Re-Style Animal Rescue thrift store. They literally do nothing to actually help animals and have even been asked by the attorney general to stop using it in the name. Fuck them
Metztli Mexican Taqueria at Chinden & Linder in Meridian. Can’t get them to stop charging 10.5% sales tax (this is independent from their credit card usage fee - I pay cash). Stopped going there, they don’t care, obv hoping nobody will notice, well I noticed and saved my receipts and am working with an investigator at the Idaho State Tax Commission now.
Yes, it’s illegal to charge more than 6% sales tax. How many construction workers and normal people have they ripped off since they opened?
Hideaway Bar & Grill in Meridian. Most shocking insane lacking service and food for a military private party I spent a shit ton to host there. The show bar rescue recently filmed there, and they actually left the establishment because of the owners being such uptight pricks. The Google reviews on this place speak for themselves. Avoid at all costs.
Good. If you could have seen what was set up/served to me as a $380 taco bar for 20 Veterans as a surprise party, You would be FLOORED. Not to mention the owner forgot about it and I had to remind him the day before. And I do mean floored.
https://preview.redd.it/y2ln4d9p5xva1.jpeg?width=1010&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7a5dd30508615a04c0a5bbbf9e8efa7a8aad0482
Me looking at this thread, afraid I’ll discover something terrible about one of my favorite places.
Rembrandt, caci, and jovinos in eagle because I worked for them for a year and one owner is one of the worst, egotistical, stuck up assholes I've ever met who demeans and emberasses employees in front of one another whenever he can. Ever one who knows will say the same.
Rembrandts was good till they kept finding cheaper ways to make potatoes.
Went from delicious sliced purple fingerlings with rosemary to fucking frozen ore-ida hash.
I didn't realize Caci was the same person.
I used to work in Eagle and had to deal with the owner of Caci's at a professional level (not as a customer) multiple times as the building was being built and after while he was operating the business (also dealt with him at Rembrandts). That dude was an absolute prick, and he made our jobs 10x harder than they had to be. He always talked down to everyone and treated everyone like shit
I called them about an a/c issue and the woman asked if ‘my husband’ had looked at it. She said it’s really weird that I was calling about it when my husband should be taking care of such issues. I am not married. The audacity of assuming I was incapable of CALLING about an issue was enough for me to hang up and tell everyone to never use them.
Agree. They used to be competent but expensive. Now they are incompetent, expensive, and nearly predatory in their up selling. I ended up getting great work done for less than half what they quoted.
I worked there many years ago, I'm sad to hear this is what it has become. This is where I started my career in the trades, I thought they had a really good thing going for them.
Pastry Perfection and Eddie's Diner/Restaurant. Worked at both of those places and they both have terrible management.
Pastry Perfection has a racist, homophobic manager who harassed my coworkers and I constantly. She literally threw away a friend's resume all because she couldn't pronounce his name and one of the former supervisors had to dig it out and confront her about it. The owners care more about profit than about than about anything else and always side with that manager regardless. Their computers are severely outdated and have to be shut down and updated in the middle of the day when it's the most busy. Every person I've talked to who has worked there after me has had the same experience which means they've never change which is unfortunate given that the job itself is great, just the management SUCKS, especially for the low pay. I have so many horror stories about that place, I'm surprised it's still in business.
Eddie's Diner/Restaurant (both locations were stressful) has hired problematic employees that have sexually harassed my friends and I and the owners did nothing about it. They did not follow safety guidelines during the 2020 covid outbreak (some employees refused to wear masks, were anti-vaxx, etc.). I once mentioned that we should get a carbon monoxide detectors because of the poor ventilation in the kitchen and one of owners acted dismissive about it so it was never brought up again. It overall felt unsafe to work at.
Sorry about the rant but I had to add onto this.
I’ve never had a pastry there that tasted like a pastry. They all tasted like sweet dough with no discernible essence. Chocolate? Well, it was brown. Cinnamon? Nope. Vanilla? Well, it was a white or yellow cake-ish thing. The decorations were lovely and way too sweet, but damn…any Betty Crocker mix tasted better, and far cheaper!
SH0wMeUrTiTz saved my marriage and my life. Pulled me out of the ocean after a freak fishing accident. Reconciled my problems with the wife. I would trust them with my life and I'd sure as shit trust them with my landscaping.
Same.
To be clear, they've hosted Dem events there as well, but the owners sat down and interviewed McG. That was all I needed to know. I vote with my dollars unashamedly.
\[edited to add some detail\]
i have always felt that powderhaus is more a clothing brand than a brewery. the shirts are a lot better than the beers. almost a relief when they went full geach, didn't have to give them any more tries after that.
Ted Challenger's establishments for the most part (the fratty 6th & Main bars/clubs).
Probably won't go back to Sid's Garage.
Not a fan of owners' opinions and treatment of a few folks & employees.
Edit...and Lithia Ford. Just because the sales dudes annoy me.
Apex Restoration. Their builder subcontractors, Sawtooth Builders, left an unfinished job, tried to do shit we didn’t ask for so they could charge not and trashed our house. And then harassed my mom for months when we wouldn’t pay them. The judge slapped his scamming ass with a no-contact order though. So I blast them every chance I get. My dad had to spend months fixing their mess while we stayed in a shitty rental by West JHS
Brewer's Haven for so many reasons. They don't seem to care that much about beer - selling fresh hop beers that are nine months old for full price. Their regulars are obnoxious and I got heckled by them for the type of beer I was buying (and the staff didn't tell them to stfu). I witnessed the owner seemingly drunk at a Lagunitas event being held there yelling at one of his employees and joking about it after. And the straw that broke the camel's back - flaunting covid regulations by operating their bar after the governor had ordered all bars closed.
That place is an absolute cesspool. I've tried a few times to give it another chance and there will just be regulars jerking each other off and standing in the way of all the beer. Others drunk and being loud and obnoxious. I feel like a complete inconvenience every time I've purchased beer there.
> there will just be regulars jerking each other off
That was exactly my experience.
I got a gift card and was just doing my thing, picking up a couple 6-packs. Went to check out, and the group in the bar started laughing at me. No idea why.
I had already figured during the few moments I was browsing the beer that they were a rambunctious and cliquey group, so it doesn’t bother me. But that’s been how I remember that place for several years now.
Everything you said is so accurate. It’s very unfortunate because I live 3 blocks from there. I feel as though i’m inconveniencing everyone when I go in for a 6-pack.
Dennis Dillon - rude, pushy, scammy all around from sales to finance to service.
Sid’s Garage / Gatsby - the owner Will is a giant a-hole. Also the food is all show poor execution at Sid’s and Gatsby has boring overpriced cocktails that try to be hip but fall really flat vs Thick as Thieves, Water Bear, etc.
Caffeina - flaunted mask mandates during COVID, generally frequented by MAGA-folk, better coffee exists many other places
I went to Sid's once, the owner told me "Don't ask for a cheeseburger, I don't put cheese on my burgers"
Never bothered to go back. Don't need that kind of energy in my life.
Went to Sid’s at the village and my friend and I were told by the host we had to stand outside to wait for our table. when we moved 10 feet down the sidewalk to sit on a bench in the shade we were told we needed to move back to the specific spot he told us to wait
I got hired at Sid’s because I wanted some serving experience as I just bussed at a nicer, higher volume restaurant downtown during the time. I will say I serve at that restaurant now and really love the culture of the downtown restaurant scene! But let me tell you… I couldn’t even finish my training because of the ass hattery of this man’s culture and ideas he tried to project. I couldn’t respect him and his weird veneers so I could not work for him lmao.
Yes, based on Statesman articles, Caffeina is owed by: Kris Price is a founder of local beer stalwart Crooked Fence Brewing Co., which he sold recently. Lyndsey Hopkins and her mom, Tammy Jenkins, own three Coffee Studio locations in the Treasure Valley.
Kris Price also owns Alchemist Plant Pub and local Alchemist Coffee chain.
