5 minute read
THE AVERY
PHOTO COURTESY OF CAL ELLIOTT
Boise's Historic Hotel Reborn
By April Neale
Every big city has a past, and Boise is downright infamous. Cal Elliott—a Michelin-star chef, New York restauranteur (Rye), and Borah High graduate—returned to Idaho from a 28-year exile, which took him from Alaska to New York. He brought back a wealth of skills, experience, and a design ethos that honors his hometown.
In 2015, Elliott and his wife Ashley, who own the Little Pearl Oyster Bar, purchased the unrestored Averyl Tiner Building on downtown Boise’s historic Gem Block. “The Avery is named after Averyl, the Tiner family’s granddaughter whose name is on the front facade of the building,” explained Cal Elliott.
Averyl, who lives in Redmond, Washington, has the registers from when the hotel opened, and may return to Boise for the grand opening. “This was the inspiration,” said Elliott. “We wanted to respect the building’s past.”
Now called The Avery, the hotel reminds us that restoring the past can be a better investment than bulldozing it. Elliott’s new establishment has resurrected the vision of many tough-as-nails men who fought like hell to keep the Bouquet, the building’s former occupant, going in a part of Main Street once considered the vice district of Boise.
With local developer Michael Hormaechea, the Elliotts have polished this Main Street gem into a glowing 39-room boutique hotel with rooms on the upper three floors and two restaurants on the main level, including The Avery restaurant, a fine dining establishment with a seasonal menu and Tiner’s Alley, a tavern accessed by the alley behind the hotel.
Elliott described the last few years as difficult for small business owners, and said that the renovations feel like a minor miracle. “Boise has devalued its history; it doesn’t have a historic hotel or restaurant. All the old restaurants we grew up with, like the Gamekeeper, are gone. I just thought that Boise needed something it can hang its hat on and be proud of. This building’s been here for 125 years and is now restored to what it was originally. That was my motivation,” Elliott said.
“To pay homage to what was originally there, then modernize it respectfully and thoughtfully. The rooms are gorgeous. You don’t feel like you’re in Boise. You could be in New York or even Europe.” The clever use of space highlights the thoughtful “found objects” and preserves landmark architectural elements like the long Brunswick bar, set amongst a carefully placed and nuanced backdrop of colors, texture, and light. Ashley Elliott, a Parsons New School of Design School alum, and her educated eye has made every inch of the old girl an intriguing adventure.
With only 39 rooms, the hotel luxuriates in its intimacy, offering diverse experiences and exceptional hospitality throughout your stay, no matter where you are on the premises. “[ e rooms] have to be intimate. And I wanted to do that with the restaurants too. I didn’t want a big vacuous space; I wanted different dining experiences, nooks, and little spots where you can have a new experience every time you come in. Ashley’s been a part of this project from the beginning. When I bought the building in 2015, we sat down and put together the concepts—she’s been working on the look. We want you to feel welcome whether you’re staying in the hotel [or just dining in], and everyone in the restaurant wants to know you and ensure you’re well taken care of,” Cal Elliott said.
I’m pretty classic. I want the food to fit in the space, honest food. We are going to respect the seasons and [use a] lot of French techniques.
Elliott studied at the Institute of Culinary Education, a French culinary school, and cooked with French-trained chefs and luminaries like Tom Colicchio and Diane Forley. As for the main room menu, Elliott will use the seasons to guide him. “I’m pretty classic. I want the food to fit in the space, honest food. We are going to respect the seasons and [use a] lot of French techniques.”
It took 28 years in New York and opening his restaurant, Rye, on the heels of ten hard years on Alaskan fishing boats to prepare Elliott to navigate the tradewinds of restaurant life. “I was in Brooklyn in 1992, and part of gentrification, and then I fell victim to it. The short of it is I felt less like a New Yorker every year,” Elliott said. Somewhere out in the universe, those former Bouquet owners are smiling at this prodigal son’s return to Boise.
