BOISE, Idaho — Moon's Kitchen Cafe is set to reopen January 1 pending successful completion of proper inspections at a new location on the second floor of the Zion's Bank building in Downtown Boise.
Moon's closed November 9th after the City of Boise condemned their previous location in the historic Union Block Building. The building failed an inspection for structural concerns, according to the city.
"We'll keep the menu the same. We have the all the same cooks that we had when we closed, and the same recipes. We're going to treat it the same, just with a lot better view than we had before," Moon’s Owner Gary Torrey said. "It's going to be the same restaurant."
The new location is larger and will accommodate more customers - staff was actively building new tables Monday to fill the additional space. Moon's is retaining their previous staff and added a new employee.
"They understood [why we closed]. I said, 'I'm going to find a place as soon as they can. Don't worry.' They went on unemployment," Torrey said. "I can't wait to get to work in the morning. So I'm, I come in here and I'm like this is shaping up. And it's just like, everything's falling into place."
Moon's experienced five years of ongoing construction outside their previous spot on the Union Block. It created skepticism for Torrey; he intentionally put the business on the month-to-month lease with Union Block Building owner Ken Howell specifically for this type of event.
Mai Thai and Moon's are retaining the same lawyer from Taylor Law Offices. Mai Thai, however, still has multiple years left on their lease, according to attorney Matthew Taylor.
"We are still hopeful that Mr. Howell and Mai Thai can come to a meaningful resolution," Taylor wrote KTVB in an email.
The City of Boise is giving Howell 60 days to remedy the structural concerns. The city's actions are in alignment with city code. Howell appealed the city's decision to close the building entirely; however, he has provided the city with structural repair plans in the meantime.
The city outsourced an engineer to review these plans, according to a city spokesperson. The city is still waiting for the engineer's final report.
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