Two new restaurants will join Garden City’s riverfront restaurant row this summer.
Bao Boi and Chicken in a Barrel BBQ have announced plans to launch restaurant locations at The Boardwalk On the River apartment project at 41st St. and the Boise River.
The ongoing Boardwalk project, which sits along the Boise River Greenbelt, has an array of retail and restaurant spaces that open onto its namesake boardwalk area.
Bao Boi
Bao Boi currently operates a kiosk restaurant inside The Warehouse in Downtown Boise. Chef Frank Jordan launched the outlet as a pop-up in 2021, followed by the Warehouse location the next year.
The Boardwalk location plans a more extensive menu lineup, featuring sushi, hot and cold appetizers, steam buns and more.
Highlights include a black cod miso, cooked over Japanese coals, curry ramen, karaage fried chicken steam buns, and even a hot rock wagyu steak appetizer.
Bao Boi also plans sake flights.
Chicken in a Barrel
Hawaiian franchise restaurant Chicken in A Barrel will open its first restaurant in a land-locked state with the Boardwalk location.
The restaurant concept launched in Kapa’a on the island of Kauai in Hawaii in 2010. It now has five locations in Hawaii and two in California.
The chain features a selection of traditional Hawaiian plate lunches with chicken, beef and pork, served with rice and beans. Menus also feature sandwiches on brioche bread, po’ boys, salads and more.
Meats are slow-cooked in drum barrels.
More to come
The Boardwalk is on track to wrap up the riverfront phase by this summer, and has yet to announce its additional retail lineup.
Chicken in a Barrel and Bao Boi will add to an extensive lineup of restaurants and bars along the river in Garden City—though you’ll have to walk a bit. Ling & Louie’s Asian Bar and Grill opened late last summer, joining The Sandbar, Telaya Wine Co., Greenbelt Market, Yardarm, and Caffé Luciano’s. The Boardwalk eateries are about a 15-minute walk along the Greenbelt from Caffé Luciano’s.
