Wild and Radical Radius: Desert Edge Brewery-Central City SLC

Radius is a special Desert Edge Seasonal made with ingredients only found in a 100 mile radius from the brewery. This includes local wild hops! This is no small feat considering most hops are grown in CO, Pacific NW, or in another country! Many malts also come from across the ocean! When you drink a beer that had malts delivered from overseas, hops grown a thousand miles away and then was bottled, packaged and shipped to your liquor store that can be a pretty hefty carbon footprint not yet accounting for all the energy spent in the beer making process. Lucky for us quite a few local breweries are environmentally conscious.

I made a special trip to taste this beer. Picking up the imperial pint (which is super cool according to Kyle who is probably the only person reading…) the aroma was all garlic. The flavor was garlic, onion, even a little spicy garlic undertones. The finish was super juicy and the bitterness is solid but very soft.

To go with my garlicky beer (a flavor characteristic from the wild hops) I ordered their mushroom burger with swiss cheese. It came with caramelized onions and garlic aioli. On the side was their house pasta salad that has a delicious citrusy dressing with feta cheese and roasted vegetables. Not listed on menu, I was surprised to see 1/3 of the plate covered with potato chips (Yuk!). The burger was VERY good with one fail- the bun. Since this is the common denominator in all burger fails I’ll give them a pass. To their credit it was sourdough and tasty, just falling apart in minutes. Maybe I need to take a burger handling class since this is what I have to say about most buns.

I enjoy going to Desert Edge over some of the other downtown breweries because it is in Trolley Square. They have some good always beer (utah pale ale is my favorite) and their seasonals always impress. No trouble parking, and you can walk around to different shops if you aren’t ready to drive. On my way out I was eyeing a delicious dessert counter. I will be back!

Time for Tea!: Tea Grotto- Sugarhouse

I LOVE TEA. Tea is like insta-meditation. Soothing calm liquid goodness. The Tea Grotto is a fun place to drink your favorite pot. They have SOOO many different flavors and their staff is impressively knowledgeable.

My favorite tea is pu’er, and they had a new flavor to try “fruity pu’er”. It has pu’er, violets, and some mystery dried fruit. It was delicious. They brought it out in a tea pot, and I got a free second steeping that was just as good as the first! They have some yummy food options, grilled sandwiches and homemade baked goods. Ordering the Hummus Plate turned out to be a good decision this time! It came with garlic hummus, tomato hummus, warm pita, garlic stuffed olives, cucumber, and carrots. Loot at that plating! Beautiful. Everything tasted as fresh as it looks. I was really full eating most of it for lunch. It would be perfect for 2 to share.

They have lots of different seating areas from high tables to couches to a real Japanese you-better-take-off-your-shoes-booth. They have free wifi too! You can buy tea here to take home if you find a favorite! Beware when ordering your tea, they have some very rare and VERY expensive options. They also have an Indian Boutique that shares some of the space. When I was there it wasn’t ‘open’ but there were many beautiful Indian style blouses displayed on mannequins. They are in a fun part of town. I always find myself in the neighborhood more often than I’m planning. This is going to be my new favorite reading spot for sure.

FestDevious #1- Autumn Seasonals Are Finally Here (like we needed an excuse to drink more beer): Epic Brewing Company- Salt Lake City

I had a blast with Kyle at Snowbird’s Oktoberfest but I was bummed there wasn’t any real Oktoberfest style beer (marzen). When I heard Epic’s first seasonal was going to be a Marzen I was glued to hear the release date, and finally its here! Props on the label and name, pretty cool.

The beer is really good. The nose is pretty malty, not a hint of hop. The flavor is malty, I can taste a little pilsner coming through, it gives it some tang, but mostly the flavor is soft munich. Munich is the grain flavor I usually associate with “malty” taste (think Viennese malty X 3) This beer has real body. The malt heft is balanced by slightly heavy carbonation and the finish is-you guessed it-malty! It is just dry enough to make me drink more, but not as dry as say Paulaner Oktoberfest. All in all I am a hophead but the thing that keeps me coming back for the Marzen style is the uniquely savory flavor the malts and marzen/oktoberfest yeast create. If you can get your hands on one enjoy! Only 10 barrels of #1 are available and at $4.29 for 22oz they won’t be around for long.

What do Ironport, fried zuchinni and Apple Beer have in common?: Woody’s Drive In- Murray

I’m semi-fascinated with “utah” food, and after reading a long list of famed garlic burger masterpieces I am determined to try every one. Woody’s Drive in is just down the street from cottonwood high on 1300 S. It climbed to the top of my challenge since they also serve old school ironport soda!

The drive in is great. You can still pull your car up in an ordering space, read the car window level menu and have your food brought out to you. Bonus: when people order this way and turn off their cars (not idling) it is much better for than environment than the drive thru. There are just 6 spaces and it’s so old timey it looks like someone rolled it back to 1955.

The menu is filled with drive in favorites. French Fries, Onion rings or Fried zucchini are available in a combo meal, and pick your sandwich from a Pastrami Burger to Patty Melt, Chicken Sandwich to the Superwoody (crazy huge double patty burger). They have delicious shakes and “utah” beverages like Apple Beer, Lime Rickeys, and Ironport.

