Pocatello restaurants

[RSF]

Does anyone agree that Pocatello restaurants have gotten pretty pathetic? Oh sure there are a few good ones but none of them are steady and food quality leaves a lot to be desired. We get tired of rotating between the same 3-4 places and have gone thru everything on the menus. When we want a really great meal we shouldn't have to go out of town.

[Idaho native]

You couldn't be more right. We used to live in Pocatello until this past spring. For a town that size, the restaurants and un-creative menus leave a lot to be desired. The quality of food is sup-par at best. Might as well stay home and eat the same thing. And believe me, we ate out a lot, every week. The decent ones there aren't steady in availability of good food.

They'll never have the great restaurants other communities have, Poky is a bedroom community and the people aren't into night life. They'd rather stay home. There also isn't the income base to support a lot of good restaurants, that's why so many fold. People complain development is so stunted there, although we hear a few new businesses have moved in.

We used to take weekends in Boise, SLC, or Jackson for the good food and night life, or even up to Idaho Falls.

[Amy]

Idaho Falls has so much more to offer. Chain restaurants, unique ones, so many with great menus and chefs. Any night of the week you find the majority of them at least half or more full of people. Idaho Falls is a much more ALIVE city, a lot cleaner too. Pocatello places look dead most days. Pocatello has too many ho-hum low class restuarants with low quality food. There are only a few good exceptions. For the population they should offer much better.

[Amy]

Oh give me a break..... none of them do this. What planet do you hail from? You wouldn't be that whack job who holed up in his house with explosives recently and had the SWAT team out, were you?

Get a life.

[Brian]

Lost on the last post?

Question for anyone - what's the new restaurant like - the supposedly upscale one located in the food coop building? Worth the trip from up north?

[Tiff]

I really do recommend the new restaurant in Pocatello – it seems to be offering something that the town has been missing for a while. The selections of wine and beer are wonderful, and the food is fresh and presented well. You must be prepared to pay for it, though. Senang is on 1st street, a few blocks south of the Benton overpass.

[Brian]

Thanks. We'll give it a try. Although I found it interesting reading a few weeks ago in the paper when the chef said something like "people from Pocatello were easy to please". Having eaten all over the country, I found it amusing he would say something that amounted to Pocatello having simple tastes and not much experience with really fine dining, which is probably true. Face it, a few fancy words and sauces and people from here think they've had the experience of a 5 star restaurant.

[Tammy]

Talking about the new restaurant in the Coop, Senang. Thats an insult for the owner or chef to state that Pocatello has simple tastes, what the hell. What about the guy (one of the owners, the one that is always there, that walks around greeting people in a monatone voice, sorry but the guy with the big nose, you know if you've been there) it is strongly felt he wants to make sure everyone in good old Poky thinks he is everything put simple, oh please!! So Brian from Idaho Falls you are probably right he thinks throwing a few fancy words and sauces at people from Poky is really doing it, oh right!
The food is expensive, you don't get much, however; I understand they changed the portion size, too many complants. Me and my friends will take the Continental Bistro over the Co-op restaurant anyday! We go to SLC and IF often, they no doubt have restaurants with staying power, and the atmosphere is better no doubt!

[BDE2]

Looks like the same sick TROLL is back on these boards writing a bunch of crap. He obviously had nothing to do for the holidays. No family or friends, huh?

[Garrett]

I use to live in Arizona and took trips up to Vegas to go eat at some fine dining restaurants since my home town had none. The Senang has equal quality compared to the food that I've tried at 5 star restaurants down in Vegas. The meals are not too big so you can have multiple courses rather than one giant dish that most people, like myself, can not finish and end up wasting. Plus, the prices are good for what they quality that they offer. The decor is very contemporary, their wine selection is 'extremely' broad, and the service that I've had from them is great. They also have live music every Thursday. To say the least, I have been searching for a good fine dining restaurant since I moved up here. Everyone kept saying how the Sandpiper was so wonderful, where as to me it was just another sports bar with high prices. I was so disappointed. The Senang is one of the best restaurants I've been to yet and I look forward to seeing it succeed further.

[Brian]

How would you rate it in comparison to the Bistro and Remo's?

