Utah’s first Flower Child to debut this Tuesday

One big name I’ve been keeping an eye on this year – Flower Child, is now coming into sharp focus. The brand is set to imminently make its mark on the Salt Lake City dining scene – taking the wraps off its long-awaited debut in Utah. On October 15th the restaurant will swing open its doors to those wanting a peek inside the new Foothill Village (1414 Foothill Dr.) location. You can find the restaurant on the upper-eastern edge of the complex surrounded by ample parking.

For those new to the name, the restaurant was founded by Sam Fox. After kicking off a culinary career at age 21, the chef turned restaurant impresario has been impressively nominated eleven times by the prestigious James Beard Foundation over the years. No small beans.

Skip forward to today, Fox created Flower Child to reinvent what a fast-casual experience can offer. Beyond the languid landscape of burgers, fries, and mountains of calories that are all too commonly encountered – Flower Child aims to be your destination for solving that age-old dilemma – where can I eat that’s fast… and healthy?

More than that, the restaurant’s menu is designed with modern-day dietary concerns in mind. Vegetarian? Dairy-free? Vegan? Gluten-free? Flower Child takes particular pride in ensuring guests with specific requirements are comfortably catered to. The menu leans naturally gluten-light by default (employing tamari over soy for example), with preparation separation employed where necessary; indeed the whole kitchen enjoys a reset and refresh every thirty minutes.

Speaking of the kitchen, there’s nary a microwave, fryer, or freezer on site. Daily deliveries and from-scratch cooking translate to a menu as fresh and vibrant as possible. And before you think those healthy-forward vibes might come at the sacrifice of flavor – there’s a giddy globe-trotting chef’s thumb on a spinning globe.

Stops on the map include chicken enchiladas with earthy guajillo chile, smoked gouda, and poblano cream; the signature Mother Earth Bowl, a wholesome mix of texture and temperature using ancient grains, greens, broccoli pesto, and more; as well as the grilled chicken thigh yakisoba with wok-seared vegetables, sesame garlic sauce, and roasted cashew. Check out the menu picture I snapped (below) to get a fuller feel, though note a seasonally appropriate tweak should be coming any day now – replete with Fall worthy amendments such as roasted beets, squash, and Brussels sprouts spiked with yuzu and golden miso.

While Flower Child is a national brand, it takes local community seriously in its stride, tapping local vendors to infuse the menu. Utah-based Mamachari Kombucha can be found literally on tap at the SLC location, while also being deploted as a tangy twist in the Carolina BBQ Wrap.

While the business officially opens on Tuesday the 15th, you might be interested in an invite-only preview this Saturday – to sample a bite before the crowds descend. Flower Child has provided me the following special offer for readers of Gastronomic SLC; complete the form before the end of play on Friday 11th – and you’ll receive a code for $20 off in your inbox, on Saturday morning. The code applies to pickup orders only, placed through the company’s website.

When the business officially opens on the following Tuesday, October 15th – it will be open seven days a week for dine-in, to-go, delivery, and catering orders of all sizes. Ten percent of all sales from the grand opening will go directly to The Autism Community in Action – with any app-made purchase during the opening week (15th through 22nd) putting your name in the hat for a chance to land a $1000 Flower Child gift card. If you do download their iOS or Android app, you’ll also be able to enjoy the brand’s loyalty program which offers various rewards, as well as making to-go and delivery orders a cinch.

One final item to note, and one that’s particularly unusual in Utah’s fast-casual space – Flower Child will launch with a liquor license under its belt – beer, wine, kombucha, and seasonal sangria, all on offer – again with several local names on the roster. After all, at the end of the day, we’re all allowed just a little indulgence. Right?

Stuart Melling

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.