Lots of talk about food so I won't weigh in there. As far as things to do. If you're an Olympics geek make sure to head up to Rice-Eccles Stadium. You can see the Cauldron for the 2002 Olympic Games as well as a small monument to them. You can also visit the Olympic Oval/Park in nearby Kearns to see even more. And if you come in by Airport you'll pass the recently restored Arch that was part of our medals podium. There's hiking trails and the like for Outdoor recreation opportunities. A barcade called Quarters is about three Trax stops south of the stadium that might be a good spot for a postgame wind-down. The Leonardo is a very enjoyable science and art museum if that's your thing. And the Granary also has a Skate park among other things.
Salt Lake has a fantastic food scene. Any of the local brewpubs will treat you right; Squatters or Red Rock are both within walking distance of the Delta Center. Urban Hill and Bambara are nicer places if you wanna spend a little more. Both have amazing food. Valters Osteria is my favorite Italian spot. And Red Iguana (Mexican, specializing in Mole) is ranked among the top 100 restaurants in the US on various sites like Yelp pretty consistently.
I second the Red Iguana and its sequel location Red Iguana 2, although I will note it is consistently busy to the point where it helps to get a reservation for it some nights.
I mean, I've only been to Tokyo, Chicago, Vegas, New York, Indonesia, South America, Mexico, and all over Europe. So there might be some hidden mecca of amazing food I haven't found.
I could only see someone thinking that if they've spent basically their entire life here. An "amazing" restaurant here is average in basically any large cities. I know I'll get downvoted by the homers, but that's okay lol
r/saltlakecity has a pretty vibrant food discussion especially if you search for a particular thing, like “Mexican” or “hamburgers” etc. If you come before November or after March try to get outdoors. Or try skiing or showing in the winter.
Lived at Hill AFB as a kid from 89-93 and I still miss Burger Bar in Roy (~30 miles north of SLC) all these years later. With all the burger places these days I have no clue if it's good, but it's a more unique concept with old school nostalgia.
Good call. I work 2 minutes down the road from Burger Bar and it's as good as ever. Prices are still great, too. The local bakery who made their buns burned down last year but they came back and picked up where they left off.
Food recs on here have been solid. I'll add Crown Burger is a block away from the Delta Center and is an institution. You can either take the Trax light rail to the arena or park nearby depending on your situation. Something to consider is there are a lot of obstructed sight lines. If you buy tickets see if you can see pics from the seats so you know what you're getting into. Some even on the lower levels of the upper bowl have quite a bit of the ice obstructed. It was made perfectly for basketball though. Temple Square is under renovation for a while longer but that's one of the more popular tourist sites. There's shopping around the adjacent blocks (City Creek, Gateway). Jazz' schedule hasn't been released but if there's a couple nights back to back where both play that might be fun. The Jazz will probably not be very good this year but still a good atmosphere even when we're not a playoff team.
Someone mentioned the hiking and I would second that. The Cottonwood Canyons are beautiful, highly recommend.
If you're in Salt Lake, you're about a 40 minute drive from Main Street in Park City. If you've never been, it's worth walking around and checking out the shops and bars/restaurants.
Not a fine dining establishment by any means, but I am a sucker for the chicken sandwiches at Pretty Bird. Fillings & Emulsions is a fun bakery near downtown.
Carol's Bakery in downtown SLC is great. Valters Osteria is an amazing Italian place if you want to spend some money. Steve Kerr said it's his favorite restaurant in any NBA city.
It's like visiting any other city for a quick trip. Boring / bad food. Average bars. If you're a skier / snowboarder then that opens things up. Great place to live (outside SLC city limits), but visiting for game will leave you disappointed.
SLC is a quiet town, with quite a bit of vacant spaces downtown currently. As far as a food scene or a vibe at night, it doesn’t exist. Having lived in large cities, college towns, and a few rural areas, it reminds me most of larger towns in Kansas or northern Florida rather than Seattle, Chicago, NY, Pittsburgh, or other NHL cities.
If you wanna beer / alcohol- you have to have a food item as well. No live music anywhere when I’ve visited. Restaurants and bars were quiet and dark by 7:00pm / 8:00pm.
As far as foodies cities, SLC is nowhere on my list. Bland, unseasoned food each time I’ve been.
Wasatch Mountains look beautiful! Super clean town! Little-to-no traffic! Air quality was decent!
This is somehat inaccurate/outdated... Food is only required with alcohol at a restaurant, not bars and cocktail lounges as that is a different license type. Plus some restaurants now have a separate bar license inside so that you can drink at the counter without ordering food.
Nightlife and live music are certainly a bit underwhelming for a big city but can be found at various places downtown such as Lake Effect.
The best attractions in the area are the mountains like you said and that is where tourists should spend some time. And Park City Main St.
My favorite restaurants in the valley are Manoli's and Provisions. And Rawtopia for anyone who doesn't need meat at every meal.
Get a reservation at The Rest!
Lots of talk about food so I won't weigh in there. As far as things to do. If you're an Olympics geek make sure to head up to Rice-Eccles Stadium. You can see the Cauldron for the 2002 Olympic Games as well as a small monument to them. You can also visit the Olympic Oval/Park in nearby Kearns to see even more. And if you come in by Airport you'll pass the recently restored Arch that was part of our medals podium. There's hiking trails and the like for Outdoor recreation opportunities. A barcade called Quarters is about three Trax stops south of the stadium that might be a good spot for a postgame wind-down. The Leonardo is a very enjoyable science and art museum if that's your thing. And the Granary also has a Skate park among other things.
