Idaho’s Best New Mexican Restaurant

There aren’t enough Mexican restaurants actively elevating one of the finest cuisines in the world to 11. You know, on the dial (to paraphrase Nigel Tufnel of Spinal Tap). Taking anything to 11 is a prerequisite for achieving greatness. Before breaking through whatever leveling up system you have, you must first go to 11.

Mexican food touches all the buttons in a person that food can possibly touch: it is comfort, spice, familiarity, family, love, hope, and excitement distilled into cuisine. One might even argue that so much of what we discover in it that tastes heavenly is the flavor of the desert, the sea, the mountains, the fields, the sky, and the rain.
Is it possible to overstate how loved and admired Mexican food is in the western United States? Probably not. It is interlaced through all that we do, and we like it that way. In fact, we want more of it.

What’s great about Tuesday? Tacos. What’s the best way to eat cheese? Nachos. Which cocktail personifies summer? Margaritas. What can I do with a cactus? Eat it in a molcajete.

And last … is there a way to blow your mind by re-envisioning something that we might have taken for granted? Yes.

Let’s start by saying the word Barbacoa, Idaho’s Best Restaurant. Then let’s up the ante with three new words: Coa De Jima.

Mexican Food Is Family

Coa De Jima is the result of two passionate visionaries when it comes to Mexican food: Nikolai Castoro and Chef Enrique Martinez.

Elegant, beautiful, and influenced by the phenomenal Barbacoa—where Nikolai learned the restaurant business as the son of Robert and Martine Castoro—this restaurant is the peak of upscale Mexican food in Boise. Together, Nikolai and Enrique built something that is furthering the landscape of what we can expect in the realm of Mexican cuisine. They’ve forged a unique menu that’s both delicious and jaw-dropping, complementing dishes with equally delectable one-of-a-kind hand-crafted cocktails.

Martine herself has overseen the design and development of this oasis in downtown Boise, tucked into the charming historic district. What is done here stems from the desire to educate others while also exploring the frontiers of Mexican cuisine, bringing the past into the future and fusing it with modern tastes for a mouth-watering menu.
Don’t expect a Barbacoa knock-off, though. Approach Jima with the understanding that the experience will be unique as well as delicious.

When You Know, You Know

The past two or three years have been fraught with risk and fears about the survival of businesses. But there have also been brave souls who stepped into the unknown and took risks. Many of these new businesses have not just flown — they’ve soared.

Jima is an example of passionate restaurant owners taking the chance on developing something new and not balking at the risks. But one of the restaurant’s advantages is the legacy of its founders.

As a family that knows the restaurant business very well, Nikolai, the Castoros, and Chef Enrique Martinez know just what to do to get this bird off the ground, where she can soar.