CHEF SPOTLIGHT: CHEF ENRIQUE MARTINEZ of Barbacoa, Coa De Jima, and Coa Del Mar

PHOTO BY KAREN DAY

By April Neale

If you’ve been to Boise, you’ve probably been to Barbacoa, the award-winning restaurant overseen by executive chef Enrique Martinez. His culinary collaborations with the Castoro family, noted restaurateurs, have spanned two states and driven the success of the flagship Barbacoa, described as Latin fusion with a tipped hat to the PNW cowboy and rancher. Now, with three restaurants under his guidance, Martinez is busier than he's ever been.

He has been with the Castoros as Executive Chef since opening Ti Amo in 1994. He crossed paths with the family when he was the executive chef of Towers restaurant inside the five-star resort, The Surf & Sand Hotel in Laguna Beach, California. But the late Robert Castoro recognized his talent and brought him to their operation, first in Laguna Beach, then he enticed Martinez to come with him to Boise. "Boise was so green, beautiful, and clean. “Robert put me in charge of the kitchen. He gave me the freedom to do everything. Including Coa De Jima and the new restaurant, Coa Del Mar, coming to Eagle," said Martinez.

Customers have responded in kind. Barbacoa's famous happy hour drives some of Idaho's top alcohol and food sales and is consistently packed to the rafters. Martinez smiled; he knew they did it right. "You need to make people love your food all the time, or else you don't have a job, right? When I come to the main room for a break from the kitchen, I see everybody happy, talking, laughing, and smiling, or I go outside in the parking lot; I see people walking and waiting to get a seat a half hour before we open. Barbacoa is the busiest restaurant," he laughed.

Martinez is offered a blank creative slate, and he enjoys pushing the limits. "I like to change my menus every six months. Presentation, flavors, colors—I always look for different ingredients. And 16 years later, I'm happy with what we've been doing. Coa De Jima is only two years old, but I love it. I want to keep bringing some Mexican items and to be educational. So many young kids are born in the United States to Latin families, right? But they don't know about our culture. Nothing. At Barbacoa and Coa De Jima, you can talk at your table and tell your kids this is the food my parents made for me when I lived in Mexico," he said.

Family and respect define the kitchens' atmosphere; with Nikolai Castoro now running the restaurants, Martinez reflected on his connection to their family and watching the Castoro children grow up and succeed. "This is when I wished Martine Castoro had come here for this interview. I would tell her, 'Hey, you did a great job with your kids,’” he said. “Nikolai is not scared to do or try anything. Nikolai gives it his all. I follow his lead, and I treat people with respect. Here, the kitchen takes care of front-of-the-house people. We respect them."