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UTAH'S BEST RESTAURANTS plus
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READERS' CHOICE
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contents
M A RCH/A PRIL 2018
FEATURES
61 DINING AWARDS 2018
BY MARY BROWN MALOUF
Utah’s 13 best restaurants, plus Blue Plate Special awards for pioneering local foodies.
76 FILM
RENAISSANCE BY GL E N WA RCHOL
Utah’s unparalleled landscape and tax breaks are enticing Hollywood back to the Beehive.
82 SPRING IN PHOTO ADAM FINKLE
Gucci Leather Cherry Pump ($1,150); Christian Louboutin Pigalle Spikes Flat, Namedroppers ($85); Convertible Clutch, Banana Republic ($44)
YOUR STEP BY JEANINE MILLER
Winter’s over. Time for kicky, colorful shoes.
MAGAZINE OF THE MOUNTAIN WEST
SALTLAKEMAGAZINE.COM
Dining Awards
TAKE FLIGHT NONSTOP FROM SLC TO EUROPE
NEW! SLM BLUE PLATE AWARDS
UTAH'S BEST RESTAURANTS plus
WINNERS OF THE 2018
READERS' CHOICE
on the cover
Take note: Here are Utah’s best restaurants and foodies. Pictured is Manoli’s traditional Greek Garides. Photo by Adam Finkle
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
contents
38
52 worth a trip
The world is just one nonstop flight from Salt Lake City. BY SUSAN LACKE
52
27 the hive
Utah’s growing opioid epidemic, navigating the new Vivint Smart Home Arena, Eden’s resident blacksmith, tips for a juice cleanse and much more!
42 statewide
GIV Group cracks the code of moderate-income housing that makes money. BY GLEN WARCHOL
47 biz
Utah’s Center for Assistive Technology creates innovative solutions for people with disabilities, and the University of Utah’s Lassonde Institute cultivates budding entrepreneurs. BY LOGAN MICKEL
56 outdoors
Share hiking’s pain and strain with animal packing. BY TONY GILL
89 a&e
Stephanie Mabey’s “haunted pop,” a home grown literary journal, and Hell’s Backbone Grill’s cook and coffee table book.
119 dining guide
The best of Salt Lake’s ever-growing and ever-changing dining scene. BY MARY BROWN MALOUF
154 bar fly
99
PARK CITY LIFE A spotlight on the National Ability Center, Park City’s Business Alliance, the new path towards an Arts and Cultural District, Cryotherapy and a new leader.
Don’t write them off as old school, these SLC bars are classics. BY GLEN WARCHOL
160 my turn
Where Are We Headed? BY JOHN SHUFF
volume 29 number 2 Salt Lake magazine (ISSN# 1524-7538) is published bimonthly (February, April, June, August, October and December) by Utah Partners Publishing, Ltd. Editorial, advertising and administrative offices: 515 S. 700 East, Suite 3i, SLC, UT 84102. Telephone 801-485-5100; fax 801-485-5133. Subscriptions: One year ($24.95); for shipping outside the U.S. add $45. Toll-free subscription number: 877-553-5363. Periodicals Postage Paid at Salt Lake City, Utah, and additional mailing offices. Copyright 2018, JES Publishing Corp. No whole or part of the contents may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission of Salt Lake magazine, excepting individually copyrighted articles and photographs. Manuscripts accompanied by SASE are accepted, but no responsibility will be assumed for unsolicited contributions. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to Salt Lake magazine, PO Box 820, Boca Raton, FL 33429.
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ROSE WAGNER
PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
THE MAGAZINE FOR UTAH PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER
Margaret Mary Shuff EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Mary Brown Malouf M ANAGING EDITOR
Glen Warchol
A S S O C I AT E E D I T O R
Ashley Szanter
CON TR IBU TING E DITORS
Susan Lacke Christie Marcy
PA R K C I T Y L I F E E D I T O R
Vanessa Conabee
PA R K C I T Y L I F E A S S O C I AT E E D I T O R
Tony Gill
EDITORIAL INTERNS
Heather Wardle Addison Doxey
WR ITING & E DITING CON TR IBU TORS
Tony Gill, Jeremy Pugh, Andrea Peterson ART DIRECTOR
Jeanine Miller SENIOR GR APHIC DESIGNER
Jarom West
S TA F F P H O T O G R A P H E R
Adam Finkle
PHOTOGR A PH Y CON TR IBU TOR
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D I R E C T O R O F O P E R AT I O N S & P R O D U C T I O N
Damon Shorter
It’s fresh. It’s current. It’s now. Presenting a generation of new dance-makers who articulate the physical and emotional energy of contemporary life. Featuring choreography by RDT alumni Francisco Gella, Sarah Donohue, Angela Bachero-Kelleher, and the winner of REGALIA 2017 - Nichele Van Portfleet.
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24
editor’s letter
Meaning enhances flavor. Humans are natural storytellers—we understand ideas better via narrative. We comprehend our lives as a narrative. And we appreciate art—poetry, painting, dance, even cuisine—more when we can construct a story around it. Anthropologists and sociologists tell us that stories are patterns, and the human brain is designed to detect patterns because there we find meaning. So that’s what we do at Salt Lake
magazine: tell stories. In this issue, we bring you stories of the past— remember Pop Jenks ice cream stand? (p.116) Of the future— imagine how UCAT developed baby equipment for conjoined twins. (p.47) And of the present— how one company is trying to make low-income housing profitable. (p. 42) Stories about how and where we’re going places—nonstop to Europe or donkey hiking in Arizona
(p. 51) and what we’re going to be wearing. (p. 82) One of the most intense forms of storytelling, filmmaking, is celebrated every year at the Sundance Film Festival, and Glen Warchol’s look at the reviving business of movie making in the Beehive is a story about how we make stories. (p. 76) Getting a little meta, aren’t we? To get back to more basic subjects, in the March/April issue, Salt Lake magazine announces the winners of our Dining Awards. There’s a story behind every restaurant we mention. It’s not just about deliciousness anymore. Larger stories of human hunger, human kindness and planetary resources thread their way through concepts of comfort, service and style. Understanding the meaning of that larger story adds extra appreciation to every bite we eat.
