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Put a new dining concept on your plate — where a Boise home becomes a restaurant

Chances are, you’ve never heard of Under The Table.

I joined a friend recently to find out more about it, and it was a culinary experience I won’t soon forget.

The concept — communal dining in a private residence that becomes a makeshift restaurant, complete with proper Boise business license — was created by married couple Adan Callsen and Kevin Blakeslee. It was largely detailed by Callsen, who was born and raised in Canyon County and has vast experience in the hospitality industry, including serving as the events director for the Idaho Botanical Garden and the operations manager at Barbacoa. Callsen also worked in Las Vegas, part of the time under the direction of Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto.

Callsen and Blakeslee have a natural knack for hosting people. They curate a rotating menu and feed people delicious dishes, in an outwardly friendly setting. Their weekday jobs are far from the restaurant industry, but this dining idea allows them to stay involved.

Our dinner began at a charming house in downtown Boise, and there were excited looks at the menu: a five-course feast that began with an amuse bouche (French to English as “mouth amuser”), a salsa consisting of white beans, onion, crispy prosciutto and thyme. It was a perfect, flavorful, tangy dish that awakened the taste buds. It was as welcoming as the married couple hosting the event.

A salad of smoked salmon, fresh goat cheese, arugula, cucumber and a dill-lemon dressing helped get a recent Under The Table dinner underway.
A salad of smoked salmon, fresh goat cheese, arugula, cucumber and a dill-lemon dressing helped get a recent Under The Table dinner underway.

The second course was as refreshing as the first, but a little heartier. It was a salad of smoked salmon, fresh, locally sourced Chevre goat cheese, peppery arugula, cucumber and a savory dill-lemon dressing. It all melded perfectly. Smoky, sweet, refreshing, savory. It was a home run as a predecessor for what was next.

And what was next was a a wonderful third course: Spanish rice stuffed into a cumin-rubbed portobello mushroom, with braised adobo chicken and a tri-pepper relish, allowing you to dollop a little sweet and heat on top. The relish really blended the heavier ingredients together and provided some freshness.

Course four arrived and was eye-catching. Creamy polenta surrounded turkey meatballs and garden pesto, and was topped with fresh basil and shaved Romano cheese. It was utterly delicious. The meatballs had well-balanced seasoning. I get a little anxious with turkey because it’s lean and can dry out easily, but that wasn’t the case here.

The polenta had a perfectly salty and creamy consistency, and the pesto and basil gave it an earthy depth. The only issue I had was that it was a bit of a heavy dish after the previous one. Nonetheless, I ate almost all of it, happily.

No five-course meal would be complete without dessert, and this lemon curd pie in a jar did the trick at a recent Under The Table dinner.
No five-course meal would be complete without dessert, and this lemon curd pie in a jar did the trick at a recent Under The Table dinner.

The dessert was a refreshing treat to top off the filling meal. It was a lemon curd pie in a jar, with an almond flour and graham cracker base, and a filling mixed with some cream cheese and powdered sugar, and topped with a fluffed egg white. It was a wonderful palate cleanser to come after the rich and complex flavors of the prior dishes.

In addition to the incredible food, I appreciated the time given between dishes to converse with new acquaintances at the large table. The slight hesitation in the room upon arriving was gone after the first clink of champagne flutes. After the second course I spoke with a couple from Texas who made Boise their home a few years ago, and then I turned and spoke to some folks who had been in Idaho for generations.

This, beyond the food, was the beauty of the dinner — people from different walks of life and backgrounds, who love the Treasure Valley, brought together by a shared love of food and camaraderie.

The dinner was $70 per person, but you won’t leave hungry or unsatisfied. Find upcoming openings at dinners by going to instagram.com/under_the_table_boise/ and contacting the hosts. This might be a step outside your comfort zone, but it’s well worth it.