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Bumping this topic up! We're going to La Paz in 3 weeks and would love some good food suggestions! Cheap, nicer, whatever.

My husband recently said that one of his out-of-state colleagues always eats here when in town visiting and asked why we hadn't ever been. Being that I grew up here, moved away and now we're back, I started explaining that Etta's was hit-or-miss, sort of a tourist place....blah, and then I stopped and realized that my experiences from 4 years ago are just that, and that maybe I was wrong. So I said, "you know, we should try it again." In light of this, can anyone share any dinner experiences? Still "just ok" or are there good things worth heading to Etta's for?

Went in a group of five and tasted four pizzas. Overall we were all really happy with the pizza. My personal favorite was the cappicola, arugula with soft egg, which melts in your mouth. FANTASTIC. Other faves were the mushroom pizza with truffle cheese and the sausage pizza. But the egg was by far the best in my opinion. The biggest issue was getting a seat, and for this they won't be forgiven. We had 2 of our party get there at 6:45pm to put our name down. We were told it'd be 45 minutes at 7pm when we checked in. We didn't get seated until 8:15. It was really obnoxious. So would I stop in with one other person? Sure. I wouldn't wait 1 1/2 hours for it ever again, though. Good thing we were meeting friends from out of town and everyone was happy to drink wine at the bar at Lola.

From the earlier Macrina book, I make the squash harvest loaves (makes 2) with roasted butternut squash and find the recipe amazing. It's pretty time-consuming, as you have to roast the butternut squash, toast 3 types of nuts...but it's REALLY worth it for me since I have a weakness for it. We always wrap one of the loaves in foil and then in a freezer bag and the bread comes out of the freezer nearly perfect...it's just really good stuff. You can taste the harvest loaf at macrina (obviously) but they also have it at Zeitgeist, among other places I'm sure.

Oh excellent. We'll be staying at the Hotel Lusso in Spokane, so any good coffee nearby would be great. And maybe a place to meet up with our friends friday night within walking distance? we'll have cars, but....

Thanks for these. I had heard of Hudsons! We'll have to try to make it by there. If your mother-in-law has any other things to suggest for us to do while visiting, we're all ears!

I resisted the temptation to refer to it as Spo-Vegas, so I'm hoping that'll earn me some points with the locals I'll be in town over labor day for a wedding (spokane, that is) and am hoping to go out with a bunch of friends, so we'll need a group-friendly place.... I think we'd be happy with Mexican or a cheaper casual place, and please, no chains. But then we'll be in Coeur D'alene for a couple of nights so here's what I know: Anthony's sounds great---is it? Is the Whitehouse worth going to Post Falls? Thoughts on Brix? Porch Public House? Any others? nothing fancy, but food matters! thanks

I cannot wait! We're going to oceanaire the night before (parents love it) so Le Pichet is my only chance to eat how I want to while in town for such a short visit.

We'll be dining here with a group in the coming weeks (we're guests)...has anyone been recently? Is the quality good?

Newbie, where did you end up going?

OK, no coffee recs?

Thanks! I did get through and made a reservation for a Sunday night. The person who answered the phone was a little hesitant at first, so I wonder if they don't take reservations for certain nights....obviously they don't need to in order to keep their seats filled on most evenings. I am so looking forward to my visit in just over a week. has anyone been recently?

The reservation tip is huge! thanks. How far, in general, should one make reservations for, say, a weekday lunch? Also, just wanted to be sure, but are Kirin and the others you mentioned all cart dim sum, instead of ordering off of a menu? we think carts are more fun, but will go to Kirin because of your rec either way.

I don't think it was Piper Pub, I think it was Bitter Creek (piper pub has a patio upstairs, and this place was on ground level). It was really great and a very nice beer selection.

