After closing, Boise restaurant reopens with something major missing. Customers: ‘Good’

When Lulu’s Pizza & Sushi closed its expansion location several months ago, it came as a surprise.

The Southeast Boise restaurant had been open only since 2021. And the original was still pumping out quality New York-style pies, along with sushi, at 2594 N. Bogus Basin Road after 18 years.

Now the lights are back on at Lulu’s, 2475 S. Apple St.

Roy Aggarwal — who owns Nourish protein-shake shop on the opposite end of the building — is the new general manager and co-owner.

A longtime local brand, Lulu’s has a reputation for tasty pizza. But Aggarwal made a significant change while resuscitating the Apple Street store.

As part of reopening Nov. 30, he dropped sushi from the menu. Despite the “sushi” on the sign outside.

“I’m pretty new to operating a restaurant,” he explained. “And I told my business partner ... ‘I really need to skinny things down and dumb things down.’ ... Plus, this is my shop, and I want to run it that way. I don’t get the connection of pizza and sushi, to be quite honest.”

So far, Aggarwal said, he can think of two instances where a customer told him they wished Lulu’s on Apple still sold sushi. “Everybody else has walked in and said, ‘Good, I’m glad you dropped it,’ ” he said.

Online reviews are celebrating the pizzeria’s return. “Thrilled that Lulu’s on Apple just reopened,” a Google Local Guide wrote. “... My vote for some of the best pizza in Boise!”

You can stroll into Lulu’s for a slice ($2.99 to $3.49) and a local draft beer. Or order a full pie. In addition to standard options, Lulu’s offers an array of interesting pizzas such as the Thai-One-On ($21.50 for 16-inch, $27.50 for 20-inch) with Thai peanut sauce, mozzarella cheese, chicken breast, julienned red peppers, cilantro, basil and carrot twirls. Or the Napa Valley ($21.99/$26.99) with caramelized onions, mozzarella cheese, blue cheese, smoky bacon, marinated tomatoes and mushrooms with light Roma sauce.

Lulu’s menu also includes a bunch of calzones and a handful of salads. And gluten-free pizzas are an option.

Online ordering is available for both locations at ilovelulus.com. (And, yes, sushi fans, you can still get your California roll and edamame fix on Bogus Basin Road.)

Lulu’s on Apple will offer delivery with an in-house driver in the future. For now, it’s takeout and dine-in only. Aggarwal is trying not to take on too much while learning the ropes, he said.

On that note? Don’t expect sushi to return. Erasing that part of the menu allows staff on Apple to focus on the restaurant’s core products.

“We want to do pizza and salads great,” Aggarwal said.

This story was originally published December 6, 2023 at 2:07 PM.