Les Madeleines

 'Les Madeleines makes the best macaroons.'

When I was a kid growing up my aunt Rose used to always make macaroons for Christmas. She made hundreds of tiny little macaroons - crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside. I always ate tons but for whatever reason grew an aversion to them over the years. I think I just overdosed on macaroons every Christmas or perhaps just longed for something new and different. It's interesting how times change and something that revolted you as a child excites you as an adult. Fast forward to current day where I find myself drooling over any glass bakery case which prominently displays delectable macaroons. I'm not sure what my problem was but now I love macaroons. I LOVE them.

Simply put - Les Madeleines makes the best macaroons. They're light and fluffy like cake with a texture and flavor that only dried coconut exudes. The macaroons are uniquely scented with orange and one end is delicately coated in chocolate giving a sophisticated feel to this little morsel. Les Madeleines also makes classic French macarons. You've probably seen these colorful cookies that look like little sandwiches. Also quite good. On the day you hit Les Madeleines the content of their glass bakery case may vary. They have also been known to run out of things and not replenish. So be forewarned. When you see something you want, get it. Also be on the lookout for their classic black and white (or half moon) cookies (just like in New York!). I can only describe these as more of a cake or shortbread that is shaped like a big cookie and iced with half vanilla icing and dark chocolate icing. It's more or less like a cookie-brownie-cupcake type thing, but is absolutely delicious.

If you're not up to eating sweets (blasphemy?) try to drop into Les Madeleines for lunch. They have a small assortment of lunch items. My favorite is the sesame chicken salad wrap. House made chicken salad is wrapped up tightly in a lettuce cup and again tightly wrapped in a rice-paper-cellophane wrapper. Alone the sandwich is a little dull, but dipping it into the sesame/miso vinaigrette really evokes a wonderful flavor, elevating the sandwich a couple of notches on the taste meter. Edamame is served on the side, a really healthful and fun alternative to potato chips. I also normally get a fresh limeade to wash it all down with. Les Madeleines is a favorite lunch stop of mine where I can pick something up quickly and then head back to work so I can work through lunch in my office. It's a sad life I know but that sweet treat for dessert (a macaroon or black and white perhaps?) helps me to finish off lunch with a smile and energizes me to tackle the rest of my day.

I just love pastry shops and bakeries. Although I myself am not much of a baker, I really appreciate the artistry involved in such an endeavor. My aunt Rose would stay up long nights to finish her macaroons for the Christmas holidays. If you've ever made macaroons, you know they can be a sticky mess. So I know a lot of skill and a lot of love go into making these little things. I for one was always grateful for my aunt's industriousness...and I for one am grateful that I can find a little bit of my aunt in the macaroons at Les Madeleines.


Les Madeleines ~ Salt Lake City, Utah
216 East 500 South
Chef Romina Rasmussen
****

Wild Grape

'Hit or miss.'

Hit or miss. It's not the best way to describe a restaurant's performance. Inconsistency is a restaurant killer. I mean really, who wants to go to a restaurant and at the end of the evening get hit with the reality that they just wasted their good, hard earned cash on a crappy meal or on sub-par service? Not me anyway. So - I've been to the Wild Grape at least a dozen or so times these past two years to try to figure them out...and unfortunately 'hit or miss' is the way I'd have to describe their food (and service). Sometimes it's good and sometimes not so good. In fact a big reason it's taken me so long to write this review is because I've got mixed feelings about the place. There are times when the stars align and I just love it and then other times I wonder why the heck I ever went back. Below I recount some highs and lows from a few experiences to exemplify what I'm talking about.

Low - flat iron steak with truffled mac n' cheese, topped with lightly dressed arugula. The steak was perfectly cooked medium rare but unfortunately both the steak and the mac n' cheese underneath were stone cold...not even room temp, but stone cold. Did the cook think that he could plate the dish up 30 minutes before the other dishes for the table were ready? And how did the cold food pass the chef/expeditor? In any case, amateurish performance at best. MISS.

High - Sunday prime rib dinner: perfectly cooked medium rare prime rib with mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables. The meat was tender and juicy, made even more succulent served in its savory jus. I'm picky when it comes to prime rib because I think my dad's prime rib is the best ever - and biting into this meat made me think of my dad's food. Taste memory: it's a powerful thing and it's what every dish should strive to evoke in some way, shape or form. And this prime rib had a dramatic effect on me. Hard to believe that this dish came out of the same kitchen on the same night as the flat iron steak above.  HIT.

