BOISE, Idaho — Over the last decade, the Treasure Valley food scene has expanded tremendously and many of these newer restaurants are quickly becoming known for their high-caliber cuisine.
Four Boise-area chefs were just named semifinalists for the 2023 James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards.
The local chefs up for the honor include Dan Ansotegui from Ansots on Boise's Basque Block, Salvador Alamilla of Amano in Caldwell, Kris Komori from KIN in downtown Boise, and Kibrom Milash from Kibrom's Ethiopian & Eritrean Food.
The four chefs were nominated in the Mountain division, competing against chefs from Colorado, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming.
In the culinary world, James Beard Awards are incredibly prestigious and can change the trajectory of a chef's career.
The narrowed-down list of nominations will be announced on March 29 and winners will be celebrated at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony on June 5 in Chicago.
Chefs who made the list of local semifinalists are likely well-known to Boise-area foodies as their restaurants have grown strong local reputations.
Amano opened in downtown Caldwell in 2019 and often draws Boise diners outside of their neighborhood for authentic upscale Mexican cuisine. Alamilla was also nominated last year. We've featured the restaurant in recent years for serving up free pozole on Thanksgiving Day while encouraging donations for Advocates Against Family Violence.
If you've ever strolled down Boise's Basque Block, it's likely you've smelled what Dan Ansotegui was cooking. His family has been a steady figure in the Boise Basque food scene for decades. He opened Bar Gernika in 1991 and The Basque Market in 1999.
Ansots specializes in Basque 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 serve at home. They also offer catering and at-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 an entire experience with a five-course prix fixe meal. Reservations are required.
"To choose us is to participate in an evening of dining and storytelling in a communal environment," their website states. "With a limited run of five weeks, 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 adapt their vision for upscale communal dining into fine dining delivery.
Last but not least, Kibrom's Ethiopian & Eritrean Food regularly comes up when new Boiseans ask for restaurant recommendations.
The restaurant is located on State Street near Veterans Memorial Park and offers an expansive menu of authentic Ethiopian and East African dishes.
The owners arrived in Boise in 2013 from a refugee camp where they ran a small restaurant, so naturally, they felt called to feed the 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 in their standalone State Street location since 2016.
