‘Reeling and in shock,’ this drive-thru restaurant, a Boise ‘icon,’ will close
A drive-thru restaurant with decades of Boise history will say goodbye this weekend.
Tiki Teriyaki Burger Time, 1273 S. Orchard St., will close after serving meals until 5 p.m. Saturday.
A lengthy note to customers posted on the windows explains the sudden turn of events — “with great sadness and disappointment.”
“We had every expectation that our lease would be renewed as set forth in our contract,” it reads in part. “However, instead of receiving a new lease, we were give a Termination of Lease notice giving us only 30 days to wind down our family business and vacate the property.”
The restaurant has been part of the community’s fabric since the 1960s. Past incarnations include Patty’s Burger Time, the Chow Now and the Beehive.
When the family that owned Tiki Teriyaki food truck took over Burger Time in 2018, they remade the menu and covered the building’s exterior with colorful paint and artwork. The former traditional burger joint became half burger destination, half Hawaiian food operation.
Co-owner Shawn Kimmell was optimistic the changes would be welcomed. After all, “Burger Time is an icon of the Boise Bench,” he told the Statesman at the time.
But several years later, plans have changed. Abruptly.
“We are still ... reeling and in shock from this turn of events,” the note reads, “and we have not yet had time to figure out what the future holds for us. However, we do know that we will be back — returning to our food truck roots — with a new soft-serve ice cream truck that we are getting ready to roll out soon.”
BoiseDev first reported the imminent closure.