PHOTO ADAM FINKLE
Mary Brown Malouf
S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M | M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8
Perfect pairing .
Award-winning restaurants and world-class skiing.
JUNE 16, 2018 PARK CITY’S CELEBRATION OF FOOD AND MUSIC
Park City’s biggest outdoor dinner party offering fabulous food, drink and live music while seated in the middle of Main Street. Park City’s best restaurants will showcase their culinary talents in an open-air community celebration.
www.ParkCityRestaurants.com
the
hive PEOPLE | TRENDS | TALK
By the Numbers . . . . . Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hot List . . . . . . . . . . . . How To . . . . . . . . . . . . Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chatter . . . . . . . . . . . . . State Wide . . . . . . . . . . #loveutah . . . . . . . . . .
28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44
Desire Lines BY ASHLEY SZANTER
PHOTO MOLLY KADERKA
W
ith Utah's unparalleled landscape under threat, explore our complicated relationship with nature through the untouched beauty of contemporary landscapes captured by UMOCA's Desire Lines. Running through May 26, visit utahmoca.org for more information. Hubris of Orion by Molly Kaderka
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
the hive / HEALTH
Ready to spring clean your diet? SHIMMIN’S TIPS FOR SUCCESS: • If you’re new to cleansing, start with a beginner cleanse, which includes sweeter, more satisfying juices. Some even allow for light meals. • Resist the urge for “one last feast” before your cleanse. Instead, gradually reduce or eliminate red meat, alcohol and heavily processed foods in the days leading up to your cleanse. • Be realistic. “If you enter a cleanse with the mindset that it’s a quick one-time magical event, you’re going to be disappointed.” A cleanse gives you a push down the path of wellness, but it’s going to be up to you to keep the momentum going with a healthy lifestyle.
S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M | M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8
Spring Clean Your Diet A JUICE CLEANSE can get you back on the path of health. BY SUSAN LACKE
W
ith a belly full of champagne on New Year’s Eve, you declared 2018 was going to be the year you were going to get fitter, slimmer and healthier. Likely, that resolution only lasted as long as your hangover: Research out of the University of Scranton says only 8 percent of people actually achieve their New Year’s goals. It’s not too late to join the 8
percent, says Brittany Shimmin of Vive Juicery. With the overindulgence of the holidays solidly in the rearview mirror, spring is a perfect time to hit the reset button with a juice cleanse. “A juice cleanse is simply a liquid fast in which you abstain from solid foods for 1-5 days,” explains Shimmin. “Replacing your regular meals with nutrient-dense juice gives your digestive system a well-deserved break
from processing toxins, fats and other components of your diet that take a lot of work to sort out.” This break can be the perfect way to start a healthier lifestyle. “Cleansing allows us to examine what we put into our bodies and how it makes us feel,” says Shimmin. “This can lead to conquering cravings, identifying foods we may be sensitive to and experiencing first-hand how brilliant nutrition makes you feel.”
PHOTO ADAM FINKLE
38
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40
the hive / CHATTER
EXPRESS YOURSELF
The language of social media comes to life. BY SUSAN LACKE
The generation gap in language is nothing new: Adults and kids have long lamented that the other just doesn’t get it. Surely, they are speaking different languages. Nowhere is this more evident than in the way we use smartphones: One group prefers to dial a number for a chat and the other can communicate entire paragraphs via emojis. The smiley faces, hearts and colorful icons serve as a shorthand in text messages and social media.
Though most simply shake their head and complain about “those damn kids” or “those old geezers,” the Hill Aerospace Museum in the town of Roy has found a way to bring both together in a way both groups will understand: an emoji scavenger hunt. Using emojis as clues, families can seek out certain aircraft—the Grandpa emoji plus a waving hand equals “Old Shakey,” a C-124 cargo
aircraft. The idea itself is a cross-generational collaboration between Education Specialist Mark Standing and his summer interns from Utah colleges and universities. “The clues are all awesome, very clever,” says Robb Alexander, Executive Director at the Aerospace Heritage Foundation. “Museum patrons—kids and adults alike—have really loved doing this together.”
In Utah, you’ve got to take a clear and vocal side in the Holy War between the U and BYU. Luckily, you can trash-talk using emojis. Flash the U with the Umoji app from the University of Utah, or Rep the Y with a BYU Emoji Keyboard; both are available on iTunes and Google Store.
THE BOOK OF MORMON And so it came to pass that the LDS church got in on the emoji trend, too. Mormojis, developed by Smithfield-based developers Mormon Buzzz, aims to bring Latter Day Saints to modern day communication with an emoji keyboard that includes Nephi, The Book of Mormon and those ubiquitous name tags.
If Utah had a state emoji, what would it be? A 2015 study from SwiftKey looked at the most popular emojis in all 50 states: Hawaiians, not surprisingly, use the surfer emoji the most, while the pants emoji is king in Maryland (we’re still trying to figure that one out). In Utah, we’re all about the sweet stuff, using the lollipop emoji most frequently.
S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M | M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8
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We asked three Salt Lakers, “What is your one essential record to have on vinyl?” With Record Store Day on April 21, local stores suggest a “must have” list.