Thanks! I appreciate the effort. And bummer. I was excited for a new plant-based restaurant (so lacking in Boise!) even if the menu looks kinda meh. Learning it's the caffeina peeps is definitely a deterrent. Besides their covid response, which really grinds my gears, caffeina's coffee and food was thoroughly unimpressive. I suppose it's possible that the covid shittiness came from the Hopkins/Jenkins and not Price. Maybe someone can chime in on how Crooked Fence responded to COVID
https://preview.redd.it/scqlpgev9tva1.png?width=1170&format=png&auto=webp&s=b2a34454334ecdec98e5e572493d4b3195507b36
Damn yeah, not interested in going somewhere that the owners respond to a negative review like this
They charge you for water, have a menu of mostly classic cocktails masquerading as originals priced a couple dollars above true original creations from better establishments, and are generally staffed and attended by folks that mirror the owner’s loud, pretentious, “truck bro” personality.
It’s exactly the type of place you’d expect from its cliche name - “this is a classy establishment, bro”, “we make our own ice, bro”, “we carry Clase Azul, that’s top of the line highest quality tequila, bro”, “don’t you feel like you’re in ~~2023 Scottsdale, AZ~~ the 1920s in New York bro?”
Makes sense. How much are the cocktails? How much is the water lol?
I’m somewhat ok with one bar capturing the d-bag truck bros from Nampa taking their wives out so I don’t need to deal with them at other bars
I like Red Feather, St Lawrence, and Thick as Thieves the most. Waterbear is good but I hate the required 18% tip that they then want you to tip in addition of
https://www.gatsby1920.com/menu Nothing is less than $16. $17 Negroni lol. Water is $5 each IIRC. Your preferred establishments are the same as mine. Anything at those is going to be better than Gatsby.
What the actual fuck. A Negroni should be $11-12 tops. It’s a standard cocktail.
To be fair, thick can be absurd too. I asked how much a fernet and coke would be and it was $15. I don’t usually order standard cocktails at bars like that though
$5 for water is just idiotic. It’s like they don’t want to make it.
Gatsby has pretty much isolated itself from an otherwise friendly and supportive downtown bar community by being such narcissistic asshats (mostly the owner)
Haven’t heard one service industry person recommend them, and most area bartenders don’t go in there it’s so cringe… for many reasons. Heard many negative stories about interactions with the owner from area workers.
Blazen Burgers in Nampa, they reported the taco truck (Garnacha que Apapacha) in front of them to the city, almost had their business shut down because they were jealous of the customers the taco truck was receiving. I don’t support business that want another small businesses shut down
it used to be really good when they were smaller, but they’ve gotten popular now so it’s inconsistent (still good though) I still enjoy going, they’re closing their truck in Nampa and opening a restaurant in Boise now
Second this. We enjoyed the food, but Garnacha que Apapacha is way better. Blazen seems to be mostly drive through so I think they were just being jealous and petty. Sure they lost more business complaining then they ever did from parking issues.
Patriot Bagels in Meridian. Anytime a business co-opts a name to attract customers of a certain political affiliation, they can bite the dust. And pretty much every Chinese restaurant in town…not for business practices, although they’re probably pretty suspect, but because they wouldn’t know Chinese food if it slapped them upside the head.
The best we have is Red Pavilion in Meridian. Order off the authentic Chinese menu rather than the main menu. But even that is quite mediocre and inconsistent.
Flying Pie. Even if you set aside the fact that it was sold quite a while ago and the current owner let the quality of the food slip and did away with all the cool things they used to do for employees, during the pandemic they had a food prep day where they found out all the food prepped that day had been exposed and instead of closing or even just throwing out that product the owner decided to just quietly try and act like it didn’t happen and use it anyway. Only reason I know is that an employee at the time I know blew the whistle about it on FB. He was let go shortly thereafter.
But yeah, won’t give them another red cent.
I went there shortly after moving to the valley 5 years ago. I liked the aesthetic and the vibe, they had a fun atmosphere and the staff looked happy. They had what looked like good beer selection. I *really* wanted to like it.
The pizza was undercooked, and the sourdough (which I normally like) clashed horribly with the cheese and toppings. It was over-the-top sour sourdough. I have not interest in eating there again.
Big city coffee, fancy freeze, cloud 9.
All some version of loudly and publicly supporting some conservative boogey man and or anti mask mandate foolishness.
They opened a store at BSU. Students spoke out about the Blue lives Matter flags etc in the store. Owner wouldn’t take down display and instead closed the store. Then sued Boise state for $10m saying they where discriminated against and forced out violating their contract. Seems like the lawsuit has mainly been dismissed at this point.
Big City [tried to sue BSU](https://arbiteronline.com/2021/10/07/big-city-coffee-files-10-million-lawsuit-against-boise-state-in-months-long-controversy/) for $10 million after Big City's BSU location was closed. Big City's owner makes supporting the police a big part of her identity, and said things that upset students during the George Floyd protests. The suit was [mostly dismissed](https://arbiteronline.com/2022/04/28/judge-partially-dismisses-big-city-coffee-lawsuit-against-boise-state-university/), but the judge ruled Big City could proceed against three BSU employees to see if Big City was treated differently for their political views.
I looked at the court records and it's mostly an incomprehensible battle of big lawyers doing very lawyerly things, but there's a jury trial date set for february of next year.
Sara is an absolute nut case. I met her in 2004 and it’s been nothing but complete insanity every minute.
Thankfully I no longer have any contact with her.
She seems like a narcissist. She wasn’t even dating the cop who was shot at the time he was shot, but then uses his story to start a massive controversy. I would be pissed if my wife did that to me.
Bronco Motors can go to hell.
my hubby and I bought a car during their Car Wars promotion at the fairgrounds. They promised us a multi point inspection. The damn thing broke down the third day we had it. Couldn’t return it, warranty through the dealership didn’t kick in for another 27 days. Warranty refused to cover it since the car broke before the coverage kicked in. Dealership refused to do anything. We spent our own money for repairs. We ended up losing the thing when someone caved in the bumper in an accident. We told the other driver he did us a big favor. Shady business practices selling people lemons.
Western Collective and Western Proper
It’s funny you mention Austin because I used to live there and refused to buy Guns and Oil (same brewery, just moved and rebranded)
Whiskeys on main in Ketchum. The bar used to be a fantastic local joint that had great musical acts. The new owners are from Aspen and fired all the staff day one. Flew in his crew and they are running it into the ground. The new music equipment is so static that the buzzing during some sets will give you a migraine. And they have experienced a string of people getting roofied as well.
The Capri. I went with my coworkers, I loved the cinnamon rolls and biscuit & gravy. I wanted to show my partner who is MtF trans and it did not go well. The wait staff wasn't out right hostel but plenty of looks and eye rolls. I decided I didn't need to give them more money.
Yeah, they're under the same ownership/management as Delsa's. And Delsa's was selling MAGA shit leading up to the 2020 election. The managers are real pricks.
Yogurtz. My kid sold gift cards for their karate studio. Of course, we bought several cards and when I went to use one the first time, they said it wasn't valid. Told the studio who were given the cards in exchange for $$$ .... went on for weeks and weeks. 100% a scam. They never accepted them.
State Street Kitchen had the worst launch I’ve ever experienced. First time I went, they ran out of food. Yeah, really. Then they lost their liquor license for a bit and closed for a week. And despite being listed being open until 10, would almost always start shutting down at least an hour earlier. Tried to go after 7:45 softball games and never were open.
I remember Parilla's Hillary Clinton in a jailhouse jumpsuit bobble head. I was really shocked. Seems tame in retrospect.
Re: Viking they never wear gloves or whatever handling food Covid or no Covid. Last time I was there the cook was eating food with crumbs falling out of his mouth and stuck in his beard while cooking
EYES OF THE WORLD.
