When Repeal bar and restaurant opened last spring in the downtown space that was previously home to Bourbon House, Kelly Howard, Co-Owner of Repeal and of Prohibition in Fashion Place said, “Our dream is to bring a distinctive flavor and a dining experience like no other to Salt Lake City. We’ve been perfecting our menu to add flavors we know our guests will brag about to their friends and family! After touring restaurants and bars in multiple cities worldwide, we felt inspired to bring strong elements together, but keep it at its core an extension of Prohibition!”

Repeal’s other Co-Owner, Camille Howard added, “We feel guests will walk into our restaurant and feel transported into a fantasy – we’ve designed this bar to feel captivated, mysterious, and more!”

Well, mission accomplished. The stylish redesign and transformation of Bourbon House – of which there is zero evidence left – has resulted in bringing a new exciting, eye-popping spot for live jazz, libations, and creative cuisine to Salt Lake City. From the street, you’d never know that the basement bar even exists, nevermind how incrediblly appealing Repeal is. 

The owners made a smart move in recruiting Executive Chef Joey Ferran from his previous post in the kitchen at Cucina. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Ferran is one of the most talented and creative chefs working in Utah today. Repeal is lucky to have him. And, although Repeal is a bar for guests 21 and over, the cuisine soars far higher than your typical car fare, thanks to Ferran. 

Minnie the Moocher

As you peruse the Repeal food menu and its distinctive dishes, I suggest sipping one of the bar’s specialty cocktails such as Noir Nights, The Blackened Branch, Vanishing Act, or one that we really enjoyed: Minnie the Moocher ($15). It’s a luscious melange of BarSol Pisco Peruvian grape brandy, Spanish Licor 43, Dates, Demerara cane sugar, Chamomile, and Honey Lavender, adorned with a crunchy Stroopwafel. 

Crostini

A great Repeal starter – perfect for sharing – is their Crostini ($16), which is juniper-cured rainbow trout with leek mousse, Castelvetrano olive tapenade, pickled shiitake, and lemon crisp. As the menu says, it’s “bright and briny.” I found the leek mousse to be especially innovative. Flowering Kale ($15) is another unique dish for sharing: charred flowering kale with a red currant emulsion, candied bacon, pickled shallot, goji berry and walnut. 

Seared Ahi

I’m glad that Chef Ferran brought one of his most popular Cucina appetizers with him from Cucina, because it’s one of my favorites. Seared Ahi ($17). Cardamom-spiced ahi tuna is lightly seared and served with guajillo pepper vinaigrette, cauliflower puree, pickled maitake mushrooms, and fried parsley. It’s every bit as delicious as it looks on the plate. Another great seafood starter is the Grilled Octopus ($21), which is served with squid ink gnocchi, cipollini onions, orange peel, herbed breadcrumbs, and saffron beurre blanc – one of the most interesting treatments given to grilled octopus I’ve seen. 

Vegan diners – as well as everyone else – will enjoy the Lion’s Mane Frito ($18), which is coconut milk-marinated lion’s mane mushroom that is deep-fried and finished with honey-habanero barbecue sauce, cashew coconut butter, sesame crisp, pickled radish and candied soybeans. Just another example of Chef Ferran’s unfettered creativity. 

For lovers of brown spirits, Repeal might be the best whiskey bar in the state, with a formidable library of whiskeys, bourbons and ryes ranging from a seven buck Crown Royal and nine dollar Woodford Rye to $190 for Old Fitzgerald 19 Year Fall 2022 bottled in bond bourbon, and Whistlepig Badonkadonk Single Malt 25 Year Whiskey priced at $400 per pour. Something for every budget, indeed. 

Red Rock Hot Club

Part of the Repeal appeal is live jazz Tuesday through Saturday, beginning at 6 PM in the evening. Check out the Repeal jazz calendar online to see who’s playing and when. You’ll especially want to visit Repeal when the uber-fun and peppy Red Rock Hot Club is playing their swinging brand of gypsy jazz. 

Dry-Cured Hen of the Woods Mushroom

The culinary focus at Repeal is on shareable, smaller plates, of which there are many. But Chef Ferran does also offer guests and a handful of larger, entree-style composed dishes like the Bison Strip Loin ($59) with Yukon Gold potato, glace de viande, huckleberry preserves, bourbon tallow, and crisp potato gaufrette. One of Ferran’s specialties (and a home hobby of his) is homemade pasta, and Repeal features a seasonal house-made pasta entree ($36) nightly. My wife really loved her Dry-Cured Hen of the Woods Mushroom entree ($35) with butternut squash soubise sauce, wild rice, black fig gastrique, a clever “chicharron” made from fried kale, and mushroom demi-glace. It’s a very earthy gluten-free vegan dish. 

Lan-Roc Osso Buco 

My favorite entree from the current Repeal menu is the Lan-Roc Osso Buco ($45). This is a gargantuan braised Lan-Roc Farms osso buco pork shank with red mole (a clever touch), Gold Creek smoked cheddar borlotti beans, grilled summer squash, watermelon radish and citrus crême fraîche – a very satisfying winter dish. Next visit I’m eager to try the Chicken Leg Confit ($32) with Anasazi beans, guajillo chile butter, blue Hopi polenta, dandelion greens, and fennel pollen farm cheese. 

For all you late nighters, Repeal also features a late night small plates menu after 10:30 with dishes such as Baked Hummus ($16), Pomme Frites ($15) Porcini Arancini ($14), Grilled Olives, Almonds & Dates ($15), and more. If you are 21 or over, love jazz, libations, and most of all appreciate adventurous cuisine, Chef Joey Ferran’s food is for you and Repeal is the place to find all of the above. Nothing repellent at all.

Photos by Ted Scheffler

Culinary quote of the week: “Food is about making an interaction with ingredients. If you talk to them, they will always tell you a story.” – Massimo Bottura