Low - Sunday brunch. Bad service, dirty tables, dry potatoes, and the absolute worst beignets and huevos rancheros I've ever had. Dry seemed to be a pervasive theme as both the beignets and huevos seemed to lack any moisture. Seriously - not good at all. Everyone knows that brunch is a time when a restaurant basically puts up their "B team" line up of cooks (since the really good cooks are needed for dinner). But on this particular Sunday it seemed like they staffed the Wild Grape kitchen with rejects from the reality TV show "Worst Cooks in America". How can a restaurant serve elegant, eclectic food for dinner and then crap for breakfast? Either inconsistency is a goal for this place or someone's just not paying attention. In any case - MISS.

High - seared salmon over gnocchi with spinach puree. On a recent trip back to the Wild Grape I decided to give the salmon a try, mostly to see if the Wild Grape could redeem itself. On a past trip, I hadn't been too enthused about the fish dish I ordered. So yeah, of course on this night - the salmon was EXCELLENT. It was cooked a perfect medium. Whoever cooked that piece of fish definitely knew what he was doing because the sear on that sucker was amazing. The fish was served crispy skin side up over caramelized gnocchi with a lovely bright green spinach sauce. The salmon was topped off with orange and lime rinds giving it a nice brightness of flavor and the spinach rendered a freshness to the dish. The gnocchi had a crisp texture but were light and fluffy - absolutely lovely. Definite HIT.

The menu changes seasonally, which means you may never see some of the above menu items on your own visit, but this gives you an idea of the style of food they serve. Other mentionables? Butternut squash soup - not my favorite. Wild Grape house salad - really nice. Lamb burger - just okay. Chocolate Smores Tort - great. Mmmm...so where does this leave us? I'm not exactly sure but you see what I mean? Sometimes the Wild Grape is on their "A game". Other times it's like they're not even in the building let alone the game. But don't you just sometimes really want to like a place? Even if it's not the best?

I have mixed feelings about the Wild Grape. They do some great things, have a great wine list, and nice atmosphere. But then I've also gotten some really bad dishes, rotten service, and have just wanted to get the hell out of there after a meal. Ugh. So do I like the Wild Grape? Would I recommend it? It's hard for me to say...and I guess it  just shouldn't be so hard to decide if they're good or not. You shouldn't have to wonder if you're going to go to a restaurant and get a good meal or if the service for that matter is going to stink. And when I go to the Wild Grape, I guess I just always wonder.

Wild Grape ~ Salt Lake City, Utah

481 E. South Temple

Chef: Phelix Gardner

**** (on a good day)

** (on a bad day)

Chow truck

'...you can't miss it - that is if you're looking for it...and believe me...YOU SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR IT.'

I love street food. Yeah - you heard me - street food. You know...street vendors. Hot dog carts, taco carts, pretzel stands - that sort of thing. I don't think we celebrate street food enough in the U.S., let alone here in SLC, UT. Personally I feel like food always tastes better when you're outside in the fresh air anyway...and there's something communal and almost intimate about the food cart experience - whether its standing huddled around in line with strangers waiting to place your order or parking it on a nearby bench or sidewalk to eat with friends. So I was really excited to see the Chow truck in SLC, a new venture where moving taco truck meets gourmet Asian cuisine.

The Chow truck is a food truck reminiscent of most taco trucks found on the street or lunch trucks found on construction sites. This truck however is bright yellow, so you can't miss it - that is if you're looking for it...and believe me...YOU SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR IT. At first glance you could be at any other lunch truck in the state, with an ice bar up front holding a variety of drinks and other candy bars and such to grab, but as you glance through the menu you see that you are indeed in for a unique dining experience. You won't see any boxed up turkey sandwiches here as the menu represents casual street food with a gourmet twist; instead, think Asian tacos. You order through a small plastic window where owner of the Chow truck, SuAn Chow, takes your order. On this day, we tried the spicy beef tacos, the pineapple-ginger pork tacos, the fried root chips, and the special of the day which was a pulled pork quesadilla with a mole sauce. As we ordered we could see Chef Rosanne Ruiz (formerly of Vinto) in the truck's tiny little kitchen putting our orders together...and the food came out in a flash.