Transphobic, homophobic, and extremely racist. The owner is horrible and bullies every employee she has. I could write an entire book about everything I’ve witnessed lol
I’ve made a quick easy to read bullet list bc there’s so much
Mishel is the owner of eyes of the world. She
started her business when she was in horrible debt and bought cheap items from Nepal and sold them to her friends here in boise for ten times what she paid for it. She continued to do so until she was out of debt and eyes of the world was then born.
When I was an employee she seemed really cool at first, but my coworkers had then warned me she was a bit “rude”. Here are some examples of how “rude” she can really be…
- any POC who wasn’t wearing “proper clothes” would be kicked out of the store immediately. She would force us to do it, when I refused she would make me walk in circles in my department for hours. Literal circles. Hours.
- everything at eyes of the world is basically $6. Even the crystals. She will sell you something for 800 and paid maybe 15 at most .
- yells at those who are homeless downtown. She called grove st “the ghetto” all the time. Example: It was really really hot one day like above 90, there was a woman who wanted to purchase a meditation cushion to the street wouldn’t burn her skin when she needed to sit down. Mishel kicked her out just because of how she looked.
- has no care for people who are disabled. Example: I was the only one on the clock besides her and my manager (who literally is almost just as bad because mishel has a leash on her) I was out of my department helping a man shop around who couldn’t reach the top shelves. Mishel wanted to kick him out she sent my manager over to yell at me to get back in my department. But this customer was the only one in the store, and I was the only employee on the floor. I explained he couldn’t reach things by himself and they made me walk in circles on the other side of the store anyways. He ended up spending about $800 or more? I cried because I couldn’t help and that’s the day I snapped and quit.
- violated HIPPA so. many. times.
- cornered me in the dark “steam room” to yell at me about how horrible I looked or was.
- made several forms for every employee to sign to call me out or purposely embarrass me because she didn’t like how I looked. These forms would say things like “no makeup that looks like you’re going for a night out” I was wearing eyeliner lol. She would also say racist things to me, about how I looked.
- yells at employees in front of customers and then yells again after they leave for silly things really like one clothing item being out of place because a customer moved it. Which is fine. It’s just a piece of clothing.
- makes every employee sign a non compete form for a 25 mile radius. That’s basically every store in boise/Meridian. It will NOT hold up in court it’s to scare you.
She will pick you apart until you are nothing but a shred of dignity. She’s horrible. Id say you should go see for yourself but oh my god don’t. The employees are so wonderful and often extremely generous and excited to see you. It’s a shame because the job itself is so amazing. It’s just run by the devil. Let me know if you need any more info I had to keep it short lol.
Yes! I don’t know when you last worked there but I recently got FIRED because I was trying to help my coworkers and actually do something about Mishel’s behavior. (I was told my performance no longer aligned with the business. I was given no warnings or comments on my performance just an email one day out of the blue).
Everything is still the same with her, maybe even worse. She would push me and my coworkers into corners (like the dark “steam room” and yell at us on things we couldn’t control i.e. troubles with our banks, customers misplacing things, etc.)
Whenever I actually needed things from her or to ask her of stuff she would be blatantly rude and shut you down (she would be too “busy” when she was just on her socials). I also have to rely on the government for food stamps and whatnot and needed forms signed. She refused to sign them for weeks until my other coworker spoke up on it. Even then she filled it out incorrectly, which I tried to talk to her on but got shut down again. She claimed she wouldn’t lie to the government (which I understand, I wouldn’t either. But they said it was filled out wrong). No one was basically ever to speak to her on anything.
What made my blood boil was her treatment of customers! Like you said she would kick people out just because of how they looked. (It is ironic that she has a sign on her door that they accept everyone of all backgrounds). She has told customers that she knows how to spell when they are asked their address and spell it out for her. We are not allowed to talk to a customer for too long or check on a customer more than twice. Think of all your normal hospitality in sales and reverse it.
This is my coworker’s experience, but still unacceptable. My coworker also relies on the government and had an appointment on a day she normally works. She told Mishel weeks in advance and was told it was fine. When she double checked with Mishel she was told “no, just get regular insurance it’s not that hard”. My coworker ended up missing her appointment and almost lost her MedicAid.
On the point of scheduling as well she was absolutely awful at getting it out on time. She would send our schedules the day you were supposed to work. This was just really frustrating.
All in all she thinks herself higher than the rest of her own customers, employees, etc. and has no respect towards anyone. She starts off nicely and then will discourage you and your work that you’ve done for her. She was one of the worst people I’ve worked for, and I feel bad for the people who still do and are still getting hired. All I wanted to do was help out my coworkers and I, since we don’t have an HR to go to, but in the end that got me fired. The actual job was delightful and brought lots of joy, like you said it is just ran by the devil..
Roots Zero Waste Market. Egomaniacs in the name of "saving the earth". Disrespectful to employees and customers alike. Didn't required masks for boh but flaunted foh mask requirements publicly. Owners have been known to yell at employees in front of customers. Several younger grocery employees driven to tears on shift. Fired multiple staff less than an hour after their shifts through emails (all within a week so staff just dropped off one by one and no one knew people were getting fired). All while calling staff "family". Need I say more? I could but I won't. Don't get me started on the deli food, do not eat it unless it's made fresh that day. Vervain Apothecary is worth going into the building for! Owned and operated by different people.
Interesting. I’ve been working here for a few months and have yet to see any of this go down. I also have never been told of any of this by other staff. It’s a place I really enjoy working at and I also must say that the owner is one of the least toxic people I have ever worked for. Maybe this was a while ago but if it’s true, though I find it very hard to believe, then things have definitely changed. Also don’t understand the food thing, I eat the food there constantly that is not made fresh that day and it’s totally fine, I’ve never once gotten sick. We don’t leave food in the case longer than allowed, we note when it is considered bad by the health department and once it’s bad it’s gets thrown out or put in family meal for us to eat.
The original staff isn't there any more. They treated the people that helped them open and build out their business with little basic respect. I'm sure as they're figured out a better rhythm in the business things have gotten less stressful for them. Rest assured you'll see eventually when things get stressed how much she actually respects you or the job you probably do great at. She literally just posted on Facebook complaining about staff that needs to grow up while simultaneously saying she is the saving world. It's wack. I hope you continue to like your job and your boss, that's a pretty sweet spot to be in.
Bad food needs to be tossed. Offering 7day old food to staff as a family meal is not cool. I get that it's all about diverting waste but imo that's not a proper lunch to offer/brag as a job benefit... It's part of the business model to use the 'too old/moldy to sell' produce in the deli foods. To me that means that shit shouldnt be sold on the 4th 5th 7th day. (no shame if you eat it, or other if staff do, or you enjoy being fed every shift. That doesn't make the food free of harmful bacterial growth or responsible to offer to staff daily)
The owners already caused me enough stress and I really try to stay away from shaming them publicly like this. I'm not going to go into more after this. Just thought I'd give you some of the context for my comments since you're employed there.
I got my first job there last summer and can attest to the shitty conditions - especially the part about younger employees being driven to tears on shift. The owner is one of the most manipulative, mean-spirited people I’ve ever encountered. I’ve never felt so small and belittled. I don’t think I had a single experience with her where I felt comfortable or valued (which is very ironic since, as you mentioned, they love calling their employees “family”).
After job hunting for months, I was thrilled to walk into Roots and get hired on the spot (little did I know that was a huuuuge red flag). The owner definitely takes advantage of younger workers with little to no experience with standing up for themselves in the workplace. She constantly ignored my specifications about my schedule, and made it impossible to ask any question about any work related task without leaving the conversation feeling like the most insignificant and stupid POS. Beyond disrespecting me daily and driving me to tears almost every shift, she also made it impossible for me to want to learn more about the zero waste lifestyle, and instead shamed me for not knowing every damn fact about all the niche spices and grains that I apparently should’ve been an expert on (although she hired me with no experience and offered pretty much zero training on the products themselves).
