One of our favorite local chefs recently made a shift to a brand new restaurant in town, Stanza. We’ve followed Phelix Gardner as he’s helped open new restaurants and changed up menus over the years, always enjoying what he comes up with, so, in a way, we knew we would love Stanza.

Not too long before Stanza opened our favorite ‘special occasion’ restaurant closed, Fresco.  This cosy spot had been our place to enjoy a comforting bowl of house-made pasta for years, celebrating anniversaries, pregnancies, and birthdays.  All that to say, not only were we excited about Stanza because of Phelix but we also we’re suddenly in the need for a new special spot for pasta.

We instantly enjoyed our Italian meal at Stanza, quickly throwing back big bites of cheese filled arancini, followed by a healthful bowl of arugula salad then onto our main squeeze… pasta.  I tried the agnolotti, small pillow-like pastas filled sometimes with cheese but in this case with pureed peas and served with fresh shrimp, early summer green veggies and topped with a shellfish sauce. It was elegant and tasteful and perfectly comforting, filling my pasta void. 

My masculine date ordered the special of the day, Bolognese, also served on housemade pasta.  He ate it up as if he were in Italy for the first time (he loves Italy and eats all of the Bolognese style pastas he can possibly find while we’re there!).

Finally, we ordered dessert, whether or not we saved room for it because… cherry buckle with buttermilk gelato, who can resist that?! We also tasted a few other gelato flavors, spicy honey and thai basil, both nearly stole the show at the end of our very tasty evening.

So, did we like Stanza?  Not only like but NEED!  There was a sudden void for good pasta and gelato in our lives and Stanza came through with flying colors!

Stanza
454 East 300 South

It was a nice surprise to hear that a restaurant had moved into the old Rino’s building in Sugarhouse but it was an even nicer surprise when we walked into a nicely remodeled dining room with a vine covered patio then had an exquisite surf and turf meal.

A long time Utah resident, Randall Curtis, loves the Sugarhouse neighborhood and had a desire to be a part of change in the city. He along with his partner Taylor Jacobsen, reinvented a long standing fixture of East Bench Sugarhouse, Rino’s Italian Restaurant. They transformed this favorited date night spot into a family friendly place to enjoy steak and seafood. And while Harbor is a place where kids are welcome, its definitely a place you’ll want to book for a special date night.

While Sugarhouse is moving more towards restaurant chains, this new establishment is sourcing locally and sometimes as local as the garden right behind their parking lot.  The quality in flavor could be tasted in many of our dishes.

And for the dishes with seafood we quickly tasted the care of their seafood sources as well. The crab cakes were filled with generous whole pieces of crab so you could really see and taste the crab and the ahi tuna was so fresh it didn’t need much seasoning.

The clam chowder was soothing without being too rich and the entrees were perfectly balanced and portioned. My ahi tuna steak came with garlic mashed potatoes and spicy green beans and I must say that I enjoyed the crispy and flavorful beans as much as the tuna. And I love ahi tuna! Also, the Beef Short Ribs were accompanied by peas with bacon and mint, which almost stole the show, luckily the beef was amazing!

Desserts at Harbor are made by Frank Peissel of Frank’s. His cheesecake was so light and not overly sweet that if you would have told me it was a soufflé I would have believed you and after a perfectly filling meal it was an absolute delight!

Those in the Sugarhouse neighborhood have already found out about Harbor, as it was packed the night we visited but for those of us more close to the city, Harbor Steak and Seafood is definitely worth making a date for. We think you’ll enjoy the nice surprise of good steak and seafood in Sugarhouse as much as we did!

If you’ve ever spent time in downtown Salt Lake, especially around the Capitol Theatre, then you’ve probably noticed the art deco stylized Hotel Monaco that houses Bambara Restaurant – an award laden “New American” bistro set in the transformed historic Continental Bank lobby.

This was my second visit to Bambara. My first was in the spring of 2013 where I was wowed at Chef Nathan Powers ability to experiment and create 4 unique dishes inspired by 4 different Epic beers. I couldn’t wait to see what he had up his sleeve this season.

There will be a handful of things that stick out if you’re visiting for the first time. They’ve successfully pulled off a fashionable atmosphere with elements of their past through gestures to the building’s history as a bank through features such as: the safety-deposit box artwork and host stand adorned with pennies, an impressive stainless steel wine cabinet filled with wine bottles dipped in gold, inspired by old safety deposit boxes, and an open, central kitchen that allows you the opportunity to be treated to a show by Chef Powers and his team.

The theme of the evening was, without a doubt, variety. Once you’ve been in Salt Lake for several years, you tend to narrow down your favorite places for certain dishes. I know exactly where to go for an amazing buffalo burger. I have a favorite brick oven pizza place. I’ve recommend a certain pasta carbonara dish at a particular restaurant to everyone I meet. But at Bambara, the most difficult part of the evening was choosing a dish. I overheard the comment “what a great menu…” more than once. I shared a table with 15 others diners and as our server went through the menu of appetizers and entrees, each description was accompanied by oooh’s and ahhh’s of delight. Everything sounded divine so we agreed to each choose something different so we could taste a little bit of everything.

