Ate here last week while in town on a trip from Austin. It was conveniently located to the hotel I was staying in and it was open a little later than many of the other restaurants in the area so gave it a try! I ordered the Reef Roll sushi and Tempura Asparagus. I thought the food was delicious! The drinks were good too. Shared the Volcano Bowl with my partner. We were sat immediately on the rooftop on a Monday night. Docking a star for the service. It was very slow. We usually don't mind slower service if we have nowhere else to be but it took 20 minutes before any waitress came to our table so we could even order water. Service was spotty the rest of the evening but they seemed a little low staff so I understand. Overall, we enjoyed our time here. Really love the tiki theme and the rooftop seating on a nice, clear evening is so great! read more

The Reef - Reef Roll & Tempura Asparagus - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

See all

Fun tiki vibe at a rooftop bar. The place was busy but my group of 4 was able to find seats at the bar right away. We ordered the nachos, mojitos and margaritas. Drinks tasted a bit premixed but the nachos were massive. We also ordered a monster Moscow mule which we shared and it was fresh and fun! As I was leaving there was a DJ starting to play music too, very fun! read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

I really wanted to give them 5 stars... but the food, booze and service was a 4. Sorry... Only room to improve! Cheers. read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

I'm usually a really big fan of this place. Good food, good location, and a fun vibe and usually pretty good service but this past experience was different. First off we were seated at 6:40ish and we were told we would have to be done by 8. Odd request but figured it would be fine since we had a while. Everything was good until they took our order, we didn't receive our food until 45 minutes later leaving essentially 20-25 minutes to eat and finish our drinks before we were told we had to leave. Then I had looked at the bill only to calculate the tip but then my friend asked if I tipped twice. To my confusion she explained that there is 20% gratuity already applied which the waitress conveniently forgot to tell us! I thought that would be something required for the server to mention. And finally I ordered two drinks and immediately after asking if we were getting desert and we said no thanks so she quickly rang us all out and after we had received our receipts we were asked to leave to seat the next group! I was only half way done with my drink so I was rushed to quickly finish as our group began to leave. I shouldn't be rushed when the food took that long and I'm forced to leave a 20% tip. read more

Went here with a large party. Good ambiance for a bar/live venue location. They have a full bar with lots of island themed special cocktails. I'd give this place Top marks to have fun downtown! That stated, the food was pretty vanilla. Nothing wrong and the ingredients were fresh. It was just boring - felt like an old menu that needed some love. The food check all the marks if you want to full menu to help supplement a night of drinks or social hour, but don't plan around dinner. Food today is too expensive nowadays and if you're just wanting a nice meal with a date or friend, maybe go elsewhere. This is a bar/party place first. Service is completely acceptable by 2022 standards and above average for Boise downtown. Recommend! read more

Love this place! These guys are the best and the experience is always so good. Service is great and the food is amazing. Win, win. We love sitting at the bar and the rooftop patio is a vibe in the summer. Always coming back to this place. read more

Busy place with a good happy hour drink list and some food. The food was really slow (about an hour for nachos and cold sandwiches) but it was also really busy since it was right before the Luke Combs concert; got 3 rounds of drinks before food arrived! Nice wait staff and willing to split the bill based on groups which was awesome! Temperature was a bit warm inside. read more

Cool tiki ambiance in Boise. I think the biggest draw is the rooftop bar, but it was 98 outside so we ate in. Decent happy hour menu, and good food. I had the Thai Chicken tacos--really good! Service was kinda slow, but the guy was nice. My seven year old loved it. Would go back. read more

Good place to eat and drink with friends during happy hour. Their pupu platter has plenty of food, and for the happy hour price, can be filling for some. Servers were attentive and provided good service. read more

This place has probable the best happy hour options. A GF and I met here to check out the happy hour and were not disappointed. The bartender was young and fun and the appetizers are 1/2 off! Between the two of us we had 4 beers and the mandu poo poo platter (which we took over half home) and the bill was under $25. Can't beat that. If your looking for a fun vibe and cheap thrills during happy hour highly recommend this place! read more

See all

This used to be one of my favorite restaurants to come to downtown. My boyfriend and I loved to sit by the window and either people watch or look at the cars driving by. It's got such a neat vibe, drinks were always good and service was fast. We went in yesterday (11/06) because I looked and realized they had white claws on their menu; the only hard seltzer we'll drink and you can't seem to find it in Boise. We sat at the bar and everything seemed like it would be fine. This older couple sat next to us and asked the bartender how she was doing. She immediately starts going on this tangent about how "a BOY opened up" and she was going to have a panic attack. Her whole attitude was really off putting and you could tell she was way more focused on complaining then actually doing her job. When my boyfriend finished his first drink, she walked by and made eye contact, and kept walking... once I finished mine a few minutes by and she still hadn't came back around the corner. We got there right when they opened, so there were 4 couples at the bar and I think 5 tables sat in the whole place.. was really not that busy. I had no desire to sit there and have to be in her negative presence anymore so we just threw down a $20 and left. Hope you enjoyed your $12 tip for crappy service. Sadly we won't be back. Didn't get her name, but it's the woman with green dreadlocks. read more

Great deck, tiki themed, , more of a college crowd but it's a good balance between fun and good food.