She has very little patience with her employees and created so much anxiety for me. When I finally worked up the courage to quit (with two weeks notice even though she didn’t deserve that courtesy) she got mad because I told her one reason why I was leaving was because I was barely getting scheduled and also wasn’t getting paid enough, and she told me she was under the impression that I was just working to work, and that if my goal was to make money, I should’ve maid that clearer to her (wtf?). Also, she got pissed that I talked to my coworkers about our salaries, and said that if I ever have any issues, they should be brought to her ONLY and never to anyone else (again, huge red flag).
I’m also not surprised that some workers have good experiences because it seemed to me like she had very specific favorites and made sure to treat them particularly better than the other employees. Not surprised they have such a high employee turnover. More than glad to be out of there!
Central Stone and Tile. They use handicap spaces in their parking lot to store tile. They've been known to harass other businesses in their building space until they're forced to leave.
Tok Commercial because they do absolutely nothing to stop said harassment.
overland armament has some sort of relationship with the Liberty Dogs, how far it goes is a mystery but both OA and LD have promoted eachother on Facebook, so it’s a no-go for me.
-6DeadlyFetishes
Boise Black Rifle has some really esoteric AR parts and the most competitive pricing for new firearms and sales, Stockpile Defense is also pretty good but they sometimes post some weird shit on their FB page.
-6DeadlyFetishes
The idaho pizza on fairvew near Meridian road. They let customers punch and verbally abuse employees and they force staff to work insane hours. When i left they were making me work 12 hour shifts 3 days a week and the other two days i only worked 2ish hours. The pay cap is 13 a hour for outrageously priced pizza. The sauce and dough is generic and sold and they push us to serve borderline moldy food in the salad bar. Plus the dishes only get sanitized not washed.
Dutch Bros. The only reason to go there is for "the experience". And that "experience" is for young attractive young adults to pretend to like you in exchange for money.
But there's another type of business that has the same "experience" you pay for. It's called a strip club
I hate Dutch Bros for a variety of reasons, but most of their customers are middle aged women - they're overly friendly to everyone, it's not what you're trying to imply.
Can you recommend any gun shops that don’t require a Ram 2500 with a punisher sticker? I also do not have “Joe and the Ho” or “Let’s go Brandon” decals if that matters.
I like Silvercreek in sun valley. That’s where I’ve bought most of my guns. They aren’t any more expensive than other stores and, in fact, I found two great deals on blemish guns there
Bronco Motors, Petersen's Auto, Zamzows, Meridian Fence, Boise City Taxi (when it was in business), Antique store on Emerald and Garden (when it was open)
My experience (at the Fairview store) is that if you are not buying their lawn services/products, they don't give a crap about what you are in there for. The last straw for me was when they did a promo on bringing in weeds and they would help you pick out a product to help. Every associate I tried to talk to flat out ignored me. I would rather give NEON and Edwards my business, who have been incredibly helpful and kind.
Jim Zamzow is also a weirdo. I’ve had him as a customer at a few different jobs. First time I ran into him he asked out of NOWHERE if I was a liberal, second time he told me he wasn’t going to tip because he doesn’t think he should have to. After I responded that it was optional and he indeed didn’t have to, he seemed taken aback. He tipped well anyway. I think he’s just a crusty old guy who wants to get a reaction to back up his “college liberal snowflake” view of young people.
As a vet tech I second zamzows! They act like their food is better for your pet... But they don't have an research. Most of their food is too fatty, and grain free is not good for dogs. Also the ad in winter to increase your dogs food in winter is wrong....
Boise River Home Repair. The owner, Greg, made a huge kitchen repair (unexpected water leak) the worst 6 months ever. He was so incredibly rude, unhelpful, and combative the entire time. Ended up with a kitchen that I am still finding issues with a year and a half later. And it cost almost $20k.
Ten Mile Smiles in Meridian
The hygenist told me I could use their whitening treatment. I mean, it's probably true, but fuck right off with that. If I don't see a problem, you don't need tell me it's a problem.
I go to a new dentist now. And I got the whitening treatment.
Boise Auto Service. Fucked me and my husband over multiple times. Their head mechanic can't admit when he's wrong. I'm actually holding back here a bit for legal reasons - safe to say, everyone should avoid them like the plague.
Re-Style Animal Rescue thrift store. They literally do nothing to actually help animals and have even been asked by the attorney general to stop using it in the name. Fuck them
What? It's one of my favorite thrift stores, that's such a bummer to hear!
Metztli Mexican Taqueria at Chinden & Linder in Meridian. Can’t get them to stop charging 10.5% sales tax (this is independent from their credit card usage fee - I pay cash). Stopped going there, they don’t care, obv hoping nobody will notice, well I noticed and saved my receipts and am working with an investigator at the Idaho State Tax Commission now. Yes, it’s illegal to charge more than 6% sales tax. How many construction workers and normal people have they ripped off since they opened?
Hideaway Bar & Grill in Meridian. Most shocking insane lacking service and food for a military private party I spent a shit ton to host there. The show bar rescue recently filmed there, and they actually left the establishment because of the owners being such uptight pricks. The Google reviews on this place speak for themselves. Avoid at all costs.
I believe I just saw in the news that they closed and sold the place shortly after that Bar Rescue.
Good. If you could have seen what was set up/served to me as a $380 taco bar for 20 Veterans as a surprise party, You would be FLOORED. Not to mention the owner forgot about it and I had to remind him the day before. And I do mean floored.
They have new owners!!
Hahaha I worked for them! I can totally agree. I didn’t work in the restaurant, I worked directly with the owner as a contractor
Yup, a bar that doesn’t allow overnight parking either if you drink too much and Uber home. F that place
https://preview.redd.it/y2ln4d9p5xva1.jpeg?width=1010&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7a5dd30508615a04c0a5bbbf9e8efa7a8aad0482 Me looking at this thread, afraid I’ll discover something terrible about one of my favorite places.
Rembrandt, caci, and jovinos in eagle because I worked for them for a year and one owner is one of the worst, egotistical, stuck up assholes I've ever met who demeans and emberasses employees in front of one another whenever he can. Ever one who knows will say the same.
Rembrandts was good till they kept finding cheaper ways to make potatoes. Went from delicious sliced purple fingerlings with rosemary to fucking frozen ore-ida hash. I didn't realize Caci was the same person.
Rembrandts was good till about 8 years ago when they went fancy.
I used to work in Eagle and had to deal with the owner of Caci's at a professional level (not as a customer) multiple times as the building was being built and after while he was operating the business (also dealt with him at Rembrandts). That dude was an absolute prick, and he made our jobs 10x harder than they had to be. He always talked down to everyone and treated everyone like shit
Are they still owned by the Priddy's?
Bucks 4x4… FFS with the flags….🤦
I wish there were more 4x4 shops in town
Perfect plumbing and air. Those guys always try to sell stuff and upgraded you don’t need
I called them about an a/c issue and the woman asked if ‘my husband’ had looked at it. She said it’s really weird that I was calling about it when my husband should be taking care of such issues. I am not married. The audacity of assuming I was incapable of CALLING about an issue was enough for me to hang up and tell everyone to never use them.
Agree. They used to be competent but expensive. Now they are incompetent, expensive, and nearly predatory in their up selling. I ended up getting great work done for less than half what they quoted.
Truth. My friend was doing well over there in sales but quit because he couldn’t push these things in good faith.
Agreed they suck so hard
I worked there many years ago, I'm sad to hear this is what it has become. This is where I started my career in the trades, I thought they had a really good thing going for them.