To put it bluntly - the spicy beef tacos were amazing. Often times for me, tacos are all about texture rather than taste, but not this time - the flavor in this taco was very pronounced. The beef was tender and savory with a hint of heat. This blended well with the cool slaw and the crunchy topping of fried wonton strips. The cilantro pesto really tied the whole thing together nicely offering a blast of brightness. It was like eating a Southeast Asian taco which was somehow oddly American. It was absolutely delicious...all packed into one little taco. The pork tacos were also quite good with flavors a little less pronounced - more hints than distinct flavors of ginger for example, with some sweetness from the pineapple bits on top. However, the flavors weren't too subtle that you couldn't taste anything, but present enough so that you didn't feel like you were just eating something ambiguously crunchy.

Speaking of crunchy, the root chips provided a really nice alternative to plain potato or tortilla chips. The chips consisted of a mixture of fried yukon golds, purple potatoes, carrots, yams, beets, and lotus root. Each chip had a distinct flavor, some sweeter than others, some more savory but each with a distinctive crispness as well. We rounded our meal off with the special of the day - a pork quesadilla served with a mole sauce, cucumber salsa, and cilantro pesto. The pulled pork in mole provided a deep, rich, meaty flavor in contrast to the bright flavors in the tacos. The mole did tend to overpower the other subtle flavors of the dish but such is the case with mole.

The Chow truck menu is small and focused with variations of their 5 main tacos in slider or salad versions. It being a truck and all, the Chow truck moves from location to location but you can track where it will be via their website or by twitter. Or you can JUST LOOK FOR IT as you're driving and drop by for an impromptu lunch or dinner. Street food is a widely celebrated tradition in most parts of the world from Latin America to Europe to Japan or India...with vendors selling food specific to their respective lands. But as unique as the food in every place is, the locals share one common feature - they will always know which carts serve the best food. And I think I've just found the best damn taco truck in SLC.

Chow truck ~ Salt Lake City, Utah

Currently hosted at these locations: Trolley Square, Twilight Lounge, Eggs in the City, Key Bank, and REI

www.chowtruck.com

Owner: SuAn Chow

Chef: Rosanne Ruiz

***.5

The Copper Onion

 'Overall, pretty impressive - given that they've only been open for 9 days.'

The Copper Onion is the latest of a trickling of casual, new American type restaurants to populate the Salt Lake valley. Chef Ryan Lowder, originally from SLC, comes back to his home city highly acclaimed - having trained at the CIA, doing stages under New York Chefs Jean George Vongerichten and Mario Batali, and finally achieving the position of executive chef at Mercat in NYC. Most people believe if you can run a successful restaurant in NYC you must know what you're doing. So expectations for his new restaurant located next door to the Broadway movie theatre in downtown SLC are quite high. Do the sensibilities of running a New York City restaurant apply to our own Salt Lake City culinary scence? I had dinner at the Copper Onion to find out.

The restaurant space is pretty decent and the decor gives way to a casual dining experience with a dimly lit ambiance. It's a great location, perfect for attracting off-the-street business...very smart. The menu also appeared to be very smart: a small, focused menu with a variety of choices made from local, sustainable sources. Prices for entrees range from $11 to $24...really a great value if you look at the type of dishes offered. Good location - check. Good value - check. Good food?

We started our meal off with a warm loaf of house-made rosemary bread served with honey butter. Rosemary perfumed the soft loaf, it's strong scent a perfect match for the sweetness and richness of the butter. We also tried the gran biscotto ham and d'affinois cheese to start. The ham was savory and tender, sliced thin like sheets of paper. The d'affinois, a rich cow's milk cheese, soft and silky, was reminiscent of brie - but not so stinky. It's creaminess was dreamy and rich. The plate of meat and cheese also came with a house-made buckwheat jam. I actually found the taste of the jam off-putting; the smell alone was not exactly the most inviting and spread on the cheese and meat - it made everything too cloyingly sweet. 

For our entrees, we decided to go with one standard menu item as well to try the evening's special. Carbonara is a classic pasta dish found on many menus featuring traditional Italian and more modern Italian-American items. At The Copper Onion they make their own pasta in-house and serve their carbonara with an egg yolk nested atop the hot pasta. In true Italian fashion, the hot pasta will cook the egg as you mix the yolk into the dish. The dish was good - nice and tasty, rich from the egg and cheese, and the noodles were delicate with a firm toothiness to them. As good as it was, it wasn't the best carbonara I've ever had though. I think the dish's main problem was that it was perhaps a little underseasoned. It's amazing what a little salt can do. Not bad though...

