4 minute read
RUSTICA Offers Inspired Eating, Fresh Ingredients
By Chelsea Chambers
The foundation for a good meal is always good ingredients. For Rustica Chef Tyson Mann, the importance of using fresh, unprocessed ingredients was instilled in him since childhood. Mann grew up in a very small area in the middle of nowhere. “We were about a 45-minute drive from the closest town,” Mann shared. “Being so far away from anything, I grew up eating out of my mom’s garden. She was adamant about our family eating fresh, non-processed food and she loved cooking. That really established my foundation for cooking and is the root of my passion and love for food.”
Mann is the head chef of the newly opened Boise restaurant, located on 8th Street in the heart of downtown. “The Rustica logo is a nod to the symbol of the Chianti region in Italy, which is a big draw for the style of food that we serve,” he said. “It is something that the owner, Dan Watts, and I are both very passionate about, so we have our focus on Italian cuisine while bringing in some influences from France and Spain.”
Rustica has been an instant hit in the Treasure Valley, offering delicious meals like porchetta and Spanish flank steak. Rustica fulfills all of the Italian cravings like pizza and pesto, while simultaneously satisfying appetites you didn’t even know you had. The combination of Spanish and European infusion is an absolute delight.
From his small, Southern California hometown to the renowned Los Angeles culinary school, Le Cordon Bleu, Mann has been able to learn how to cook in a variety of different styles, cuisines, and gastronomic techniques throughout his career. “I had the opportunity to work in a Michelin star restaurant in LA and got to work under Chef Michael Cimarusti,” he said. Cimarusti is an esteemed chef who has won the prestigious James Beard award multiple times, and his restaurant is the proud holder of not one, but two Michelin stars. When considering the type of experience and education that Mann received when working under Cimarusti, it’s no wonder that everything he touches turns to culinary gold.
After starting his career in the bustle of Los Angeles, Mann sought to slow things down a bit and moved to Costa Rica to be a private chef for a small resort. When he returned to the states in 2013, he decided not to return to the grind of L.A., but rather he sought the space and pace of Boise, Idaho.
This is now the third Boise-based restaurant where Mann is the chef. The trio—alongside Wild Root and Saint Lawrence Gridiron—could not be more different in their menu offerings, but one thing remains true for all: fresh, delicious ingredients. “We pride ourselves on using the best ingredients we can. We import some of our meats and ingredients from Italy. We use fresh pasta made by Sigita, a local pasta maker who owns Ferranti Fresh Pasta. We make our pizza dough from scratch in-house and let it ferment for a few days to give it amazing structure, texture, and flavor. We source our tomatoes from an Italian grower based out of California,” Mann shared passionately. “We source our bread from ACME Bakeshop for daily fresh bread. And craft everything else we make in-house from scratch, so all our dishes are fresh, clean, and built from the ground up by hand.” Mann’s mother was his inspiration and the catalyst that sparked his love for food and making magic in the kitchen. Family has remained an integral part of his life. “I couldn’t do this without the support and love of my wife, Sarah, and my two kids, Torben and Emmette,” he said. Mann would also like to give special accolades to Chef de Cuisine Chelsea Austin-Donnelly and General Manager Emma Brandt, who have been key players in the success of Rustica’s opening and smooth transition to serving the Treasure Valley. The team looks forward to introducing Boise to new food and delicious flavors with their seasonally rotating menus and fresh, authentic ingredients.
