State Street Grill

I consider myself to be fairly adventurous in choosing where I eat. Every once in a while, I might lose a gamble. Such was the case today.

My wife and I found ourselves in American Fork where we have frequently passed by the State Street Grill at 656 N 2000 W. We were hungry and decided to give it a try. 

The Atmosphere 3/5 

There were a couple things that surprised me about the restaurant. 1. It was much smaller than it even looked. 2. It was packed with loyal customers. and 3. They are proud of their heritage. Apparently, the owners hail from the East Coast and bring (or at least attempt to bring) their favorite American flavors back to Utah. The regular guests all ordered fried cod and fish burgers. They claim to have "the smallest freezer in Utah" which I suppose means they serve only the freshest food. In my opinion of the end product, the effort is a little wasted.

The Service 2/5

They were happy to explain the culture of the joint (after noting that they didn't recognize us as repeat customers. Honestly, it felt like walking into a biker bar dressed in button down shirts and slacks.) and the different items on the menu. We were suggested the Boston burger and the "My Bleu Heaven" burger. We happily ordered them. 

The food seemed to take an eternity to be prepared. In fact, we were about to impatiently go ask about the wait time (which I almost never do) when we were finally served.

The Food 2/5

Is it the thought that counts? I mean, the idea behind these burgers was really great, but the execution left a lot to be desired. The freshness of the ingredients was completely negated after the burgers were burnt into blackness. I had a difficult time finding any bleu cheese in my burger at all. We couldn't even make it half way through all the food we ordered. 

Conclusion

 I would gladly make this food on my own. These two could be my favorite kind of burgers, but it would have to be done well which, unfortunately, was not what we found here. 

Training Table

I was on the fence about posting this review, but I've decided to put it out there. The Training Table was once a thriving chain of 9 or more locations in Utah. I suppose the times have been hard on them as they've lost all but 5 of them. Even their website is no longer hosted. Who knows how much longer we'll be able to enjoy this "Utah Original" restaurant. 

My family and I visited the Cottonwood location on 4828 Highland Drive on the 4th of July. The place was practically empty. We used to come here all the time when the Cottonwood Mall was across the street. Now there is simply a years-long empty field and a lonely Macy's with a sign declaring it is open during "mall construction". 

The Atmosphere 4/5

There is a lot of subtle, yet interesting eye candy in here. Sepia-toned pictures of turn-of-the-century athletes and icons. I particularly like the ceiling decor. 

The floor plan is not very friendly to handicapped guests. In an effort to make the dining room interesting, they've created several tiers of seating areas. This makes navigating the space with a wheelchair difficult. 

 

The Service 3/5

What makes this restaurant model unique is the way orders are placed. Each table has a phone that directly calls a operator in the kitchen. They take your order and ring the phone back when it is ready. As fun and different as it sounds, I found this to be a glorified way of eliminating wait staff from the restaurant. I wouldn't feel this way if the staff at the counter treated the few interactions they have with guests the same way a waiter/ess would. 

The two employees I encountered seemed indifferent and disconnected, hiding behind the counter as they did. The food came quickly and well-prepared, but its easy to miss the human aspect of dining here.

The Food 3/5

I wasn't very hungry, so I ordered the broccoli cheddar soup. I enjoyed it, but it was apparent the soup had been warming for a long time. 

Others at my table ordered a burger and sweet potato fries. Training Table is known for their cheese fries and Utahn fry sauce, so we thought they'd treat the sweet potato fries the same way. The fries were great, (I suppose it's difficult to fail at fries, but it's been done) but the sauce was the strangest thing. They served us a thin caramel sauce with the fries. It was as cloyingly sweet and about as viscous as straight sugar water. I had to awkwardly go back to the counter to ask for their reportedly amazing fry sauce. 

Conclusion

I will miss this restaurant if it ever goes under entirely, but even now it's a shadow of what it once was. They can serve large groups more easily than others because of their unique ordering model. The food was better than average, but not as well-made as I remember. 

Bombdiggitys

After a particularly enjoyable family event in South Jordan, we decided to enjoy a late dessert at a place we'd noticed on the way. The name was certainly interesting and it made us mentally salivate for, of all things, Beefalo burgers and frozen custard.

Bombdiggitys at 1481 W. 12600 S. in Riverton bears all the appearances of a local burger joint. Shakes, fries, sodas... even the picture board of Man Vs. Food survivors of whatever ginormous concoction they could invent. The twist of it all is that they do it with Beefalo, a hybrid invention crossing domestic cattle and the North American Bison. They boast a healthier burger of more than 70% protein.