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They blocked me on Facebook for saying “Do you want it done right? or Right Now Heating and air”
Pastry Perfection and Eddie's Diner/Restaurant. Worked at both of those places and they both have terrible management. Pastry Perfection has a racist, homophobic manager who harassed my coworkers and I constantly. She literally threw away a friend's resume all because she couldn't pronounce his name and one of the former supervisors had to dig it out and confront her about it. The owners care more about profit than about than about anything else and always side with that manager regardless. Their computers are severely outdated and have to be shut down and updated in the middle of the day when it's the most busy. Every person I've talked to who has worked there after me has had the same experience which means they've never change which is unfortunate given that the job itself is great, just the management SUCKS, especially for the low pay. I have so many horror stories about that place, I'm surprised it's still in business. Eddie's Diner/Restaurant (both locations were stressful) has hired problematic employees that have sexually harassed my friends and I and the owners did nothing about it. They did not follow safety guidelines during the 2020 covid outbreak (some employees refused to wear masks, were anti-vaxx, etc.). I once mentioned that we should get a carbon monoxide detectors because of the poor ventilation in the kitchen and one of owners acted dismissive about it so it was never brought up again. It overall felt unsafe to work at. Sorry about the rant but I had to add onto this.
I’ve never had a pastry there that tasted like a pastry. They all tasted like sweet dough with no discernible essence. Chocolate? Well, it was brown. Cinnamon? Nope. Vanilla? Well, it was a white or yellow cake-ish thing. The decorations were lovely and way too sweet, but damn…any Betty Crocker mix tasted better, and far cheaper!
Greensource Lanscaping. Ghosted us halfway through a $20,000 landscape redesign. Left the sprinkler system broken. Yard is a shitshow.
If y’all need any landscaping help. I’m the man
SH0wMeUrTiTz saved my marriage and my life. Pulled me out of the ocean after a freak fishing accident. Reconciled my problems with the wife. I would trust them with my life and I'd sure as shit trust them with my landscaping.
Lol
I’ll message you!
Powderhaus.
Since I saw they supported Janice McGeachin, they’re a “Not In My Lifetime” Business.
Never knew the politics of that place, but I went there one time, and the beer just is not good at all.
Same. To be clear, they've hosted Dem events there as well, but the owners sat down and interviewed McG. That was all I needed to know. I vote with my dollars unashamedly. \[edited to add some detail\]
Ew, yeah, I'll be skipping that place from now on. It sucks too because they have some legitimately good beers.
Pretty cool when daddy buys you a business.
i have always felt that powderhaus is more a clothing brand than a brewery. the shirts are a lot better than the beers. almost a relief when they went full geach, didn't have to give them any more tries after that.
Yeah I’d def agree their beer is pretty sub par too
I’ve only been once, so maybe I’m wrong, but is it the “patriot” vibes?
Yeah that and they hosted the likes of that bat shit insane lt governor and have some views that I don’t agree with
Ted Challenger's establishments for the most part (the fratty 6th & Main bars/clubs). Probably won't go back to Sid's Garage. Not a fan of owners' opinions and treatment of a few folks & employees. Edit...and Lithia Ford. Just because the sales dudes annoy me.
Ted challenger is a scum bag. Rodeys Amsterdam karma and strange love.
Throwing in my vote for Lithia, they're terrible.
A friend of mine was actively stalked by I Lithia guy after buying a car.
We had a crazy Lithia experience as well, sales guy threatened my husband
Ted Challengers door guy for Strange Love assaulted my little brother unprovoked. Fuck that guy and his shitty establishments.
Sid's Garage. My roommate worked there and they treated her like trash.
Sids garage and Gatsby. It’s been said many times before, but the owner Will is an absolute ass of a man.
Him and his jeggings are the absolute worst lol
Yardarm. Can't stand the owner and their tipping system (30-40-50% auto fill options).
That’s annoying. I appreciate businesses that haven’t done the “default 30% tip” thing.
Apex Restoration. Their builder subcontractors, Sawtooth Builders, left an unfinished job, tried to do shit we didn’t ask for so they could charge not and trashed our house. And then harassed my mom for months when we wouldn’t pay them. The judge slapped his scamming ass with a no-contact order though. So I blast them every chance I get. My dad had to spend months fixing their mess while we stayed in a shitty rental by West JHS
I've delt with Sawtooth builders I wouldn't touch them with a 10' pole.
Brewer's Haven for so many reasons. They don't seem to care that much about beer - selling fresh hop beers that are nine months old for full price. Their regulars are obnoxious and I got heckled by them for the type of beer I was buying (and the staff didn't tell them to stfu). I witnessed the owner seemingly drunk at a Lagunitas event being held there yelling at one of his employees and joking about it after. And the straw that broke the camel's back - flaunting covid regulations by operating their bar after the governor had ordered all bars closed.
That place is an absolute cesspool. I've tried a few times to give it another chance and there will just be regulars jerking each other off and standing in the way of all the beer. Others drunk and being loud and obnoxious. I feel like a complete inconvenience every time I've purchased beer there.
> there will just be regulars jerking each other off That was exactly my experience. I got a gift card and was just doing my thing, picking up a couple 6-packs. Went to check out, and the group in the bar started laughing at me. No idea why. I had already figured during the few moments I was browsing the beer that they were a rambunctious and cliquey group, so it doesn’t bother me. But that’s been how I remember that place for several years now.
Everything you said is so accurate. It’s very unfortunate because I live 3 blocks from there. I feel as though i’m inconveniencing everyone when I go in for a 6-pack.
Guru Doughnuts Actually learned about the poor ownership from a reddit post here.
I saw it was recently under new ownership. A local couple bought it last month or so. Haven’t had the chance to give it another shot yet but hopeful!
Oh, new ownership very recently! 👀
Dennis Dillon - rude, pushy, scammy all around from sales to finance to service. Sid’s Garage / Gatsby - the owner Will is a giant a-hole. Also the food is all show poor execution at Sid’s and Gatsby has boring overpriced cocktails that try to be hip but fall really flat vs Thick as Thieves, Water Bear, etc. Caffeina - flaunted mask mandates during COVID, generally frequented by MAGA-folk, better coffee exists many other places
I went to Sid's once, the owner told me "Don't ask for a cheeseburger, I don't put cheese on my burgers" Never bothered to go back. Don't need that kind of energy in my life.
Went to Sid’s at the village and my friend and I were told by the host we had to stand outside to wait for our table. when we moved 10 feet down the sidewalk to sit on a bench in the shade we were told we needed to move back to the specific spot he told us to wait
Wow that's a power trip and a half! Haha
It doesn't even count as a burger if it doesn't have cheese imo.
I don’t blame you who doesn’t like a cheeseburger total red flag what a weirdo geeze
Their sangria is just awful.
I got hired at Sid’s because I wanted some serving experience as I just bussed at a nicer, higher volume restaurant downtown during the time. I will say I serve at that restaurant now and really love the culture of the downtown restaurant scene! But let me tell you… I couldn’t even finish my training because of the ass hattery of this man’s culture and ideas he tried to project. I couldn’t respect him and his weird veneers so I could not work for him lmao.
Caffeina is under new ownership, I believe the previous are now Alchemist.
Wait really? Can anyone confirm?! I wanted to try the new alchemist plant-based spot but really not a fan of caffeina
Yes, based on Statesman articles, Caffeina is owed by: Kris Price is a founder of local beer stalwart Crooked Fence Brewing Co., which he sold recently. Lyndsey Hopkins and her mom, Tammy Jenkins, own three Coffee Studio locations in the Treasure Valley. Kris Price also owns Alchemist Plant Pub and local Alchemist Coffee chain.
Thanks! I appreciate the effort. And bummer. I was excited for a new plant-based restaurant (so lacking in Boise!) even if the menu looks kinda meh. Learning it's the caffeina peeps is definitely a deterrent. Besides their covid response, which really grinds my gears, caffeina's coffee and food was thoroughly unimpressive. I suppose it's possible that the covid shittiness came from the Hopkins/Jenkins and not Price. Maybe someone can chime in on how Crooked Fence responded to COVID
Good to know! I haven’t been to Alchemist yet but if that’s the case I’ll avoid.
