What’s going on in Boise these days?

It’s a valid question whether you live here, used to live here, or know someone who does. It’s how my dad opens almost every phone call. It's a good question, given the fact we’ve been more or less homebound for the last 383 days.

The answer is a lot.

It feels like Boise is getting back into its rhythm, keeping pace with the promise of a new and hopefully better year. We’re not totally out of the woods yet, but you can feel the familiar energy bubbling up again. And damn, it feels good.

This year does feel different, though. First and foremost, because last year sucked. But also because there really is a lot happening in our city right now and after a year of not doing much, it’s hard to wrap your head around it all. You may find yourself rediscovering Boise, in a way, as you venture out beyond your neighborhood. Perhaps you already have.

Since this is the very first From Boise newsletter, it only seems right to talk about some firsts and new beginnings underway in the City of Trees. This is by no means an all-encompassing list, but here are a few things that have my attention as we get back out and about.

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A Few Firsts for the Food Scene

Boise’s food scene has been growing steadily in interesting and impressive ways. In the last decade or so, dozens of restaurants have opened across the valley. Here's a few to check out.

Sunshine Spice Bakery & Café

In December of 2019, Sunshine Spice Bakery & Café became Boise’s first Afghan eatery. It’s owned and operated by four sisters – Homeyra, Bahar S. Amir, Khatera, and Narges Shams.

The Shams sisters spent their childhood in Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkey, and eventually immigrated to the U.S. to pursue an education. As the young women got the hang of life in the states, they dreamed of creating a place where they could all contribute their individual talents, while introducing the cultures of their childhood to the people of Idaho.

That dream is now Sunshine Spice Bakery & Café. Its namesake is a nickname for the saffron spice, which originates from Afghanistan and is used in many of the café’s offerings. Each Shams sister plays an important role at the café: Bahar researches and creates the recipes, incorporating saffron in ways that cannot be found elsewhere in Boise, and manages most of the business things. Khatera is the chef, baker, and chief barista, taking Bahar’s creations and bringing them to life. Narges and Homeyra have made the café an artistic space with different forms of visual art and a gallery where they showcase other local artists’ work. Homeyra also manages the front-of-house customer experience, and Narges manages the kitchen.

Sunshine Spice is in a cozy spot to work, meet friends, read a book, or just sit and enjoy the delicious baklava, cookies, bread, soups, and drinks. Check it out: www.sunshinespicecafe.com, 6911 W Fairview Ave, Boise

Wepa!

Boise’s first Puerto Rican Restaurant is on its way. Wepa! is slated for a space in Garden City on the corner of 35th and Clay Street. According to its website, “Wepa! is a shout of joy and celebration in Puerto Rico and what we aim to have our guests shout as they enjoy the fine cuisine of the crown jewel of the Caribbean.”

The new eatery is going to be smack dab in a happenin’ part of town, just a few blocks from Whitewater Park, the Greenbelt, and 34th Street Market. In addition to sharing authentic Puerto Rican fare with the Boise community, Wepa! plans to donate a portion of proceeds back to Puerto Rican relief efforts as the island continues to recover from Hurricane Maria. You gotta love the full-circle mindset.

Wepa! is not open quite yet, but if you want to be one of the first to try it they are offering order-ahead take-out on certain days of the week. Stay up to date: www.facebook.com/wepaprcuisine​

Little Pearl Oyster Bar

Downtown Boise got its first oyster bar in October 2020. Little Pearl Oyster Bar is indeed little, tucked into a tiny nook on the ground floor of the Main + Marketplace building in downtown Boise. It’s run by chef Cal Elliott, a Boise native who has spent much of his career in NYC. He’s also planning on revamping old The Bouquet building into a multi-use concept that sounds pretty sweet, which you can read more about here.

Little Pearl Oyster Bar has some damn good seafood and not just good seafood for being in a land-locked state. Of course, they have a dedicated oyster menu with several varieties. They also have an amazing lobster roll (is this the only place to get one in valley?), delicious cioppino, fish and chips, and some non-seafood things like the Brussels caesar salad.

The bar serves beer, wine, and cocktail spritzers.

Little Pearl has covered and uncovered space patio seating, and ample heaters and blankets for chillier temps. You can also get to it from within the parking garage, so if mobility is an issue or you’re caught in a random Idaho rainstorm, this is a good option. The interior is cozy and dim, more intimate than the traditional restaurant experience.

