Food Notes: Two Boise restaurants are opening Downtown

After about a decade in the North End near the Boise Co-op, Richard’s Café Vicino, 808 W. Fort St., is moving.

The restaurant will revert to the name Richard’s when it opens at the Inn at 500 Capitol, a boutique hotel that’s under construction at the corner of Capitol Boulevard and Myrtle Street.

Some may remember back in the day when chef and owner Richard Langston had a restaurant named Richard’s in Hyde Park.

He has earned a loyal following over the years (and a semifinalist nod for a James Beard Award in 2014), and the food still will be Langston-centric, with lots of Northwest-inspired Mediterranean standouts from the Café Vicino menu and more. The new Richard’s also will offer breakfast daily and Sunday brunch.

“You’ve got to do breakfast at a hotel,” Langston says.

Langston has been eyeing spots in the Downtown area for a few years now.

“There’s so much going on down there. I just wanted to be a part of the excitement,” he says.

The new restaurant will have a 70-seat dining room and a full-service bar on the ground floor, plus a sprawling second-floor banquet room.

The hotel is expected to open Dec. 31. Café Vicino will close at the end of November so the crew can prepare for the big move.

“We want it to be a seamless transition for our diners,” Langston says.

Get progress reports at facebook.com/richards-café-vicino.

Tavern to open second eatery

A longtime neighborhood eatery is heading Downtown.

The Tavern at Bown Crossing, which has served Southeast Boise since 2006 at 3111 S. Bown Way, plans to open a second restaurant at The Owyhee in late July.

The new location, called The Owyhee Tavern, will operate in the former spot of The Gamekeeper at 11th and Main Streets.

“We have been looking for years for the perfect spot Downtown to open our second Tavern — and this is it,” co-owner Barry Werner said in a press release. “Downtown is becoming a true neighborhood, and we look forward to bringing the local feel we’ve created at Bown to the urban core and this historic building.”

The Owyhee Tavern will be 5,500 square feet. It will include outdoor patio seating on Main Street, a 115-seat bar area, seating for 150 in the dining space, and two additional private dining and event rooms.

“Much like the other Owyhee spaces, the Tavern’s design will pay homage the historic nature of the building and will have a polished, urban feel,” according to the press release. “The new restaurant will feature a different menu but retain many of the same, high-quality center-of-the-plate options that the Tavern at Bown Crossing is known for. The new location (will) have a larger dedicated section for fresh seafood, and although the Owyhee Tavern will not have a sushi bar like the Bown location, sushi options will be available along with fresh oysters, Kobe and dry-aged steaks, and an expanded wine list.”

Benevolent coffee

Awakenings Coffee House recently debuted in the former Moxie Java spot, at 10650 W. Overland Road, near Pad Thai House.

Owners Jeff and Ashley Larsen are in the process of turning the business into a nonprofit that benefits various organizations around the Treasure Valley that offer support to victims of domestic violence.

“Our mission is to donate our proceeds (after operating costs) to these groups. My wife and I are passionate about helping people who have been affected by domestic violence,” Jeff Larsen says. “Our core value is responsible business. Giving back to society is important to us.”

The coffeehouse turns out a gamut of espresso drinks made with beans roasted in small batches by Relic Coffee in Eagle. Awakenings also soon will be offering pour-over, nitrogen-infused and cold-brew coffee.

Loose-leaf teas, fruit smoothies and Italian sodas are available as well.

In terms of food, the coffeehouse puts out scratch baked goods — muffins, brownies and coffee cake — and pastries from bakeries around town, including gluten-free treats from Amaru Confections.

The coffeehouse dishes up breakfast sandwiches and egg breakfasts, and hot and cold sandwiches later in the day.

Awakenings, which hosts live music at night, has plans to expand its hours in the coming weeks, about the same time the beer and wine license kicks in.

Hours: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday; 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.

Online: facebook.com/awakeningscoffeehouse

Gridiron retools menu

Saint Lawrence Gridiron, 705 W. Bannock St., unveiled its new weekend brunch menu March 5 with an expanded list of Americana offerings.

“It’s a more robust, larger brunch menu. We’re striking the lunch menu on the weekends,” owner Brian Garrett says.

The new brunch menu (offered from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday) features dishes such as a sweet cornbread waffle with fried quail ($12), brisket eggs Benedict ($13), a traditional Monte Cristo sandwich ($11) and potato donuts ($4).

Saint Lawrence Gridiron also has new brunch-time cocktails on the menu.

Online: saintlawrencegridiron.com

This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 2:43 PM with the headline "Food Notes: Two Boise restaurants are opening Downtown."