Barbacoa Grill — Restaurant in Boise

Food ordered: Calamari fritti ($16) Coulotte steak and Cajun shrimp ($45) with a side of artichoke fritters ($13) Enchilada Cordero ($37) with a side of asparagus ($12) and zucchini chips sprinkled with cheese ($12)

My husband and I came here with some family and friends to celebrate my graduation and our gender reveal. I had high expectations for this place given the variety on their menu and how pricey it is. Therefore, here is an honest and detailed review:

Service: Our server was amazing but I didn’t particularly appreciate the behavior of one of the managers (or whatever she was considering she didn’t introduce herself) that was called in to receive our gender reveal cake. She could have delivered info on their policy regarding outside food in a kinder manner rather than in a matter-of-fact cold tone. Her attitude left me feeling quite displeased upon arrival.

Food (only the food my husband and I ordered): For an expensive restaurant, the least they could do is offer some complementary appetizers, especially considering how long it takes to receive your food once you make an order. If cheaper restaurants can do it, what’s stopping this establishment from serving warm bread or salad? Everything that was breaded/battered (Calamari fritti, zucchini chips & Artichokes) was rather tasteless. There was no seasoning (spices outside salt and pepper) and the zucchini chips and artichoke fritters barely had any salt on them. I was very disappointed with the sides and even more so with the 6 salty asparagus spears that were $12. My husband ordered the Enchilada Cordero and the lamb surely needed to be cooked longer. I wish they had asked us how well we wanted it and worked to ensure it was well done. I wasn’t impressed with the portion size on this one, especially considering its price. I ordered the Coulotte steak and Cajun shrimp. I asked for my steak to be very well done but still unfortunately ended up with a steak that was somewhat pink inside. The hot stone was left in case I needed to use it (which I did) considering my steak wasn’t cooked to my liking. While I appreciate the use of the stone, it’s not enjoyable having to cook the steak to my liking after waiting so long and leaving the rest of my food to get cold. The cognac sauce wasn’t too my liking as the taste just wasn’t something I enjoyed. The steak however was pretty good after I cooked it a little more. Besides this the 3 shrimp that came with the dish weren’t bad. The shrimp themselves weren’t seasoned but came dressed in some kind of sauce that I didn’t quite like but didn’t hate completely. The mashed potatoes were rather bland and could have used some seasoning. I think they should seriously consider offering a menu for non-alcoholic beverages and expanding on creating an availability and variety of such drinks. I got a virgin huckleberry mojito after being verbally informed of a narrowed list of mojitos they could make alcohol-free. Seeing as these were some of the only non-alcoholic drinks outside your typical sodas that they could offer. The mojito ended up being dreadfully sweet and I had to water it down with some of the water I had. The celebration called for a celebratory dessert and I must say for an expensive restaurant they could do so much more with their complementary dessert. If a chain restaurant like Cheesecake Factory can give you a decently sized free cheesecake, Barbacoa could do much more than a kid’s bite sized piece of flourless cake in a cotton candy lantern. Visually it’s cute but cotton candy is not the best dessert you could offer to grown adults. The flourless “Belgian chocolate cake” was terrible in all honesty and had the weirdest consistency that I couldn’t quite wrap my head around.

Environment: We had the view of the little lake behind the restaurant and this surely was a splendid view indeed. I am not sure what seating is like inside but it looked pretty nice. The bathrooms were too dark for my liking and weren’t mum friendly as they didn’t have any changing...

Edit of following review:

Barbacoa Grill did call us back and we had a very pleasant chat about what happened, that there have not been any other cases that they are aware of, that in the case of their ribs that they cook them overnight for the following days meals and that they would continue to investigate and monitor what had happened and keep us in the loop. THAT is all I could ever ask for and am happy that they responded and are open minded about could have caused that to occur. We ended our conversation on the note that we will return in the future and that overall we loved their restaurant.

Here is my original review of this sequence of events:

My wife and I went to the Barbacoa for our 39th Anniversary and had early 4:15pm dinner reservations (meaning we were among the first people served)

I ordered the Duck Two Ways and my wife the Full Rack of Ribs. During the meal she slid me over a single rib, which I consumed, she did not share any of my meal and this was the only food either of us had consumed that day.

After returning home we both became ill, with mine lasting throughout the night and hers for a bit over 24 hrs. Upon reflection we put it down to the Ribs, which were Luke-Warm when they were brought to the table. We both have a long history of professional food service and recognize that what most likely happened was that the ribs were left over from the previous days cooking, put into their walk-in and then reheated on the grill before serving, as the meat would have been both juicier and the bones hotter if it had been microwaved.

I sent this entire story to the Barbacoa in an email on the 'Contact Us' link on their website advising them that I sought no recompense, nor was inclined to give a bad review, but wanted to give them a 'Heads-Up' about it so that they could address any poor food handling techniques that may be going on. Sadly, they failed to give even the most mediocre response: 'Sorry, we'll look into it, thank you for the heads up, etc' just silence.

At this point, I believe that I will leave a review after their failure to even acknowledge what happened.

Overall, I would rate the Barbacoa as one of the best dining experiences and environments to be had in the Treasure Valley and from what I saw of the dishes being delivered and prepared around us, a culinary delight. I would even go so far as to say that we would not hesitate to return there at some point in the future, but that without hesitation I would not order anything other than a Steak, as those are prepared to order and any food preparation issues would be less likely to affect us, foregoing anything Fish, Fowl or Pork in the process (I will note that the table right next to us had a couple that ordered two Hot Rock Filet's, both Medium Rare. After they were served and they both cut into them, they switched plates, as hers was Rare and his Medium Rare, rather than call the waiter back to have hers recooked or replaced) Perhaps their kitchen is not staffed with their regular personnel and cooks on weekends.... I dunno, but something to take into consideration.

In closing, pretty sad.... I had thought that perhaps we had found a restaurant on par with a place like Chandlers, but...

Great staff, fantastic food, funky decor, incredible experience. I love Barbacoa Grill, Boise, ID. As a two-time visitor to the Boise, I’m continually impressed at the local food scene, and a visit to Barbacoa Grill on this trip further cements my impression. TIP: check out their outstanding website. The restaurant is located among some office-type buildings not far from the downtown area of Boise. The exterior is impressive with a colorful sign, flaming torches, decorative furniture, and a large, impressive door. Once inside, your eyes catch a variety of funky art while your ears experience a thumping music and hum of guests. The hostesses were very busy and efficient. TIP: Make reservations! The restaurant offers a variety of seating including private room service. The tables and chairs are decorative and interesting. The noise level is fairly high but not too high. The servers were friendly, knowledgeable, and efficient. The drink and food menus are comprehensive and interesting, catering to all types of tastes around the theme of open fire grilling, Pacific Northwest ranch, and Latin-America influences. I really enjoyed the Top Shelf Margarita and the Black Manhattan (in an ice glass!). The meals are presented as works of art including plenty of flames at the table—dramatic and delightful. The food is very tasty as well. The Latin Steak included a delicious, perfectly cooked flank steam with rice, beans, avocado salad, and tortilla—perfect to the last bite. The Idaho Trout was huge and delicious. The BBQ Ribs was an enormous rack with slaw. The desserts were equally unique and impressive especially the Campfire Smores (complete with wood fire for roasting) and the coconut and pineapple flan (beyond yummy). The prices were on the high side but deservedly so. I rate Barbacoa Grill as a great value for being a complete and delightful experience: high quality service, inventive and delicious menu, and interesting atmosphere. My highest recommendation—don’t miss the Barbacoa...