The Atmosphere 3/5

I don't believe the small town grease-hut feel of the restaurant benefits its intended appearance. It is more special and has more to offer than it lets on at first glance. I imagine, however, that presenting themselves as a lesser quality eatery allows them the advantage of lower expectations. If you expect a $0.99 blackened puck of meat with american cheese between slices of wonder bread and receive a $6.00 sweet carolina barbeque burger, you'd likely walk away with a positive experience.

The Service 5/5

We were practically the only people there. It was their last operating hour on a Saturday, but places like these tend to be hotspots for the local high school kids. We had all the attention to ourselves. They were very helpful describing the restaurant and its menu. The food was made quickly and was delivered to us.

The Food 4/5

I ordered the special of the day, the "Hawaiin Burger" (I love public typos) with fries, drink, and a shake. This turned out to be far more than I should have. I was very full. The meat was great and I'd be inclined to have more of it at a backyard barbecue of my own. Actually, they sell the beefalo meat directly out of the restaurant in every variety. Ribs, Steaks, and ground beefalo. 

 I did have a problem with the rest of the burger, however. The bun was a thin white bread that soaked up the BBQ sauce and became too flimsy to support the sandwich. It began to crumble into a messy disaster. Also, the sauce itself pooled in the center of the onions which then created a pressurized liquid bomb that exploded on impact. 

Conclusion

This place is a great local burger joint to go to with friends and family. Beefalo is a fun and seemingly healthier alternative to the cow. The shakes are thick and stacked high. Bring an empty stomach. Enjoy!

Calypso's Cafe

What better way to spend an anniversary than at an aquarium? Thanks to a very generous mother-in-law and a fantastic Mother's Day gift, Matt and I used our annual passes to go visit the sharks, otters, and penguins. We also decided to get lunch at the in-house cafe. I was disappointed that they didn't take the potentially offensive opportunity to offer sea food of any kind :)

The Atmosphere 3/5

The cafe had a sort of nautical convenience store feel to it. There was nothing too flashy but the school of fake oceanic life strung from the ceiling did provide enough sub-par distraction to get us through almost the entire wait for our food. Almost.

The Service 5/5

I was actually pleasantly surprised and impressed with the service. Most restaurants of this caliber are run by high schoolers and college drop-outs who make it obvious that they are miserable being there. We were helped by a rather pleasant and helpful man who greeted us kindly. As he and his coworker prepared our food, they talked and laughed back and forth and appeared to genuinely enjoy what they were doing.

The Food 2/5

This smorgasbord of culinary brilliance kindly unburdened us of $15. On the left, we have Matt's selection: the Hot Italian. It consisted of spicy sausage, pepperoni, black olives, mozzarella, and roasted red peppers. He opted to get it in a combo meal, so he was also treated to a handful of greasy potato chips and an 8 oz cup of Sprite. In his words, the sandwich was having an identity crisis and, with each bite, would change its mind on whether it was an Italian sandwich or a Mediterranean one. Basically, too many flavors between two slices of Wonder Bread.

The sandwich on the right was the Pesto Chicken. It claimed to be made up of mozzarella, chicken breast and roasted red peppers with a pesto spread. I suppose technically the pre-formed meat patty could have once been the breast of a chicken, but the journey from cluck-cluck to Sysco's frozen meat selection was not a kind one. It was dry, tasteless and desperately needed the pesto to give it some life. This brings me to the most disappointing part of the meal: the pesto. If I had to guess, the recipe is 1 part canned pesto to 4 parts mustard. Personally, I'm of the opinion that mustard is a punishment sent from heaven for all the cruelty in the world. To add insult to injury, the sandwich came with pickles on the side.

Conclusion

In the end, the Calypso's Cafe did not disappoint because I didn't have terribly high expectations. We enjoyed our time together and left feeling like our hunger was satisfied. (You better believe I ate the $7 sandwich! Money doesn't grow on trees after all...) Had we decided to go with other items from the menu, their surprisingly low prices would've offset the disappointment I had from the meal. I suppose it was my own fault for going with the most expensive sandwich they had to offer.

I couldn't shake the feeling one might get when they compare Lagoon to Disneyland. One is fun and has good intentions, the other is heaven on Earth. I have not yet written off Calypso's however, because in about 6 months, the new, bigger, better aquarium will be open and will hopefully have more high-quality dining options available.