For Monica Smith, a long-time dream is becoming a reality as she prepares to open the Wild Pine Café and Grill at 651 US-30 in Soda Springs. Smith hopes the location will become a gathering place for local families, while also serving fresh and locally sourced food.
“I’ve been in food service for years, so running my own place has been a long-time dream,” Smith said. “What really pushed me to make the leap was seeing a genuine need in this community for a gathering place where families can eat for a good price every day of the week, including Sundays.”
The Wild Pine Café and Grill will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner and plans to emphasize fresh ingredients and traditional cooking methods. According to Smith, all food will be cooked in tallow instead of seed oils, and the restaurant will prioritize ingredients from Idaho farmers and regional producers when possible.
“Our goal is to source locally and regionally as much as possible, supporting Idaho farmers and producers,” Smith said. “The whole concept is built around knowing where your food comes from and keeping it real and clean.”
Smith is also committed to using fresh, and not frozen, meat whenever available. While Smith is keeping many menu items secret until the opening day, she said that customers can look forward to a large salad bar and outdoor barbecues on Fridays and Saturdays during the summer months. “I don’t want to give away our specials just yet,” Smith said. “You’ll have to come in and see what’s on the menu. I can say the community will love our new salad bar — it’s huge.”
The restaurant’s name and theme was inspired by the surrounding area of Soda Springs. “Wild Pine Café & Grill is solely owned by me — just one woman with a dream and a deep love for this community,” Smith said. “We’re a small, close-knit town tucked in the mountains, surrounded by pine trees and wide open land, and I wanted the name to reflect that — something that felt rooted here, like it belonged to this place as much as the people do.”
Opening a restaurant has presented more challenges for Smith beyond planning a menu. She described the process as a crash course in business ownership, from LLC formation, licensing and health department permits, and building kitchen operations from the ground up. “The paperwork alone is its own part-time job,” she said. “The biggest challenge has honestly been wearing every hat at once.”
Despite these challenges and hard work, Smith says that seeing the restaurant come together has made the effort worthwhile. “The most rewarding part is watching it come together piece by piece, knowing this community is going to have something really special,” she said.
The Wild Pine Café and Grill plans to operate from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. throughout the summer, with extended hours to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Smith expects to begin with a small staff, allowing the restaurant to maintain a tight-knit atmosphere and focus on quality.
Dining and Cooking