BOISE, Idaho – Over the past decade, the Treasure Valley food scene has expanded tremendously and many of these new restaurants are becoming increasingly known for their high caliber cuisine.
Four Boise-area chefs were just named to the semifinals 2023 James Beard Restaurant & Chef Awards.
Local chefs up for honor include Dan Ansotegui from Ansotes on Boise’s Basque Block, Salvador Alamila of Amano in Caldwell, Chris Komori from KIN in downtown Boise, and Kibrom Milash from Kibrom’s Ethiopian and Eritrean Food.
Four chefs were nominated in the Mountain Division, competing against chefs from Colorado, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming.
In the world of culinary arts, the James Beard Awards are incredibly prestigious and can change the trajectory of a chef’s career.
The short list of nominations will be announced on March 29 and the winners will be celebrated on June 5 at the James Beard Restaurant & Chef Awards ceremony in Chicago.
The chefs who made the list of local semifinalists are probably as well known for Boise-area food as their restaurants cemented local reputations.
Amano Opened in downtown Caldwell in 2019 and often draws Boise diners outside its neighborhood for authentic upscale Mexican food. Almila was also nominated last year. We’ve featured restaurants serving free pozole on Thanksgiving Day in recent years, encouraging donations to Advocates Against Family Violence.
If you’ve ever strolled down Boise’s Basque Block, it’s likely you’ve smelled Dan Ansotegui cooking. His family has been a constant in the Bois Basque food scene for decades. He opened Bar Guernica in 1991 and The Basque Market in 1999.
Ansots Basque specializes in chorizos, bacon and marinated meats. You can dine in at their downtown restaurant near 6th and Main, or stop by to pick up meats to be served on the house. They also offer catering and home cooking options for diners who want to host a dinner party without having to handle the cooking.
A few blocks away, also in downtown Boise, KIN offers a complete experience with a five-course prix fixe meal. Reservations are required.
“Choosing us to participate in an evening of food and storytelling in a communal atmosphere,” their website states. “With a five-week limited run, each prix fixe menu is unique and changes faster than the seasons.”
We introduced you to the chefs at KIN during the peak of the pandemic as they were forced to transform their approach to upscale communal dining into fine dining delivery.
last but not least, Kibrom’s Ethiopian and Eritrean Cuisine Regularly comes up when new Boiseans ask for restaurant recommendations.
The restaurant is located on State Street near Veterans Memorial Park and offers an extensive menu of authentic Ethiopian and East African cuisine.
The owners arrived in Boise in 2013 from a refugee camp where they ran a small restaurant, so naturally, they were called upon to feed Treasure Valley when they settled into their new home.
Kibrom’s first opened a kitchen in Boise’s International Market, but the building burned down shortly after it opened. They’ve been at their standalone State Street location since 2016.