I ordered a Garlic Burger since that’s what I’m here for. Went all in on the combo with zucchini fries and Ironport. The “garlic” aspect of the burger is no joke. The burger patty was actually split in half and filled with minced garlic like a pungent beef garlic Oreo. This was very yummy. The American cheese and tomatoes finished off the drive in style nicely. My only complaint is the bun seemed really cheap. Think wonderbread like holding power.. in a few minutes it was more or less useless so I ditched the soggy bottom and ate mine patty up. The zucchini fries were so delicious! They were nice and chunky with a crispy breading and zesty ranch dressing. Last but NOT least Ironport old school soda. I really probably shouldn’t be looking for new kinds of soda to like let alone drink, but this stuff is tasty. It has a cola like color and flavor, but it isn’t so sweet and has some savory spicy undertones. It made me think of Mexican coco-cola or unsweetened Dr Pepper if there was such a thing. Next time I will have the Apple Beer, something I already know I love! It’s like martinellis soda carbonated and also on the less sweet side.

All in all this place is a keeper. I can’t wait to come back and try the Patty Melt that I hear is fabulous. Lastly they have free WIFI! Who’da thunk.

Your after midnight Caffeine Fix: Salt Lake Coffee Break- Downtown SLC

Whether its 7am or 1am you I can send out a 2 word text “coffee break?” and people are down to meet up (if they’re not already there.) Open late (2am) this place won a spot in my heart if for no other reason than that often it is the only place to go. The crowd is very diverse here, and there is plenty of room between the patio, the front room tables and the backroom couches to gather a few friends to catch up, study, or play games. It’s pretty much all about the hours and chill factor, cuz other than that they aren’t really delivering.

1. Don’t expect much out of your coffee. NEVER order an espresso unless you know the barista knows what she’s doing (yes always she)
2. Be careful where you park! See the nifty parking map at the counter.
3. Be prepared for the owner’s stare down. I don’t know what the deal is with that guy but he sure packs a lot of attitude for no reason. When Kyle and I walked in the back door he stared us down the whole walk to the counter and that was a mild interaction. Brace yourself.
4. If you don’t like cigg smoke avoid the patio. It’s just a fact.
5. Brush off the attitude you might get at the counter. For whatever reason it comes complimentary. (our last trip someone actually said UGH and made a face when we ordered the hummus plate) and taking it up with the owner is probably not going to end well.

I included some pictures of our hummus plate. The serving was very generous with a splash of olive oil. Half the pitas were sooo tough we couldn’t eat them. See the picture where Kyle in all his burly strength can’t rip one in half. I’ve never ordered food here before so perhaps it’s a fluke. I got an almond latte and Kyle got a mocha. They weren’t bad. I could taste the sub par burnt flavor of espresso in my latte and the chocolate in Kyle’s mocha was a very well hidden Hershey’s syrup. The house hibiscus tea is excellent though; it’s a good choice if you find yourself here! So basically due to its awesome space, location and hours Coffee Break has an effective monopoly on those of us who like to get a caffeine after midnight. Take it or leave it cuz it’s your only option!

Yummy Buffet. Really!: India House- Sandy

It is surprising how many good Indian restaurants there are in the salt lake valley. India House stands out for its consistency and really yummy lunch buffet. I like spicy food and Indian is no exception, but for the price of $8.99 I will forgo my “no seriously on the ten scale make it a spicy 10 really I can handle it” korma for a variety of medium to mild super fresh India House lunch buffet dishes. We went here for my dad’s birthday, and as usual I was impressed with the selection and obvious freshness. They had saag paneer, chicken korma, spiced chickpeas, tandori chicken, chicken tikka masala and curry chicken plus salad, several kinds of naan, rice, and for dessert soaked rice flour balls and cardamom rice pudding. Everyone loves Indian house buffet lunch and this runs in your favor- with all the people the dishes are rotated frequently so you don’t end up with the heat lamp incubated buffet food I’ve caught food poisoning from so many times. From past experience I know they have yummy mango lassi and lots of non buffet fair. When I have more than $8.99 to spend (rarely) I would splurge for dinner or takeout here. My personal favs are saag paneer, vegetable korma and chicken tikka masala or butter chicken. The only thing I like more than Indian is Sushi so thank god for their cheap lunch!

The Surprising Sandwich Stop: Wild Bean Roasting Company-Sandy

Maybe it’s because I’m so picky, or maybe it’s because I hate knowing I could make it better myself :P but I love build your own food, ESPECIALLY sandwiches. A bad sandwich isn’t even worth eating but there’s no risk of misordering at Wild Bean Roasting Company. Choose your bread, meat, cheese, veggies and condiments- it’s the perfect recipe.

My inspired sandwich was marble rye, cheddar, all the veggies, turkey, and mustard. The produce was fresh and ripe. The bread was soft and flavorful. They loaded it with just enough turkey to make a nice fat sandwich. There isn’t anything extra special about the choices they offer, the key is the freshness of all the ingredients.

Wild Bean is a coffee roasting company. I was really excited when they opened in Aug, but I haven’t been very satisfied with the espresso drinks they offer. On the upside even though the drinks are weak, you do get all the complex flavors and aromas only lingering in freshly roasted beans. I think with my next sandwich I’ll order a regular coffee.

If you remember back in the day this place was called Solid Grounds. They closed a few years ago but it looks like Wild Bean inherited all of their furnishings. The shop is nice and big with decent sized tables and a big stage for live music. The designs are funky and fun and with all the tables you can really spread out and bring a few friends. Come for live music, movies, open mike, comedy night or whatever they think up next! They have free wifi but I only found 2 outlets L. This location has really rotated the business through the years, it’s not in the most visible spot. If you like the sandwiches and the vibe support your local business. Lets keep it around as a rare alternative to subway and starbucks.