The Chef’s Hut in Boise is a long standing (since 1974), breakfast and lunch restaurant that has a great reputation. I found out about it from a friend who highly recommended their meals (big shout out to Juli from Southern Idaho Foodies for the tip!). If you’ve followed The Boise Beat over the years, you know that I have several favorite dishes I always try to judge a restaurant by. So, craving a good breakfast, I headed to the intersection of Franklin and Cole to try the Chef’s Hut in Boise. It’s right at an exit off of the I-184 connector so it is easy to get to from everywhere in the Treasure Valley. The restaurant is somewhat hidden in a commercial business park on the southeast corner, but once you’ve gone there it’s easy to find.
My go to favorite breakfast is a Chicken Fried Steak. I went in and decided to eat at a table. They also have a spacious counter which is also nice to sit at. The restaurant has a nice casual feel to it. One of the things I had been told is that their CFS is made the proper way, griddled instead of deep fried. I proceeded to order my CFS. Since I don’t eat eggs, I asked about a substitution which was gladly taken care of, netting me an extra biscuit instead of the eggs. My coffee was very good, and kept me in a good mood while waiting for the meal. If you’re looking for a place where the food comes quickly, this isn’t it. All the food is made to order and delivered fresh and hot; and it’s well worth the wait. Also, the portions are large at the Chef’s Hut in Boise, so come hungry!
When my platter arrived, I first noticed that the white sausage gravy had lots of chunks of sausage in it. The biscuits came dry, with honey and jellies on the side. I had one with honey; and the other I dipped in the delicious gravy. They were nicely textured biscuits and freshly baked. I then tried the hash browns. They were nicely browned, with the interior meltingly hot and the exterior with a nice crunch. They were one of the best orders of hash browns I’ve had in a long time.
Finally, I was ready to try the pièce de résistance. With the nice thick sausage gravy topping most of it, the CFS stayed crisp and was beautifully browned. Using the large sharp knife that came with it, the CFS cut easily. The first bite, sans gravy, was delicious, crispy, hot and very tender, a sign of a well-prepared cut of beef. The next bite, with the gravy on it, moved the CFS into the exceptional category, up there with the best ones I’ve had at the Cracker Box Diner in Carson City, Nevada; and the one I use as my ultimate to compare to, the late Maxey’s Steakhouse in Childress, Texas. It was a large portion, but so good that I ate until I was stuffed.
I asked Krysta, the excellent server that I’ve had on all my visits, about one other interesting thing I had seen, the homemade Cinnamon Roll. I couldn’t resist as she described it, so I ordered that. A beautiful cinnamon roll, with plenty of glazed cream cheese frosting on it. I had intended to try a few bites and then take it home, but the warm, fluffy roll topped with the sweet glaze and a dollop of butter that was slowly melting on the freshly baked roll just kept me going. Again, this fell into the exceptional category, up there with my favorite fresh baked cinnamon roll from Paul’s Pantry in Mission Viejo, California.
Before I left, I asked Krysta about another of my favorites, the Chili Burger. This is another passion of mine. When it was invented in the 1930s, it was called the Chili Size, and has evolved from there. I even wrote a story for our sister publication, the Los Angles Beat, about the history of the Chili Size and what I considered the definitive one in my story, The Chili Size, a Los Angeles Original. Outside of California, most places now call it a Chili Burger, but I’ve found that even thought the name is different, many places make theirs also as the open-faced knife and fork style burger.
On my return visit I sat at the counter, enjoying the sounds and smells of cooking food coming from the kitchen. The counter is also an interesting location because you see all the different food orders passing by. I declined a menu, since I already knew what I wanted. Ordering one is simple, the only choices are if you want cheese and onions on it, which I always do. It does come with a choice of fresh-cut fries,tater tots, onion rings, soup, chili or a variety of salads. I opted for the fresh cut fries, which turned out to be an excellent choice. Some places decline to cook a burger any way under medium well, but they were happy to do it closer to medium rare for me.
When the platter arrived, it turned out to be a picture-perfect Chili Burger. It had a nice thick patty covered with plenty of chili, cheese and onions. The open faced burger was done in the traditional Chili Size style, with the top bun toasted, cut in half and placed on both sides of the bottom bun. The homemade chili was quite good, definitely one of the better versions I’ve found in Boise. It was very close to my favorite in southern Idaho, the Chili Burger with Terry’s Buffalo Chili at the Blue Ribbon Bakery and Diner in Emmett.
Having judged many chili cookoffs, attended more including many from CASI, the Chili Appreciation Society International that puts on many of the official cookoffs, including the pinnacle of chili, the Terlingua, Texas Championship Chili Cookoff in my lifetime and won a few also, I’m really critical about the style and taste; and both these places make what the old-time Texans call “purty near chili”. The homemade chili at the Chef’s Hut in Boise had a nice flavor to it that can come only from long simmering and authentic seasonings. It has beans in it that soak up some of the chili flavor. The Homemade Chili Burger also comes with the large sharp knife so it is easy to cut. The fresh-cut French Fries were a good accompaniment with it. Crispy on the outside and creamy-soft on the inside, these fries show why fresh-cut is so much better than the ones at many other places who use frozen fries.
My third visit was with a friend who I often dine out with. I suggested the Chef’s Hut in Boise and he remarked that he’d gone there many times. He was in a breakfast mood, so he ordered Corned Beef Hash with Eggs and Hash Browns. He seemed to enjoy his breakfast. I ordered the Reuben, one of my favorite sandwiches. I’ve been searching with another friend who is a Reuben aficionado also for the best Reuben in the Treasure Valley, so this was my chance to come up with another possibility for it.
The Reuben also comes with the aforementioned sides, but I decided to spend the $1.49 extra and get the Beer Battered Onion Rings with it. The Beer Battered Onion rings Onion rings were tasty, with a perfectly crisped batter on the outside and an extremely tender onion ring on the inside. They’ve now become one of my favorite onion rings in the Treasure Valley. The Reuben itself had plenty of tender corned beef inside, with a slice of Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and the traditional 1000 Island Dressing. The sandwich was lightly grilled so the rye bread it was served on had a lightly crisped exterior. It was a good Reuben, but not quite equal to some of the ones at places like the Bittercreek Alehouse in Boise.
One of the nice things these days is that most restaurants have online menus posted. I like to be able to have an idea what I want to order before I even go. I already know that I want to try the Philly, the Stuffed French Toast, the Chicken and Waffles and the Mushroom Swiss Burger. The Chef’s Hut in Boise seems like a perfect place to go back and try a different order every time (although I see it could be hard with so many favorites of mine there already). The atmosphere is nice and the service excellent. For breakfast and lunch, the Chef’s Hut in Boise has quickly vaulted into one of my favorite places.I wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be one of yours too.
The Chef’s Hut
164 S. Cole Road
Boise, ID 83709
(208) 376-3125
The Chef’s Hut website
The Chef’s Hut Facebook Page
