Boise was ‘too much,’ so this chain fled to Meridian. Months later, its restaurant closed

Restaurants often post goodbyes on social media when they close. Some update their official websites to reflect the situation.

Others, such as The Chicken Shanty, simply fly the coop.

After opening last May at 3110 W. Quintale Drive in Meridian — near the intersection of Ten Mile and McMillan roads — the Shanty is no more. A couple of curled up pieces of paper are taped on the restaurant’s exterior containing one weather-beaten word: “closed.”

(A second word could have been added — “again.” More on that in a sec.)

Based on grumpy Google reviews, an online warning would have been appreciated. “A heads up that this location is closed would have been nice before driving 25 minutes one way,” one complains.

Founded in 2020, The Chicken Shanty sells what it describes as “premium craft chicken.” Part of an Oregon chain that includes franchises, the Meridian location was a corporate store. It was the fried-chicken brand’s first Treasure Valley brick-and-mortar after a short-lived stab at doing business in Boise.

In July 2023, The Chicken Shanty launched a food-cart drive-thru at 6219 W. Overland Road. But the franchise business shuttered within months.

At the time, founder Tyson Miltenberger told the Idaho Statesman that Boise city requirements “became too much.”

“We were having a really hard time with the city letting us have a drive-thru,” Miltenberger said in a message. “It would have cost several hundred thousand dollars in new permitting and upgrades, and since we’re a small business, we decided to move the location to Meridian.”

That now-vacant restaurant space — next door to a Broken Yolk , and a hot dog’s toss away from a Wienerschnitzel — remains filled with kitchen equipment.

The Chicken Shanty has 10 other locations, according to its website. All are in Oregon with one exception — a presence in Couer d’Alene. However, Meridian remains listed, too, so the accuracy of that information should be treated accordingly.

This story was originally published March 11, 2025 at 5:00 PM.

Michael Deeds

Idaho Statesman

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Michael Deeds is a long-serving entertainment reporter and opinion columnist at the Idaho Statesman, where he chronicles the Boise good life: restaurants, concerts, culture, cool stuff. He started as a summer intern after graduating from the University of Nebraska with a news-editorial journalism degree. Deeds’ prior Statesman roles have included sportswriter, music critic and features editor. His other writing has ranged from freelancing album reviews for The Washington Post to bragging about Boise in that inflight magazine you left on the plane.