Harmons awards three local names a $5,000 grant

As the month ends, here are all the news items that came our way, but otherwise didn’t make it to a story. The following info was provided directly by the marketing and press teams from the respective businesses. First up Harmons recently announced the recipients of their yearly foodie grants:

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Each year, Harmons Neighborhood Grocer recognizes and awards local business suppliers with grants for their dedication to producing exceptional products for its stores.  This year, the Harmons Local Supplier Development Grant Initiative is awarding Pettingill Fruit Farm, Cache Toffee Collection, and Daily Rise Coffee each $5,000 to help support their continued growth producing high quality, local products. 

Harmons carries more than 3,000 local items in stores, making it one of the largest selections of local items in Utah. As a local business itself, Harmons understands the challenges that their local partners face as they launch, grow, and sustain their business in Utah. Recognizing those struggles, the grants program seeks to reward the high quality work done by these business partners and support their continued efforts to provide local goods. 

“Our grants program is rooted in our story of growing our business, in part, by sourcing and supporting local growers and producers,” said Scott Lewis, Harmons president and CEO. “We work with so many wonderful supplier partners that selecting just three each year is exciting, but really difficult. It’s rewarding to give back to these local businesses whose products have helped make Harmons what it is today. We congratulate this year’s grant recipients and look forward to having them be a part of our stores for years to come.” About the Grant Recipients:

Pettingill Fruit Farm, a fruit and vegetable supplier to Harmons for 44 years, will use the grant to explore innovative farming techniques to extend its cantaloupe growing season. Owner Steven Pettingill plans to implement a low tunnel hoop system, and incorporate both drip tape irrigation and frost protection fabric to protect crops. This investment could accelerate harvest times by up to two weeks, allowing the farm to provide customers with fresh, local cantaloupe earlier in the season.

Cache Toffee Collection’s owner Lori Darr has transformed her home-based passion project into a thriving business in just eight years. The $5,000 grant will help improve the manufacturing and production process for its newly launched Party Popcorn. Plans are to invest in an industrial popcorn machine with an integrated sifting mechanism to increase production efficiency. Committed to supporting the local economy, the company hires within its community and sources ingredients from local suppliers.

Daily Rise Coffee has been a supplier to Harmons for 10 years. Owner Jeff Furton sees sustainability, community, and partnerships as key to helping provide an exceptional product and experience. Plans for the grant include increased sponsorship of local events, additional support for school programs, contributions to nonprofit organizations, as well as investing in enhanced employee training programs. Harmons past grant recipients include:

• 2023: Level Crossing Brewing Company, Chas W. Bagerter & Son Inc., and Johnson Family Farms
• 2022: Salsitas Mendoza, Park City Creamery, and Miss Essie’s BBQ
• 2021: Rojas Farms, Mama Africa, and Solstice Chocolate
• 2020: Bitter’s Lab, Salsa Queen, and Day Farms
• 2019: Chocolate Conspiracy, Mamachari Kombucha, and Shaffer Farms
• 2018: Bar 10 Beef, McFarland Farms, and Hollow Tree Honey
• 2017: Caffe Ibis, Heber Valley Cheese, and Kodiak Cakes
• 2016: Mezzo Chocolate, RubySnap Fresh Cookies, Intermountain Specialty Food Group, and Drake Family Farms

Silver Star Cafe celebtraes landmark

Tuesday, March 25, 2025 marks the 15 year anniversary of the Silver Star Café. Café owners Jeff and Lisa Ward purchased the business from the Silver Star resort developers in March of 2010. At the time, it was called the “Silver Star Market and Café,” and it served a casual “order at the counter” breakfast and lunch concept which helped draw attention to the newly built Silver Star project while its residential units were being sold. Though notable in terms of real estate project exposure, the developers were not restaurateurs, and the business itself had not been successful. In early 2010, the Wards were approached by the developers about buying and operating the business, after which the Wards spent several months observing restaurant operations to identify where improvements could be made, and imagining what the business could become, before completing the business purchase in March.

After purchasing the Café, the Wards rebranded it as Silver Star Café (dropping the “Market”), shifted the concept to fine dining, eliminated breakfast, kept lunch, added dinner and weekend brunch, and live acoustic music for dinner patrons. Soon after, the project developers completed sales of the Silver Star residential units and listed the commercial buildings for sale. The Wards were fortunate to be able to purchase their restaurant building in 2012, allowing them to control their space and lease expense while building their business.