[Bruce]

The reason the meals are "small" is because it is a Tapas restaurant which is a Spanish small portion bar and grill basically . I have had a steak there that I was not able to finish and it was great as for continental bistro what he tried to pass of as German my Grandmother would have been ashamed to serve . Of course this is from a stupid red neck from Poky who has leaved is 15 different state and 2 overseas countries . Guess what if you like who do you have to impress

[Teddy]

what the heck senang is awesome.Can't name half the stuff on their menu but it sure does taste good.There's usually fly waitresses and hot waiters too. And the service is good.So don't be hating the place because you can afford to go there.

[Brian]

I don't see how Senag will survive without a hard liquor license. A lot of people who enjoy really fine dining (well, for Idaho) like to have a nice drink with their meal.

It's pretty obvious how uncultured people are in Pocatello. I've heard several comment they have no idea what the menu says or means. Sad!

Maybe higher end restaurants in SE Idaho need a "cliff notes for dummies" instead of their menu, or something along those lines.

[Kathy]

I heard go to Senang, and then I mostly heard don't go to Senang? I went to Senang it was just okay, nothing more! The wine was kind of expensive, and the wine list was so so. The regulars that were there are a laugh, I think they are looking for a place to be the happening place, well people who want to fit in this just ain't happening there! Also, the parking sucked, around the building was a little trashy, and if you set on the deck you would look right at the railroad tracks, come on put up a nice vinyl type fence for a better atmosphere. Me and my friends agreed, no we will not be back!

[cpc]

I agree with Amy and have wondered for years why Idaho Falls has so much more to offer and feels so much more alive?!(I am a Poky transplant of about 23 years now).

It seemed as though we would occasionally get a new restaruant (or any business, for that matter) and either that one or another one would close its doors soon thereafter.

However, I am happy about the fact that we have had a slow little growth spurt here in the past few years. Not only in restaurants but other types of businesses, as well... Sportsmans Warehouse, Staples, TEXAS ROADHOUSE!, etc. I am most especially excited about the fact that Costco is supposedly coming here soon (next to Chilis)!

OK, sorry to get off the subject. I have not been to the Co-op yet even though my daughter tells me I should go.(My favorite restaurant in town is Mama Inez. I love Mexican food).

I am sure we will never catch up to Idaho Falls, but hopefully we will continue at least a slow growth here in Poky for more variety.

[Brian]

Pocatello is sadly going downhill. AMI, DIllard's, QWest, other layoffs, etc. will hurt the economy. People will stop going out to eat as much. The restaurant business will suffer. The few decent restaurants Pocatello has will slip and suffer. Not a good time to be in the food business now IMO. We find it fascinating any day of the week restaurants are quite busy up here, bud generally dead weekdays in Pocatello. Some say Idaho Falls has more disposable income and people who are not such homebodies. I don't know, I only see Pocatello slipping.

Now if any of you want to try a really good restaurant, come up here. Collage, The Cellar, Rutabagas, Carino's, etc.

[William F]

So I see the Bistro is having major financial problems too. We went to Dillard's last week and looked around. Sadly, they may as well put "Pocatello is closing" signs up around the interstate. Too bad. My niece was in a restaurant a few weeks ago and heard a Sysco employee saying part of the problems in Pocatello were poor restaurant managers and bad menu planning, etc. She said the economy was part of it but the managers could do better. Interesting. Not a good time to be in the business now anyway you look at it.
We ate at Senang's for the first time last week, it was good, but with all these layoffs people don't have extra spending money.
Either way, we still find Idaho Falls restaurants delicious and busy!

[poky guy]

Pocatello actually has a great economy, businesses in idaho falls will soon shut down because it doesnt have the population base to back it up, pocatello's metro is almost 200,000 now, Idaho falls isnt even big enough to be considered a metro area there are only 2 metro cities in idaho, boise and pocatello, people need to find out the facts before saying crap to people they dont even know anything about!!

[Brian]

And what exactly did you smoke today?

Pocatello's metro is almost 200,000? What a hoot, so it's bigger than Boise now? Idaho Falls alone base area is much bigger than Pocatello, all the smaller suburbs whose residents drive into town for business. We have people coming from as far as Jackson and Driggs to shop and eat here.

Your last sentence says a lot about you. Sounds like something a kid in high school writes.