UTAH WEIRD
PHOTOS ADAM FINKLE
A face on Ensign Peak?
“Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of The Moon.’ This is a quintessential example of what vinyl brings to the sonic table. From wide appeal (45 million sold) to sonic variety and dynamics (the clocks on ‘Time’ and opening to ‘Money’), nothing makes your ears pop like this classic. It’s truly an impossible question, but I have to mention Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller.’ This is not even a conversation without it.” BRANDON ANDERSON, GRAYWHALE ENTERTAINMENT
“Our choice is Joni Mitchell’s ‘Blue.’ It’s arguably one of the top five albums ever recorded. It is timeless and just as impactful today as it was when it was released in 1971. It has simple arrangements and focuses on honest, relatable stories. Vinyl is the way to enjoy it as the warmth, needle drops and audible rotations make it that much more honest.” KYLEE HALLOWS AND BLAKE LUNDELL, LAVENDER VINYL
“GNOD - Infinity Machines (2015 Rocket Recordings). This is an essential record everybody should hear. GNOD is a band from Manchester, UK. This album is their masterpiece. The vinyl edition is a triple LP that clocks in just under two hours.” -ADAM & ALANA TYE, DIABOLICAL RECORDS
Any Salt Laker can tell you the history of Ensign Peak, just north of downtown. When Brigham Young first arrived in the valley, he climbed the hill with some followers. They considered it “a good place to raise an ensign.” But in 1918, Mary Elizabeth Downey of the State Library, noticed a face on the rock outcrop. With the cultural insensitivity of the time, she said: “Tourists would be delighted to be shown this phenomenon of ‘The Laughing Irishman.’ He is standing guard over Ensign Peak as a sentry and is laughing at us little folk, working like ants in the great city below.” Decades later, retired Deseret News editor Ray Boren photographed Ensign Peak and did see a face. But he found it resembles a St. Bernard dog. No word on whether the dog was laughing.
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
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PHOTO COURTESY SOLE CASE
The Sole of Lassonde . 48 UCAT changes lives . . . 49
Sole Case wants to take your sneaker game to the next level.
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
the biz
Pierre Lassonde’s [founder of the Lassonde Institute] ten rules of life: 1. Say “thank you.” 2. Never miss an occasion to throw a party! 3. What do you want most in life? 4. Live your passion. 5. Feed your soul. 6. Explore your faith. 7. See for yourself that the Earth is round. 8. Give faith a fighting chance. 9. Leave a better world behind. 10. Keep your speeches under ten minutes!
S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M | M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8
Got Sole? LASSONDE STUDIOS helps startups like Sole Case thrive. BY LOGAN MICKEL
Charles Rind, founder of Sole Case, doesn’t know how many pairs of shoes he owns. “The number I usually tell people is 100,” he laughs from his office in Lassonde Studios, overlooking the U of U campus. “It changes because I have to sell them to pay for the business.” That’s right. The founder of Sole Case has to sell his shoe collection to finance his own business—which makes stackable display cases for shoes. The cases sell for $55 each and have found success among fellow “Sneakerheads.” Born in South Korea and raised in Seattle, Rind is just one example of the motivated talent
brought to SLC through the U of U’s Lassonde Institute. In the past 16 years, Lassonde has helped launch more than 730 student startups. Just last year, the Institute completed their new 5-story residential hall—Lassonde Studios. It’s a lot like any other dorm you might come across: sofas, tables, cafe, prototyping and printing labs, 3-D printers and a laser cutter. Okay, Lassonde is nothing like any other dorm, which is why Architectural Digest named it one of the nine best new university buildings in the world. Just to earn a spot, Sole Case had to go through an
exhaustive application process. Rind says it’s been worth it, as Lassonde offers a number of resources for the aspiring entrepreneur. The most useful is access to experts, who counsel students in law, taxes and other challenges you don’t see on Shark Tank. Is there anything Rind wants aspiring startups to know? “Entrepreneurship sucks,” he jokes. “You definitely have to want it. But it’s more than just wanting it. You definitely have to put a lot of dedication and sacrifices into your company.” And sometimes that means selling your own shoes.
PHOTOS COURTESY SOLE CASE
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Tech for Tots UCAT’S quest to make life easier for the disabled. BY LOGAN MICKEL
Parents struggle to find the right car seat or jumper for their child. Imagine going through that process with conjoined twins. It’s no easy task; Amazon doesn’t exactly have a “Conjoined Toddler” department. (I checked.) That’s when you turn to the experts at the Utah Center for Assistive Technology (UCAT). This intrepid group is devoted to helping disabled persons reach their potential through the use of technology. The jumper for conjoined twins was just one of many unique requests fielded by Director Michael Wollenzien
and his team. “Our whole goal is to keep clients happy at home, keep them independent and help them interact with their environment,” he says. The jumper required a month of work. Measurements and construction had to be precise. While the central brace came from a hammock stand purchased online, the platform, seat, cushioning and harnesses were built in-house. Initially the twins objected to the jumper, but after some quick modifications by Assistive Technician Specialist Kevin Christensen, they embraced it. “Even at the
last minute, Kevin was scrambling around with Styrofoam and the sewing machine,” Wollenzien says. The jumper is just one example of the spectrum of ways UCAT serves clients. Cases range from infants to the elderly, from breathactivated wheelchairs to Smart Pens for high school students with ADHD. One of their more popular projects, Go Baby Go Cars, modifies electric toy cars to give children with mobility challenges independent movement. This typically involves attaching a car seat to the vehicle and rigging up an accelerator (imagine a throne sticking out of that Barbie Corvette the neighborhood 5-year-old cruises in and you’ll get the picture). The best part of the job? Christensen doesn’t even have to ponder: “It’s having someone who thought it couldn’t be done and watching them leave the building with a smile on their face.”
