local eggs. The menu leans into seasonal Northwest ingredients, with appetizers like grilled artichoke hearts and cheese plates spotlighting local producers, and a full bar pouring craft cocktails and wine. It’s the kind of warm, intimate spot where wood‑fired flavors meet casual elegance, perfect for a laid-back dinner downtown.
3. The Avery Brasserie
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In a beautifully restored historic building on Main Street, The Avery Brasserie + Bar is led by Michelin‑star chef Cal Elliott and serves upscale French‑American classics—hand‑made ricotta ravioli, pan‑roasted sole meunière and perfectly seared hanger steak among them. The dining room, anchored by a 1905 Brunswick bar and elegant lighting, balances refined, Parisian–meets–New York polish with a warm, approachable atmosphere. Whether you’re settling in for weekday lunch, weekend brunch or dinner beside the fireplace, The Avery delivers intentional hospitality and a menu built around seasonal, local ingredients.
4. The Wylder
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The Wylder is the laid‑back brainchild of David and Lizzy Rex, dishing out artisan sourdough‑crust pizzas—like the cult‑favorite Honey Badger with ricotta, Italian sausage, caramelized onion, and a drizzle of spicy honey—alongside seasonal salads like kale Caesar and market‑fresh cauliflower. The urban bar‑bistro vibe—modern‑farmhouse meets cozy gathering spot—pairs craft cocktails, local brews, and friendly, attentive service in a lively but approachable space. It’s the kind of place you walk into after a long day and stay well into the evening, chatting over pizza, drinks, and the next Boise discovery.
5. Amano
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Amano is the creation of Chef Salvador Alamilla—a James Beard Award winner—offering elevated Mexican fare built around house-made nixtamal tortillas, birria tacos, mole-rich short ribs, and bright mezcal cocktails. Housed in a nearly century-old former bank in Caldwell, the space blends industrial-modern Mexican design—with terracotta accents, exposed beams, a private mezcal room, and candle-lit alcoves—into a warm, immersive dining room that seats about 130. It’s the kind of restaurant that feels like a cultural invitation: serious, soulful cooking presented in a space that honors heritage while pushing it forward.
6. Tavolàta
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Tavolàta is chef Ethan Stowell’s Seattle-born, family-style pasta joint that landed in Boise’s Basque Block with a mission: big, handmade bowls to share—like spicy pork-sausage rigatoni, bucatini carbonara with guanciale and cracked egg, and pillowy ricotta agnolotti. The space is spacious and upbeat, anchored by a massive communal table, bright bar, and a happy hour that sees discounted pastas alongside spritzes and local wine. It’s the kind of polished, shareable Italian experience where Seattle roots meet Boise energy, and everyone ends up feeling like part of the family.
7. Hemlock
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Hemlock crashed downtown Boise’s scene this spring as a proper steakhouse. The house restaurant of the Inn at 500, it’s moody and full of lodge‑leaning tables and a bar that hums. The kitchen leans into serious cuts and starters, from an eight-ounce Riverbend Ranch prime filet to a show‑stopping “Brontosaurus Bone” 10-inch sous‑vide beef rib, alongside a big‑ol’ shrimp cocktail and duck-fat potato steak tartare. It’s that rare kind of spot where, if you’re like me, you stroll in after work, belly up for happy hour, and unexpectedly linger past dinner for more meat, cocktails, and conversation—all without needing a reason beyond the food.
8. Little Pearl
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Little Pearl Oyster Bar is the passion project of husband-and-wife team Cal and Ashley Elliott, Boise’s first true oyster bar set in a narrow downtown space with soft lighting, zinc bar doors shipped from New York, and the feel of a neighborhood bistro that just happens to shuck oysters. Cal Elliott leads the kitchen with French technique and local sourcing, offering everything from scallop ceviche and cioppino to bistro boards and a house-ground burger that deserves its own fan base. It’s the kind of place you pop into for a dozen on the half shell and end up closing down with cocktails and a surprise dessert.