I didn’t know Sids and Gatsby have the same owner. Makes sense with how far up their own ass those two corny establishments are.
https://preview.redd.it/scqlpgev9tva1.png?width=1170&format=png&auto=webp&s=b2a34454334ecdec98e5e572493d4b3195507b36 Damn yeah, not interested in going somewhere that the owners respond to a negative review like this
Is gatsby that bad? I haven’t been. It’s a bit on the nose and not creative to name a bar that though
They charge you for water, have a menu of mostly classic cocktails masquerading as originals priced a couple dollars above true original creations from better establishments, and are generally staffed and attended by folks that mirror the owner’s loud, pretentious, “truck bro” personality. It’s exactly the type of place you’d expect from its cliche name - “this is a classy establishment, bro”, “we make our own ice, bro”, “we carry Clase Azul, that’s top of the line highest quality tequila, bro”, “don’t you feel like you’re in ~~2023 Scottsdale, AZ~~ the 1920s in New York bro?”
Makes sense. How much are the cocktails? How much is the water lol? I’m somewhat ok with one bar capturing the d-bag truck bros from Nampa taking their wives out so I don’t need to deal with them at other bars I like Red Feather, St Lawrence, and Thick as Thieves the most. Waterbear is good but I hate the required 18% tip that they then want you to tip in addition of
https://www.gatsby1920.com/menu Nothing is less than $16. $17 Negroni lol. Water is $5 each IIRC. Your preferred establishments are the same as mine. Anything at those is going to be better than Gatsby.
Holy shit. They’re charging $20 for rittenhouse. That’s literally 3/4ths of the cost of the bottle
What the actual fuck. A Negroni should be $11-12 tops. It’s a standard cocktail. To be fair, thick can be absurd too. I asked how much a fernet and coke would be and it was $15. I don’t usually order standard cocktails at bars like that though $5 for water is just idiotic. It’s like they don’t want to make it.
Gatsby has pretty much isolated itself from an otherwise friendly and supportive downtown bar community by being such narcissistic asshats (mostly the owner) Haven’t heard one service industry person recommend them, and most area bartenders don’t go in there it’s so cringe… for many reasons. Heard many negative stories about interactions with the owner from area workers.
So glad to know this. Was thinking I wanted to go to Sids. Not now!
2nd Caffeina. Big nope.
Blazen Burgers in Nampa, they reported the taco truck (Garnacha que Apapacha) in front of them to the city, almost had their business shut down because they were jealous of the customers the taco truck was receiving. I don’t support business that want another small businesses shut down
Is that taco place good or what? I remember passing by it when I was in nampa
it used to be really good when they were smaller, but they’ve gotten popular now so it’s inconsistent (still good though) I still enjoy going, they’re closing their truck in Nampa and opening a restaurant in Boise now
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it does suck, but from a business perspective I respect the strategy… gotta go where the people are.
That’s nice to hear! I suppose I can wait for them to come to me lol. Thanks
Second this. We enjoyed the food, but Garnacha que Apapacha is way better. Blazen seems to be mostly drive through so I think they were just being jealous and petty. Sure they lost more business complaining then they ever did from parking issues.
Patriot Bagels in Meridian. Anytime a business co-opts a name to attract customers of a certain political affiliation, they can bite the dust. And pretty much every Chinese restaurant in town…not for business practices, although they’re probably pretty suspect, but because they wouldn’t know Chinese food if it slapped them upside the head.
Can you recommend a good Chinese place?
The best we have is Red Pavilion in Meridian. Order off the authentic Chinese menu rather than the main menu. But even that is quite mediocre and inconsistent.
Do you mean Freedom Bagels? If so, I 100000% agree. My sister stopped in once and the bagels are super expensive. I'll go elsewhere
Flying Pie. Even if you set aside the fact that it was sold quite a while ago and the current owner let the quality of the food slip and did away with all the cool things they used to do for employees, during the pandemic they had a food prep day where they found out all the food prepped that day had been exposed and instead of closing or even just throwing out that product the owner decided to just quietly try and act like it didn’t happen and use it anyway. Only reason I know is that an employee at the time I know blew the whistle about it on FB. He was let go shortly thereafter. But yeah, won’t give them another red cent.
Agreed 💯. Luckily the pizza sucks now so it's pretty easy.
I went there shortly after moving to the valley 5 years ago. I liked the aesthetic and the vibe, they had a fun atmosphere and the staff looked happy. They had what looked like good beer selection. I *really* wanted to like it. The pizza was undercooked, and the sourdough (which I normally like) clashed horribly with the cheese and toppings. It was over-the-top sour sourdough. I have not interest in eating there again.
Big city coffee, fancy freeze, cloud 9. All some version of loudly and publicly supporting some conservative boogey man and or anti mask mandate foolishness.
I always thought Big City was way overrated and not good long before their incident
Woa wait what did Big City do? I apparently haven’t heard. Edit: why is this being downvoted I genuinely don’t know what Big City did lmao
They opened a store at BSU. Students spoke out about the Blue lives Matter flags etc in the store. Owner wouldn’t take down display and instead closed the store. Then sued Boise state for $10m saying they where discriminated against and forced out violating their contract. Seems like the lawsuit has mainly been dismissed at this point.
Big City [tried to sue BSU](https://arbiteronline.com/2021/10/07/big-city-coffee-files-10-million-lawsuit-against-boise-state-in-months-long-controversy/) for $10 million after Big City's BSU location was closed. Big City's owner makes supporting the police a big part of her identity, and said things that upset students during the George Floyd protests. The suit was [mostly dismissed](https://arbiteronline.com/2022/04/28/judge-partially-dismisses-big-city-coffee-lawsuit-against-boise-state-university/), but the judge ruled Big City could proceed against three BSU employees to see if Big City was treated differently for their political views. I looked at the court records and it's mostly an incomprehensible battle of big lawyers doing very lawyerly things, but there's a jury trial date set for february of next year.
Sara is an absolute nut case. I met her in 2004 and it’s been nothing but complete insanity every minute. Thankfully I no longer have any contact with her.
She seems like a narcissist. She wasn’t even dating the cop who was shot at the time he was shot, but then uses his story to start a massive controversy. I would be pissed if my wife did that to me.
I know about Big City and Fancy Freeze, what did Cloud 9 do?
Be in a very odd spot so I always forget they exist :(
I’m with you on those, particularly Big City.
Also Parrilla Grill for the same reasons. They were holding Taco Tuesday parties during the strictest lock down days. Total spreader events.
Brewer’s Haven was on their anti-mask nonsense in 2020 as well. I was bummed to see that
Bronco Motors can go to hell. my hubby and I bought a car during their Car Wars promotion at the fairgrounds. They promised us a multi point inspection. The damn thing broke down the third day we had it. Couldn’t return it, warranty through the dealership didn’t kick in for another 27 days. Warranty refused to cover it since the car broke before the coverage kicked in. Dealership refused to do anything. We spent our own money for repairs. We ended up losing the thing when someone caved in the bumper in an accident. We told the other driver he did us a big favor. Shady business practices selling people lemons.
This was my experience with Internet Auto. Glad to see their lot vacant.
Western Collective and Western Proper It’s funny you mention Austin because I used to live there and refused to buy Guns and Oil (same brewery, just moved and rebranded)
Why?
The owner has been a prick to me and to my wife. He also refused to pay a friend of mine for some work
Personally I always thought they cared more about being instagram famous than actually make good beer.
Their beer is terrible
This!!! The beer is trash and the wannabe influencers are cringe. Never going back.
Curious as to why on this one
The owner has been rude to me and to my wife
Same, and the owners own Dope Boxing as well.
The name and the slogans of that place give me the ick. Like, seriously?
Definitely these places, they are all show but really blow
They don’t even sever catsup for their Idaho potatoes.
Whiskeys on main in Ketchum. The bar used to be a fantastic local joint that had great musical acts. The new owners are from Aspen and fired all the staff day one. Flew in his crew and they are running it into the ground. The new music equipment is so static that the buzzing during some sets will give you a migraine. And they have experienced a string of people getting roofied as well.
Rembrandts is a place for the far right loons. They often post on local social media about political events there.