The starters came out and we demolished them in seconds. Blue Cheese House Cut Potato Chips, Crab Stuffed Piquillo Peppers and Hawaiian Ahi Tuna Tartare.

Then came the entrees. The seafood choices were incredibly varied – from seared King Salmon to grilled Utah Red Trout. There was an amazing Ricotta Porcini Gnocchi and a Grilled Filet of Beef. I went with the Riesling Braised Duroc Pork Shank with asparagus-mascarpone risotto, tempura asparagus and Meyer lemon-asparagus chimichurri.

When each of our dishes came out, we all became incredible competitive – claiming that each of our dishes was by far the best. It was only when we taste-tested each other’s choices, we discovered it was a draw – they were all phenomenal.

The dessert highlight was Rebecca’s Filo Crisp – port soaked sun dried cherries, brown butter ice cream, caramelized pine nuts.

It was fun to discover a place where a great menu delivers even better results. Bambara is the perfect place for your family or group of friends with varied palates and tastes.

Notes:

20+ Gluten Free or Can Be Made Gluten Free Options

Impressive wine and cocktail menu

Starters range from $8-$18

Entrees range from $24-$44

Bambara is located on Main Street at 200 South

Bambara Restaurant Website

Bambara on Facebook

We’ve had a couple of really nice meals since having Everett and they both happen to be from Pago.  We actually were spoiled when a friend brought Pago take-out to us right after Everett was born.  As I often remember seasons of life with the food we enjoyed, I think I’ll look back on these first few months of Everett’s life and remember sitting around the table with Josh, Everett in my arms, slightly sleep deprived, and tasting some truly amazing flavors that are being offered at Pago.

Here are some of the tastes that will be forever linked in my mind with summer and fall 2013:

Carrot Tasting: an assortment carrots- raw, confit, pickled, and pureed with mascarpone.

Gnocchi with Smoked Tomato Nage, Corn, Mushrooms and Parmesan Cheese. (I also learned that a nage is a emulsion or reduced & enhanced liquid)

Utah Morgan Valley Lamb with bright green pea falafel, carrots roasted in chermoula (a spicy Middle Eastern sauce), and lime marinated cucumbers with citrus yogurt.

And as a special treat the chef brought us out something he’s trying for the upcoming season – Caramelized fennel and figs with lamb bacon over popcorn grits.  If you frequent PAgo enough the chef often sends you samples of his latest creations (more reason to be a regular diner at Pago).

Peach Pie with Brown Butter Ice Cream.

For more details on our dinner at Pago pick up the latest issue of In Magazine.

Pago
878 South 900 East
Lunch: Monday – Friday 11am – 3pm
Dinner: Monday – Sunday 5pm – 10pm
Brunch: Saturday & Sunday 10am – 2:30pm
Closed 3pm-5pm daily.

This article is written by Hannah Wright.  She’ll be writing a series called “Salt Lake City Date Night” for SLC Foodie.

One of my favorite things about food is its ability to bring people together.  Early in our marriage my husband and I decided to institute a weekly “date night” for intentionally spending time together.  This special time has become increasingly more important to us as we’ve gotten busier with our respective careers.  My husband, Phillip, and I share a mutual love of food so we take care in selecting a place to go for dinner.  This past week we chose Frida Bistro for our date night.

I love all of the colorful décor in Frida Bistro, and their creativity is also very apparent in their menu.  To start we both ordered margaritas and the ceviche de atún.  I really enjoyed Frida’s grilled pineapple, jalapeño and cilantro margarita and Phillip felt the same way about the “El Jefe” margarita with Vida Blanca and Grand Marnier.  Ceviche is a popular seafood dish that often features a raw fish flavored with citrus juices and spices. With its fresh taste, this particular ceviche provided a great appetizer while we browsed the menu and chatted.

For our entrees, I chose Callos al Tamarindo, which was a lovely seared scallop dish with tamarind sauce, leeks, and shitake mushrooms. My husband opted for the Puerco en Escabeche, citrus glazed pork carnitas and pork belly with chipotle mashed potatoes, and asparagus.  I love scallops and Frida did not disappoint: the scallops were just the right consistency.  Sometimes scallops and shrimp are so overcooked that they are just rubbery little seafood pods.  With just the right amount of flavor and texture, these scallops showed me that there is good seafood in Salt Lake City.  My husband was impressed by the flavor of his dish, particularly the chipotle mashed potatoes.

If you and your significant other are looking for a fun, creative restaurant to re-connect from a busy work week and enjoy some margaritas on the patio, please check out Frida Bistro at 545 West 700 South.  They have lunch and dinner hours and a Saturday brunch.  Frida’s food and service make it easy to enjoy some quality time with friends and family!