13 Best Restaurants in Salt Lake City, Utah

Foodies flock to this neighborhood café and food market for creative salads and colorful entrées like ahi tuna poke with guajillo chilies and mango, or lobster gnocchi in a saffron beurre blanc with dandelion pesto and candied oranges. Also on the menu are house-made soups and generous deli sandwiches. Big windows and warm mustard and terra-cotta tones lend the setting some Tuscan-style flair, with seating indoors and out.

A bustling space with high ceilings, brick walls, and live music some evenings, this contemporary take on a traditional Jewish deli is in a cheerful neighborhood on the south edge of Sugar House. It's a must for classic dishes—in enormous portions—of Reuben sandwiches, blintzes with fruit compote, matzo ball soup, and everything bagels with smoked sockeye salmon and a schmear.

Employing a team of world-class pastry chefs, including acclaimed owner and Food Network competitor Adalberto Diaz, this sumptuous little cake shop produces artful and delicious sweet treats. Stop by and treat yourself to a guava tart or a slice of raspberry chocolate cheesecake. There's an additional location in Salt Lake City International Airport.

Families love the gussied-up old railcar that serves as Ruth's dining room and the best creek-side patio in the city—you just have to navigate your way up gorgeous Emigration Canyon to find it. Breakfast (served until 4 pm) has been the diner's trademark since 1930, and it starts with 3-inch-high biscuits followed by massive omelets like the King of Hearts (artichokes, garlic, mushrooms, and two cheeses). In summer the barbecue fires up every Thursday night for ribs, fish, chicken, or whatever the chef concocts, with live music on the patio. Watch the road for deer, moose, and some of the top cyclists in America, who train here much of the year.

This supercasual café with a smattering of sidewalk tables serves up heavenly biscuits in an assortment of ways, from blueberry-biscuit pudding French toast to fried chicken biscuit sandwiches with spicy pickles and mustard. Head to the refreshment stand at one end of the dining room to order a refreshing raspberry, habanero, or mint limeade. There are additional locations in Draper and American Fork.

In the Liberty Wells district a little west of Sugar House, this eclectically furnished café with cozy armchairs, rotating art exhibits, and high-ceiling rafters is an inviting place to while away a morning or afternoon. Veggie quiche with house-made aioli, thick-cut sourdough avocado toast, and well-crafted espresso drinks provide sustenance, and there's always good music playing.

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.

Skip the overpriced breakfast at your downtown hotel and make a beeline for this enchanting Parisian-inspired boulangerie with tiled walls, marble café tables, and sidewalk seating out front. Start the day with beet-avocado toast, stuffed French toast oozing with lemon cream cheese and blueberry compote, or a fruit tart or almond croissant. The espresso and cold brew are first-rate, too.

From early morning to well into the evening, a selection of fine teas and espresso drinks, big breakfasts, and healthful entrées draw regulars to this café and its serene patio courtyard, and also to adjacent New Age bookstore and gift shop, the Golden Braid. The menu leans toward vegetarian and seafood selections, such as multigrain waffles and eggs Benedict Florentine in the morning and sesame-blackened ahi with sticky rice and peanut stir-fry with udon noodles later in the day. There's a nice wine selection, too.

Since 1981 the Roasting Company has sourced, bought, imported, roasted, and sold dozens of varieties of coffees. Great pastries, desserts, light breakfast and lunch fare, free Wi-Fi, and friendly, knowledgeable staff make this a Salt Lake institution. You'll detect the distinctive aroma of their coffee in the lobby of the public library, where there's a satellite location.

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.

Drop by this long-running café with a wall of windows facing the leafy trees of Liberty Park for a leisurely breakfast or lunch before strolling amid the greenery or visiting Tracy Aviary & Botanical Garden. Specialties include vegan hash with grilled potatoes and avocado, the bacon-and-egg-filled pancake sandwich, and a variety of burgers. Portions are formidable, too.

This cozy neighborhood bakeshop between Trolley Square and 9th and 9th turns out absolutely ethereal cookies (the salted caramel bars are legendary), tarts, and cakes, as well as sandwiches on soft and crusty savory breads. The soppressata and provolone and prosciutto-fig-gorgonzola sandwiches are among the favorites, and there's a full roster of espresso drinks and fine teas. There's a second location south and east, near Wasatch Hollow.