13 Best Restaurants in Salt Lake City, Utah

One of two inviting restaurants run by the city's excellent Proper Brewing Company, this contemporary neighborhood bistro on a quiet street in the Avenues is a terrific option for a meal on the terrace on a sunny day or in the postindustrial dining room. Sample the flavorful house-brewed ales paired with eclectic comfort fare like steak frites, Korean pork belly bibimbap, and shrimp and grits. There's a taproom downtown and an additional restaurant in Sugar House.  

Celebrated for its art-filled dining room and lushly tree-shaded terrace, this romantic spot occupies a converted house in a historic neighborhood near the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon. The kitchen specializes in modern French and American fare, such as preserved-heirloom-tomato pie with cilantro aioli and toasted-Parmesan sabayon, and Franck's signature meat loaf with whipped potatoes and a champagne-lavender sauce. There's a superb wine list, too.

Within a short, pretty stroll of the Avenues and Capitol Hill, this outpost of the original, nationally acclaimed Handle restaurant in Park City turns heads with its stunningly plated, locavore-driven cuisine and a fetching interior with marble-top tables, a wood-beam ceiling, and a gleaming, tiled open kitchen. What's served on any given night varies according to what's in season, but you might encounter truffled agnolotti pasta filled with Swiss chard, corn, and goat's whey cream or slow-cooked pork shank with carrot-frisée salad, whipped ranch dressing, and apple butter.

This elegant 1920s canyon retreat brings inventive takes on American wild game–focused cuisine by incorporating Asian ingredients with a Rocky Mountain style—consider grilled bison steak with charred Brussel sprouts and truffle aioli or roasted hen of the woods mushrooms with Calabrian chile–ricotta dumplings. With its romantic setting in a beautifully renovated log home amid the pine trees, waterfalls, and wildflowers of Millcreek Canyon, this is definitely a restaurant to remember. The restaurant is 4 miles up the canyon, across from a waterfall.

More than living up to its promise of farm-to-table freshness, this welcoming, microscopic, chef-driven neighborhood bistro capitalizes on local artisan farmers, with big and small plates anchored around simple ingredients like radishes, beets, or mountain stream trout. There's plenty to satisfy big appetites, too, such as bavette steak with duck fat potatoes, and fettuccine with braised hen, sofrito, pistachio, chile, and lemon. You can also dine at a second downtown location at 341 S. Main Street, which serves lunch on weekdays.

Serving artfully crafted modern American fare in a sceney cathedral-ceiling restaurant with tall black leather booths, a pair of esteemed chefs have created one of the most alluring dining destinations in the city. The five- and seven-course tasting menus change frequently and are based on what's in season, but recent offerings have included locally raised lamb shank accompanied by smoked and pickled alliums and saffron lamb jus and a vegetable "steak" topped with plum-zucchini caponata, leeks, and nasturtiums. Wine and nonalcoholic pairings are available.  The on-site bakery dispenses fine coffee, breads, and pastries Wednesday through Saturday.

Celebrated chef-owner Ryan Lowder brings joy with the basics—artful salads, house-made pastas, and charcuterie—and then dazzles with mouthwatering locally sourced dishes, from Cast Iron Mary's Chicken to rainbow trout with charred lemon and Greek yogurt. Stop in at this chic modern downtown bistro before or after a film, gallery tour, or live theater on Salt Lake's Broadway. The youthful Lowder studied with some of the nation's most famous chefs before bringing his own brand of sophisticated American cuisine to his hometown.

One of the most memorable and dramatic restaurant experiences in the state, dining in this secluded yurt begins with a guided ¼-mile snowshoe trek beneath a canopy of nighttime stars, and the dinner price—$175 per person—includes rentals, guides, corkage fee, and a grand four-course meal. The seasonally driven menu changes regularly, and The Yurt's chef describes the meal as he prepares it before your eyes in the cozy exhibition kitchen. With seating for just 26, dinners here book up early—reserve well ahead.

In an ornate former bank lobby adjacent to swanky Hotel Monaco, the city's most esteemed hotel restaurant is as notable for its setting as for its exceptional food. The kitchen crafts big plates of seasonally sourced modern American fare, including seared elk loin with berry compote, sea scallops with corn and cannellini beans, and fillet of beef with duck-fat potatoes and truffle aioli. A marble-fronted exhibition kitchen, big windows framed in fanciful hammered metal swirls, and a definite "buzz" make Bambara a hot spot even after many years. You can also dine in the bar, or simply enjoy a cocktail while cozied up in a velvet-lined booth.

Downtown's largest restaurant patio—with its tranquil reflecting pool, canopy of ornamental trees, and eye-catching murals—is an idyllic setting for boozy weekend brunch with friends, dinner and drinks before a show at nearby Abravanel Hall, or a late-night snack between dance clubs. The reasonably priced contemporary American food is consistently good, too, from the braised Wagyu beef Benedict with truffle Mornay sauce at brunch to ahi tuna tartare and cashew-kimchi bowls for dinner. There's a comfy indoor dining area, too, but it's the outdoor space that makes Ivy & Varley special.

An unprepossessing storefront eatery near the leafy Avenues district, Oquirrh (rhymes with "poker") is named for the snowcapped mountain range west of Downtown and focuses on seasonal fare with locally sourced ingredients. Boldly flavored dishes like house-made radiatori pasta with basil-cashew pesto and Niman ranch pork chops with feta and beet puree are presented artfully on handmade stoneware in an intimate, art-filled dining room.

With its sleek, contemporary vibe, warm lighting and wood accents, open kitchen, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the fantastic ski terrain, this upscale restaurant in the ritzy Snowpine Lodge is Alta's hippest dining destination. The kitchen takes a farm-to-table approach to its hearty but creative mountain fare, with standout dishes like hamachi crudo and a succulent peppercorn-crusted rib-eye steak with mashed potatoes and Merlot-braised mushrooms. Service is top-notch.