We also tried the special - piquillo peppers stuffed with braised short rib meat, served with fruit chutney, an arugula salad, and black eyed peas. I originally wanted to get the wagyu steak with fries, but I had an inkling for soft, tender, braised meat and the combination with the pepper sounded interesting. Generally I hesitate from getting the special at any restaurant since it's well known that they often come up with specials to get rid of excess or old food. But with the Copper Onion being 9 days old, I thought they just might be trying to test out new menu items. Moreover, the server did an exquisite sales job making me salivate at the drop of the description. And indeed the stuffed peppers were great. The braised short rib meat was soft and tender and the savoriness of the meat played well with the sweetness of the peppers and chutney. If anything the dish screamed for some moisture - a little sauce on each stuffed pepper would have moved this dish from great to superb...tying all of the components on the plate together. What added to the dryness were the black eyed peas which had a nice bite to them but again lacked some juiciness. The fruit compote was undecipherable to me (perhaps peach or pear?) but added a nice sweetness and density, while the peppery arugula on top offered a sharp bite, waking up the flavor with a splash of vinegar, as well as giving the dish a nice crunchy texture.

With an influx of guests just coming from a Sundance movie playing next door, the restaurant was packed. The staff was getting a little swamped and service seemed to slow down quite a bit. It took a while for us to get our check. We decided to save dessert for another day.  Overall, pretty impressive - given that they've only been open for 9 days. I'll definitely be back in a few weeks to check on their progress. It looks to me like the sensibilities and skills of this NYC chef are playing through quite nicely in SLC. Welcome home chef, welcome home.

The Copper Onion ~ Salt Lake City, Utah

Chef/co-owner: Ryan Lowder

Co-owner: Colleen Lowder

111 East 300 South

***.5

Communal

'Really, they made this here in Provo?'

I almost never get to Provo. I think I've been to Provo once where I've actually stopped for a significant period of time to watch a BYU vs. Cal football game over 10 years ago. (This of course excludes the 6 months I dated a BYU student in 2001...but that's a story for another time). When I think of cities that play host to restaurants that serve modern, unique food  - honestly Provo is not the first town that comes to mind. On a chance overnight stay in Provo over the Christmas holiday, I got the opportunity to drop into Communal, a hip and trendy dinner spot I heard was pretty decent. Pretty decent in Provo? This definitely warranted some investigation.

The name Communal stems from the philosophy behind the restaurant's serving practices. The food is served in smaller, family style dishes - usually in portions big enough for at least 2 people. The decor in the restaurant also matches this philosophy with one long row of conjoined tables and wooden benches on one side of the restaurant. Seating in this area is close quarters, giving a true communal feel; not to worry if you value your personal space though, there is more traditional style seating available as well. The restaurant sports a beautiful layout and an open kitchen: all very small, clean, and modern. Could we really be in Provo?

We started off our dinner with the melted onion tart. A crisp pastry was layered with caramelized onions atop which a frisee salad tossed with a bacon vinaigrette was placed. Over this a poached egg sat glistening like a jewel. The dish was quite nice. The sweetness from the onion was well balanced with the salty, bitter frisee salad. Once you sliced through the poached egg with your folk, the creaminess of the yolk tied the whole dish together quite nicely...giving it an overall great mouth feel. Really, they made this here in Provo?

To celebrate the Communal theme, we next shared two meat entrees, a starch, and a veg. We were excited to see two miniature family style servings of the pot roast and the airline chicken breast in cute, modern serving dishes. The pot roast was everything you'd imagine old school, comfort food to be. It was juicy, tender, and deep with flavors of bay, onion, and red wine. It was a real comforting dish, as only a well done pot roast can deliver. Paired with crisp wild mushrooms and a cheesy, gooey gratin, we had the perfect accoutrements to a complete meal. Yes - all here in Provo!

The highlight of the dinner for me though was the airline chicken breast. The airline part of the chicken breast refers to an old school butchering of chicken where the chef fabricates the breast so that part of the wing is still attached. Apparently this cut was first made popular when it was served on airlines in the 1960s. In any case, the cut isn't what made this dish interesting per se - it was the way the chicken was cooked that made it special. The chicken was cooked sous vide...or under vacuum - under constant, exact temperature in a water bath. The breast was sooo juicy and tender. The chefs must have also quickly pan fried the chicken on one side to get a crisp skin, because the skin offered a nice textural contrast to the juicy meat. Not your everyday chicken breast...airline, indeed. Sous vide, really...in Provo?!?

I must say the food was great, the restaurant was intimate, the kitchen was open and this added up to a nice warm family type experience - a communal feel if you will. I love the concept, the menu is super simple and focused, and the chefs are even committed to using local, sustainable products. Are we really in Provo?