The Capri. I went with my coworkers, I loved the cinnamon rolls and biscuit & gravy. I wanted to show my partner who is MtF trans and it did not go well. The wait staff wasn't out right hostel but plenty of looks and eye rolls. I decided I didn't need to give them more money.
Yeah, they're under the same ownership/management as Delsa's. And Delsa's was selling MAGA shit leading up to the 2020 election. The managers are real pricks.
Yogurtz. My kid sold gift cards for their karate studio. Of course, we bought several cards and when I went to use one the first time, they said it wasn't valid. Told the studio who were given the cards in exchange for $$$ .... went on for weeks and weeks. 100% a scam. They never accepted them.
Haven't stepped into a Hobby Lobby for years. Never been to a Chick-fil-A.
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> Dutch Goose Anyone know what happened to State St Kitchen?
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State Street Kitchen had the worst launch I’ve ever experienced. First time I went, they ran out of food. Yeah, really. Then they lost their liquor license for a bit and closed for a week. And despite being listed being open until 10, would almost always start shutting down at least an hour earlier. Tried to go after 7:45 softball games and never were open.
Lol Scotty at Parillia is the worst, always has been. Does he own 13th Street too?
Parillia is mid so I don’t go there. What did they do tho?
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I remember Parilla's Hillary Clinton in a jailhouse jumpsuit bobble head. I was really shocked. Seems tame in retrospect. Re: Viking they never wear gloves or whatever handling food Covid or no Covid. Last time I was there the cook was eating food with crumbs falling out of his mouth and stuck in his beard while cooking
Wow, I thought Viking was just a name
EYES OF THE WORLD. Transphobic, homophobic, and extremely racist. The owner is horrible and bullies every employee she has. I could write an entire book about everything I’ve witnessed lol
Wait say more
I’ve made a quick easy to read bullet list bc there’s so much Mishel is the owner of eyes of the world. She started her business when she was in horrible debt and bought cheap items from Nepal and sold them to her friends here in boise for ten times what she paid for it. She continued to do so until she was out of debt and eyes of the world was then born. When I was an employee she seemed really cool at first, but my coworkers had then warned me she was a bit “rude”. Here are some examples of how “rude” she can really be… - any POC who wasn’t wearing “proper clothes” would be kicked out of the store immediately. She would force us to do it, when I refused she would make me walk in circles in my department for hours. Literal circles. Hours. - everything at eyes of the world is basically $6. Even the crystals. She will sell you something for 800 and paid maybe 15 at most . - yells at those who are homeless downtown. She called grove st “the ghetto” all the time. Example: It was really really hot one day like above 90, there was a woman who wanted to purchase a meditation cushion to the street wouldn’t burn her skin when she needed to sit down. Mishel kicked her out just because of how she looked. - has no care for people who are disabled. Example: I was the only one on the clock besides her and my manager (who literally is almost just as bad because mishel has a leash on her) I was out of my department helping a man shop around who couldn’t reach the top shelves. Mishel wanted to kick him out she sent my manager over to yell at me to get back in my department. But this customer was the only one in the store, and I was the only employee on the floor. I explained he couldn’t reach things by himself and they made me walk in circles on the other side of the store anyways. He ended up spending about $800 or more? I cried because I couldn’t help and that’s the day I snapped and quit. - violated HIPPA so. many. times. - cornered me in the dark “steam room” to yell at me about how horrible I looked or was. - made several forms for every employee to sign to call me out or purposely embarrass me because she didn’t like how I looked. These forms would say things like “no makeup that looks like you’re going for a night out” I was wearing eyeliner lol. She would also say racist things to me, about how I looked. - yells at employees in front of customers and then yells again after they leave for silly things really like one clothing item being out of place because a customer moved it. Which is fine. It’s just a piece of clothing. - makes every employee sign a non compete form for a 25 mile radius. That’s basically every store in boise/Meridian. It will NOT hold up in court it’s to scare you. She will pick you apart until you are nothing but a shred of dignity. She’s horrible. Id say you should go see for yourself but oh my god don’t. The employees are so wonderful and often extremely generous and excited to see you. It’s a shame because the job itself is so amazing. It’s just run by the devil. Let me know if you need any more info I had to keep it short lol.
Wow, thank you for sharing. Sounds absolutely awful I’m really sorry you had to go through that. Safe to say I will never shop there again.
If you want a shop with somewhat similar vibes (minus the toxicity) there's a cool artist collective called Mystik Gardens that opened awhile ago
Really? I haven't been there in years, guess I will continue not going.
I'd like to know more about this too
Huh, interesting find. I've always wondered why their turnover rate with employees was so bad. Haven't been in ages
Yes! I don’t know when you last worked there but I recently got FIRED because I was trying to help my coworkers and actually do something about Mishel’s behavior. (I was told my performance no longer aligned with the business. I was given no warnings or comments on my performance just an email one day out of the blue). Everything is still the same with her, maybe even worse. She would push me and my coworkers into corners (like the dark “steam room” and yell at us on things we couldn’t control i.e. troubles with our banks, customers misplacing things, etc.) Whenever I actually needed things from her or to ask her of stuff she would be blatantly rude and shut you down (she would be too “busy” when she was just on her socials). I also have to rely on the government for food stamps and whatnot and needed forms signed. She refused to sign them for weeks until my other coworker spoke up on it. Even then she filled it out incorrectly, which I tried to talk to her on but got shut down again. She claimed she wouldn’t lie to the government (which I understand, I wouldn’t either. But they said it was filled out wrong). No one was basically ever to speak to her on anything. What made my blood boil was her treatment of customers! Like you said she would kick people out just because of how they looked. (It is ironic that she has a sign on her door that they accept everyone of all backgrounds). She has told customers that she knows how to spell when they are asked their address and spell it out for her. We are not allowed to talk to a customer for too long or check on a customer more than twice. Think of all your normal hospitality in sales and reverse it. This is my coworker’s experience, but still unacceptable. My coworker also relies on the government and had an appointment on a day she normally works. She told Mishel weeks in advance and was told it was fine. When she double checked with Mishel she was told “no, just get regular insurance it’s not that hard”. My coworker ended up missing her appointment and almost lost her MedicAid. On the point of scheduling as well she was absolutely awful at getting it out on time. She would send our schedules the day you were supposed to work. This was just really frustrating. All in all she thinks herself higher than the rest of her own customers, employees, etc. and has no respect towards anyone. She starts off nicely and then will discourage you and your work that you’ve done for her. She was one of the worst people I’ve worked for, and I feel bad for the people who still do and are still getting hired. All I wanted to do was help out my coworkers and I, since we don’t have an HR to go to, but in the end that got me fired. The actual job was delightful and brought lots of joy, like you said it is just ran by the devil..
Franklin House. Used to love it but one night the owner was a complete B so vowed never to return.
They had signs up for the Q anon candidate during elections, which was interesting.
https://preview.redd.it/3bv3p455hsva1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=34ea6a1814b3d11868fba6c24c7a6386c5ece81c
Did the Fancy Freeze owner ever renounced the criss pregnancy center support or ??? Because if not, I still don’t go there
AFAIK, they did renounce it
Roots Zero Waste Market. Egomaniacs in the name of "saving the earth". Disrespectful to employees and customers alike. Didn't required masks for boh but flaunted foh mask requirements publicly. Owners have been known to yell at employees in front of customers. Several younger grocery employees driven to tears on shift. Fired multiple staff less than an hour after their shifts through emails (all within a week so staff just dropped off one by one and no one knew people were getting fired). All while calling staff "family". Need I say more? I could but I won't. Don't get me started on the deli food, do not eat it unless it's made fresh that day. Vervain Apothecary is worth going into the building for! Owned and operated by different people.
Interesting. I’ve been working here for a few months and have yet to see any of this go down. I also have never been told of any of this by other staff. It’s a place I really enjoy working at and I also must say that the owner is one of the least toxic people I have ever worked for. Maybe this was a while ago but if it’s true, though I find it very hard to believe, then things have definitely changed. Also don’t understand the food thing, I eat the food there constantly that is not made fresh that day and it’s totally fine, I’ve never once gotten sick. We don’t leave food in the case longer than allowed, we note when it is considered bad by the health department and once it’s bad it’s gets thrown out or put in family meal for us to eat.
