While Jaialdi brings Basque culture to downtown Boise this week, a small restaurant in Sweet continues to honor those traditions year-round through family recipes and cherished memories.
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The Triangle Restaurant in rural Gem County serves as more than just a place to find Basque cuisine – it's where the legacy of Michelle Anchustegui lives on through her family and the dishes she loved to create.
Watch to see how The Triangle Restaurant and Michelle's legacy continue on:
"Michelle was the brains behind all the cooking out here," said Aaron Lowe, owner of the Triangle Restaurant. "She was wonderful, she had a lot of knowledge about Basque cooking, about all different sorts of food. She always wanted a restaurant as a kid, and one of her greatest things was providing food for people and lots of it."
Aaron and Michelle took over the historic building in 2011. Originally built in 1935, the structure has served many purposes over the decades— from gas station to community service area — before becoming the restaurant it is today.
Michelle's passion for cooking was evident in everything she created, often combining multiple recipes to develop her own unique dishes.
"She would take about five or six different recipes and combine them together and make her own," Aaron said.
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For the Anchustegui children – Meliah, Alex, and Braden – the restaurant was their home base, where they learned both culinary skills and cultural heritage from their mother.
"Growing up before we had the restaurant, I would help her cook in our tiny, galley kitchen in Boise," Meliah Anchustegui said. "She came out here, had the commercial kitchen, could cook for lots of people, and try new recipes that maybe she didn't have the opportunity to try before."
The family's Basque roots run deep, with Michelle ensuring her children remained connected to their heritage.
"She was hardcore Basque, hardcore Spanish side Basque," Aaron said. "The kids always had to go to the dancing. It was a lot of fun. There was a lot of camaraderie down there with them and on the Basque block."
Michelle would drive her children from Sweet to Boise every Tuesday night for Basque music and dancing lessons, instilling in them a love for their cultural traditions.
Though Michelle has passed away, her influence remains strong in the restaurant's operations and menu. The Triangle continues to serve Basque dishes like chorizo, with plans to add paella and other traditional items.
"We don't have as many Basque things as she was able to do, but we still have a few of her recipes that we continue to cook and make," Aaron said.
The restaurant maintains Michelle's commitment to quality, making many items from scratch.
"We do a lot of stuff from scratch. We grind our own burger," Aaron said. "We didn't want to have a freezer fryer plate. We wanted to make the stuff. We wanted to have it fresh, have it be real food without preservatives and all the other stuff that goes into the food. So we still handcut our steaks."
For Meliah, working at the restaurant and studying the Basque language at the Boise Basque Museum helps her stay connected to both her heritage and her mother's memory.
Beyond her culinary talents, Michelle's greatest joy was being a mother.
"Her life mission or life goal was to be a Mom and then own a restaurant, and so she was able to do both of those things," Meliah said.
That example continues to inspire Meliah today.
"She's definitely an example that I will strive to be for my children," she said.
The Triangle Restaurant is open Friday through Sunday each week.
The Triangle Restaurant hours:
- Friday 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.
- Saturday 8 a.m. - 10 p.m.
- Sunday 8 a.m. - 9 p.m.
The family hopes to eventually expand their hours and continue developing the property.
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