In this podcast interview with manager Amy Svancara (Swan-sarah), you’ll learn the story behind the European-style bistro located in downtown Boise’s historic Idanha Building. From its start as a bakery just three years ago, La Vie en Rose has expanded its menu to include breakfasts and lunches that deliver the “linger effect” that make it a place where people love to connect as well as dine.

It’s safe to say that by the time this interview is over, a London Bleu Frittata with cheesy hashbrowns is going to sound mighty appealing — no matter what hour of the day you’re listening!

La Vie en Rose is located in the Idanha Building in downtown Boise at 928 West Main Street.  For information, call (208) 331-4045

Angie Riff describes herself as the “chief cook and bottle washer” of Periple (PAIR-e-plah) Wines, whose French name translates as “odessey”.

While Angie’s journey may not be as labyrinthine as her winery’s label suggests, it certainly has been an interesting one.  Born in Boise, Angie learned the craft of wine making in Caliifornia, primarily in the Golden State’s Russian River AVA.  When she and her family decided to return to Idaho, she set up a winery in Garden City and brought her Russian River pinot and chardonnay grapes with her.

In this Idaho Vines episode, we’ll learn more about the odessey of a winemaking daughter of the Gem State, and her plans to begin producing Snake River AVA vintages from a small winery that sells primarily through a mailing list; but if you’re planning to attend Savor Idaho on June 13, you’re already an insider when it comes to sampling what Angie Riff came back to Idaho to accomplish.

Janie Burns of MeadowLark Farms

In keeping with the latter objective, we bring you this podcast interview with Janie Burns — a local food personality who many people know from the Capital City Public Market as the owner of Meadowlark Farms.  But Janie also wears another hat as a member of the Treasure Valley Food Coalition (TVFC) — a “network of community members working together to create a sustainable local food system.”

In this Local Food, Local Voices podcast episode, Bar Gernika owner Jeff May recounts his own culinary history, Bar Gernika’s, the Basque Block’s — and how all of them have intertwined with great food over the years.

Chef Paul Faucher and Mathieu Choux of Le Cafe de Paris

The world premiere of the new Twilight movie? Beyotch…please! How can you possibly compare fuel injected hormone-driven teen angst to the arrival of a new beaujolais? And at Le Cafe de Paris, we’re going to celebrate that premiere in the only appropriate way: with a multi-course French dinner.

In this podcast, Le Cafe de Paris owner Mathieu Choux and head chef Paul Faucher talk about the Beaujolais Nouveau tradition, and discuss their November 19 celebratory feast in mouth watering detail. Don’t listen to this podcast if you’re already hungry. Or at least don’t hold me responsible if you do.

At Life’s Kitchen, however, the kitchen is also a place where kids whose lives can benefit from a clearer sense of direction and the acquisition of job skills come to discover a sustainable career path.

In this podcast episode we’ll visit with Life’s Kitchen executive director, Kurt Alderman and student Andrew Settler to learn about the history and mission of Life’s Kitchen — and about what it’s serving up on Wednesdays through Fridays.

Life’s Kitchen is located at 1025 S. Capitol Blvd. in Boise, across from Boise State University. The Cafe is open Wednesday through Friday from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm and features a varying menu.  To contact Life’s Kitchen, call (208) 331-0199 or go to their website at www.lifeskitchen.org

Meet Sue Zimmerman

I’m a pushover for ethnic cuisine, so when a guy handed me a flyer at the Boise’s Public Market with the menu for a new downtown restaurant, Sweetwater’s Tropic Zone, my eyeballs were immediately drawn to “Trinidadian Curry Goat”.

A week later I was sitting down to a meal of said entrée with Sweetwater’s owner, Sue Zimmerman…and in this Local Food, Local Voices podcast episode, we’ll learn about Sue’s culinary past and influences, the cuisine of the Caribbean, and what you might want to order at Sweetwater’s Tropic Zone to get a sense of the region’s culinary culture.

Melanie Krause

Just the other day I was down at the Public Market in Boise where I happened upon the booth belonging to Cinder Wines.  It was a fortuitous encounter, since it gave me the opportunity to try Cinder’s new Chardonnay and Cab offerings, which they’ve just released this fall.

As I relished each sample, it got me to thinking about a Local Food, Local Voices interview that I recorded back in March, when Cinder’s latest wines had only recently been bottled.  In this podcast episode, you’ll hear Cinder’s winemaker, Melanie Krause, talk about her background in the winemaking business, Cinder’s history, and the origins of the Snake River AVA.

It’s hard to believe, but a quick glance at the Idaho Wine Commission’s promotional brochure reveals that nearly 30 wineries now produce vintages that are beginning to attract the interest of wine lovers the world over.