9. Saltbrush
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Saltbrush is a seasonally driven restaurant from owner Neil Grant, with executive chef George Dufresne leading the charge. It’s set in the city’s new Grove Street district with a focus on house-made everything—bread, desserts, pickles, the works. The menu leans thoughtful and precise: Snake River Farms steak, brined roast chicken, coal-roasted carrots, and cabbage-wrapped pork that tastes like someone’s perfected Sunday dinner. With its high ceilings, curated wine list, and low-key service, Saltbrush feels like Boise’s version of grown-up dining—refined but not showy, the kind of place where even the cabbage gets your full attention.
10. Modern Hotel and Bar
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Modern Hotel and Bar, overseen in the kitchen by chef Kelly Grindstaff, delivers a globally inspired American‑contemporary menu with dishes like pelmeni, wild‑mushroom gnocchi, smoked salmon rillettes, and fried chicken served with sausage gravy and Carolina grits. The vibe is boutique motel turned stylish social hub—think mid‑century minimalism, stone fire‑pit courtyard seating, and a cocktail bar that hums into the evening. It’s the kind of place where you can check into one of 39 thoughtfully designed rooms, then linger at the bar for a drink, snack, or full dinner that feels both effortless and intentional downtown.
11. Terroir Bistro
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Terroir Bistro is the brick-and-mortar evolution of chefs Rémi Courcenet and Nate Whitley, who went from running a farm-driven food truck to creating one of the most thoughtful restaurants in Boise. The menu changes constantly—lamb kefta one week, country pâté banh mi the next—always guided by what’s in season and backed by serious French technique. It’s a softly lit, quietly confident place where the wine pairings are spot-on, the sourcing is hyperlocal, and the cooking has earned both chefs national attention.
12. Corso
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Corso arrived in Boise with the swagger of a steakhouse that knows exactly what it is—Italian, dramatic, and allergic to subtlety. It’s got red velvet banquettes, a mural of celebrities, and a cocktail list that includes something called a caprese martini, which somehow tastes better than it sounds. The food—Snake River Farms ribeye, housemade pasta, all of it overseen by chef Dana Brizee—is reason enough to go, but mostly I was there for the vibe, which lands somewhere between mid-century movie set and the place Sinatra would've taken his mistress.
13. Diablo & Sons Saloon
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Diablo & Sons Saloon, led by chef Loran Rodriguez, delivers bold, wood-fired American fare: burgers, barbecue beef ribs, and tacos filled with things like devil egg or slow-braised carne asada. The space leans lodge-core, with dark wood, an open kitchen, chandeliers, and enough taxidermy and tile to make it feel like a whiskey-fueled fever dream—in a good way. It’s the kind of place you wander into for a drink and end up staying for the smoked chicken wings and a second round.
14. Ansots Basque Chorizos
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Ansots Basque Chorizos is a family-run spot, founded by Dan Ansotegui, built around his house-made Basque-style chorizos—ranging from traditional links to the shorter Motza and smoky Txistorra—served alongside small plates like marinated solomo, croquetas, and Basque-style bacon. Housed in the historic Pioneer Building on Boise’s Basque Block, the space feels welcoming and communal, with a lunch-hour bustle and room for around 50 guests, plus a private banquet area for shared meals. It's exactly the kind of place where heritage cooking meets modern production—complete with wholesale Okeldegi chorizo sales—so that every next bite tells the story of family, culture, and Boise’s Basque roots.
15. Fork
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Fork is downtown Boise’s answer to upscale comfort food, where nearly everything—from the brioche buns to the pickles—is sourced locally and made in-house. The menu leans hearty: cast-iron buttermilk fried chicken, slow-braised short ribs, and the kind of tomato basil fondue that somehow makes grilled cheese feel fancy. The space itself is warm and polished, set inside a former bank with exposed brick, reclaimed wood, and the constant low hum of locals who’ve made it their go-to.
