There’s just a under a month remaining until one of my favorite dining events of the summer, heck, the year. Taste Of The Wasatch 2015 is set to hit Solitude Mountain Resort on August 2nd – you should be there.
Taste Of The Wasatch: Deer Valley Asian BLT in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Log Haven’s pickled carrots in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Tuscany’s foie gras cotton candy in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Trout mousse
Taste Of The Wasatch: Crackling pig in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Kouing aman from Les Madeleines in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Random desserts
As I wrote last year, I know there are a bewildering array of dining events competing for your dollar. It seems like every other day someone is hosting a tasting menu of heirloom toast varietals paired with imported doves tears.
It’s easy to tune out, but Taste Of The Wasatch is an event that demands your attention in every regard. So much so, the only item in this post is Taste Of The Wasatch – there is no reason to become distracted. Just hungry and excited. Oh so very hungry and excited.
If you’re new to this yearly fundraising-foodie bash, let me go over the basics. Over 50 of Utah’s top chefs, restaurants and bakers get together at Solitude Mountain Resort. 1,500 guests and plenty of fine wine and craft beer meet them there – and everyone has a great time, enjoying the summer sun tempered by Solitude’s altitude and verdant setting. The event runs around four hours, and your ticket allows you access to more food than is reasonably sensible. This results in an endless array of colorful plates looking approximately like this:
Taste Of The Wasatch: random items
At the time of press, the confirmed restaurants for this years event are as follows (* denotes brand new restaurants this year):
Avenues Proper Publick House
Bistro 222*
Cena Ristorante
Chaia Cucina Catering
Copper Kitchen
Current Fish & Oyster*
Deer Valley
Del Mar al Lago
East Liberty Tap House*
Feldman’s Deli*
Finca
Francks
Garage on Beck
Grand America Hotel
Harbor Seafood and Steak*
Honeycomb Grill
Hub & Spoke*
La Caille
Les Madeleines
Liberty Heights Fresh
Lydia’s Locals*
Meditrina
Pago
Porch*
R and R BBQ*
Red Iguana
Riverhorse on Main
Sage’s Cafe
Salt Bistro at the Leonardo
SLC POP
Stoneground
Taqueria 27*
The Aerie
The Annex by Epic Brewing*
The Blue Boar Inn
The Glitretind at Stein Eriksen Lodge
Trio
Tuscany
Vertical Diner
Wasatch Brew Pub
In addition, those with a sweet tooth can also enjoy a myriad of treats from the ‘Utah Bakers Dozen’, comprising:
Birdie’s Bakery
Christina’s Cakes
Deer Valley
Desire Dessert
Tulie Bakery
Stein Eriksen Lodge
Pallet Bistro
Trio
Current
Luna Blanca
Salt Bistro
Sugar House Baking Company
It’s a veritable who’s who of the Utah dining scene, and you will probably bump into most of them, as you amble around, trying to eat just one more plate…
Taste Of The Wasatch: Chef Adam Kreisel of Chaia Cucina in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Chef Amber Billingsley in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Scott Evans of Finca, Pago, ELTH, Hub And Spoke in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch: Deer Valley’s Zane Holmquist in 2014
In addition to all that fine food, live music this year is provided by Lazlo & The Dukes and a silent auction caps off the end of the day. The live auction includes some of the chefs themselves as they offer to cook a multi-course meal for you and your closest friends.
Which leads me to my final selling point – all proceeds from the event are donated to three very worthy Utah charities. This is the fourth year the event has operated completely as a standalone, Utah centric operation meaning every dollar remains in Utah. Proceeds from this year’s Taste of the Wasatch will benefit the programs of 3 Squares, Inc., Utahns Against Hunger, and Green Urban Lunch Box. These are serious organizations delivering real value and change to the community, and all you have to do is kick back with a glass of Sancerre and a plate full of cakes. It really doesn’t get any easier than that.
Tickets for Taste of the Wasatch are $90 for GA and $125 for reserved seating (VIP) if purchased in advance. The VIP ticket lets you into the big central tent with a reserved table/seat, shown in the images below. I’d say it’s worth the extra $35 – but there’s nothing stopping you bringing your own fold out chairs etc. and kicking back amid the green open spaces of the resort.
Whichever ticket you buy it’s an exceptionally great value with three equally great causes (four if you count stuffing yourself so full to the gills your only option is to roll back down Big Cottonwood Canyon. Tickets can be purchased online at www.tasteofthewasatch.org. Please note this event is ages 21 and up only. The event runs 11:30a.m. (VIP), 12 noon (GA) until 4 p.m.
Taste Of The Wasatch in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch VIP tent in 2014
Taste Of The Wasatch in 2014
Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC. I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have written in myopic detail about the Salt Lake City dining scene for the better part of seventeen years.
I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV. Pause those credits, yep, that’s me! I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. What they’re saying about me: “Not inaccurate”, “I thought he was older”, “I don’t share his feelings”.
Want to know more? This is why I am the way I am.
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