Do yourself a favor and get the nachos!! They are immense so definitely share with a friend (or five). Awesome happy hour! read more

The Reef - All the food... - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

Recently ate here while on a trio to Boise...this place was super convenient to my hotel and in easy walking distance. It was getting late so was just happy to find a place to eat that was open a little later. Walking in in this place has a really cool tiki vibe and reminded me of being in Hawaii. They have a great menu with lots of choices from traditional choices of appetizers , sushi, Hawaiian style dishes. I asked the bartender what his favorite thing on the menu was and he said he loved the mahi mahi fish tacos. So for me hunger was kicking in and my mind was made up. I started off with some chips and salsa and while the salsa and warm bean dip was super good the out of bag chips were just ok and kinda stale and the reason I removed one star. Outside of that everything else was great. Plus the service from the bartender was a 5 star experience for sure. The tacos where the main star and clean see why this was his favorite dish. The fish tasted super fresh and loved every part. Another surprise was the side of coleslaw that was as well super delicious. I enjoyed pretty much every part of this meal including the cold beer I washed everything down with. This was a great find and so glad I had the opportunity to try this place out. In addition this restaurant is doing all the safety protocols that are being asked...including limited seating for social distancing, masks and extra cleaning. So congrats and thanks for doing all that you can to keep us safe. So whether local or visiting this is a great choice in the downtown Boise area. read more

See all

We waited around for awhile for the two of us to get sat even though it wasn't very busy for a Friday night. We arrived 20 minutes before "Happy Hour" ended at 7pm. By the time someone asked me what I wanted to order it was 7:05 They had to verbally explain to me what was on happy hour because they don't have it written down on a menu anywhere. Very confusing - all different percentage discounts on the food. Mojitos, margaritas, mules were $6. No discounts on speciality cocktails. I ordered a margarita that tasted like straight mix. I got happy hour chips and salsa which ended up being $5.50. Over all, it seamed like the staff didn't want to wait to customers. We left without ordering anything else. read more

The food was amazing! My mom and I went during happy hour where their Margs/Mules/Mojitos are 7$ and all of their appetizers are 50% off. We had their Pupu Platter, which says that it serves 3-4 people. Plenty of food to make 2 people full and it was delicious! Their happy hour drinks were also very good. Only negative was that it took over 15 minutes to get anyone to wait on our table, but servers were very friendly and accommodating! read more

The Reef - Mondo Pupu Platter, sweet potato fries, mule, margarita - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

The island vibe is always great at the Reef! They have a large drink selection, and great lunch and dinner menu. It's also a small concert venue, I hear it's fun, but I haven't caught a show there yet. The rooftop space is fantastic in the summer, and the large bar and dining areas are perfect for colder months. I've alternated between the burgers and fish tacos on my visits, and never been disappointed. Fun for a night out any day of the week! read more

See all

Got the sweet and sour chicken, it tasted freezer burned. Service was ok, we had a party of 6 so it was an automatic added gratuity and so server was checking in every 30 minutes or more and our drinks would take about the same time to arrive read more

This place is great! Love to go here and get a G&T and the poopoo platter. I would give it 5 stars but they get only 4 as they no longer stay open late and don't have bands anymore. Back before Covid they were the place to be! Now it's a ok place to go. Wish the owners would bring it back like it was before. read more

Had a travel job over the summer that stuck me in Boise for a few months and I found myself coming back here because I loved their Moscow Mules and food so much. read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

Located above Front Door Pizza, Reef is where all of the young 20-somethings go to grab $3.95 Coors Lights and split the nacho appetizer...because Instagram. It's mostly Southern Californians and other BSU transplants who want a fun atmosphere that's also affordable before a night on the town. If you come for just the $4 draft beers and a few split appetizers, this place is solid. However, if you're looking for a good meal on clean plates this is NOT your place. Every single time I come here for something other than cheap drinks, I leave disappointed. As much as I love the tiki vibes and the rooftop bar (holla) there really isn't an excuse for paying $50 for the fresh food here. I'm talking lettuce wraps, sushi, and burgers. Again if you want nachos or a fried-everything plate, you're good. Both times I've ordered the lettuce wraps here I receive butter lettuce with tears in them making them impossible to use as a wrap. Furthermore there's always gross, old lettuce in the mix, and the occasional dirt/worm bites. I'm enclosing photos for reference. Tonight, we couldn't eat half of our appetizer, the lettuce was that bad. The burgers are greasy, the coconut chicken wrap has too much sauce making the wrap soggy within a few minutes, the sushi meals come with the ginger over the wasabi defeating the purpose of the ginger, and I could go on and on. With every menu item that myself or my friends have tried, we always leave wishing we only got the nachos and nothing else. Great location, fun/beautiful crowd, affordable beer and oversized appetizers. Come for these, and please be advised that ordering anything else comes at your own risk for dissatisfaction. read more

