BOISE BENCH, Idaho — A well-known Boise bench restaurant is going to be closing its doors for good this spring.
- Cucina Di Paolo will close on April 27th.
- You may recognize the restaurant by the iconic "Betty the Washerwoman" atop the sign off Vista Ave.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
Cucina Di Paolo has been feeding people here in Boise for 30 years.
I'm your Boise bench neighborhood reporter Jessica Davis and a restaurant that gained most of their popularity from word of mouth is soon closing their doors.
Mary Jean Wegner is the owner of Cucina Di Paolo, she and her husband Paul opened up 30 years ago originally at a brick-and-mortar on Ustick, selling lasagnas and a variety of desserts.
"Paul and I started in the markets downtown and Capital City Market believe it or not because it's grown to what it is today. There were 15 of us and we had a card table and a bus tab, and it didn't matter like the mailman we were out in rain, snow, hail, sleet,” says Mary Jean, who also goes by MJ.
After 7 years at Ustick Road, the next spot was the kitchen at University Inn for another 7 years. After that, they made their way to their final home located at 1504 S. Vista Avenue.
MJ says, “We looked around and we found this building and the panorama of windows was such a good feeling that we thought let's do that and so the last 18 years have been here.”
In October 2020 Paul died from a sudden heart attack leaving Mary Jean and his family shocked. Before he died, MJ and Paul both planned to retire. Now three years after his death, that's exactly what MJ is doing for her and Paul.
She explains closing down the restaurant is like finishing one of your favorite TV shows. “Let's say you watch a series on Netflix there are 6 seasons you're at season six episode nine. You have one more to go. Human nature would be 'dang, that was a good show I wish there was more of it, but there isn't and you know what you do, you start browsing to find out what else there is to watch. I love what we had. I miss Paul. I love being with Paul and we're good to go.”
If you haven't had Cucina Di Paolo you have three months to try it out as doors will close for good on April 27th.
"This way if you want one more pan of lasagna and anything that we do you have an opportunity to do it. One man had ordered ten 4-piece pans and he said I'm going to keep it forever as a memory,” she says.
After being open for 30 years what keeps people coming back is the secret ingredient.
Rob Jimenez, is MJ and Paul’s son, he’s also the operator of the store, combining all of the key ingredients to make a perfect lasagna.
He says, “We have it on the menu and we thought for years that the secret ingredient is love. We find if you put more of your heart and soul in it, it creates a different atmosphere for your clients.”
If you're wondering what's going to happen to the Washerwoman, well, nothing. Because no matter if Cucina Di Paolo is here or the next owner. They have to keep the washer woman as she's been an iconic staple in the Boise community since the 1950s.
