Acclaimed L.A. chef closes shop in Boise, local bakery takes over space
One year after saying hello to the Boise area, an acclaimed California chef’s bakery has said goodbye.
Mérité Bake Shop has closed at Crave Delivery. Boise Pie Co. has taken over its space — and its role as the dessert provider at Crave, a 16-suite ghost-kitchen complex at Ten Mile Crossing in Meridian.
Crave continues to offer a handful of coffee drinks under the Mérité brand. Plans are still being considered regarding what, if anything, to do with those items, Crave marketing director Matt Cardon said.
An email to Mérité Bake Shop’s mastermind — Los Angeles-based chef Lincoln Carson — was not returned.
“Mérité was a great partner for the year we had it,” Cardon said via email, “and we are happy that Lincoln did a rotation with us. Now that we have hit that year mark, we wanted to rotate in another dessert concept. This is part of a larger initiative to support more local businesses and bring them into the Crave collective.
“We selected Boise Pie Co. because we loved what they were doing from a culinary standpoint and felt the offerings and price points would be well-received based on what our customers are asking for.”
A national finalist for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef in 2020, Carson is an experienced restaurateur. After he revealed plans to open a new French restaurant in Hollywood this spring, Eater Los Angeles described him as a “pastry wizard.”
When Mérité opened in late 2020, the plan was to feature desserts, breakfast pastries and muffins. The menu included inspired creations such as a Meyer lemon tart with yuzu and violet. Boise Pie Co. — which has a brick-and-mortar operation at 1216 N. Orchard St. — sells desserts at Crave that skew more traditional. A chocolate chip cookie or triple chocolate chip cookie costs $3. A triple chocolate cupcake is $6.50. There also are a handful of 4-inch pies for $8, ranging from peanut butter cream to key lime. Or you can savor a 4-inch carrot cake ($9) or cheesecake ($8).
Like other tenants at Crave, Boise Pie Co. does both delivery and takeout. There is no on-site dining at the Meridian location of Crave. Customers order food using the Crave Delivery app. Delivery costs $4.99 and can include menu items from multiple Crave eateries.
In October, Crave also opened a brick-and-mortar store near Boise State University at 1030 S. Broadway Ave. A scaled-down version of the Meridian operation, it offers a handful of restaurant brands — including desserts from Boise Pie Co.