UCAT by the numbers: 1996
Unofficial start of UCAT
456
Number of referrals served last year
500+
Number of anticipated referrals this year
$15-20K
Cost of retail motorized wheelchair
$400
Cost of motorized wheelchair from UCAT
300 PHOTOS COURTESY UCAT
Approximate number of wheelchairs in UCAT storage
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
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THE BIGGER PICTURE: WHAT DO WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT FOOD? BY MARY BROWN MALOUF
PHOTOS BY ADAM FINKLE
Evaluating restaurants used to be pretty simple—take the food on the plate, the way it was served and the ambiance in which it was served, add it up and you could express your opinion in a number of stars. But as our understanding of cuisine has broadened to include issues of ethical sourcing, environmental sensitivity, politics and cultural authenticity, the question of which are the best restaurants has become more complicated and subjective than ever. With all that in mind, these are Salt Lake magazine’s picks for the top restaurants in Utah in 2017.
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
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FUSION
Cultural “Italian food” has been intertwined with the “American food” scene since Columbian times—consider how many Italian dishes are based on ingredients native to the Americas. At Stoneground Kitchen, Chef Justin Shifflet considers this culinary marriage daily and brings American flair to Old World classics. 249 E. 400 South, SLC, 801-364-1368
HERITAGE Historically, Salt Lake City’s Greek community has been the necessary leavening in a controlled monoculture. As Utah has become more diverse, the Greek influence here has expanded. Greek restaurants are no longer just a nostalgic taste of the homeland; they are ambassadors of a contemporary culture. No one does this better than Manoli’s. 402 E. Harvey Milk Blvd, SLC, 801-532-3760
S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M | M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8
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INNOVATION You know the old saw about too many chefs? Chefs Michael Bloch, Nick Fahs and David Barboza are proving it wrong. At Table X, a brain trust runs the kitchen instead of a single ego. The common bond is a shared zeal for innovation combined with a deep respect for traditional methods. The result is a cuisine unique in Utah. 1457 E. 3350 South, SLC, 385-528-3712 M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
Salt Lake City Veterans Memorial Park April 28, 2018 PRESENTED LOCALLY BY
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Registration now open! Bike MS: June 23-24, 2018 Cache Valley Fairgrounds PRESENTED LOCALLY BY
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90 92 93 94
An Immeasurable Place Portrait of an endangered wilderness PRESIDENT CLINTON designated Utah’s Grand Staircase-Escalante a national monument, but Blake Spalding and Jen Castle put it on the world’s culinary map. Their restaurant, Hell’s Backbone Grill, on the grounds of Boulder Mountain Lodge, has received kudos from The New York Times, The Salt Lake Tribune, Oprah, The Wall Street Journal, Sunset magazine, National Geographic
and received awards from Salt Lake magazine, many times. My friend Ted Scheffler at City Weekly named it restaurant of the year. The two chefs were semi-finalists for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef in the Southwest award in 2017. Recently, the two brought out their second cookbook, This Immeasurable Place–a companion to their first book. This is more than a
cookbook, though. It is an art book, and it is a permanent record. Take your time with the images. Taken by photographer Ace Kvale, there are images of food and the Hell’s Backbone farm, but photo after photo portrays the rare and extraordinary beauty of this fragile landscape, an extraordinary and beautiful wilderness haven in the middle of a crowded human world.
M A R / A P R 2 0 1 8 | S A LT L A K E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
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a&e
Utah’s Queen of Haunted Pop Y
S T R E C N CO LOC A L
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From zombies to the LDS church, MABEY’S MUSIC breaks boundaries. BY ASHLEY SZANTER PHOTOS BY NATALIE SIMPSON
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tephanie Mabey’s fame came on slowly and over an extended period of time. Her’s is an uncommon story in a time when internet fame often comes on quickly and unexpectedly. Known online for her two singles, “The Zombie Song” and “Glorious,” Mabey has been writing music since the tender age of 14.
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“I always embraced the idea of being a songwriter, but never thought of myself as an artist because it didn’t feel safe,” she says. Mabey started using music to make sense of a world in which she saw herself as an outcast. “I felt really alienated as a kid, so that’s why these outsider characters really resonate with me,” she says. And what character could be more of an outsider than a zombie? “I saw my little brothers playing Left 4 Dead, and they were so into it. Just that, juxtaposed with [the popularity of] Twilight, and then picking up The Zombie Survival Guide, it just solidified it for me,” she says. “The Zombie Song,” released in 2009, now has almost 6 million views, with a remixed version of the song sitting at just over 16 million. But her real taste of worldwide success came with David Archuleta’s cover of her original song, “Glorious.” The LDS Church solicited original tunes from songwriters of different faith backgrounds and used Archuleta’s “Glorious” cover to promote its 2014 documentary Meet the Mormons. Mabey didn’t intend for the song to have religious undertones, but it never bothered her to have the Mormon Church use it. “What matters to me is that people can take something from what I write. What that is doesn’t matter, and it can mean something different to everyone who hears it,” says Mabey. “David has a beautiful voice, and his delivery of the song is gorgeous.” Mabey’s music deviates from a lot of the indie and folk sounds dominating Utah’s music scene. While
describing her music as “haunted pop,” she avoids focusing on having a specific sound. “Having ‘The Zombie Song’ and ‘Glorious’ as my most well known songs represents the wide range of music I work in,” she says. Though she is finding more time for self-promotion, Mabey doesn’t want to corner herself into a niche. “I’m more interested in asking, ‘did I create something that can help someone?’” For now, Mabey is focused on releasing a series of new singles rather than an album. “I’m more interested in releasing a song as soon as its finished. I like sharing my music with people as soon as I can,” she says. Her newest single, “Stop Motion,” dropped January 1 and features a completely animated music video. As to where her career’s going: “I don’t have an endgame as far as what it means for me to be an artist. I feel like I keep putting effort into moving forward and showing up in the best way that I can.” You can find Mabey’s music on Youtube and Spotify or on stephaniemabey.com.
