Where DIDN’T Guy Fieri eat in Boise? Food Network visit will ‘impact’ lots of restaurants

One week after Food Network shined a national spotlight on a couple of Boise restaurants, it will go in for another helping.

Make that a double. Actually, a triple.

Saint Lawrence Gridiron and Tango’s Empanadas will be the next local favorites featured on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” The half-hour episode, “Pick-Me-Ups,” premieres Friday, April 14, at 10 p.m.

Prior to that — at 10 p.m. Friday, April 7 — Westside Drive-In will appear on “Triple D Nation,” a spin-off that revisits restaurants from “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” (Confirm the times with your TV provider.)

And that’s likely not all.

Food Network star Guy Fieri rolled into the Treasure Valley in February and filmed at several locations. Boise restaurants Alyonka Russian Cuisine and Taj Mahal already were highlighted in an episode of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” that premiered Friday, March 31.

Getting a visit from “Triple D,” as fans and Fieri call it, is a fun experience — and a real shot of publicity. Westside Drive-In was on the show more than a decade ago. Yet it’s still a marketing boost.

“Since the first Westside Drive-In episode back in 2009, you simply can’t measure the impact it’s made for us,” owner-chef Lou Aaron posted on Facebook this week. “The episode from 2009 has been shown many times over the years and every time it airs, we get new visitors. (The gift that keeps on giving!)

“When Guy came back to Boise (in February) to film more episodes of ‘Diners Drive-Ins and Dives,’ he called us to get caught up on what we’ve been doing. He was happy to hear my son and I opened another Westside and since he was already in Boise filming, he decided to do an episode for ‘Triple D Nation’ at the Parkcenter Westside Drive-In location. He loves to see family businesses thrive and it was great to see him again. THANKS TRIPLE D!”

A longtime Boise staple, Westside Drive-In is located at 1929 W. State St. and 1113 E. Parkcenter Blvd. The “Triple D Nation” episode is called “All Sorts of Sandwiches.”

In advance of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” on April 14, Food Network has posted recipes for Tinga Empanadas from Tango’s Empanadas and the Gridiron Burger from Saint Lawrence Gridiron. “This trip,” the episode synopsis says, “Guy Fieri’s picking up handfuls of flavor. In Boise, Idaho, a real deal empanada emporium and a stick-to-your-ribs spot are both servin’ up off-the-hook burgers and sandwiches.”

Saint Lawrence Gridiron, 705 W. Bannock St., is a bit of a hidden barbecue gem in downtown Boise. I wrote about its rich, decadent brisket burgers last fall — and almost fell into a midday food coma in the process.

Argentinian restaurant Tango’s Empanadas has a loyal following in Boise, where it’s operated at 701 N. Orchard St. since 2006. Fieri visited the expansion location at 46 E. Fairview Ave. in Meridian.

Saint Lawrence Gridiron owner Dan Watts says the show will feature his restaurant’s Gridiron Burger and Monte Cristo (normally a brunch item). Anticipating hungry crowds, Saint Lawrence has reworked the menus to offer the Monte Cristo for both brunch and lunch, and the Gridiron Burger all the time.

If everything goes according to plan, this won’t be the end of the Gem State blitz on Food Network. When Fieri visited Boise, he posted an Instagram photo of his son, Ryder, and himself filming at Sunshine Spice Cafe, an Afghan eatery at 6911 W. Fairview Ave.

And — just to give you an appetizer — there’s reason to believe Fieri hit at least one other place. Apparently, Boise made him hungry.

This story was originally published April 5, 2023 at 4:00 AM.