This article is reprinted from the Utah Eats newsletter, compiled by Kolbie Peterson, The Salt Lake Tribune’s food and drink reporter. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday, become a subscriber by going to sltrib.com/newsletters.
Hello, Eaters!
Valentine’s Day has come and gone, and there’s no sweeter way to say “I love you” than a big bag of Hershey’s Kisses. At least if you’re in Utah.
According to data from CandyStore.com — which bases its findings on 16 years of sales data, its website states — Hershey’s Kisses are Utah’s top Valentine’s Day candy for 2024, followed by M&M’s and conversation hearts.
CandyStore.com said conversation hearts are losing ground to heart-shaped boxes of chocolates, though, with the two confections pulling neck and neck in the latest data.
If you’d like to buy some post-Valentine chocolate for your sweetheart in Utah, here are a few options:
• Caputo’s Market & Deli, multiple locations, Caputos.com.
• Hatch Family Chocolates, 376 Eighth Ave., Salt Lake City, HatchFamilyChocolates.com.
• Chez Nibs, 212 E. 500 South, Salt Lake City, Instagram: @cheznibs.
• Idle Isle Candy, 41 S. Main, Brigham City, IdleIsle.com.
• Ritual Chocolate Factory, Cafe, Coffee Shop, 2175 W. 3000 South, Suite 100, Heber, RitualChocolate.com.
Live deliciously,
Kolbie
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Gricelda Arzaluz creates her own chocolate bar at Aggie Chocolate Factory in Logan on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024.
• A Utah woman, Gricelda Arzaluz, won the opportunity to be Willy Wonka for a day when she created, designed and ultimately poured a chocolate bar of her own imagination at Aggie Chocolate Factory in Logan, The Tribune’s Jacob Scholl reported. Arzaluz — an adult ESL student at American One English School in West Valley City — brought her idea to reality as part of an annual competition, the Chocolate Project, created by her teacher. The dark chocolate bar with sprinkles of pistachios is called Gracy Bite.
• Shabu, at 442 Main St. in Park City, is celebrating 20 years of serving locals and visitors, KPCW reports. Chef Bob Valaika told KPCW that Shabu’s menu of “freestyle Asian cuisine” allows him to experiment, and matches well with Park City’s vibe. “It really broadened my spice rack, if you will, to other countries that I can fuse with Asian cuisine,” Valaika told KPCW. “It was a thing that kind of went hand in hand with being in a ski town. … Freestyle kind of clicked with me.”
Openings:
• Koyoté, 551 W. 400 North in Salt Lake City’s Fairpark neighborhood, is a new ramen shop that Gastronomic SLC is raving about. (The Salt Lake Tribune and Gastronomic have a content-sharing agreement.)
Closings:
• Tradition, located across the street from Liberty Park on 900 South, has closed. Co-owner Ashton Aragon didn’t provide any details, except to confirm the comfort-food restaurant’s closure. A note on Tradition’s reservation platform says, “We apologize for the inconvenience, but we will be doing building improvements for the remainder of February.”
Meet me at Fisher
• Come meet me at an event being put on by The Salt Lake Tribune at Fisher Brewing Company on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 6 p.m. Admission will be free, with food and drink available for purchase. I want to hear about your favorite bars and restaurants, so come nosh and chat! (Fill out the RSVP form here.)
Booze (and Drink!) News
• As the 2024 legislative session gets underway in Utah, one thing that I’m paying close attention to is the upcoming omnibus liquor bill, which is an annual overarching bill that contains a lot of different pieces of liquor legislation. Recently, I sat down with Rep. Jefferson Burton, R-Salem, to talk about the omnibus bill, and he described some of the big things legislators will be talking about when it comes to Utah liquor laws. And, late Wednesday, the bill itself was introduced — and it includes an increase in what the state charges for spirits, wine and beer.
• Palomino is a new bar at 540 Main St. in Park City, and comes from the folks that brought you the restaurant Riverhorse on Main. Palomino’s vibe is a “refined bar scene of laid-back elegance,” led by executive chef Seth Adams, according to a news release. The menu includes signature co*cktails, bites and small plates, along with beer, wine and spirits. Palomino is open daily from 3 p.m. to midnight. Visit PalominoParkCity.com for more information.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) A latte sits on the counter at Three Pines Coffee in downtown Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024.
• Three Pines Coffee, at 165 S. Main St. in Salt Lake City, recently eliminated tipping, raised employee wages and also raised the price of its coffee. Owner Nick Price said he was prompted to make the change after experiencing “tipping fatigue” firsthand. “I’m just trying to do my best to run my tiny little coffee shop in the way that I feel good about when I go to sleep at night,” he told The Tribune. Follow the coffee shop on Instagram at @threepinescoffee.
(Kolbie Peterson | The Salt Lake Tribune) The fusilli al pesto from Matteo, with pesto, Parmigiano Reggiano, toasted pine nuts and confit tomatoes, is pictured center. At top middle is an aperol spritz.
I recently ate at Matteo, a new Italian restaurant at 439 E. 900 South in Salt Lake City, and tried the fusilli al pesto, along with an aperol spritz.
The spiral pasta was made with pesto, toasted pine nuts and tender confit tomatoes, with a generous helping of shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano on top. The pasta was cooked perfectly al dente, and I savored the pesto, which they make in-house, according to a server.
The aperol spritz, which I’d never tried before, was refreshing and fruity, a nice contrast to the earthiness of the pasta.
