These two Boise restaurants closed, but is it forever? Is one open? Don’t ask Google

When Grant Rosendahl opened il Sugo Italian Kitchen in Meridian this summer, he temporarily shuttered il Sugo in downtown Boise — along with Main Street Deli — while things got off the ground.

He indicated that the restaurants, which share space at 904 W. Main St., would reopen within weeks.

Months later? Still dark. And customers who hunt for clues online? Left in the dark — if not misinformed. Google lists Main Street Deli as “open” and il Sugo downtown as “permanently closed.”

Here’s the deal. After Rosendahl, the chef and owner, began tending to Il Sugo at 1407 W. McMillan Road, priorities changed. “Meridian’s killin’ it,” he explained in a phone interview.

And while his goal is to reopen in Boise, it won’t be soon. Rosendahl is negotiating with his Florida-based landlord about renovations to improve the downtown building. That process is slow, meaning the restaurants won’t return to action in 2021.

“Originally, that’s what our plan was,” he said of reopening quickly. “Then we got super busy out in Meridian, and there’s a huge draw out there. So we kind of shifted. When I went back downtown, I was like, ‘OK, there’s some opportunity down there still. And I can maybe do some changes here. And we can really double down on the il Sugo concept, basically.’ That’s where the renovations will come into play.”

“I have a brand-new restaurant in Meridian that’s really nice to work out of,” he explained with a chuckle, “and then I come down here, and I’m like, ‘Uhhhhh.’ ”

If negotiations are unsuccessful, it’s possible that il Sugo and some version of Main Street Deli could reopen in a different downtown Boise space. But for the time being, customers will have to learn to be patient.

And maybe not always trust omniscient Google?

“There are a lot of unknowns right now,” Rosendahl said.

This story was originally published November 3, 2021 at 4:00 AM.