The food was so filling that we opted for no dessert. Instead we ended with a nice night cap finishing the wine we had at our table. Suddenly as if I snapped out of trance, I quickly glanced around the small restaurant and noticed that we were the only table drinking wine. We could hear the table behind us ordering drinks, saying that it was a special occasion so they wanted something nice. When the server came back to the table with a large bottle of sparkling apple cider, I just smiled to myself thinking - well, we are in Provo afterall....

Communal ~ Provo, Utah

100 North University Ave

Co-owners: Colton and Joe

****

Tulie

My computer keyboard's a mess. Sometimes I get what I'm eating for breakfast on everything in my office. I find grease stains on papers or reports and little bits of sugar on my keyboard and mouse. I admit it. I'm a messy eater in the mornings. It's just that I find that I'm unable to restrain myself when it comes to a good morning bun from Tulie. Although I generally eat healthfully for breakfast during the week (honestly I work out at the gym each morning and then usually eat a yogurt and banana while catching up with emails first thing in the office) at least once a week I indulge in a brilliant hot beverage and a sinful pastry from a local coffee house/bakery. And for the past several months I've been on a Tulie kick.

I am a total coffee and pastry guy. I love a nice hot, slightly bitter cup of coffee after eating an indulgent, sweet, crusty on the outside-gooey on the inside kind of pastry.  I know it's so bad for me, but I revel in the smell of coffee wafting in the air and glistening sugar on that morning bun. Mmm...it's just so inviting...especially in these cold winter months. The morning bun is a cross between a muffin and a cinnamon roll. It's baked till crisp on the outside and is covered in granulated sugar giving it an almost crystalline appearance. You bite into it and out comes a combination of cinnamon and orange amidst a goop of chewy bread - it's absolutely heavenly. With one bite I instantly go into starvation mode and devour the entire thing, thankfully in the privacy of my office...where by now I've gotten sugar and goo all over my computer and desk. I wash it all down with a hot cup of coffee and my day has started off well.

Being a 9th and 9th resident, I actually have quite a few options for morning coffee. However in my case the food is the high selling point of a coffeehouse for me. Weird I know. I do like my coffee, but I guess I like my food more. In addition to your standard specialty coffee treats, Tulie offers a wide variety of house made pastries, both savory and sweet. There a few lunch items as well as some specials like fresh beignets on early Friday and Saturday mornings. Some personal favorites of mine have included their pain au chocolat and chocolate bouchon (yeah okay - I like chocolate). But in their display case you'll find more than just chocolate with rows and rows of beautiful croissants, muffins, scones, tea cakes, and more. Desserts also adorn the neighboring deli case with delightful confections such as mini chocolate tortes, cream pies, and fruit tarts. The dark chocolate torte is amazing. Dense bittersweet goodness filled in a chocolate crust? Um yeah. Ridiculous...in the greatest sense possible.  Tulie. It's an absolute dream and it's right here in my neighborhood. I'm a lucky guy.

Oh - and when I get into the office on a Tulie kind of morning, I'll sometimes close my door while I voraciously engulf my morning bun and coffee at my desk. It's a private, intimate, almost savage moment of fulfillment...and the grin of satisfaction on my face doesn't get any bigger.

Tulie ~ Salt Lake City, Utah

863 East 700 South

***

Chez Betty

"Unfortunately Betty died today", we were told by host and co-owner Tom Bell as we were being seated. Apparently, some kids with a big dinner party wanted to sit next to Betty during dinner that night, but Tom quickly gave us the table next to the empty fish bowl which normally housed the mascot goldfish of the restaurant's namesake. Apparently Tom didn't have time to go the store to get a replacement before dinner service, so he told the kids that Betty was on a little vacation in the Bahamas. Oh well - no Betty tonight I thought...but at least there wasn't a mystery fish special on the menu that night.

Located inside of the Copperbottom Inn in Park City, Chez Betty is what I'd describe as somewhat of a "sleeper" restaurant. To some it's very well known as the restaurant and chef have gotten some critical acclaim in the local media in the past, but because of the restaurant's location just off of historic Main Street inside of a non-major-chain type of hotel - not too many think of Chez Betty as a destination restaurant. It's "sleeper" status however doesn't keep the locals away. The restaurant never fails to pack the crowd in giving it a vibrant, cozy energy.