Regal Beaver, which occupied this little nook before Little Pearl, was doing some really great things for the local music scene by hosting all-ages shows. Though it was really sad to see them go, Little Pearl is a great addition to the 8th Street dining scene and getting rave reviews so far. Check it out: 160 N 8th Street, Boise.

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Different Dining Concepts

Communal dining spaces like food halls and food truck parks haven’t existed in Boise – until now.

Two New Food Halls

​CHOW Public Market & Eatery opened at the Boise Spectrum in 2018. The project was spearheaded by Nicholas Jones, an entrepreneur and Boise native who saw the potential for a market-style public eatery in the Treasure Valley while attending college in the Chicago area.

These days, CHOW is home to 8 different food-related businesses and eateries, like Nelly’s Tamales, Louisiana Soul Bayou, Paint n’ Sip, a beer bar, and a coffee bar. The market also hosts live music and has been hosting pop-ups with other locals vendors.

A similar concept is planned for BoDo on the lower end of 8th Street. The building where LOFT and UpCycle were is being transformed into Warehouse Food Hall, a 29,000 square foot space that will house 20+ independently-owned local food and retail vendors. Some other restaurants are planning to come down to BoDo as well, which you can read more about here.

And (Finally) A Food Truck Park

A food truck park is another dining concept Boise has been missing, but a local couple is hoping to fill the gap with Cart Life. Their plan is to create a permanent space off of State Street near Veterans Park where multiple food trucks can set up shop. They are also planning to have an indoor bar and seating area and outdoor yard games and picnic tables.

Tacos, corn hole and a cocktail, what more do you need?

Boise's First Cloud Kitchen

​Crave entered the market at the beginning of 2020 and became Boise’s first “cloud kitchen” business. The idea behind Crave is essentially a collective of restaurant kitchens that make meals to be delivered or picked up, rather than traditional sit-down dining. Unlike other food delivery services, Crave has its own staff, facility, and a team of delivery drivers.

Crave is currently headquartered in Meridian at Ten Mile Crossing. The 15,000 square foot facility has more than a dozen kitchen spaces that whip up award-winning meals by chefs and eateries from Boise and all over the country to be delivered across the Treasure Valley.

Unsurprisingly, the business took off during the pandemic, and Crave is now planning on opening a downtown Boise location soon.

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Four Foothills Trails Have New Rules (For Now)

Ridge to Rivers has more than 200 miles of hiking and biking trails with more added every year. Between the pandemic and population increase, the foothills are getting a crazy amount of use these days. Ridge to Rivers is exploring some new ways of managing trail traffic.

Back in January, they put out a survey to gather feedback on proposed management strategies like certain days for hikers vs downhill bikers and directional trails. A whopping 4,437 people responded to the survey. You can see the results here.

Ridge to Rivers is going to be testing some of these strategies with pilots starting as early as April (as in this week). They are still seeking input, so be sure to fill out the survey if you care and/or will complain if one of the below proposals becomes permanent in the future.

• Lower Hulls Gulch – On even-numbered days of the month, the trail would be closed to all downhill bike travel (open to hikers, horseback riders and uphill mountain bikers). On odd-numbered days of the month, the trail would only be open to downhill bike traffic (closed to all other users).
• Polecat Loop Trail – All trail users would be required to travel in one direction (counter-clockwise).
• Around the Mountain – All users would be required to travel in one direction (counter-clockwise).
• Bucktail Trail – Separation of use for mountain bikers and pedestrians. Seeking more input on this one.

And speaking of the foothills, have you seen the newish bike park and dog park in the Military Reserve?

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Boise's 100+ Parks & Counting...

Boise is getting three more parks in the near future, two of which will be the first of their kind.

​Downtown Boise is getting its first public park, though it’s still very much in the works at the moment. There is no set date for its completion, but it’s part of the 11th and Idaho Building, which is that big ass glass building towering over El Korah and The Record Exchange, if you aren’t familiar.

The current plan includes a 30,000-square-foot park behind the building with plenty of trees and an amphitheater-like outdoor space for public performances and gatherings. Sounds like a good place to hang a hammock and take a disco nap during Treefort.