Salt Lake has a fantastic food scene. Any of the local brewpubs will treat you right; Squatters or Red Rock are both within walking distance of the Delta Center. Urban Hill and Bambara are nicer places if you wanna spend a little more. Both have amazing food. Valters Osteria is my favorite Italian spot. And Red Iguana (Mexican, specializing in Mole) is ranked among the top 100 restaurants in the US on various sites like Yelp pretty consistently.
I second the Red Iguana and its sequel location Red Iguana 2, although I will note it is consistently busy to the point where it helps to get a reservation for it some nights.
For a quick bite at lunch I recommend Spitz. Very tasty mediterranean food. đź‘Ť
That's a terrible name for a restaurant not gonna lie.
It is, but trust me, Spitz in your mouth is so good
Also I'd like to shout out Chile Tepin which is about a block from the Delta Center. Amazing Mexican food.
>Salt Lake has a fantastic food scene Only if you've never been anywhere with an actual good food scene.
I mean, I've only been to Tokyo, Chicago, Vegas, New York, Indonesia, South America, Mexico, and all over Europe. So there might be some hidden mecca of amazing food I haven't found.
And yet here you are, recommending brewpubs, overpriced/unoriginal fine dining and *red iguana* lol
As much as I enjoy it here, our food sucks lol
No way, it's great.
I could only see someone thinking that if they've spent basically their entire life here. An "amazing" restaurant here is average in basically any large cities. I know I'll get downvoted by the homers, but that's okay lol
Lived in a number of large cities and I disagree. I think this take is nonsense. SLC has a great restaurant scene. Some people just love to hate.
r/saltlakecity has a pretty vibrant food discussion especially if you search for a particular thing, like “Mexican” or “hamburgers” etc. If you come before November or after March try to get outdoors. Or try skiing or showing in the winter.
Lived at Hill AFB as a kid from 89-93 and I still miss Burger Bar in Roy (~30 miles north of SLC) all these years later. With all the burger places these days I have no clue if it's good, but it's a more unique concept with old school nostalgia.
It’s still great. There’s something unique about the Big Ben buns.
Good call. I work 2 minutes down the road from Burger Bar and it's as good as ever. Prices are still great, too. The local bakery who made their buns burned down last year but they came back and picked up where they left off.
Food recs on here have been solid. I'll add Crown Burger is a block away from the Delta Center and is an institution. You can either take the Trax light rail to the arena or park nearby depending on your situation. Something to consider is there are a lot of obstructed sight lines. If you buy tickets see if you can see pics from the seats so you know what you're getting into. Some even on the lower levels of the upper bowl have quite a bit of the ice obstructed. It was made perfectly for basketball though. Temple Square is under renovation for a while longer but that's one of the more popular tourist sites. There's shopping around the adjacent blocks (City Creek, Gateway). Jazz' schedule hasn't been released but if there's a couple nights back to back where both play that might be fun. The Jazz will probably not be very good this year but still a good atmosphere even when we're not a playoff team.
Someone mentioned the hiking and I would second that. The Cottonwood Canyons are beautiful, highly recommend. If you're in Salt Lake, you're about a 40 minute drive from Main Street in Park City. If you've never been, it's worth walking around and checking out the shops and bars/restaurants. Not a fine dining establishment by any means, but I am a sucker for the chicken sandwiches at Pretty Bird. Fillings & Emulsions is a fun bakery near downtown.
Carol's Bakery in downtown SLC is great. Valters Osteria is an amazing Italian place if you want to spend some money. Steve Kerr said it's his favorite restaurant in any NBA city.
It's like visiting any other city for a quick trip. Boring / bad food. Average bars. If you're a skier / snowboarder then that opens things up. Great place to live (outside SLC city limits), but visiting for game will leave you disappointed.
SLC is a quiet town, with quite a bit of vacant spaces downtown currently. As far as a food scene or a vibe at night, it doesn’t exist. Having lived in large cities, college towns, and a few rural areas, it reminds me most of larger towns in Kansas or northern Florida rather than Seattle, Chicago, NY, Pittsburgh, or other NHL cities. If you wanna beer / alcohol- you have to have a food item as well. No live music anywhere when I’ve visited. Restaurants and bars were quiet and dark by 7:00pm / 8:00pm. As far as foodies cities, SLC is nowhere on my list. Bland, unseasoned food each time I’ve been. Wasatch Mountains look beautiful! Super clean town! Little-to-no traffic! Air quality was decent!
This is somehat inaccurate/outdated... Food is only required with alcohol at a restaurant, not bars and cocktail lounges as that is a different license type. Plus some restaurants now have a separate bar license inside so that you can drink at the counter without ordering food. Nightlife and live music are certainly a bit underwhelming for a big city but can be found at various places downtown such as Lake Effect. The best attractions in the area are the mountains like you said and that is where tourists should spend some time. And Park City Main St. My favorite restaurants in the valley are Manoli's and Provisions. And Rawtopia for anyone who doesn't need meat at every meal.