Hotel Renegade General Manager Jussi Santa, an Idaho native, remembers this earlier Boise, when there were working farms downtown. “It’s been a natural progression,” he said. “Each year, a different hotel appears. We want to offer a luxury experience that is still approachable–to bring to life the ‘rustic meets refined’ ethos is cool because it means that anybody is welcome.”

Now, from the corner of Grove and 11th, the hotel and its sister spots—the Highlander Rooftop Bar & Lounge, Blue Collar Coffee, and Baraboo Supper Club—seek to offer a space that is, as Food and Beverage General Manager Josh Allen put it, “sleek and high-end, without the pretense,” which he attributed, in part, to Geronimo Owner Diane Hendricks, who “likes employing people in communities.” In practice, this means jobs, certainly—but also spaces that reflect their locations and offer hospitality built for purpose and people.

When we zoom in, the building itself becomes a monument to craft and detail—from the Japanese burnt wood, called Shou Sugi Ban, to the marbled map behind the front desk, the space is designed to wow guests. “I can so often tell who’s either there for the first time or who’s bringing someone for the first time. By the time they’ve made five steps in the door, without even saying a word, whether it be the lounge inside or the outside patio where they’re craning their necks on the south side of the patio where the sun sets,” Allen said.

Hotel Renegade feels both historic and fresh. “All the time, people ask what this building used to be—they don’t believe it’s new,” laughed Olivia Mannon, guest services manager. Geronimo markets the space as ‘rustic meets refined’, but it is also curious and pioneering, attracting staff and visitors who want to create and connect—not just stay or work in a hotel. And it isn’t nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake—the visual design is crafted to feel like it has always belonged, timeless and intentional.

Tyler Schram is an architect with CSHQA by day—he worked on Hotel Renegade in the early days, and he loved the property so much that he joined the team to work the front desk part time on weekends, a journey that has given him insight into both the design philosophy and the lived experience of the space.

As an Idaho native and someone passionate about historic preservation, Schram connected deeply to Geronimo’s mission to honor the communities they enter. “We’re not trying to knock anything down or change anything—we want to identify what makes a place special and showcase that,” he said. Schram admired that nothing at the hotel—from design to service—feels halfhearted, but deliberated, elevated, and crafted to belong to Boise, rather than stand apart from it.

Santa sees the city as a gathering place, a perspective he embraces for both staff and guests. “Boise has been a confluence of opportunity going back to the indigenous people who traded here,” he said. “There’s an adventurous grit that leans into the soul of Renegade.”

But if there’s something truly different about Hotel Renegade, it isn’t actually the aesthetics—it’s this sort of anticipatory hospitality that emerges from a team of people who really love what they’re doing. Collectively, the staff is committed to providing a guest experience that is unparalleled. If you mention to your server that you love the sauce served with the salmon at Baraboo, chances are that they’re already working behind the scenes to bring you more. Touches like that—things you didn’t even know you needed—provide an experience that feels special.

“We hear all the time that our hospitality sets us apart—that attention to detail that makes guests feel seen,” said Allen. Epic Grubbs, who works at the front desk and was the first internal promotion from Food & Beverage, echoes this sentiment. “Whether you’re here for work or for fun, we want you to have a moment to relax, so we do what we can to make that happen,” she said.

Mannon intentionally hires people like Grubbs who are warm, empathetic, and caring—it is a job centered on kindness and not transaction, and going the extra mile helps guests feel celebrated. She recalled a recent moment in which Grubbs learned about a couple’s anniversary and went out of her way to get the album with their wedding song on it for them. She also decorated the room. “Moments like that are why we’re here. Any hotel can have a restaurant or a bar. What sets us apart are the people,” said Mannon.

Schram remembered when the hotel helped an adoptive family and child celebrate meeting the biological parent—a moment that he said really defined the brand for him. “We’re more than just a bougie hotel,” he said. “We’re trying to make an impact on every person who walks through that door.”