Today, the Silver Star Café is known as a community gathering place that celebrates the diverse regional foods of the American melting pot, with live acoustic roots music, and a warmly welcoming hospitality reflected in both service and atmosphere. The restaurant is ski-in/ski-out, located at the base if the Silver Star lift at Park City Mountain, and also sits at the trailheads for the Armstrong and Spiro trails for summer hiking and mountain biking. Locals and visitors are equally welcome, as are well-behaved dogs on the summer patio. The focus is on great food, ambiance, service and acoustic music— what they call the “four legs of our table. ” The Café uses organic and locally sourced ingredients whenever possible, serves nothing with trans fats or high fructose corn syrup, and almost everything on the menus is gluten free, or can be made gluten-free. The Café’s made-from-scratch comfort food is influenced by regional flavors, and while elevated fine dining, it is also approachable.

Jeff and Lisa are both 40-plus year residents of Park City, who met in the mid-1980s when working as captains in the five-star Glitretind dining room at Stein Eriksen Lodge. Each had started working in restaurants in high school and continued to be involved in restaurants through college and beyond. Jeff, a New York native, earned a degree in Geology, and Lisa, a native of California, a degree in Organizational Communication. Jeff, a trained sommelier, became one of the most successful restaurateurs in Park City, while also contributing as an active community leader, serving on a variety of boards and commissions, including several years as Board Chair of the Park City Chamber Bureau. Lisa established a communications consulting firm, focused on marketing, public relations, and corporate communications for businesses, municipalities, and the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Committee. She also co-directed the Leadership Park City program, mentoring future community leaders in leadership, volunteerism and civic engagement. The two brought their skill sets together for the Silver Star Café project. They have been married for 34 years and have two adult sons and an adult nephew in their family, and their spouses, and one grandson, who all live in the Salt Lake Valley.

Aware that restaurant work can often distress staff with stress and poor treatment, the Wards strive for a company culture that encourages life balance for their staff, with flexible schedules to accommodate other interests in their lives, and an atmosphere of respect, kindness, and support. They treat their staff like family. They are also committed to supporting independent music artists by hosting live acoustic music dinner shows throughout the year, at no additional cost to their guests. “We treat our music artists with the same warmth that we treat our guests, and respect for their art and talent. We hope that Silver Star Café feels like home, where all are treated as welcome friends.”

• Silver Star Café has been featured in three episodes of the Food Network’s Diners Drive-ins and
  Dives. Episodes: “Cross Country Comfort Food,” “Small Town Sensations, and “A Little Lighter”
• Print stories include full travel/dining features in the Washington Post, USA Today and Forbes, as
  well as New York Post, Lonely Planet, Huffington Post, Outside Magazine, Ski Magazine, Tasting
  Table, Travel and Leisure, Luxury Travel, Salt Lake Tribune, Salt Lake Magazine, Park City Magazine,
  the Park Record, and in-flight magazines for Delta and American Airlines.
  Awards: Silver Star Café
• Silver Star Café has been recognized with the “Utah Classic” Award from Salt Lake Magazine, for
  restaurants that maintain excellence over a sustained period of time (2024).
• Jeff and Lisa Ward were recognized as the 2024 “Restaurateurs of the Year” by the Utah Restaurant
  Association, their highest honor, with the “Golden Spoon Award”
• Salt Lake Magazine’s “Best Restaurant Utah” (2014, 2018, 2019) and “Best Comfort Food”.
• “Best Outdoor Dining” annually for 9 years from Park City’s Best awards.
• Trip Advisor “Award of Excellence” 9 years in a row, and currently the fourth year of Trip Advisor’s
  “Hall of Fame, ” and “Traveler’s Choice”.
• “A Dining Destination” and “Best Bar Program” from Taste Utah Bites and the Utah Restaurant
  Association.

Hearth and Hill officially open

Hearth and Hill, the contemporary, award-winning American eatery by local restaurateur Brooks Kirchheimer that launched his acclaimed Hill Top Hospitality restaurant group, including Salt Lake City’s renowned Urban Hill, is expanding to Sugar House on Friday, March 21st. Situated in the heart of this vibrant community in The Residences at Sugar Alley, a new multi-use development, Hearth and Hill’s family friendly, upscale-casual atmosphere is ideally suited to the neighborhood’s varied tastes and lifestyles. 