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Where? Most of Mabey’s music ends up accompanying other media. “A lot of what I do has been based on TV and film placements or more in an online space,” she says. Besides her viral hits, you can find her music on HBO’s The Leftovers and the Overwatch short “Rise and Shine,” which got over 5 million views its first day. saltlakemagazine.com/ small-lake
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2018 Salt Lake magazine Dining Award Winner
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Quintessential Utah
Grand America Grand America Hotel’s Garden Cafe is one of the dinner stars of the city, and the kitchen makes sure other meals here are up to the same standard. The setting here is traditionally elegant but don’t be intimidated. The food shows sophisticated invention, but you can also get a great sandwich or burger. 555 S. Main St., SLC, 801-258-6708. EGN ININ
HSL The initials stand for
“Handle Salt Lake”—Chef Bri2A 018 D
WAR ar Handly made his name with his Park city restaurant, Handle, and now he’s opened a second restaurant down the hill. The place splits the difference between “fine” and “casual” dining; the innovative food is excellent and the atmosphere is casually convivial. The menu is unique—just trust this chef. It’s all excellent. 418 E. 200 South, SLC, 801-539-9999. EGLLL – MLL
La Caille Utah’s original glamor girl has regained her luster. The grounds are as beautiful as ever; additions are functional, like a greenhouse, grapevines and vegetable gardens, all supplying the kitchen and cellar. The interior has been refreshed and the menu
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Log Haven Certainly Salt
FA M E Lake’s most picturesque
restaurant, the old log cabin is pretty in every season. Chef Dave Jones has a sure hand with American vernacular and is not afraid of frying although he also has a way with healthy, low-calorie, high-energy food. And he’s an expert with local and foraged foods. 6451 E. Millcreek Canyon Road, SLC, 801-272-8255. EGN – O
New Yorker Will Pliler has been in the New Yorker’s kitchen since the getgo. His cooking is a mix of traditional flavors and modern twists. A good example is the BLT salad which had us scraping the plate most inelegantly. Café at the New Yorker offers smaller plates—perfect for pre-theater dining. 60 W. Market St., SLC, 801-363-0166. EO Pago Tiny, dynamic and food-driven, Pago’s ingredients are locally sourced and reimagined regularly. That’s why it’s often so crowded and that’s what makes it one of the best restaurants in the state. The list of wines by the glass is great, but the artisanal cocktails are also a treat. 878 S. 900 East, SLC, 801532-0777. EGM – N Pallet As Portlandia as SLC gets, this warehouse-chic bistro provides the perfect setting for lingering over cocktails or wine and seasonally inventive food, whether you’re in the mood for a nibble or a meal. 237 S. 400 West, SLC, 801-935-4431. EGM ININ
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Dining Award Hall Of Fame Winner
decisions about food based on sustainability and the belief that good food should be available to everybody. Using a Burgundian imagination, he turns out dishes with a sophisticated heartiness three times a day. 202 S. Main St., SLC, 801-363-5454. EGLLL – MLL
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Bambara Nathan Powers makes
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Provisions With Chef Tyler
Stokes’ bright, fresh approach 2A 018 D
WAR to American craft cuisine (and a bright, fresh atmosphere to eat it in), Provision strives for handmade and local ideals executed with style and a
Listings
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little humor. 3364 S. 2300 East, SLC, 801-410-4046. EGM – N
Shallow Shaft A genuine taste of Utah’s old-school ski culture—rustic and refined, cozy and classy. A classic. The excellent wine list offers thoughtful pairings. Alta, 801-742-2177. EN ININ
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GUIDE LEGEND
AMERICAN FINE DINING
by Chef Billy Sotelo has today’s tastes in mind. Treat yourself. 9565 Wasatch Blvd., Sandy, 801-942-1751. EGMM
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Review visits are anonymous, and all expenses are paid by Salt Lake magazine.
SALT LAKE CITY & THE WASATCH FRONT
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This selective guide has no relationship to any advertising in the magazine.
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A select list of the best restaurants in Utah, curated and edited by Mary Brown Malouf.
Table X A trio of chefs col-
laborate on a forward-think2A 018 D
ing thoroughly artisanal menu—vegetables are treated as creatively as proteins (smoked sunchoke, chile-cured pumpkin, barbecued cannelini beans,) bread and butter are made in-house and ingredients are the best (Solstice chocolate cake.) Expect surprises. 1457 E. 3350 South, SLC, 385-528-3712. EGM – N WAR
AMERICAN CASUAL Avenues Bistro on Third Note:
this tiny antique storefront has new owners—Chef Mike Ritchie and Steve Garner, proprietors of Fireside on Regent. It will be exciting to see what they will cook up in this favorite Avenues spot. Stay tuned. 564 E. Third Ave., SLC, 801-831-5409. EGL
Blue Lemon Blue Lemon’s sleek interior and high-concept food have city style. Informal but chic, many-flavored but healthy, Blue Lemon’s unique take on food and service is a happy change from downtown’s food-as-usual. 55 W. South Temple, SLC, 801-328-2583. GL – M Blue Plate Diner Formica
tables, linoleum floors, Elvis kitsch and tunes on the jukebox make this an all-American fave, along with comfort food classics like pancakes, patty melts and chicken-fried steak in sausage gravy over smashed potatoes and burgers. 2041 S. 2100 East, SLC, 801-463-1151. GL
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dining guide
Simple recipes that start with one crottin of goat cheese
TIP: DEEP FREEZE
Fresh goat cheese is great to have on hand. Fortunately, you can freeze it. Doublewrap it in plastic, then place it in a freezer bag. Date it. It will keep up to three months. Thaw it in the refrigerator.