That mentality goes behind guest service—it is present in the way they hold each other up too. Tylar Smith is a supervisor at Blue Collar Coffee who said he appreciated that his management encourages ideas from everyone on staff. Blue Collar General Manager Terese Reynolds even worked with him to display a watercolor he painted in the shop’s library nook. “It’s nice to feel seen and heard,” he said, which is something he tries to offer his employees too.

In the kitchen, the culture is grounded in integrity, transparency, and accountability. “I couldn’t walk into the kitchen and see one person standing while someone else was working furiously,” said Executive Chef Reno Rodriguez. “They just notice, and they help.”

Chef Rodriguez takes pride in developing cooks early in their career, and said that he’s seen many transition into “superstars.” Allen agreed and emphasized that multiple people on their team are good enough to take on executive chef roles.

“To see that development and hunger and passion grow, it brings out the same feeling as watching my son grow,” Chef Rodriguez said.

That shared energy makes the property feel alive—a creative project rather than a corporate machine, a sort of family. That’s exactly the goal, even for Baraboo diners. “It’s like a big family gathering,” said Chef Rodriguez.

The spirit of the midwestern supper club is communal, social, and unpretentious, which required Chef Rodriguez to, as he explained, “take the chef out of it”—stripping away ego and flash in favor of foundational, disciplined cooking. He called it “simplicity done exceptionally well” and said that Baraboo isn’t necessarily about reinvention but getting it right.

Up at Highlander, they play with this idea a bit, offering shared plates, appetizers, and cocktails that are more inventive, but still honor the solid fundamentals present throughout the hotel. On the eighth story rooftop, guests enjoy stunning sunsets and cozy blankets and fireplaces on chilly nights. “We’re one of the busiest bars in the state by volume, but our drinks are killer. To do that at the scale that we do, and that environment, is a lot of fun,” said Allen. “I think it is really special.”

Scale is something they specialize in—Allen said that the weekend brunch buffet is also exceptional, and the catering for special events also stuns. “The food that Chef Reno and his team puts out for events of this size never ceases to amaze me,” he said.

Event spaces, which can be used for everything from corporate events to weddings, include a large ballroom, smaller rooms named for Idaho cities, and a third of the sunset-facing patio space. Allen said that it is a special and photogenic venue, meant for making memories. “Between the uniqueness of the space, the hospitality, the planning, and the awesome culinary team, the eighth floor events are something to write home about,” he said.

Chef Rodriguez, and the larger brand, seem to value restraint and creativity in equal measures, resulting in sophistication that is refined and approachable. Like other Hotel Renegade leaders, Chef Rodriguez appreciates locality and respect for place, and he’s working on expanding his local partnerships. He’s not worried about competition; he believes that “a rising tide raises all ships.”

Schram sees Hotel Renegade as a sign of Boise’s evolution, which is luxurious, polished, and ambitious, but still retains character and authenticity. The space suggests Boise’s own coming of age—how the city is growing up without growing out of itself.

“I hope that Hotel Renegade and Baraboo put their own fingerprint on Boise—that there’s a mark left because of what we’ve done,” he said.

Hotel Renegade is poised to play a key role in shaping Boise’s next chapter, which is, in part, as a place worthy of world-class hospitality. The Geronimo brand isn’t something imposed on the city—it’s the city itself, seen through the Hotel Renegade lens: Western spirit, independent energy, and creative polish.

Prior to the hotel’s opening, Santa remembers that he would arrive early in the morning before sunrise. From the rooftop, he’d think about goals for the day, and, walking down each floor, he’d consider how people might move through the space–who they were, and what experiences they might bring. On the day they opened, staff scrambled to ready the space for a VIP guest, which they accomplished in exactly the amount of time they were afforded. After the chaos, Santa said, visibly moved, everyone gathered for a celebratory photo. “Now, everybody is working together to create moments that are special for our guests, but also special for each other,” he said. “When I see that sunrise or sunset, guests all around, I think, ‘wow, it’s actually here.’ This is really special.”