See all

Seven brothers in laie Really the meat was so thin and bun uneatable. Will only go to Kahuku from now on. Skimped on the fries orders done 10-15 min apart wow The Shake was very good read more

Reviewer no. 121 of The Reef, Downtown Boise, Idaho. My 373rd Yelp review. Woohoo! I am a fan. This is my new favorite place! I've visited this place three times in one week, which isn't me because I like to try new things and new places. The Reef is located upstairs from The Front Door and The Brickyard. You have to walk up several stairs (see my photos), but the stairs are small and semi-spiral, which makes it easy for just about anyone to walk up. I didn't see an elevator, so you may want to check that out if you or a dining companion has a hard time with stairs. We made a reservation for 5:30 PM, on a Tuesday, which wasn't necessary; however, I can see that later hours fill quickly. The place is decorated like a beach and honestly, it's pretty cool! There is a stage for entertainment, which I understand is on the weekends only. The Reef also has a door leading to the roof where there are tiki huts and an open bar, but it is closed during the offseason-- I wholeheartedly can't wait to have a drink or two, or three, up there! HAPPY HOUR I, personally, think that they have a really good happy hour. You'll have to check out my pics and videos (make sure to like em') to see the size of these plates! The Nachos and the Mondo platter are enough to feed 4+ people easily and they're half price during happy hour ($10). They have drink specials and lots of other good priced, large sized apps. Happy hour is 3-6pm M-F. The food was superb. We had the sushi, the mondo platter, the nachos, some deserts ($7) and of course cocktails! The atmosphere is fun, laid back, no rush, and all around chill. If you're able to get a booth by the window you can watch the city go by-- people walking to their destination, friends sharing a laugh as they walk, cars driving by (keep your car clean!), bikes passing by-- simply people watching which is one of the most beautiful things in the world to me. Everyone has a story-- I like to hear peoples stories. All in all, I really like this place. There is ample seating for all shapes and sizes! I'd love to join ya... message me and let's do dinner! If you visit this place based on this review, message me and let me know your thoughts! Whenever you read this, I hope you have an AMAZING day! read more

See all

Took my Dad to check out the Reef patio a.k.a. Hawaii in Boise LOL. A group that arrived after us was accidentally seated before us and the manager went above and beyond to make up for it. I really appreciated that because with all the stress in today's world, it's nice to know that great service still exists. Food was good, their burgers are delicious. read more

See all

Was visiting downtown Boise and went to the lounge that said there was food; they stopped serving and were out of what I wanted anyway (old menu on Yelp). I was told to try Reef which was around the corner. The bartender was super friendly and got me a drink quickly (simple vodka soda). I ordered the nachos with chicken, guac, and beans. Only complaint is that the nachos were so big!! It was enough for a group. But they were delicious. I enjoyed the environment and the people. The DJ, unfortunately, turned down and off at 11 pm which was early but I guess that's Reef's jam. Very welcoming environment. Late night bites. read more

Our family was in town from all over the country and we went to Reef to celebrate our youngest daughter's graduation. Brennen, our server was fantastic. He was very fun and attentive all while training a new server. We went during happy hour so we got great deals on food and drinks. Plus the atmosphere is very fun read more

All of us were disappointed in our food. Took over an hour and it was cold. On the upside, ambience is nice and would maybe return for just drinks. Would be nice to have drink prices on the menu. read more

Love the food here. We came a lot for happy hour because it's such a good deal. I especially enjoyed the appetizer specials, the pupu platter if we are naming names. It's half off apps and such a steal. Service is very nice too read more

They are super friendly. First time coming here since we are from out of town. I am a super picky eater and this totally killed it. As a starter plate we ordered the "Mondo puppy platter" and it had different varieties of food. I loved it. Than I ordered the "big kahuna burger" and the juiciness and the flavor of the burger was a burst of goodness. absolutely loved my experience here. To drink I got the pineapple Mojito and as a person who doesn't like strong drinks it was great. We also got a "Suicide Barbie" and it was great if you're looking to get F**** up. Make sure you SHARE the drink, it's strong. For desert I got a mud pie and as soon as they brought it it smelled delicious. It was very sweet & tastes like coffee. read more

