Utah may be landlocked, but there is no shortage of seafood to be found here. To wit, it’s hard to walk two blocks without running into a sushi restaurant. And Gastronomy, Inc. has been flying in fresh seafood daily for their Market Street restaurants for decades now. Even so, you probably wouldn’t expect a ski resort to be a seafood haven. That is, unless it was D … [Read more...]
FIRST LOOK: HEARTH & HILL—A Stunning New Park City Restaurant
As I’ve mentioned numerous times, I don’t think it’s fair - either to Utah Bites readers or to restaurateurs - to write complete “reviews” based on media events, “soft” restaurant openings, or “friends & family” dinners where guests are comped their meals and treated to especially attentive service. Those dining situations are rarely comparable to what the gene … [Read more...]
HELLO GEORGE! New Restaurant & Bar Replaces Finca
When restaurateur Scott Evans (Pago, Trestle Tavern, East Liberty Tap House, Hub & Spoke Diner) opened Finca - a Sugar House eatery featuring Spanish-style small plates, wines and such - it quickly became one of my favorite SLC dining spots. Evans has spent a lot of time in Spain and has a particular fondness for Spanish wines and the cuisine of that country. … [Read more...]
Finding The Fat: A Visit to Bountiful’s Fat Fish
For many years now, I’ve been following the restaurant fortunes of Mai Nguyen and Sean Dang. They are the couple who first opened the now closed Pho Green Papaya in West Valley City - one of the first pho outposts in Utah where now there are many. The husband and wife team would go on to open Sapa Sushi Bar and Asian Grill - a beautiful addition to the SLC dining scene with f … [Read more...]
A PROPER MEAL: Stratford Proper Opens in Sugar House
In the beginning, there was Avenues Proper, the “Restaurant & Publick House” that opened in The Avenues in the spring of 2013. And it was good. Avenues Proper begat Proper Brewing Co. and Proper Burger Co., which opened simultaneously in 2016 on Main in SLC. The food was less fancy, but more focused, and it too, was good. This month, the Proper crew lau … [Read more...]
Pig Out: Pig & a Jelly Jar 3.0
In the beginning there was Pig & a Jelly Jar. And it was good. The original SLC Pig & a Jelly Jar restaurant opened in 2012 and was such a success with local foodies that owner Amy Wanderley-Britt soon launched a second location in Ogden. And now, there’s a third outpost of the comfort food Mecca, this one in Holladay. It’s a formula that works, and I wouldn’t be surpr … [Read more...]
Pho Saigon 2: Oodles of Noodles and So Much More
Located at street level of the Home 2 Suites by Hilton in Murray (4907 S. State) is a gem of an Asian eatery: Pho Saigon Noodle House 2. The “2” is indicative that this is the newer, sister restaurant to the original Pho Saigon Noodle House in West Valley, a restaurant I’ve loved for a long time. Pho 2 offers a more modern ambiance than the original location, with vibrant col … [Read more...]
Tupelo Restaurant on a Roll: Park City Restaurateurs Living in the Fast Lane
Chef Matthew Harris has been on quite a roll. He and his wife Maggie Alvarez - who are co-partners as owners of Park City’s Tupelo restaurant, as well as in life - were invited to New York City in September to be part of a five-person team of chefs from Park City restaurants to present their craft at an exclusive James Beard House dinner. While he was in town, Matt also made … [Read more...]
Molise 2.0: New Digs for Venerable Caffe Molise
In the Beginning … I first reviewed downtown SLC’s Caffe Molise - named for the Molise region of Italy - back in 1994. Shelley DeProto opened the restaurant that year and it was a modest affair. The dining room was festooned with white plastic patio furniture and the menu was limited. The food, however, was excellent and I still remember how much I enjoyed Shelley’s aio e oio a … [Read more...]
Park City Chefs Headed to NYC: Utah Restaurants Showcased at Historic James Beard House
The Dean of American Cookery For those who might not know of James Beard, he was a larger-than-life force of nature. Named the “Dean of American Cookery” by the New York Times in 1954, he was a chef and gourmand who laid the groundwork for much of the cuisine American chefs create today, as well as for the way that we eat. In 1955, Beard established the James Beard Cooking Sch … [Read more...]