My friend and I were traveling from Chicago to Portland and were staying at a hotel down the street from this place. The hotel recommended this place; it was within walking distance and we got to scope out the menu prior so we were sold. We were going on Friday night and were shocked that they closed so early, like 9pm I think (on a Friday??). Â I wish I could remember our waitresses name because she was incredibly nice. I ordered the SBLT (Salmon BLT) with a salad instead of fries (only because I had been sitting on my butt in a car for 3 days!) and it was awesome! The bread was soft, the bacon was thick and crispy and the salmon was tasty (not fishy). The side salad was huge so I definitely got my veggies in for the day!
My friend ordered the crabcake tacos, she liked them. I had a bite and thought they were tasty too. I would recommend either one if you like seafood.
Good food at good prices.
I'm not really in love with the place though. The best place to try and sit is back by the fire. Those seats are always taken though. I don't feel like the rest of the restaurants interior really flows well. And the staff are really hit-and-miss. Last time I was in there was a miss. She was impolite and never refilled the drinks.
So I guess I'm still on the fence about Willowcreek. Hope they get better though because the food is quite good.
I have been here twice in the past six months. It's a little out of the way for me. Both times the service has been pretty bad... extremely slow.  But the food has always been great. Plus you can order sushi off of the "Raw" menu so having that option is great (though their sushi seems a little $$$).  Bottom line, the food is great  so I will be back.
Review Source:My wife and I just had lunch here for maybe the 10th time, so I've been several times to gauge the consistency of the food and service. Â This place is nothing special, just like their over priced neighbors, RAW. Â They have some interesting choices on the menu but they all seem to be about average and I've tried a lot of them. Â We do really like the Japanese Burrito roll from next door, but at $14 a roll, we'll pass. Â Today we both opted for the the "vegetarian" burger instead of the regular burger and it was a mistake unfortunately. Â The Veggie patties were well under cooked, nearly cold, and we both had to hit the restroom within an hour of our lunch, not good. Â I called the MGR to ask them what was in their veggie patties and they didn't know. Â They said if we got sick it was most likely from our breakfast we ate and not the lunch that put us on the toilet for two hours this afternoon. Â LOL. Â Yup, that cup of cheerios this morning gave me food poisoning. Â Lastly, the fries are fresh out of the ole' freezer. Â I'm not sure why so many restaurants opt for frozen product when it's so much more inexpensive to buy fresh and prepare fresh. Â We are done with these two mediocre restaurants!
Review Source:I remember back in the day when this was all part of the Makenzie River Pizza chain. Â Yeah ok it has been about a decade since it has not been but hey that chain is one of my favorites. Â
ANYWAY...about 6 of us stopped in for beer after work. Â They seemed more food focused than offering up a spot to happy hour drinkers who were indecisive as to how many were going to stay for dinner or if we were just going to do apps and beer. Â They informed us that they did not offer happy hour pricing on their beer but they had some food specials. Â [Which I was not interested in at the time.] Â Our server was friendly and accomodated our requests and worked well to split the checks by rounds (Carmen got the first round and I got the 2nd)...the group was on their own after that....lol!
As I was leaving some of my cohorts were ordering food. Â But I didn't get a chance to try any of it myself.
I recently bought a Groupon coupon for 25.00 and you get 50.00 worth of food/drinks. What a great deal! So, today we went for lunch. We were greeted by a friendly server and were able to pick where we wanted to sit. I ordered a side salad with blue cheese dressing...the dressing was out of this world. Creamy, with thick chunks of cheese and a strong suggestion of horseradish! It was an excellent compliment to the mix of romaine lettuce, croutons, and cucumbers. I ordered the SBLT sandwich - Salmon with smoked bacon served on ciabotta bread. It was tasty and well done. I ordered the house fries and probably won't order them again. They were lightly breaded and somewhat tasteless. I've heard the sweet potato fries are awesome - maybe next time I'll try them. Overall, we had an excellent time - good food, servers and the atmosphere is relaxed and comfortable. Definitely will be going back soon - maybe for the Friday night Prime Rib special.
Review Source:Our group of five appreciated the menu selections. Three of us had 3 different sushi rolls and liked them all. They are indeed large servings, beautifully presented, hence the higher-than-average typical Japanese sushi bar prices.  Fish tacos were good although one diner thought the sauce & accompanying salsa were  lacking in chili-heat. The wine-by-glass selection was nice & decently priced, service was friendly & efficient, & the fireplace was warming on a cold rainy night.
Review Source:I am a regular and love the staff at Willow Creek. Â They always have a smile and frosty beverage ready for me. Â Not the easiest place to get into if you are heading north on Vista, however so worth the hassle. Â the food is excellent, and with a shared sushi Restaurant "Raw" adjoining, there is something for everybody at the Creek!
See you after work!
