This chain’s first Idaho restaurant closes after 11 years in Meridian

When Blaze Pizza opened its first Idaho restaurant in 2014, it brought a build-your-own, assembly-line ordering process and a fast-fired cooking technique that delivered blistered pies in minutes.

But the open-flame oven has been extinguished at Blaze’s first Gem State location.

After 11 years, Blaze Pizza recently closed at The Village at Meridian. Located at 2206 N. Eagle Road, the 2,800-square-foot restaurant’s last day was Oct. 31, said Hugh Crawford, general manager at The Village.

A franchise chain, Blaze still operates six locations in Idaho, according to its website, including four in the Treasure Valley.

Discussions have begun with potential replacement tenants at the Village, Crawford said. “We hope to have a new tenant open for business in that space by midsummer this year,” he added in a message.

In the meantime, there is no shortage of pizza in the Treasure Valley. In fact, Meridian just got a new pizzeria Nov. 1: Slice House by Tony Gemignani, 1582 Orchard Park Drive.

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.