VIOLET — Restaurant in Salt Lake City

We’ve visited this neighborhood bistro a couple of times and have unanimously enjoyed our meals. Although the food and drink options are a bit limited, they have clearly put their efforts into quality over quantity.

We love dog friendly patios, and Violet’s does not disappoint. Even on a 90 degree afternoon it was very pleasant, thanks to their fabric-clad arched pergola. And our extremely attentive and friendly server was quick to bring a big bowl of water for our furry friend.

Unfortunately the drinks menu is limited to beer and wine (probably a result of being located smack dab in the middle of a neighborhood), but once you take a bite of your food you won’t miss your mules nor your martinis. They carry a nice selection of local beers and enough wine options to keep most non-soms content.

The sandwiches are incredible, with the French Dip being the star of the show. The meatloaf sando is a solid choice as well. It is juicy and succulent, nothing like the dried up meatloaf that mom would serve you growing up. If those options sound too heavy, consider the BLT+A. It’s so simple but so good, with just enough smokiness from the chewy-and-not-quite-crispy bacon. The garlic fries are great if you don’t have plans later, but probably slightly overpriced as a $3 upgrade.

While I wholeheartedly respect that they didn’t go full Cheescake Factory, Violet’s menu is pretty slim. I really wish there were a couple of dinner entrees on the menu for times when I don’t feel like a sandwich, a salad, or pizza. At the very least, it would be nice to be able to order the meatloaf as a plate (with mashers and a veggie) during dinner or on weekends. But I respect that they aren’t overextending their kitchen and putting out food that isn’t fantastic. I get that they’re still under a year old, so maybe as they grow they will surprise us with new culinary comforts.

Overall we are delighted to have this little gem in our neighborhood. We plan on spending many summer evenings enjoying a meal, surrounded by fellow dog and beer (and...

Went in for Valentines dinner with my wife of 30 years , both 1st timers here.. We were bummed they only had a pre fixed menu and it was $75 per person. 1st course was charcuterie board which was barely enough food to feed a mouse let alone a couple. Meats and cheeses were of medium quality and not too special. 2nd course came out way too fast while we were still eating the 1st course. We had the corn chowder which had good flavor, and a salad with a pinch of Arugula, 2 small candied pecans, 2 very thin slices of pear along with a tiny piece of Gorgonzola cheese that was unnoticeable. Portions were so small and embarrassing. Once again service was too fast and our 3rd course was served while eating the 2nd course. 3rd course was short rib stroganoff that was mostly noodles and a bit of meat and mushrooms. It was good but lacking substance. We also had the scallops with beet mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus.Once again the portion was laughable, the asparagus over cooked to the point it was crispy/crunchy, and the potatoes tasted good but the beets only made an appearance to change their color a little and not add a beet flavor. They were also over whipped, developing the starches to a gummy consistency 4th course was a very small 2"×2" square piece of vegan cheesecake.

Overall the food tasted OK but the portion to price comparison left us feeling still hungry and slightly robbed. The service was so fast we left in 43 minutes after sitting down for a Valentines Dinner. Overall we were disappointed with our choice in restaurant last night. May give it a try for lunch someday after a while to see if there is more bang for the buck

Service was very attentive and overall good but too fast for...

I went here a couple of days ago for brunch with my partner and the overall experience is best described as "okay".

I got the Chilaquiles Verde which was pretty disappointing. My main complaint with it is that aside from the chips (chips for Chilaquiles feels weird btw) almost everything was a liquid. There was the small portion of eggs and avocado, but those were gone immediately due to the ratio of chips to everything else. For $14, the plate was also tiny. I don't eat a ton and usually expect leftovers from breakfast places but this is not true here.

My partner got the veggie bene which was also okay. The portion size of that was also pretty small, but the hollandaise sauce was good.

The restaurant needs to figure out it's reservation system. I understand that they take reservations and that those take up tables, but it feels weird to walk into a small, mostly empty dining room and be told that it's a 25-30 minute wait. If there's that many no shows, it might not be worth it to reserve out the entire dining room.

Our waitress was fantastic and treated us well (I wish I could remember her name). At one point, there was another waitress who came around asking if we needed anything and we asked for coffee refills and hot sauce. We never saw that waitress again and had to ask our waitress to bring us those items.

All in all, I wouldn't recommend Violet. We spent about $50 with tip (our drip coffees were $5.50 each!!) and had no food to take home with us nor was the food good enough that we felt like we hadn't wasted money. With all of the other amazing breakfast places in close proximity to Violet, I wish them luck but am not holding out much hope. Hopefully their normal...