Best of Utah 2012: Faves & Raves 

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Ian’s Favorite Romantic
The Tree Room, Glitretind Restaurant & Café Madrid
When you think romantic, Log Haven is a perennial BOU winner. When general manager of Log Haven, Ian Campbell, isn’t dining at his own restaurant, he can be found at other romantic spots. Ian says Sundance Resort’s Tree Room “has a warm feeling to it” and Glitretind Restaurant at Stein Eriksen Lodge “has an old-world, romantic setting.” For the total package, score at Café Madrid, where, Ian says, “They are really good at hospitality, and very warm and welcoming. It’s a cozy place and good for a romantic meal.”
Sundance Resort’s Tree Room, 8841 Alpine Loop Road, Sundance, 866-627-8313, SundanceResort.com; Glitretind Restaurant, Stein Eriksen Lodge, 7700 Stein Way, Park City, 435-645-6455, SteinLodge.com/dining/Glitretind; Café Madrid, 5244 S. Highland Drive, Holladay, 801-273-0837, CafeMadrid.net

Leo’s Favorite Go-to Restaurant
Lone Star Taqueria
Featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives, Lone Star Taqueria is a fresh and inexpensive eatery that serves delicious authentic Mexican dishes and is especially known for its filling tacos and burritos, for which it’s won multiple BOUs. Lone Star’s atmosphere is fun and vibrant. “That is my favorite restaurant,” says Leo Paulos of Greek Souvlaki, a BOU winner times 21. “Their fish tacos are good, everything is fresh, and it’s good food.”
2265 Fort Union Blvd., Salt Lake City, 801-944-2300, LoneStarTaqueria.com

Lance’s Favorite Live-Music Club
The Depot
Four stories tall, The Depot is a Salt Lake City club hot spot and first-class concert venue. Lance Saunders, right, co-owner of S&S Presents, The Urban Lounge and Kilby Court and former BOU winner, turns to The Depot (past winner for Best Live Music) for a good show. It’s “aesthetically pleasing, very comfortable (even at a sold-out show),” he says, and has “impeccable sound and lights, a cheap parking lot, convenient coat check, full-service bar, balcony and mezzanine overlooking stage.”
400 W. South Temple, Salt Lake City, 801-355-5522, DepotSLC.com

Bob’s Favorite Karaoke
Piper Down
Piper Down, winner of this year’s Best Poker Night, is an Irish-themed club in Salt Lake City where you can relax and let the live music move you. Bob Brown, owner of Cheers to You, winner of Best Cheap Drinks multiple years, enjoys the karaoke and ambiance of Piper Down, saying it’s “an old English pub that’s just cool. Short of going to Ireland, it’s a cool place to go.”
1492 S. State, Salt Lake City, PiperDownPub.com

Ryan’s Favorite Sandwich
Robin’s Nest
Downtown Salt Lake City has seen a spin on sandwiches, thanks to Robin’s Nest, where there’s a firm belief that sandwiches are not created equal. The sandwich-makers unique creations include the cowboy, rooster call and the gobbler. “I respect them as competitors—they do things right. They’re our local peeps, and we’ve got to support that,” says Toaster’s owner, Ryan Warnock, BOU winner for Best Sandwiches & Chips in 2010 and 2012’s Best Sandwich.
311 S. Main, Salt Lake City, RobinsNestSLC.com

Jason’s Favorite Mexican
Cowboy Grub
For over 30 years, Cowboy Grub has been serving old-fashioned cowboy-style cuisine. At this home-style restaurant, you can find specialties like pot roast & gravy, housemade turkey potpie and chili con carne. Cowboy they may be, but they can serve up a mean Mexican dish,” says Jason Summerhays, the kitchen manager of Red Iguana (19-year winner of Best Mexican). “They’re not known for their Mexican food, but it’s probably some of the most authentic Mexican food this valley has seen.”
2350 1/2 Foothill Drive, Salt Lake City, 801-466-8334, CowboyGrub.net

Chris’ Favorite Community Hub
Cucina Deli
Award-winning writer and former editor of City Weekly, Christopher Smart, now reporter for The Salt Lake Tribune, knows the ins and outs of Salt Lake City’s movers and shakers and has always had a keen eye for community activities. His favorite hub for staying tight with those groups is Cucina Deli, a quaint gourmet deli in the Avenues. Smart regards it as “a place that helps this community as an incubator for new ideas and fresh thinking.”
1026 E. Second Ave., Salt Lake City, 801-322-3055, CucinaDeli.com

Ruby’s Favorite Ambiance
Frida Bistro
Step into Frida Bistro (winner of two BOU awards) and you’ll step into a sleek space with lime-green and fuchsia walls and craft-paper-covered tables. Plates are presented like a gorgeous painting, with each dish colorful and delicious. It’s only appropriate that community artist Ruby Chacon, co-founder of BOU winner Mestizo Coffeehouse, would dine at this Mexican restaurant named for Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Chacon says, “The ambiance they create and the artistic nature of the food are amazing, and the community involvement is a plus, too.”
545 W. 700 South, Salt Lake City, 801-983-6692, FridaBistro.com

Kym’s Favorite Ogden Restaurants
Tona Sushi Bar & Sonora Grill
There are plenty of big-city tastes in Ogden—take Rooster’s Brewing Co., which has won seven BOU awards, including Best Ogden Restaurant. But when Rooster’s co-owner Kym Buttschardt isn’t dining at her own restaurant, she enjoys Tona Sushi Bar & Grill because “it’s always flawless. It’s like a Zen state, and they have a giving spirit where they are always giving back to the community.” She also loves Sonora Grill, where it’s “more than just a restaurant—they have a soul.”
Tona, 210 Historic 25th St., Ogden, 801-622-8662, TonaRestaurant.com; Sonora Grill, 2310 S. Kiesel Ave., Ogden, 801-393-1999, TheSonoraGrill.com

Justin’s Favorite Utah County Restaurant
Bangkok Grill Thai Restaurant
A neighborhood favorite with casual and friendly dining, Bangkok Grill offers great food with distinctive tastes. “People there are really nice and take care of you. It’s just simple. It’s nice, as a chef, to go to a restaurant and to just think about the food,” says Justin Soelberg, head chef of Provo’s two-time BOU winning Communal restaurant.
338 E. 800 South, Orem, 801-434-8424, BangkokGrillOrem.com

Michelle’s Favorite Pub & Grub
Epic Brewery Tapless Tap-room
With less than two years under its belt, Epic Brewery has earned awards and medals for its beers domestically and internationally, and won 2012’s BOU award for Best Local Beer. For samples of Epic Brewing’s beers, step into the Tapless Tap-room, where they offer sandwiches, paninis and soups. Michelle Corsillo, manager/bartender of X-Wife’s Place (multiple BOU winner), is an Epic fan, saying it’s a “great local brewery with great food. Like Pago, they also use all local food.”
825 S. State, Salt Lake City, 801-906-0123, EpicBrewing.com

Brian’s Favorite Daytime Gay Time
Millcreek Roasters
Support local first at Millcreek Roasters, where they feature coffees from around the globe, roasted in Salt Lake City, as well as bakery and sandwich items. “Their whole concept—brewing their own beans and how they’ll take you on a tour if you want to see how they do stuff, it’s just an awesome business,” says Brian Morris, co-owner of Jam, a hot-spot gay nightclub and three-time BOU winner. “They are really supportive of the gay community; it’s just a great place to just sit down and have Wi-Fi.”
657 S. Main, Salt Lake City, 801-323-9174, MillcreekCoffee.com

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