“My co-owner Dad and I designed the original Hearth and Hill in Park City in anticipation of ultimately expanding to Sugar House, for which our accessibly priced, ‘gathering spot’ vibe is ideal,” said Brooks Kirchheimer, Co-Founder of Hill Top Hospitality. “We’re thrilled to finally join this wonderful community and its burgeoning culinary scene!” 

Known as one of Salt Lake’s most vibrant neighborhoods, Sugar House embraces authentic, locally owned businesses, such as Hearth and Hill. The Kirchheimers and their Hill Top Hospitality employee-family are committed to “Inspiring our associates, thrilling our guests and enriching our community.”  Delivering on that commitment has earned Hearth and Hill numerous accolades, including Salt Lake City Weekly’s “Best Restaurant in Park City” in its 2023 and 2024 readers’ polls.  

Created by Semple Brown Design, interior architects of fine-dining Urban Hill, Hearth and Hill’s contemporary ambiance seats 190 inside and 60 outside, in configurations suited for everyone from single diners to large groups.  Open daily for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, the restaurant features an open kitchen, horseshoe-shaped bar, private dining room and two patios.  Tall windows and ceilings lend a spacious feel that, coupled with hardwood floors, white oak millwork, custom lighting and a beautiful mix of tiles, stone, brass and other Utah-informed materials, fosters the sophisticated but comfortable environment that has become a Hill Top Hospitality hallmark. 

“Inspiring associates” is the group’s foremost commitment because its people are like family, covered by health insurance, a retirement plan, work/life balance and other industry-leading employee benefits.  Professional advancement also is a priority, as demonstrated by the pair heading the new Hearth and Hill: Lucy Clark, General Manager, whose career trajectory has included manager roles at all three of the group’s properties, and Josh Bernabe, Chef de Cuisine, whose distinguished culinary training and experience most recently included Sous Chef at Urban Hill, under James Beard Awards multiple-nominee Executive Chef Nick Zocco.   

Chef Bernabe and team have curated menus sure to entice any palette or appetite, blending longtime favorites with tasty originals.  Homemade desserts and other sweets by sister-eatery Hill’s Kitchen and the concept’s popular beverage program promise to make Hearth and Hill an instant neighborhood gathering spot, just like its Park City forerunner.    

Hearth and Hill’s modernized twist on classic American favorites includes savory soups and sandwiches, enticing salads and seasonal specials, locally sourced from area purveyors. Beverages feature seasonal handcrafted cocktails, brews on tap, and a wine selection and spirit-free sips. Sharable dishes include Fried Brussels Sprouts, Elote Queso Dip and Scallion Pork Gyoza. In addition to Hearth and Hill’s famous burger, guests can also enjoy entrées like Vegetable Curry made with red curry, squash, cauliflower rice, red onion, shishito peppers; Joyce Farms Duck Breast complemented by celeriac purée, potato gratin, charred orange, Amarena cherry, huckleberry reduction, and Hunter’s Bolognese prepared with elk and bison, pappardelle pasta, herb sofrito, Pecorino Romano.

Spencer’s welcomes new exec sous

This spring, Spencer’s For Steaks & Chops (located in the Hilton Salt Lake City Center Downtown) is welcoming a new Executive Sous Chef to their kitchen and hotel. Jon DuBois officially started his role with the Spencer’s For Steaks & Chops back-of-house team on January 27th. Jon is excited to enter this new position and bring his years of experience and Court of Master Sommelier Certification to Spencer’s unrepeatable menu.

“I’ve always had a passion for cooking!* says Jon DuBois. “After completing culinary school I moved to Chicago to expand my taste and career – while there, I studied under Chef Shawn McClain who is a James Beard Award Winner, and proceeded to work at other Michelin Award-winning restaurants Green Zebra and Oriole.”

Jon, who joins us after departing Pago 9th & 9th, continues to mention “Here at Spencer’s For Steaks & Chops inside the Hilton Salt Lake City Center Downtown, we have guests visiting from around the world – I’m excited to share my favorite tastes and techniques with the people visiting Salt Lake City. I strive to bring creativity and knowledge to this kitchen!”

