14 Best Restaurants in Northern Utah, Utah

Located within Garden City's distinctive Conestoga Ranch glamping resort, this rambling and scenic seasonal restaurant (housed in a tent with a firepit overlooking the property's covered wagons) is the most distinctive dining destination in town, and one of the most upscale too. Serving creative American fare throughout the day—including a popular brunch on Sundays—this open-air eatery offers delicious pancakes with maple-macerated berries, shrimp with smoked-cheddar grits, an array of wood-fired pizzas, and other enticing dishes.

It feels like you've wandered onto the set of The Andy Griffith Show at this quaint 1921 café—the oldest continually operating restaurant in Utah—with a menu specializing in old-fashioned comfort foods like pot roast and au gratin potatoes, chicken-fried steak, and hot turkey sandwiches with gravy. Save room for ice cream or a shake—or perhaps some sweet treats from the Idle Isle candy factory across the street. 

This chic little Japanese spot has a modern focus, offering much more than just sushi rolls (although the phenomenal rolls alone, such as the smokin' hot machi with rosemary-smoked hamachi, fennel, Thai chili, orange slices, and citrus soy, would keep the doors open). Tona goes light on the sauce and heavy on the freshest ingredients, with an expansive menu that features artfully plated grilled mackerel with a raspberry-soy glaze, udon with chicken and tempura prawns, and flash-seared ahi with freshly cut pineapples.

Inside the colorful 1890s-era Eden General Store, a few blocks from the north shore of Pineview Reservoir, this fun Tex-Mex restaurant specializes in the kind of food that effectively sustains the area's many skiers, hikers, boaters, and other outdoorsy sorts. Think big plates of chile con queso, bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers, shrimp fajitas, pork tamales, and slow-roasted-pork carnitas tacos.

Set in scenic Ogden Canyon, this romantic restaurant with lace tablecloths, linen napkins, and mountain and forest views is a time-honored destination for classic Continental fare, such as slow-roasted prime rib, grilled mountain trout, and sage-stuffed lamb chops with mint jelly. The fireplace makes this a fun gathering spot for pre- or after-dinner drinks in winter.

Don't miss the ski museum in the bar.

A hot spot among artists, hikers, musicians, LGBTQ+ folks, and college students, this festive gastropub serves up elevated comfort fare, like blackened salmon tacos, barbecue chicken pizzas, meatless "wings" with buffalo sauce, and garlic-mushroom-Swiss burgers. There's an excellent tap and cocktail list, and in the basement, you'll find the hip and diverse Funk and Dive speakeasy, an inviting spot for cocktails and live music.

With an emphasis on wood-fired cooking and farm-to-table seasonality, the menu at this dapper but casual gem includes salmon and octopus with creative preparations and house-made pastas, breads, and dressings. On warm days, dine on the patio overlooking the historic district and the Wasatch Mountains while enjoying the wine on tap, a huge selection of whiskeys, and a seasonally changing array of fresh desserts. Ask about their slow-dried artisan pasta made on-site and available for purchase, and check out the imported oils and infused vinegars for sale near the entrance.

Housed in a courtly converted Victorian home, this sophisticated restaurant features northern Italian cuisine—such as rigatoni amatriciana, sweet-potato ravioli, and thinly sliced, oven-baked steak tagliata with sun-dried tomatoes—crafted by a chef born and raised in Tuscany. Live jazz some evenings wafts through the cozy dining room and the outdoor patio nestled in a garden. Combine dinner with an opera at the nearby Eccles Theatre, and you might forget you're in rural Utah.

This super-chill, family-friendly eatery is a perfect stop for delicious flavored coffee drinks and traditional breakfast fare early in the day or burgers, panini sandwiches, and ice-cream desserts after your outdoor adventures.

Just a little south of Brigham City, this down-home log-cabin-style eatery is one of the most celebrated family-owned restaurants in Utah, a favorite since the late 1940s. The Maddox family serves stick-to-your-ribs Western fare—the fried chicken, Porterhouse steaks and bison rib eyes are big enough to satisfy a ranch hand, especially if you factor in generous sides of vegetables, potatoes, and homemade soups, plus fresh-baked dinner rolls served with raspberry honey-butter. Reservations are a good idea, even on weeknights. Note that alcohol isn't served.

This funky, down-home diner with graffiti-covered brick walls serves hearty Southern food throughout the day, starting with fried chicken and biscuits and ham hash in the morning and moving on to catfish and chips and brown sugar–and–maple barbecue pork sandwiches later in the day. Save room for the beignets or cinnamon biscuits for dessert, and snag a jar of pineapple-lemon-rosemary or blueberry-lavender jam on your way out.

The oldest remaining saloon in the state—in operation since the 1880s—is a beloved favorite hangout for skiers in winter and bikers in summer. The menu doesn't stray far from beer and burgers, but after a long day of outdoor play, the burgers hit the spot. The exterior looks straight out of a classic Western movie, while inside the rustic accouterments draw the eye to every corner—think dollar bills pinned to the ceiling, comical signs, scruffy old boots, teapots, and rifles. 

This casual eatery boasts hundreds of craft beers, mountain views, and a festive, friendly vibe. Try the boldly unorthodox pizza toppings, which are internationally inspired, verdant, and piled high; the gyro trip pie with a peppered-lemon base, shaved lamb, and tzatski drizzle is especially good.

Plush armchairs, exposed air ducts, rotating contemporary art, and brick walls create a salon ambience in this high-ceiling space inside the Monarch Building in the trendy Nine Rails Creative District. Specializing in fine coffees and wines, WB's also turns out well-crafted café fare throughout the day, including brûléed grapefruit and ham-and-egg toasties at breakfast and grilled-shrimp bowls, Brussel sprouts tostadas, and fig-and-prosciutto bruschetta during the afternoon and evening hours.