Bear Dance Café
79 East Main Street, Midway, Utah 84049
(435) 654-3699
Website: www.beardancecafe.com
Source: Salt Lake Tribune

From the owners of the popular Tarahumara restaurant in Midway comes The Bear Dance Café. The Bear Dance Cafe is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. The operation also features a bar that opens later. The menu comprises “steaks, seafood, pasta, pizzas, salads & burgers”. Based on the glowing praise lavished on Tarahumara this place could be another excellent place to check out in Midway. Let me know!

Thai Garden & Noodle House
868 E 900, Salt Lake City
(801) 355-8899

Thai Garden is another restaurant we gave the thumbs up to in the last 12 months. Their second location has recently opened in the 9th and 9th area. I believe the reviews and buzz I have come across so far has been pretty positive. Sounds like more good things afoot for those in the area in search of great Thai food.

In-N-Out Burger
Draper Peaks Shopping Center just off I-15 at 12195 South.
Source: City Weekly
Website: www.in-n-out.com

The highly anticipated opening of Utah’s second and third In-N-Out Burger is almost upon us: both scheduled to open this coming week. I can only find the address for the Draper location so far. American Fork and Layton are also in the mix to join the existing sole Utah operation (near St George). Aficionados can contact the companies toll free customer service for more info on (800) 786-1000.

I can guarantee two things about these openings. Firstly, endless arguments about how fantastic/awful In-N-Out is, and conversely how better/worse the direct opposition like Smashburger, Five guys etc are. There will be no consensus whatsoever. Secondly, queues for as long as the eye can see. Given that the opening of something like a Cheesecake factory in SLC causes 3-4 hour table waits, lord knows how long the traffic jam will be for something as ‘hip’ as an In-N-Out will be. I plan to drive by sometime in 2015 when the hype dies down.

Last Samurai
214 W 600, Salt Lake City, UT 84101-2703
(801) 532-2436
Website: www.lastsamuraislc.com

Yellowfinn Sushi Bar and International Cafe
1166 East 2100 South
(801) 466-2600

Red Ginger Bistro
3333 S State St, South Salt Lake, UT 84115
(801) 467-6697

Kobe Sushi
3947 S. Wasatch Boulevard (Olympus Hills Shopping Center)
(801) 277-2928
Website: sushisaltlakecity.info

The unabated spread of sushi continues apace in Salt Lake City. Four new operations have recently opened all with strong sushi elements to their menus. I am sure I’ve also missed a couple of others too.

Red Ginger opens on the recently redeveloped spot opposite the Century 16 movie theater on State Street. The menu is very sushi focused, with a good deal of Chinese and Japanese hot items as well. Pricing seems to be very keen from the menu I received recently.

Yellowfinn replaces Brookside Broiler in the Sugarhouse commons mall area. I really liked the old Brookside Broiler’s outside patio on the little creek. This could be a really fun place in the summer. I would dearly love to know what an ‘International Cafe’ is by the way

The Last Samurai opens up just on the outskirts of downtown. Reading through their online menu makes me thing that the main focus here is Teppanyaki cooking. They have another location in Park City too.

Finally advertisements for Kobe Sushi continue to arrive each week in my mail. Monday nights offer cash prizes for diners, Wednesday tempts with half off select rolls and Tuesdays and Thursdays are Karaoke nights. I also seem to recall their menu featuring Kobe beef in several formats. No details on whether its genuine imported Kobe or the American variety though.

I’d love to hear from anyone who ventures to any of these new places. Do any have that ‘je ne sais quoi’ to tempt me from my regular sushi haunts?

Mini’s Retro Cafe
12 East 800 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84111
(801) 363-0608
Website: www.minisretrocafe.com/

Yearning for tastes of a time gone by? Mini’s Retro Cafe might be exactly what you are looking for. The former cupcake outlet has bolstered it’s menu, adding a number of all things retro to the cupcakes. Grilled cheese, pigs in a blanket, egg salad and mac and cheese all feature on the menu. Check their website out for the retro themed interior. Quirky yes, but maybe nostalgic comfort is what people really want in these harsher economic times.

Log Haven
3800 S Wasatch Blvd, Salt Lake City, UT 84124
(801) 272-8255
Website: www.log-haven.com
Source: Log Haven Blog

Chef Dave Jones recently unveiled his new Winter/Fall menu’s for Log Haven. If you follow the blog link above you can check out some pictures of the new menu too. The menu had me on the first item: duck confit.

Tuscany
2832 E 6200 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84121-2372
(801) 274-0448
Website: www.tuscanyslc.com

Franck’s Restaurant
6263 Holladay Blvd, Holladay, UT 84121
(801) 274-6264
Website: www.francksfood.com

Both Tuscany and Franck’s will be offering Thanksgiving day meals this year, if you don’t fancy slaving over a hot oven all day long. Tuscany is offering a more traditional three course meal with options at $28.95 per person ($15.50 kids 12 and under). Dinner will be served noon through 6pm.

Franck’s meanwhile is offering a more esoteric set menu with items like ‘Smoked Salmon Sous-vide with Celery Root Puree, Seasonal Vegetables and Warm Horseradish Vinaigrette’. Franck’s will feed you from noon till 4pm for $31.95 per person ($16.95 kids 12 and under).