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GOAT CHEESE
Get Your Goat
Easy ways to savor and serve fresh, flavorful goat cheese.
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pring has sprung and for many of us that means a heightened desire for fresher, more flavor-forward foods. Enter goat cheese. Hardly new on the scene, goat cheese first became popular in
American cooking during the 1980s (thank you Laura Chenel and Alice Waters). Today, it is a standard ingredient. Besides being a popular addition to curated cheese plates, goat cheese and its farmyard aroma,
creamy texture and tangy taste complements many other foods from meat to fruit to vegetables, making it a go-to flavor for many chefs this season and throughout the year. Continuing
PHOTO ADAM FINKLE
• Mix with a Tbsp. of olive oil and fresh thyme. Or basil. Or tarragon. • Turn on your processor, drop in a garlic clove and a little salt. • Put a crottin and 3 tablespoons of oil-packed dried tomatoes with oil in the food processor and blend. Other great recipes: • For a warm snack, stuff mushrooms or artichoke hearts with the goat cheese mixture and pop in the oven for a few minutes. • You can also warm some raspberry jam with some thyme leaves in the microwave and pour it over a cake of goat cheese.
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Citris Grill Most dishes come in either
Copper Kitchen A welcome addition to Holladay, Ryan Lowder’s Copper Kitchen reprises his downtown Copper Onion and Copper Common success with variations. The menu is different, but the heartiness is the same; the interior is different but the easy, hip atmosphere is the same, and the decibel levels are very similar. 4640 S. 2300 East, Holladay, 385-237-3159. EGL – N Copper Onion An instant hit when
it opened, constant crowds attest to the continuing popularity of Ryan Lowder’s
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“hearty” or “petite” portion sizes. This means you can enjoy a smoked salmon pizzetta or fried rock shrimp appetizer and then a petite order of fire-roasted pork chops with adobo rub and black bean–corn salsa. Expect crowds. 3977 S. Wasatch Blvd, SLC, 801-466-1202. EGM
Copper Onion. Though the hearty, flavorful menu changes regularly, some favorites never leave: the mussels, the burger, the ricotta dumplings. Bank on the specials. 111 E. Broadway, SLC, 801-355-3282. EGL – N D
Cafe Niche Anytime is the best time to eat here. Food comes from farms all over northern Utah and the patio is a favorite in fine weather. 779 E. 300 South, SLC, 801-433-3380. EGL – N
Cucina Deli Cucina has
added fine restaurant to its 2A 018 D
WAR list of descriptors—good for lunch or a leisurely dinner. The menu has recently expanded to include small plates and substantial beer and wineby-the-glass lists. 1026 E. Second Ave., SLC, 801-322-3055. EGM
The Dodo It’s hard even to update the review of this venerable bistro. So much stays the same. But, like I always say, it’s nice to know where to get quiche when you want it. And our raspberry crepes were great. Yes, I said crepes. From the same era as quiche. 1355 E. 2100 South, SLC, 801-486-2473. EGM Em’s Restaurant Housed in an old
Capitol Hill storefront with a valley view, much of Em’s appeal is its unique charm. For lunch, try the sandwiches on
ciabatta. At dinner, the kitchen moves up the food chain. 271 N. Center St., SLC, 801-596-0566. EGM
Epic American food here borrows from other cuisines. Save room for pineapple sorbet with stewed fresh pineapple. 707 E. Fort Union Blvd., Midvale, 801-748-1300. EGM Hub & Spoke Scott Evans’ (Pago, Finca) diner serves the traditional three a day with an untraditional inventiveness applied to traditionall recipes. Like, artisanal grilled cheese with spiked milkshakes. And mac and cheese made with spaetzle. Breakfast is king here–expect a line. 1291 S. 1100 East, SLC, 801-487-0698. EGM Left Fork Grill Every booth comes
with its own dedicated pie shelf. Because no matter what you’re eating— liver and onions, raspberry pancakes, meatloaf or a reuben—you’ll want to save room for pie. Tip: Order your favorite pie first, in case they run out. Now serving beer and wine. 68 W. 3900 South, SLC, 801-266-4322. EGL
COMFORT FOOD Order your stuffed French toast online to go and gift your lover with breakfast in bed.
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dining guide
FLAVOR FACTS
Look for local fresh goat cheeses like those from Shepherd’s Cheese and Drake’s Family Farms if you want a milder flavor. The “goatyness” of goat cheese has several causes. Goat’s milk is naturally homogenized, so it ages faster than cow’s milk—as it ages it gets “goatier.” Some say, the milk is naturally stronger in flavor if the bucks are allowed to live with the does year round. Goat’s milk is closer to human milk than cow’s milk, so it is’s better tolerated by those with a dairy sensitivity.
