Boise chain to open 5th, 6th, 7th restaurants. Expansion goal? 50. ‘People are loving us.’

Paddles Up Poke owner Daniel Landucci raised eyebrows when he revealed his expansion hopes last year.

“Fifty stores in five years in my goal,” he said.

Ten months later, that dream is more than just alive. He’s paddling faster.

Adding to four Treasure Valley locations — two launched during the pandemic — Landucci plans to open two more in Boise and one in Caldwell. The only strategic detail that’s changed in his longer-term strategy? Rather than owning every store, he wants to franchise when Paddles Up moves into other states.

Serving customizable rice bowls filled with chunks of marinated raw fish, the rafting-themed chain has been embraced in the Boise area. Poke (pronounced POH-kay) is a tasty, health-oriented food that’s convenient for quick meals and takeout. Paddles Up also serves it in sushi burritos and salads.

“People are loving us,” Landucci says.

By July, he plans to open a Paddles Up Poke in the former Bier:30 space at 3073 S. Bown Way at Bown Crossing in Boise. In fall, Paddles Up is slated to debut next door to Chop Shop BBQ in Caldwell, just feet away from Indian Creek Plaza. Next year, Paddles Up Poke will bring its chopsticks to The Warehouse Food Hall in downtown Boise — just blocks from the original Paddles Up opened at 237 N. 9th St. in 2017.

Landucci hopes that the additional stores will take pressure off the established ones, which sometimes scramble to keep up with customers during peak hours. Lines out doors are an encouraging sign, he says — but also indicate a potential efficiency hurdle.

“I know why people eat at Paddles Up. It’s quick service, right? We want to stay quick.

“That’s our whole thing: Get in, get your food, eat good, feel good, and then get back to your day.”

Landucci, who manages all the stores himself, has tried to keep Paddles Up nimble during the pandemic. The new Village at Meridian location serves takeout only; there’s no dining room. And a second counter was added in downtown Boise to accommodate online orders.

Tweaking the Paddles Up menu, he also found a successful new snack last year: Spam musubi. For $3, you get a slice of Spam on a block of rice wrapped in seaweed.

“And it’s so good, man,” Landucci says. “We grill it on the Traeger — so smoked Spam, marinated in our house sauce. And then we put it on our signature blue sushi rice that we cook with a butterfly pea flower. It’s a tea leaf that dyes the water blue naturally and enhances it with vitamins and antioxidants. So we turn white rice into the healthiest option possible.”

Spam musubi is super-popular in Hawaii. At Paddles Up? Idaho customers are figuring out it’s legit.

“You can get a three-pack for $8,” Landucci adds, “and a lot of people do that. They come in and just get a Spam with some dipping sauce. They go and crush those.”