Ironic that there is no full liquor license but share a wall with the liquor store. Â Seems like there should be some kind of neighbor clause in the Idaho Liquor laws :)
This place is slightly pricier than most places for lunch but I'll allow it in this case since they have a unique set of dishes. My favorite is the salmon BLT, but they have other sandwiches such as goovin Reuben and Thai peanut. The fries are crunchy and give it a try with the home made chiptle sauce. The place is very nice a quiet, and they have 'Raw' sushi place right next door and they share the menu, so you have even a wider variety of available. The service is good, and since they have a slightly higher price tag, it's usually not very crowded.
One thing I don't understand, is why restaurant choose to warm up bread in a Microwave. Bread should NEVER see microwave, only an oven. The Ciabbata bread for the SBLT sandwaitch is warmed up in a microwave which makes it soft instead of crisp. Not sure what your take on this matter is, but I guess I'll try to warm up the bread in the oven next time.
Still, great place for lunch and dinner.
Being an out of towner, I am giving this place a solid 5 stars and here is why...
Service - The staff could not have been nicer. Â I had my server attend to all my needs but also had half the staff checking on my throughout my stay. Â And not in an overbearing annoying way. Â And on top of that, I showed up apparently 30 minutes before they closed. Â Being a traveler, I forgot to adjust my clock to Mountain from Pacific time. Â Not once did the staff act like I was hindering closing, or try to shuffle me out. Â Without me knowing until I got back to my hotel, I was at the restaurant probably 45 minutes past closing.
Bar - For a restaurant of this size, they have a great beer selection (didn't check the wine) and the prices were great. Â I counted 10 beers on tap and they offered me a refill despite the fact that they were wrapping up for the night.
Food - I can only speak for the one item I ordered which was the SBLT (Salmon BLT). Â It was good although a lot of flavors to take in on a sandwich...BUT...it was still good eats and the Garlic Mashed was very good.
Overall the menu looks great and I can't wait to try them again a little earlier in the evening. But for me, the way I was treated deems the 5 stars. Â I will take great service over anything else any day...Check this place out if you are in town or a local that hasn't found them yet.
I think my coworkers built this place up quite a bit as THE place to go to when they get into Boise.
They forgot to mention that it's mainly because it serves decent food close to the airport. Â That, and they haven't really spent much time in Boise to find anything else.
Oh well.
The sandwiches were definitely interesting and I made the mistake of getting some fish'n chips... what can I say, I was craving it. Â It was way overcooked and didn't put me in a good mood for our drive to Mountain Home. Â Alas. Â I'm pretty sure I'll be stopping by again should work send me this way.
I love this resturant. Â Its one of my favorites because everything is affordable and good. Â You can see they take pride in what they serve. Â If you can get there on one of the few nights that they serve the primerib it is the best in boise. Â They use a lavender rub and cook it to perfection.
Review Source:The word is "Crave" - we are pulled to this place by the magnetic force of sweet potato fries. The Salmon wrap is my favorite. I get the Caesar dressing on the side so that I can use according to taste. My husband currently likes the hoisin chicken wrap. We have tried several of the appetizers. All good. We did not try any pasta or steaks here but the wraps are fresh and mostly uses locally sourced ingredients. If you are looking for something light - this is the place. Although $11 wraps are not exactly budget friendly if you eat out a lot.
Service can be off sometimes, especially Friday evenings. So you might not want to go here if you are in a hurry. Ample patio seating in the summer is a plus as well.
We tried this place after a disappointing experience at the next-door sushi place called: Raw Sushi. The restaurant is nice and new and a lot of yuppies seem to like it. I ordered the Ribeye steak and wife ordered a caesar salad. Everything BUT the steak itself was good. I asked for medium rare and got more like medium well. I didn't complain but just tried to enjoy it. The steak was a little dry and chewy and covered with carbon, apparently from a flame broiled grill. It had no flavor at all, I guess they didn't put a rub on it or marinade or anything. I even had to put salt on it and I NEVER salt my food. It was supposed to be 14 oz, but I seriously doubt it was, unless it shriveled to half its size during cooking. Seemed like a very thin cut as well. Bottom line is they do not know how to prepare or cook a steak. Maybe other choices on the menu are good, I wouldn't know and will not hazard another try. Like I said, all the other stuff, soup, vegetables, mashed potatoes were good.
Update 5/3/08: Just ate at the buffet Golden Corral. It's steak night on Saturday and guess what? The Golden Corral, bulk prepared Sirloin steak was far SUPERIOR to fancy pants Willowcreek. Cooked right, medium rare, tasty, quality meat. Yup no doubt about it, Willow Creek flunked Basic Steak 101.
The interior was sports bar meeting an upscale tropical fashion. Â There is a big flat TV screen at the back of the restaurant, and people in the counter can watch sports.
The food was pretty good, if not spectacular. Â I ordered Reuben sandwich, and even though the bread was grilled well, maybe because they did not grill with oil or put mayonnaise, it got soggy and was almost falling apart in the middle. Â The taste was good though with the good mix of corned beef and sauerkraut. Â My friend ordered blackened chicken, and it look pretty good.
I'm pretty sure that locals like that place, so I will give 4 stars.
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