GOAT CHEESE
CHEVRE 101
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hevre is what we most of us think of when we say “goat cheese.” People have been making this fresh cheese for thousands of years. Goats were domesticated before cows and cheese keeps longer than milk, especially when treated with salt, so chevre (French for she-goat) was the perfect food for
LET’S TALK TORTAS
Chevre layered with other foods is called a torta. They’re easy and impressive to make and allow for nearly endless improvisation. Chopped smoked salmon? Chopped dried apricots? Chopped sundried tomatoes? You get the idea. Cut a log of goat cheese into one-inch slices. Drain excess oil from pesto, then reassemble the log with pesto between slices. Wrap in plastic and chill. Line a mini loaf pan with plastic wrap, then alternate layers of softened goat cheese with tapenade. Chill until firm. Line a small terrine mold with plastic wrap. Mix equal parts cream cheese and goat cheese with crushed oregano, then layer the cheese with drained pimentos. Chill until firm. Cut a crottin in half horizontally. Thickly spread your choice of filling on the bottom half, then replace the top. Chill until firm.
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nomads in the Middle East. It is one of the most versatile of cheeses—chefs crumble it on salads, stuff it in chicken, mix it with herbs and oil to make a spread, coat it in crumbs and bake it, even add sugar and egg to make goat cheesecake. Find it in logs, tubs or the classic French crottin, a cake of cheese about 2-3 ounces.
PHOTO ADAM FINKLE
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Little America Coffee Shop Little America has been the favorite gathering place of generations of native Salt Lakers. Weekdays, you’ll find the city power players breakfasting in the coffee shop. 500 S. Main Street, SLC, 801-596-5704. EGL – M
Lucky H Bar & Grille The classic
350 Main Street Park City, Utah 84060 435-649-3140 For menus visit 350main.com
hotel restaurant is aimed at its clientele—generations of guests. Thus, the new menu is full of familiar dishes. Chef Bernard Gotz knows his diners and besides offering new items like housemade gravlax and escargots, the men includes plenty of meat and potatoes. Little America Hotel, 500 S. Main St., SLC, 801-596-5700. EGL – N
Martine One of downtown’s most charming spaces, the atmosphere here trumps City Creek ’s new eateries. A new executive chef and chef de cuisine have updated the menu to great effect. 22 E. 100 South, SLC, 801-363-9328. EN Meditrina Meditrina has secured its place as a great spot for wine and apps, wine and supper or wine and a late-night snack. And their Wine Socials are a habit for convivial types. Check meditrinaslc.com for the schedule. 165 W. 900 South, SLC, 801-485-2055. EGLM Moochie’s This itty-bitty eatery/
take-out joint is the place to go for authentic cheeses teaks made with thinly sliced steak and griddled onions glued together with good ol’ American cheese and wrapped in a big, soft so-called French roll. 232 E. 800 South, SLC, 801596-1350 or 364-0232; 7725 S. State St., Midvale, 801-562-1500. GL
WELCOME TO THE CANTINA...
Oasis Cafe Oasis has a New Age
vibe, but the food’s only agenda is taste. Lots of veg options, but meat, too. The German pancakes are wonderful, but the evening menu suits the space— imaginative and refreshing. 151 S. 500 East, SLC, 801-322-0404. EGL – M
Pig and a Jelly Jar Terrific break-
fasts, but southern-seasoned suppers are good, too. Great chicken and waffles, local eggs, and other breakfasts are served all day, with homestyle additions at lunch and supper on Thursdays through Sundays. 410 E. 900 South, SLC, 385-202-7366. 227 25th St., Ogden, 801-605-8400. GM
1059 E 900 S SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84105 (801) 658-5859 www.alamexocantina.com
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21 & OVER BARS
bar
Forget about navigating the state’s labyrinth of liquor laws— the more than 20 bars and pubs listed here prioritize putting a drink in your hand, although most of them serve good food, too. Restricted to 21 and over. (Be prepared to show your I.D., whatever your age. This is Utah, after all.)
FLY
LIBATIONS | BARS
All bars listed in the Salt Lake Bar Fly have been vetted and chosen based on quality of beverage, food, atmosphere and service.
JUNIOR’S TAVERN
Proudly Old School
This selective guide has no relationship to any advertising in the magazine. Review visits are anonymous, and all expenses are paid by Salt Lake magazine.
In a world overrun with hipsters and artisan cocktails, CLASSIC SLC NEIGHBORHOOD BARS survive and thrive. When you walk into Junior’s Tavern downtown, you’re greeted by four booths, a dozen bar stools, a solitary TV and a pool table. The guy next to you is chasing a shot of vodka with Guinness and watching the Saints squeak one out against the Panthers. The crowd includes Millennials, Gen-Xers and codgers, mostly drinking beer. Missing are watermelon cocktails, sriracha margaritas, limoncello collins and you won’t find autumnal gin or chocolate bitters behind the bar. “I wanted the kind of old-school bar that exists in every other town—except Salt Lake City,” says owner Greg Arata. “Salt Lake is a weird town.” By that,
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Arata is referring to downtown’s glut of hand-made cocktail lounges with the dive bars only in its periphery, as much as the demonization of drinking. “I wanted a neighborhood joint,” he says. Junior’s is one of several classic bars that survive and prosper, despite eschewing “hip,” as defined by highfalutin’ cocktails and craft beers. Everyone knows your name, of course, but they won’t tell. Junior’s, a local landmark, opened in 1975 as a beer-only tavern across the street from the old City Library (now The Leonardo). In 2005, Arata moved to the heart of downtown at 300 South and got a full liquor license and started
booking jazz groups. But he proudly detours from the growing “hand-made” cocktail route. “Some of our bartenders will make some fancy drinks—I don’t,” he says. “It’s not our bread and butter, and I, personally, don’t like to pay $10 for a drink.” Still, Junior’s is anything but a dive. Its regular drinking crowd includes the director of the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, rare-book dealer Ken Sanders and Utah historian Will Bagley. “You can voice your opinion here without somebody getting pissed off and wanting to fight you,” Arata says. “And women don’t have to worry about being hit on.”