Waldorf confirms Stuart Roger as new exec chef

Waldorf Astoria Park City is pleased to announce the appointment of Stuart Roger as executive chef. With more than two decades of global culinary experience spanning Michelin-starred restaurants, and world-renowned hotels, Chef Roger brings a wealth of expertise to the premier luxury resort. In his new position, Chef Roger will oversee all aspects of the food and beverage operation, including Powder, Waldorf Astoria Park City’s signature restaurant, in-room dining, catering and banquets, and poolside culinary programming.  

Chef Roger joins Waldorf Astoria Park City from Waldorf Astoria Cancun, where he played an integral role in shaping the property’s gastronomic identity from its pre-opening phase. During his tenure, he oversaw five dining venues, in-room dining, and a state-of-the-art convention center, introducing innovative menus, specialty activations, and bespoke amenity programs that embraced the destination’s vibrant culture. Prior to his time in Cancun, Chef Roger served as executive chef at One&Only Palmilla in San Jose del Cabo, where he oversaw nine dining venues and created exclusive culinary offerings for guests and the greater community. His leadership also left a lasting impact at Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos and the French Embassy in Mexico.

Beyond his experience in ultra-luxury hotels, Chef Roger has worked in some of the world’s most prestigious fine dining establishments, including Joël Robuchon’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant in Monaco and Roger Vergé’s three-Michelin-starred Le Moulin de Mougins in the South of France. Additionally, he spent over five years collaborating with world-renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, bringing his culinary vision to life across his celebrated restaurants in Mexico.

“We are delighted to welcome Stuart Roger to Waldorf Astoria Park City,” said Charles Hill, general manager. “His deep appreciation for seasonal ingredients, locally sourced produce, and globally inspired flavors aligns perfectly with our resort’s culinary vision. With his creativity, keen attention to detail, and diverse experience, he will play a key role in shaping an exceptional dining experience for both our guests and the local community.”

Chef Roger shared his enthusiasm for the new role, stating, “Joining Waldorf Astoria Park City is a true privilege. I’m excited to create unforgettable dining experiences that highlight global influences while celebrating the richness of Park City’s seasonal offerings and local artisans. My goal is to elevate the resort’s cuisine, crafting dishes that not only satisfy but tell a story.”

Raised in the Alps with French and Scottish heritage, Chef Roger is a graduate of the prestigious École Hôtelière Savoie Leman in Thonon-les-Bains, France. His Alpine roots will inspire the elevated mountain fare guests can expect at Powder restaurant.

Dendric Estate malolactic fermentation in full swing

This month, Utah’s Dendric Estate began the malolactic fermention (MLF) process, a crucial step used to soften acidity and enhance the texture of Dendric’s first premium dry ciders slated to be released in June 2025.

“At Dendric Estate, we intentionally employ MLF in select ciders to refine their texture and complexity,” said Dendric Estate Founder Brendan Coyle. “By carefully controlling MLF, we balance acidity and roundness without overshadowing the fruit’s vibrant character.”

A technique often associated with fine wine making, MLF is a secondary fermentation process where beneficial bacteria converts sharp malic acid into softer lactic acid. This process helps soften acidity and enhance texture. Due to the higher prevalence of malic acid in apples as opposed to grapes, MLF is a more powerful tool in cider making than in traditional winemaking, and allows Dendric Estate to create a distinctive mouthfeel, adding elegance and structure to their ciders.

MLF’s Impact on Dendric Estate Ciders
Softens Acidity While Maintaining Balance
While Dendric Estate uses apple varietals naturally high in acidity, MLF helps smooth out the sharp edges, creating a more harmonious and refined drinking experience without stripping the cider of its bright character.

Enhances Tannin Integration, Drives Complexity
High-tannin apples can sometimes lead to an astringent or overly bitter structure; MLF helps round out these tannins, making the cider more velvety and approachable while preserving depth and complexity.

Dendric’s Commitment to Quality
The use of MLF reflects Dendric’s dedication to pushing the quality of cider making to new heights and offers a sensory experience akin to fine wine. By utilizing beneficial bacteria and mastering this technique, Dendric bridges the gap between traditional cider making and modern artisanal fermentation.

Product Releases
The MLF process moves Dendric Estate one step closer to releasing their first products in Utah in June 2025.

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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.