Union Block Bar & Eatery opens cafe in downtown Boise
When Previous Chicago Pizza & Taproom shut its downtown Boise spot in early 2020, it arrived as a shock. The chain had operated in the Union Block developing for 23 many years — and the coronavirus pandemic had not nevertheless arrived to ravage the cafe industry.
Viewing the house revived feels approximately as stunning. At minimum correct now. Closures have come to be pervasive due to the fact of COVID-19.
But Union Block Bar & Eatery appears to have a matter or two heading for it. The new cafe at 730 W. Idaho St. not long ago opened serving takeout and delivery.
It’s a sister cafe to Mai Thai, which has operated upcoming doorway due to the fact 2003. That signifies they can share operations.
And Union Block Bar & Eatery has not blatantly bitten off more than it can chew. Alternatively than leasing the entire ex-Aged Chicago area, it’s taken more than only the bar facet. The dining room fifty percent continues to be empty, nonetheless readily available to a new tenant.
Union Block Bar & Eatery has solid a large culinary web, also. The menu is explained as “New American cuisine with a twist.” That usually means pastas and flatbreads, sandwiches and hamburgers, salads and shareable plates — with arms prolonged to carnivores, vegetarians, vegans and the gluten-totally free group. “From pasta to burgers to flatbreads, you can make it vegan!” Union Block Bar & Eatery guarantees. “Order on DoorDash, Uber Eats, or Grubhub! Or give us a contact at (208) 994-3050!”
Passers-by can examine out the menu posted on a window. Or you can peruse it online. Noteworthy solutions consist of buffalo cauliflower ($10), duck confit pasta ($16) or duck flatbread ($14), a pork belly burger ($13), a goat cheese salad ($14) and bolognese ($16).
At the second, Union Block Bar & Eatery is not giving on-internet site eating. But that should modify before long. Mai Thai Restaurants Group CEO Billy Pothikamjorn states the new cafe could welcome seated consumers by Jan. 11. “That is not concrete still,” he added by using email. Union Block Bar & Eatery’s hours are 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesdays by means of Thursdays, 5 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 5 to 9:30 p.m. Sundays.
If you peer inside, the spot seems just about ready for date night. Union Block Bar & Eatery’s decor is sleek and clean up. The combination of bar, table and booth seating is identical in layout to the Aged Chicago times.
And if you are pining for the substantial beer collection that Previous Chicago experienced? Properly, generate out to Boise Towne Sq.. Aged Chicago still has a location out there. It opened way back again in 1997, just like the downtown Boise cafe.
Michael Deeds is an entertainment writer and opinion columnist. He chronicles the Boise excellent lifetime: restaurants, concerts, lifestyle, cool stuff. Deeds materialized at the Idaho Statesman as an intern in 1991 right before using on roles like capabilities editor, sportswriter and songs critic. In excess of the yrs, his freelance work has ranged from producing album critiques for The Washington Put up to hyping Boise in that in-flight magazine you still left on the plane. Deeds graduated magna cum laude from the University of Nebraska with a bachelor’s degree in information-editorial journalism.