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BY GLEN WA RCHOL
155 W 200 S SALT LAKE CITY, UT
801. 532.2068
EVERYDAY 11 A - 1 A
DISCOVER SALT LAKE’S BIG CITY BAR
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bar fly
Aerie Thanks to floor-to-ceiling
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windows, diners can marvel at nature’s magnificent handiwork while feasting from the sushi bar. The menu is global, and the scene is energetic—with live music some nights. Cliff Lodge, Snowbird Resort, 801-933-2160 EG O
EX-WIFE’S PLACE
Neighborhood Joints Older than dirt and never heard of a website. MURPHY’S BAR, vaguely Irish-themed, a “Step down in social clubs,” and prime stop for downtown wage slaves, 160 Main, SLC DUFFY’S TAVERN, exceptional eats, including one of the best French dips in the city, 932 Main, SLC TAP ROOM, your best bet is to keep your drinks simple, like beer and shots, 2021 S. Windsor St., Sugar House EX-WIFE’S PLACE, a favorite of U of U kids and after-hour restaurant workers who love the pool tables and pin-ball, 465 S. 700 East, SLC
Shot and a Beer A classic of neighborhood Northeastern U.S. bars, the shot and a beer sometimes called a boiler maker (a shot of any whiskey dropped into a mug of beer) by amateurs. The traditional miner or steelworker shot and beer involves A) a glass of beer and B) a shot of rye whiskey. Variations include shots of scotch, bourbon, vodka, gin or tequila. Or a shot and a “splash of beer.” Or sometimes no beer at all. (By the way, so-called “Car Bombs,” with Irish Cream are for lightweights.) For many bartenders, a shot and a beer is their endof-shift drink—take from that what you will. If you are a complete newbie, here’s Salt Lake magazine’s recipe for a shot and a beer: 1.5 oz Rye Whiskey (cheap) 12 oz of beer (whatever’s on tap) Serve the rye in a small glass and the beer in a big glass.
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Bar X This drinker’s bar is devoted to cocktails, and the shakers prefer the term “bartenders.” A survivor of the ups and downs of Utah liquor laws, this was the vanguard of Salt Lake’s new cocktail movement, serving classic drinks and creative inventions behind the best electric sign in the city. 155 E. 200 South, SLC, 801-355-2287 EGL Beer Bar Ty Burrell, star of ABC’s
small-screen hit Modern Family, is a coowner of Beer Bar, which is right next to Burrell’s other SLC hipster success story, Bar X. This is a hipster beer joint. It’s noisy and there’s no table service— you wait in line at the bar for your next beer and sit at picnic tables. But there are over 140 brews to choose from, not to mention 13 kinds of bratwurst. 161 E. 200 South, SLC, 801-355-2287 EGL
The Bayou This is Beervana, with
260 bottled beers and 32 on draft. The kitchen is an overachiever for a beer bar, turning out artichoke pizza and deep-fried Cornish game hens. 645 S. State St., SLC, 801-961-8400 EGM
Beerhive Pub An impressive list of over 200 beers—domestic, imported and local—and a long ice rail on the bar to keep the brew cold, the way Americans like ’em, are the outstanding features of this cozy downtown pub. Booths and tables augment the bar seating and downstairs there are pool tables. You can order food from Michelangelo’s next door, but this place is basically all about the beer. 128 S. Main St., SLC, 801-364-4268 EGL BTG Wine Bar BTG stands for “By the Glass” but BTG serves craft cocktails, specialty beer and good food, but the pièces de résistance are the more than 50 wines by the glass. You can order a tasting portion or a full glass, allowing you to sample vintages you might not be inclined to buy by the bottle. 63 W. 100 South, SLC, 801-359-2814 EGL
Campfire Lounge Well, don’t go
expecting a real campfire. The laidback feeling of sitting around a campfire, sipping and talking with friends, is what the owners were aiming for, with or without flames. And that’s what Campfire is—a relaxed neighborhood joint with affordable drinks. And s’mores. 837 E. 2100 South, 801-4673325 EGL
Club Jam The city’s premier gay
bar has all that’s necessary: DJs, drag queens and drinks. It rocks out Wednesday through Sunday, with karaoke on Wednesday and Sunday nights at 9. 751 N. 300 West, SLC, 801382-8567 EGL
Copper Common Sibling to hugely popular restaurant The Copper Onion, Copper Common is a real bar—that means there’s no Zion curtain and you don’t actually have to order food if you don’t want to. But on the other hand, why wouldn’t you want to? Copper Common’s kitchen caters to every taste, whether you’re drinking cocktails, beer or wine (on tap, yet). And it’s real, chef-imagined food—a long way from pretzels and peanuts. 111 E. Broadway, SLC, 801355-9453 EGM Cotton Bottom Inn Remember when this was a ski bum’s town? The garlic burger and a beer is what you order. 2820 E. 6200 South, SLC, 801-2739830 EGL East Liberty Tap House Tap House is the creation of Scott Evans, who also owns nearby restaurant Pago. Half a dozen beers on draft and 20 or more by the bottle, and the rotation changes constantly—meaning, stop by often. The menu does clever takes on bar food classics, like housemade onion dip and potato chips. Note: It’s open noon to midnight, 7 days a week. 850 E. 900 South, SLC, 801-441-2845 EGM
Gibson Lounge Grand America’s inimitable upscale style is translated into a gorgeously cushy but unstuffy bar, the antithesis of the current minimalist hipster style. You can actually wear a cocktail dress to this cocktail bar. 555 S. Main St, SLC, 801-258-6778. EGM