​The Boise Bench is getting a farm park. City Council recently gave the green light to Spaulding Ranch, a 20-acre urban farm park on Cole Road near Capitol High School. According to BoiseDev, Spaulding Ranch will eventually have teaching gardens, natural areas with native plants, orchards, demonstration gardens, a wildflower meadow, outdoor classrooms, play areas, picnic shelters, and an area to wash and pack fresh produce.

​In Southeast Boise, a new 25-acre park should be done this summer. Bowler Park, named after the family who donated the land, will have a dog park, a disc golf course, natural gardens, playgrounds, bocci ball courts, and more.

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Big Murals & Creative Businesses

One of the things that made me fall in love with Boise in the first place was the abundance of public art. From Freak Alley to colorful traffic boxes to North End garages covered in spray-painted street art – Boise’s public art is totally one of its cool factors.

Something to note: art and those working in art have a real economic impact here in Idaho. It’s estimated that arts and cultural production in Idaho added $2 billion to the state’s economy and employed 20,790 people. A far cry from frivolous.

New Art Around Downtown Boise

Last year, Idaho Suicide Prevention Hotline commissioned several local artists to erect new murals with colorful images and uplifting messages throughout downtown. Local artist Bobby Gaytan painted a simple message, “Keep Your Future Alive” on the side of Neurolux; Ashley Dreyfus painted a colorful mural with “It’s Ok To Ask For Help” along 15th Street; Sector Seventeen painted “You Are Loved” on a huge wall on 16th Street near Rhodes Skate Park.

This isn’t new-new, but there are three massive murals within the city center by David Carmack Lewis, from Portland, Oregon. Since 2017, he’s painted three of the largest murals in downtown Boise. His first piece, The Big Backyard, is on the side of the Watercooler Building on 15th and Idaho. His second piece, Absence and Presence, takes up an entire wall of The Fowler apartments on Myrtle and 6th. His third and latest piece, Over the Valley, was completed in 2020 on the west-facing side of the Key Financial Center building at 702 W. Idaho Street. Standing at 120 feet or 11 stories tall, it’s a gorgeous piece that you can’t really miss.

Another new addition to downtown Boise is Inspiration Alley. Tucked away off 11th and Grove Street, the new mural depicts activists like Maya Moore, Dolores Huerta, and Malala Yousafzai. The project was spearheaded by Russ Stoddard and brought to life by Collin Pfeifer and Hawk Sahlein of Sector 17. It’s on the exterior walls of Oliver Russell (kind of near Woodland Empire) on 11th and Grove Street.

Watch the KTVB story on Inspiration Alley here.

Creative Row on State Street

A row of businesses over on State Street and 31st Street and the surrounding blocks has caught my attention. Many of the stores on the stretch have some sort of hands-on, creative, or collector element to them. All in a row, you'll see:

• ​Serendipity Boutique & Consignment Clothing (which fyi has a stellar costume section)
• ​Fluff Hardware Jewelry just opened last weekend
• Locally-owned Capital Lumber​
• ​Design Source 101 (a wallpaper store, believe it or not)
• Local small-batch ceramics maker Clay By Shay​
• ​Black Cat Tattoo​
• ​Jerry’s Rookie Shop (yep, a sports card store still goin’ strong)
• Local candle maker Lit&Co. Candles​
• and Forget-Me-not Antiques

A little farther down, on 28th and State, A Succulent Day just moved its fabulous plant store to a sun-filled former auto shop. (Wildflower Floral was here before and has since moved online.)

It's an interesting representation of makers and creative-based businesses whose proximity to one another offers a compelling shopping experience for consumers (especially on a busy street with limited parking). Also worth noting that Boise Flea holds its once-a-month market in the parking lot here, which starts up again next weekend on April 9.

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Alright, that’s all I got for this one. Thank you so much for reading the first-ever From Boise newsletter. What do you think? What did I miss? What else do you want to know about Boise? Let me know what you think –> marissa@fromboise.com.

I’ll be back in your inbox on Thursday with some local news stories, places to go eat and drink, music to listen to, and other things that you’ll have to read to find out.

And next Tuesday, I'm profiling one of my favorite Boise bands. Any guesses on who it is?

With love from Boise,

-Marissa