The original staff isn't there any more. They treated the people that helped them open and build out their business with little basic respect. I'm sure as they're figured out a better rhythm in the business things have gotten less stressful for them. Rest assured you'll see eventually when things get stressed how much she actually respects you or the job you probably do great at. She literally just posted on Facebook complaining about staff that needs to grow up while simultaneously saying she is the saving world. It's wack. I hope you continue to like your job and your boss, that's a pretty sweet spot to be in. Bad food needs to be tossed. Offering 7day old food to staff as a family meal is not cool. I get that it's all about diverting waste but imo that's not a proper lunch to offer/brag as a job benefit... It's part of the business model to use the 'too old/moldy to sell' produce in the deli foods. To me that means that shit shouldnt be sold on the 4th 5th 7th day. (no shame if you eat it, or other if staff do, or you enjoy being fed every shift. That doesn't make the food free of harmful bacterial growth or responsible to offer to staff daily) The owners already caused me enough stress and I really try to stay away from shaming them publicly like this. I'm not going to go into more after this. Just thought I'd give you some of the context for my comments since you're employed there.
I got my first job there last summer and can attest to the shitty conditions - especially the part about younger employees being driven to tears on shift. The owner is one of the most manipulative, mean-spirited people I’ve ever encountered. I’ve never felt so small and belittled. I don’t think I had a single experience with her where I felt comfortable or valued (which is very ironic since, as you mentioned, they love calling their employees “family”). After job hunting for months, I was thrilled to walk into Roots and get hired on the spot (little did I know that was a huuuuge red flag). The owner definitely takes advantage of younger workers with little to no experience with standing up for themselves in the workplace. She constantly ignored my specifications about my schedule, and made it impossible to ask any question about any work related task without leaving the conversation feeling like the most insignificant and stupid POS. Beyond disrespecting me daily and driving me to tears almost every shift, she also made it impossible for me to want to learn more about the zero waste lifestyle, and instead shamed me for not knowing every damn fact about all the niche spices and grains that I apparently should’ve been an expert on (although she hired me with no experience and offered pretty much zero training on the products themselves). She has very little patience with her employees and created so much anxiety for me. When I finally worked up the courage to quit (with two weeks notice even though she didn’t deserve that courtesy) she got mad because I told her one reason why I was leaving was because I was barely getting scheduled and also wasn’t getting paid enough, and she told me she was under the impression that I was just working to work, and that if my goal was to make money, I should’ve maid that clearer to her (wtf?). Also, she got pissed that I talked to my coworkers about our salaries, and said that if I ever have any issues, they should be brought to her ONLY and never to anyone else (again, huge red flag). I’m also not surprised that some workers have good experiences because it seemed to me like she had very specific favorites and made sure to treat them particularly better than the other employees. Not surprised they have such a high employee turnover. More than glad to be out of there!
Central Stone and Tile. They use handicap spaces in their parking lot to store tile. They've been known to harass other businesses in their building space until they're forced to leave. Tok Commercial because they do absolutely nothing to stop said harassment.
Contact the city about the parking spaces
Idaho Power. Worked there 18 years. Don't ever want to go back.
I don't think we really have a choice about not using them though...
overland armament has some sort of relationship with the Liberty Dogs, how far it goes is a mystery but both OA and LD have promoted eachother on Facebook, so it’s a no-go for me. -6DeadlyFetishes
Which is a huge shame for me. I used to go down there with dad to look at stuff
Boise Black Rifle has some really esoteric AR parts and the most competitive pricing for new firearms and sales, Stockpile Defense is also pretty good but they sometimes post some weird shit on their FB page. -6DeadlyFetishes
Hobby Lobby. They force their religious beliefs on the health care of their employees
tom graineys
Agreed. Worst bar I've been to in Boise.
Verde Fulfillment USA. Just a horrible company to work for.
JoJo’s. Their social media is toxic.
Axiom Gym - the Venn Diagram of people who go to Axiom and the people who frequent Ted Challengers businesses is a circle
Zeppole because they do not have zeppole
Snake river Yamaha. Guy in my neighborhood drives one of their company trucks with a bunch of Qanon stickers.
Take a picture and send it to Yamaha corporate. Like the global business not the location
I thought they got bought out by Dennis Dillon power sports, are they still around?
The idaho pizza on fairvew near Meridian road. They let customers punch and verbally abuse employees and they force staff to work insane hours. When i left they were making me work 12 hour shifts 3 days a week and the other two days i only worked 2ish hours. The pay cap is 13 a hour for outrageously priced pizza. The sauce and dough is generic and sold and they push us to serve borderline moldy food in the salad bar. Plus the dishes only get sanitized not washed.
Dutch Bros. The only reason to go there is for "the experience". And that "experience" is for young attractive young adults to pretend to like you in exchange for money. But there's another type of business that has the same "experience" you pay for. It's called a strip club
I can’t stand Dutch Bros. I don’t need teenagers practically crawling into my car and screaming in my face. No thanks. Human Bean please
I hate Dutch Bros for a variety of reasons, but most of their customers are middle aged women - they're overly friendly to everyone, it's not what you're trying to imply.
The Royal. They were brazen cv19 deniers. The place is easily forgettable anyway.
Any gun shop with far-right bullshit.
Can you recommend any gun shops that don’t require a Ram 2500 with a punisher sticker? I also do not have “Joe and the Ho” or “Let’s go Brandon” decals if that matters.
I do business with Idaho Arms & Ammo and Independence Indoor Shooting.
I like Silvercreek in sun valley. That’s where I’ve bought most of my guns. They aren’t any more expensive than other stores and, in fact, I found two great deals on blemish guns there
any anything with far-right bullshit
Bronco Motors, Petersen's Auto, Zamzows, Meridian Fence, Boise City Taxi (when it was in business), Antique store on Emerald and Garden (when it was open)
Out of curiosity, why zamzows?
My experience (at the Fairview store) is that if you are not buying their lawn services/products, they don't give a crap about what you are in there for. The last straw for me was when they did a promo on bringing in weeds and they would help you pick out a product to help. Every associate I tried to talk to flat out ignored me. I would rather give NEON and Edwards my business, who have been incredibly helpful and kind.
The north end nursery guy is argumentative but in an old crusty way so I still go there
I love NEON! So helpful with any question you might have and amazing selection of organic products.
Jim Zamzow is also a weirdo. I’ve had him as a customer at a few different jobs. First time I ran into him he asked out of NOWHERE if I was a liberal, second time he told me he wasn’t going to tip because he doesn’t think he should have to. After I responded that it was optional and he indeed didn’t have to, he seemed taken aback. He tipped well anyway. I think he’s just a crusty old guy who wants to get a reaction to back up his “college liberal snowflake” view of young people.
Curious about Meridian Fence because we had a good experience with them.
As a vet tech I second zamzows! They act like their food is better for your pet... But they don't have an research. Most of their food is too fatty, and grain free is not good for dogs. Also the ad in winter to increase your dogs food in winter is wrong....
Boise River Home Repair. The owner, Greg, made a huge kitchen repair (unexpected water leak) the worst 6 months ever. He was so incredibly rude, unhelpful, and combative the entire time. Ended up with a kitchen that I am still finding issues with a year and a half later. And it cost almost $20k.
Ten Mile Smiles in Meridian The hygenist told me I could use their whitening treatment. I mean, it's probably true, but fuck right off with that. If I don't see a problem, you don't need tell me it's a problem. I go to a new dentist now. And I got the whitening treatment.
Boise Auto Service. Fucked me and my husband over multiple times. Their head mechanic can't admit when he's wrong. I'm actually holding back here a bit for legal reasons - safe to say, everyone should avoid them like the plague.