HSL — Restaurant in Salt Lake City

My 4 friends and I chose this restaurant carefully to celebrate our collective birthdays. Unfortunately our Uber driver got us there late to our reservation. We called and they said as long as we came in before 10pm, they would still serve us. We scrambled through the door at 10:01pm. We explained the situation and that the person we spoke to indicated we could sit if it was before 10, to which the man at the door replied "well it's 10:01." We were flabbergasted that this was his response, but the manager then swept in and said of course they would seat us. We felt relieved but uneasy, having not expected that type of "welcome", having already been frazzled by the debacle with our ride there. We were escorted to a beautiful table. The ambiance was warm and lovely. Meanwhile, the man who had greeted us with such disdain was assigned our table. We could feel his hostility as we began preparing for our meal. It was incredibly awkward. My friend cracked a joke to him to try to lighten the mood saying something along the lines of how we still liked him or at least hadn't yet decided that we didn't. He misinterpreted her comment, thinking she was underhandedly insulting him rather than joking with him. He confronted us saying something along the lines of how he "could still hear us, and why do people think it's ok to talk down to their servers?!?" I was completely taken aback. I was FURIOUS. My friend did not deserve such treatment and was only trying to lighten the mood as the atmosphere around him was so tense and thick it could be cut with a knife. Had I had my way, we would have left then and there. I'd rather have had a gas station hotdog at that point than give them my business. My friend was more kind in her reaction than I and opted to discuss the situation with the manager. We were assigned a new server and stayed. The night improved from there. The new server was not hostile towards us. The food was delightful, the atmosphere beautiful. We ordered 3 appetizers and they forgot one of them but we weren't charged. They served us ice cream in celebration of our birthdays which was lovely, but then they made a comment about how it was all they had because the kitchen was closed. It was yet another reminder that we were there too close to closing for them. Quite frankly, it felt like they would have preferred to not have our business, with the exception of the manager. I plan to NEVER go back. A beautiful night with my friends was marred by resentful treatment, and I don't feel I could ever enjoy eating there because of the prospect of having to deal with that server again. The food and treatment by the manager justified the experience as a 3 star "it was ok". Had we not been treated so terribly and made to feel like we were an inconvenience, it would have been a 5 star for sure. I talked myself up from a single star only because the manager was appreciative and the food really was good. With dozens of other restaurants of this nature to choose from, I will choose to give my business to those who do not make me feel like such an inconvenient hassle or make my kind, caring friend feel...

This is a little hidden gem. So inconspicuous. I live very close but never noticed it before the reservation had been placed. And what a delight it was. The inside decor is super fun, the wallpaper feeling like a tropical jungle, with pops of fuchsia and turquoise. I went with a work group so we were able to order a good amount of the menu.

For appetizers, we ordered the Chicories + Broccolini which was like a frisee salad with fennel (which was such a delicious fresh bite in there). The dates were a really great balance to the salty marcona almonds and vinaigrette. The broccolinis were a bit scarce but when I did get them they were great and tender. There were more stems than anything of the actual broccolinis.

The Buttermilk Biscuit was one of the more delectable things I've eaten in a while. One is more than enough to share between 2-4 people. They are extremely dense, almost like a moist cake, having me wishing for a cup of coffee while eating it. Although it is savory, the sweet hot honey glazed on top added to the cake effect, and was a perfect balance to the savory biscuit.

The Brussel Sprouts were probably my least favorite appetizer we got amongst the bunch. Not that they weren't good – they were cooked perfectly and the molasses made them creamy unlike I've had before – but I didn't feel like they had as depthly of flavors comparatively to the others we ordered.

The general tao's cauliflower was really so good. The fried crust was crispy and savory with the fresh crispness of the cauliflower inside. Although cooked all the way through, there was still a crunch to the cauliflower that was fresh and perfect amongst the fried crust.

For my entree, I got the risotto that was a rotating item on the menu. I was craving something warm and dairy heavy on this cold winters eve and thought the risotto a perfect craving quencher. It was good, but it wasn't as impressive as the other items ordered over the course of the evening. I wanted more depth. I felt a little bored with it after about three bites. Especially when considering all of the deliciously unique and highly flavorful items we ordered. The Pork Shank with the Franks Red Hot glaze was so unique and unlike anything I had seen before, such a fun twist on an American classic hot sauce made high end. And the fried chicken was also quite the spectacle. The New York strip was classic and perfectly cooked. A small portion on that one, but certainly part of clean plate club.

There was absolutely no room for dessert after this meal. The two biscuits between 6 people really did us in. The wait staff was helpful and attentive and the service getting our food was prompt.

Full and delighted with the beauty of...

Get a “Handle” on this place if you haven’t already.

My husband was driving by this place for a couple years and we just recently figure out what it was.

Only wished we would have tried this establishment sooner! Open kitchen design and a quaint atmosphere.

Don’t let the bar be overlooked for optional seating Not to mention if you like to order more than 1 appetizer it will give you a little more room to spread the goods.

From entry to the restaurant to the departure our experience was wonderful and would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone.

The staff was pleasant and friendly. They all helped take care of us instead of the usually single assigned server.

The food was unique, refreshing, savory and sensational.

All but one dish...which my dear chef husband listed as a rookie mistake on the fried chicken. Later confirmed that it was a newer culinary graduate working the fryer that night.

So many amazing dishes I could recommend from the Honeycrisp Apple on homemade artisan sourdough with a beautiful charred crust...to the Humachi Crudo with the sweetness of the ponzu.

Need to satisfy the sweet tooth the chocolate dessert or even try the apple tartan with potato chip crust.

We did take home a small caramel “something or rather” with Chex mix...but I would highly recommend the two above.

But one of the most interesting and scrumptious dishes was the Cauliflower. It was fried with a very light breading and tossed in a general tso’s style sauce with pickled peppers. The cauliflower was cooked to perfection in tenderness and gave a very meaty texture. Without knowing what this was, one could easily mistaken it for a chicken dish. Don’t hesitate to give this dish a try...you will be more than happy you did!

We can’t wait to come back here. One of our new top choices for restaurants.

Updated 01/16/2020 Still at the top of our list to dine. Although we ordered some of the same dishes the presentation was fresh and new. Made if feel like a whole new dish.

Also tried a couple new dishes. The scallop tostados were DEVINE.... sweet, tender and left you wanting more. We took a leap of faith, and by the thumbs up for reassurance from Chef Shaw, we ordered the fried chicken. It WAS done right this time. The breading stayed in tact and the chicken full of flavor and moist. Disappointed with the lemon panna cotta as I couldn’t even taste the lemon. But maybe it was just an off night for dessert as everything was spot on. And a shout out to the service and staff AGAIN...pleasant...