Is anyone familiar with the reservation policy? I can't seem to get through when I call.... thanks

We're back! We both really enjoyed our visit to Boise. Here's what we ate: First night we got in early and went to a pub on 8th street. I am sad that I can't remember the name, because I had an amazing hamburger and my husband had the best steak sandwich either of us has ever tasted, bar none. It was a special---a ribeye sandwich---and there was none of the yanking you usually get when you take a bite out of a steak sandwich, just perfectly tender beef and blue cheese melting on top. Awesome. We decided to head out to Hyde Park to see what it was like and had a beer at Lucky 13, which is a fun place in an old gas station. A great way to end the night. The next day we started our day at Flying M coffeehouse. I'm from Seattle, so perfectly steamed milk in a latte is priceless to me. Outstanding coffee, and they also have great sticky buns they'll gladly heat up. YUM. Then we were off to the farmers market, which was 3 blocks long! One plant stand had 7 or 8 types of basil---I'd never even heard of most of them. It was great. We got wild strawberries--those tiny sweet ones that taste like freezer jam--and some local asparagus to bring home. From there we were off to the Basque area. We were imagining a "basque market" as sort of this big place with arts, crafts....nope. Just a specialty grocer. So we went to Gernika and sat at the bar for lunch. VERY happy we did! I had a lamb grinder that blew me away! So lamby. I loved it. Also, the cheese croquettes were fried heaven. My husband had a tortilla, which means an omelette to those not from the Basque region. It was also quite good. After a nap and some down-time, we went to Asiago. Had horrible crab cakes (someone overmixed them and they were horribly gummy and overpowered by the sauce they were served with). But it was uphill from there! GREAT caesar salads and outstanding pastas. I had the Balzano, which is mixed veggies and homemade fettucini in a hot chili-garlic oil with sausage. Excellent. My husband had the same pasta with clams, mussels and shrimp in a very light and spicy sauce. Another hit. We really liked this place. We wanted to go to Goldy's for breakfast but we were both full from the night before, so we went back to Flying M and just kind of snacked our way through breakfast. We took a drive around that morning and hit a burrito/wrap place in Hyde Park which was fine. Pretty good burritos. Maybe we ordered wrong. Spent the afternoon biking the greenbelt, which was nice. Had dinner at a Thai place on the outskirts (thinking it'd be more authentic than the stylish places in town) but it was bad. Nothing special. And that's our trip. Overall, would go back to Flying M, Gernika, Asiago, Lucky 13 and the pub on 8th street (near main st...I'll see if I can track down a name) in a heartbeat! Pretty good batting average!

I definitely will. There is a surprising lack of Boise folk on this board! I looked at the Boise Weekly's list of best places and have good ideas. Hyde Park is def. on the list--there's a place called Lucky 13 there that apparently has a great patio and is dog-friendly, so that's a huge bonus. I'll let you know where we end up!

It seems like Main Street and the area around it and maybe 8th street is the heart of downtown...is this right? We're planning on hitting the farmer's market sat morning. Any other suggestions? Cute neighborhoods on the outskirts worth finind? we'll have a car and our bikes...

Le Poulet Rouge---why do I feel like I've heard about this place? Louie's---what kind of Italian? meatball and spaghetti or ? Thanks so much for your help so far.

I'm heading to Boise for the first time over memorial day weekend and would love some help in deciding where to eat and other highlights of trips you might've taken....there don't seem to be many boise locals on this board, so anyone in the PNW who's been, please let me know your favorite things to do or eat. So far we've got the Basque Market on the list, with perhaps a visit to Gernika for Spanish food? is this a good idea? Kandor kitchen shop---worth a visit? We also might go to the penitentiary. Anyone been? thanks

mvpbonds, please post after your trip! we'll be visiting in early-mid june and I'd love to follow your advice!

These all sound outstanding! True about the cooked fish and sushi options. I've been eating my fare share of unagi. And I know what you mean about Starbucks being handy for bathrooms, I just have such a hard time going into one for any reason! Which brings up another thing---great coffee! Or even a great pastry shop or coffee shop with a great vibe for the mornings (with great coffee, of course). I have not cut out all my caffeine...a girl's gotta live, right?

We're making a Memorial Day visit to Boise and I dug up these posts. Now, of course, I'm curious about all the restaurants mentioned. Would one of you be so kind as to provide some short descriptions for me, and also some dining suggestions? Anything really great we should definitely try? we've never visited Boise, so I'm looking forward to checking out the farmers market on saturday. Other must-dos? Anything food related will be greatly appreciated!

Anyone have ideas for a sushi place with good/great cooked food?