You're a little thrown off as you first walk in through a door common to both the Copperbottom Inn and the restaurant. Once you find your way to Chez Betty to the left of the entrance, you quickly see that the restaurant is medium-sized with what I would describe only as a very "homey" interior. The decor isn't exactly fancy or elegant, definitely not modern or chic by any means, but the dining room tables are covered with white table cloths and the walls sport an eclectic decor of decorative plates and artwork that gives the place a nice sense of charm. The menu at Chez Betty matches its decor...what I would call eclectic American. It's a short menu, the majority of which represents classic preparations with a few modern dishes thrown in, making the dishes diverse in cuisine type and versatile in technique.

My dining companions and I sampled  a number of dishes from the a la cart menu. An amuse bouche arrived in front of us - a small slice of sausage topped off with a sundried cherry and ancho chile pesto along with a toasted pine nut. The small bite gave us a lovely sweet-heat flavor combination alongside a savoriness from the meat - absolutely delicious - somewhat aggressive for a palate starter but it made me crave for more. We next sampled the tomato-basil soup and the kurabuta pork belly lettuce cups. The soup was good but lacked a little zip rendering it somewhat non-memorable. It tasted of sweet tomato with a hint of fresh basil but somehow seemed dormant, on the verge of being great...but it lacked a little punch to wake it up; acid would have been nice - perhaps some lemon juice or vinegar - something to make it less murky. In contrast, the lettuce cups were fantastic. The braised pork belly was tender and moist; the sweet chile sauce echoed the sweet-heat flavors of the amuse bouche. The crispy lettuce and cellophane rice noodles also added some textural interest and brightness of flavor. These were a hit at our table and a nice way to get us truly ready for our entrees.

We sampled the night's dinner special - an Asian style lo mein topped off with seared sea scallops. Unfortunately I didn't find this dish particularly successful. The noodles seemed dense - drowned in the thick, rich coconut based sauce. The scallops were cooked perfectly but were a little overwhelmed both in flavor and texture by the accompanying noodles. We also tried the warm spinach salad with spicy chicken livers. The flavor of the salad was nice - smoky from the bacon with some tang from the vinaigrette and savory feta cheese but I felt like the deep fried chicken livers lacked the promised spicyness and weren't as flavorful as they could have been. The deep frying process seemed to dry out the livers somewhat so I found the dish to lack some moisture in general.

The two stars at our table came with our red meat preparations. The beef tenderloin was cooked perfectly and melted in your mouth like butter. The classic demi-glace served alongside jazzed up the meat giving it a smoky grilled onion flavor. The tenderloin was served atop a potato pancake topped off with some wilted spinach. Unfortunately the crisp pancake became soggy  due to the moisture of the spinach, although both items tasted great. The dish was topped off with a stack of onion rings which really did add some nice crunch with a nice, homey, steakhouse feel. We also tried the rack of New Zealand lamb. I must say that this dish was executed perfectly. The meat had a nice crust on it and was cooked a perfect medium-rare. The lamb was tender and juicy, not too gamey with a hint of garlic in the background and it paired nicely with some winter vegetables: roasted tourned (football shaped) potatoes, haricot verts (french green beans), baby carrots, and mashed butternut squash. The dish was executed nicely and made for a wonderful meal.

Although I do think that Chez Betty offers some nice dishes off of their regular menu, I really believe that the true value at Chez Betty's is from the chef's tasting menu. The tasting usually consists of a four course meal and I  think the liberation from the confines of the regular menu really lets the chefs' creativity shine. The menu changes every couple weeks depending on the timing and what's in season. One summertime menu example includes a tomato-coconut curry soup, frisee with duck confit, tortilla-crusted pork tenderloin, and profiteroles...all for $48.00 ($68.00 with wine pairing). Everything I've had in past tasting menus has always been superb, focused, and delicious. The tasting menu definitely gives you a feel for what the chefs' food is all about and provides a nice option for getting to know the restaurant in a more intimate setting (foodwise).

At the end of our meal, co-owner and Chef Jerry Garcia came by our table to talk with us. He asked us how our meal went and talked a little about the scallop special which his sous chef developed. Very rarely does the chef come out and interact with customers but from what I hear Chef Garcia tries to get out to the dining room to talk with customers or just to even help out filling water glasses during a busy service. This kind of attention to detail, in combination with good food, really makes for the right restaurant experience. In my intro above, I called Chez Betty a "sleeper" restaurant. I think the real "sleepers" are people who don't wake up and head on over to Chez Betty to give it a try.

Chez Betty ~ Park City, Utah

1637 Short Line Drive

Chef/co-owner: Jerry Garcia

Co-owner: Tom Bell

***.5