Koyote
Cuisine: Japanese
Address: 551 W 400 N, Salt Lake City, UT 84116
This Marmalade-neighborhood must focuses on ramen. The American shoyu ($14) is my favorite bowl at this Marmalade restaurant. I’m a huge fan of the house-smoked brisket, slow-cooked for hour upon hour before being galvanized in beef tallow. This alone should steal the show but a coy co-star – ajitama – is equally captivating. The soft-boiled eggs are boiled at a specific temperature and time, then peeled, left to marinate for several days. The process renders a dreamy, custard-esque texture. Green onions, scallions, blanched spinach, and fermented bamboo shoots complete the picture.
Oh, the broth? It’s a mere ten-hour creation built upon chicken and pork stock. It’s utterly mesmerizing. From the fractally hypnotic oils that lacquer the surface, through to the soulful, savory depth. The lighter, clear chintan-style broth is my personal favorite, but those who prefer more heft to their bowl won’t be left disappointed. Read my full writeup of Koyote in this story.
Foodie N Sweetie
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 89 D St E, Salt Lake City, UT 84103
Located in the Avenues area of SLC is this one-of-a-kind mom-and-pop casual cafe. They offer a range of drop-dead good dumplings and potstickers as well as small list of entrees. Its a quick, easy neighborhood joint and the prices are wallet-friendly.
Avenues Proper
Cuisine: Brewpub
Address: 376 8th Ave, Salt Lake City, UT 84103
One of our favorite restaurants in all of Salt Lake City can be found in the Avenues areas of SLC. Avenues Proper is the first location for a locally growing empire of businesses, all built around the same sensibilities of this gastropub original. At Avenues Proper you’ll find a small micro-brewery and a menu of New American classics, executed with aplomb. Think chicken and biscuits for brunch or steak frites for dinner. Local sourcing, seasonal menus and award winning beer make this a must go restaurant.
Saffron Valley
Cuisine: Indian
Address: 26 E St E, Salt Lake City, UT 84103
The Avenues location of this local mini-chain of Indian restaurants is themed around the colonial era of the Indian subcontinent. The menu offers all your favorite dishes: rich curries, savory roasted tandoor meats, fluffy naan and much much more. The Indian cooking at all the Saffron locations is some of the best in town too.
Oasis Cafe
Cuisine: American
Address: 151 500 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84102
Just outside the boundaries of the Avenues, but hey, we can cheat a little for great food right? Oasis Cafe bills itself as an oasis in the heart of the city, and we can’t disagree. The restaurant is modest to look at from outside, but inside it’s a tranquil respite thats open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day of the week. Stop by a simple coffee in the morning or join friends for a multi course meal over wine at dinner if you like, the restaurant is fit for all occasions.
Cucina
Cuisine: American, Chef driven
Address: 1026 2nd Ave, Salt Lake City, UT 84103
Stop by at lunch and Cucina offers up simple deli fare. Stop by at night though, and it’s a completely different picture. Under the watch of chef Joey Ferran, the menu is equal parts bold, ambitious and memorable. Dishes take inspiration from a global palette of flavors, drawing on local product where possible. Ferran has an eye for the quirky and playful, and it shows across the menu.
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.
Our sponsors and this page
This page may contain information about one of our sponsors. We only work with the very best businesses in the state, and routinely turn down offers to work with businesses we don't enjoy. If we can't hand on heart recommend them - they can't be a sponsor.
At this time we have the following sponosrs: BTG, Caffe Molise, Carson Kitchen, The Dough Miner, Downtown Alliance, Feldman’s Deli, Felt Bar & Eatery, Flanker Kitchen + Sporting Club, Garage On Beck, Hearth And Hill, Hill’s Kitchen, Kin Sen Asian Noodle Bar, Kyoto, Log Haven, Oasis Cafe, Pirate O's Gourmet Market, SLC Eatery, Squatter’s Downtown Salt Lake City, Stoneground Italian Kitchen, Urban Hill, Wasatch Brew Pub Sugar House, Whiskey Street, White Horse.
I encourage you to Google any of our sponsors and see the stellar reviews on multiple sites that they enjoy. For a list of all our current and past relationships see our partnership history page.