The Reef - Pineapple Mojito & Suicide Barbie ( Mix of 5 drinks ) - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

See all

I'm giving this place 4 stars just because I really like it. It's a fun tiki style bar, with reasonably good food and drinks, and they have a great roof top patio. On this last occasion Lena and I were in Boise, we decided to go in for a couple of beers and we shared the ahi tuna, which was actually delicious. The service was not particularly great, but I easily over look that if I'm pleased with the overall experience! This is a great spot for lunch, and an even better place to enjoy the evening, especially when the weather is nice enough to sit outside! Cheers! read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

The reef has been an awesome place for happy hour. The bartenders and waitstaff are super nice. But the chef wont allow half nachos. Very disrespectful to all of us customers. Normal nachos are way too big, and super wasteful. I don't reccomend going to a place that: 1. Won't listen to the customers when they make reasonable requests. And 2. Don't care enough about the environment or being wasteful in todays society. We need to get the Reef to step their game up to become #1 place in Boise. Right now I would say go to almost anywhere else in Boise that respects its customers. read more

This was my second time eating here, and once again I was very happy with everything we had! Last year, the puppy platter was the star of the table, this year everyone's favorite was the mo'better skillet of veggies and rice with protein of your choose ( we got shrimp)! Definitely coming back again!! read more

The Reef - Mo'better veggies and rice - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

Great atmosphere, delicious drinks and tasty food! I have been wanting to come here for years but never did it, I am glad to say my only regret is not coming sooner. Rooftop is where its at, I highly recommend during the evening. read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

See all

The Reef has a lot of excellent things to offer. Great location on the corner of 6th and Main. Fun rooftop seating and bar. Live music. Large party room. Booze served in embarrassing large coconut cups. Good food. I have been to the Reef maaaaannny times. But I have only ever ordered the Coconut Chicken and Fish Tacos. I'm so embarrassed. I make a pact with myself every time to try something new and then can't seem to control myself. I'm a woman obsessed. I LOVE the dipping sauce for the chicken. I've been known to lick it clean. I also love their fries. I love the extra crunch on the outside. I have had many of the drinks though. They're fun and exotic, but definitely pricier. It might be a fun place to start the night, but not finish. I have seen live music here many times too. When you're trying to eat dinner and enjoy conversation, it can be a bit loud (unless you're trying to avoid awkward questions from your in laws...) But if you go for drinks and dance, the set up is awesome! My only real issue with the Reef is the occasional bad service I have received. My experiences have run the gamut from bar tenders that ignore you, to disappearing servers, to hostesses who lose reservations. If service picks up, the Reef could become my tropical island getaway. read more

food atmosphere and service was amazing as usual! Nathan is truly a great server who is great and personable

Grab a spot on the rooftop for some cool beers. Fun and sunny vibe with a bustling atmosphere. The inside looked good too. read more

The Reef - American Near Me - Boise, Idaho

Incredibly rude hosts. (One blonde and a brunette). Absolutely off putting first impression when coming into a restaurant. They were unhelpful and condescending as we were trying to figure out the best way to wait for our table. We were unable to get drinks upstairs while we waited for our table. They do not take your phone numbers to alert you when your table is ready and fully expect you to keep track of your time limit. Outdated system, unfriendly environment - wouldn't come if it wasn't for the musician. read more

I came in again on 7/24/2021 with a friend to enjoy some food and drinks. Sat outside in the patio. We had waited a while just to get a waitress to come greet us but since before covid I had never really received the best service here. Manager or owner had reached out last time apologizing and offering a gift card then never heard from them again. Besides that I had remembered the food and drinks were delicious here. I ordered a couple drinks and a few appetizers. It took about 30 minutes to receive our appetizers and as I began eating a hair was in my food. I got up carried the plate over to this waitress she was not wearing a normal worker shirt so I assumed maybe she was the manager. I go up to her let her know that the plate had a hair in it and she made a snobby face and said I'll take it right back. I watched her go down the stairs of the patio and didn't even wait a minute to turn around she came back saying she had replaced my plate with a new one. I looked at the plate it looked identical just with a whole where the hair was and the same dipping sauces were on the same plate too. I was very frustrated at that point so I asked for the manager our waitress said she was the manager. I asked the server cleaning the table next to us for a manager and a guy comes up to our table. So apparently everyone is a manager here is what it seemed like. Im so sad this was definitely a second bad experience and terrible terrible customer service. read more

See all

The Reef is somewhere that always sounds like a good idea.. but you somehow always leave disappointed. The food is mediocre and as for the service.. let's be honest, the service sucks. Overpriced, average food and rude staff... why is this place still popping you might ask? Their drinks are great, I can't knock that. Go for the drinks, but skip the meal. read more

This place is the best! The patio is so amazing in the summer! They also have live music! Mondo Pupu platters are the awesome!