Restaurants in Midvale

Sharpen mouth muscles with the very veggie sandwich, stacked with spinach, tomato, avocado, carrots, pickle, cheddar cheese, and peppers, all dressed with mustard and balsamic vinegar. Or, opt for the cold tuna sandwich. All sandwiches are available in half ($6.59) or whole ($8.59) sizes, as are salads ($7.29 for whole, $6.29 for half). Try the citrus cranberry salad, a fruity blend of mandarin oranges, dried cranberries, almonds, and feta. Vasuvio's also serves homemade organic soups with freshly baked garlic bread.

Este Pizzeria’s sign bears an unmistakable resemblance to those found at New York subway stations—a fitting image for a pizzeria that slices up East Coast–style pies. The oversize, thin-crust triangles bear toppings as varied as ham, fresh basil, and housemade vegan meatballs. Their selection of 13 specialty pizzas includes entirely vegan disks as well as the Clay, a heaping of meatballs, pepperoni, ham, and sausage. In typical New York fashion, diners can also opt for strombolis and calzones and are permitted to yell, “I’m walkin’ here!” at other patrons when exiting the restaurant.

Caputo’s By Night's palate-perking menu serves up delectable deli fare and tasty casual Italian fare whipped up from Caputo’s Market and Deli’s wide selection of hearty eats. Patrons can dine on specialties such as the Atlantic salmon agrodolce ($14.95), chicken piccata sautéed in lemon and white wine ($13.95), and vongole pasta with olive-oil-based clam sauce ($10.95) in a casual atmosphere while enjoying attentive service, white tablecloth seating, a diverse wine and beer selection, and meatball jugglers. In between rounds of garlic bruschetta ($1.50), olives sautéed in pickled garlic, rosemary, and Marsala wine ($5.95), and branzino affumicato (lightly smoked sea bass with thin-sliced lemon and capers, $5.95), sip on a reasonably priced wine list ($4+ by the glass) while enjoying an atmosphere that's classy yet casual, like attending a gallery opening in a T-shirt tuxedo.

Whispers cafe's crew brews organic coffee and loose-leaf teas and whips up paninis and pastries. Diners can select hot, iced, or blended drinks from a chalkboard menu, which boasts 21 flavors of loose-leaf tea ($2+). Organic ingredients form the building blocks of dulcet brews—such as Milky Way mocha ($4.50+) and raspberry truffle ($4.50+)—to pacify demanding sweet teeth. Take the facemask off your football helmet to nibble a tuna-melt panini, an adhesion of white tuna and cheddar cheese between crisp slices of focaccia bread ($6), or silence vociferous, curmudgeonly bellies with a vegan sausage casserole packed with vegan cheeses, meat-free sausage, and robust seasonings ($6.50).

With its vibrant, modern décor and dazzling handcrafted nouvelle-American cuisine made from local, seasonal, and organic ingredients whenever possible, Metropolitan has earned a multitude of accolades. From the lunch menu erupts the metro bison burger, a galloping herd of mushrooms, onions, swiss, and truffled pomme frites ($10), and the Mediterranean sampler, a tantalizing tray of hummus, baba ghanoush, olive tapenade, stewed tomatoes, and seasoned Bluetooth ($8–$12). Adventurous options pepper the dinner menu, including the Metropolitan mushroom appetizer, flanked by truffle potatoes and red-wine sauce ($6 taste, $12 full plate); the Utah trout, decorated with fiddlehead ferns, radishes, pear, and a pistachio puree ($25); and the veal chop, donning an ensemble of green apple, celery root, quinoa, and mustard jus ($35). Find repose in the martini lounge to tackle the tasty bar menu, which includes entrees such as chicken pot pie ($12); appetizers come two-for-one during the bar’s “attitude adjustment hour” starting at 5:30 p.m.

Named Best Dinner & Bollywood Movie in Utah by Salt Lake City Weekly, Star of India fills with the same day-glo colors and smooth choreography of the genre’s films. A menu of tandoori specialties and traditional Indian sweets appears on tables, and the sounds of jingling instruments and tangling voices drifts from a room devoted to screening and celebrating Bollywood films. Lit from above by golden chandeliers, wall murals portray figures frolicking and rejoicing in an emerald-green field.

In the kitchen, chunks of tandoori chicken and skewered lamb marinate in cool yogurt and spices before roasting in a sweltering clay oven to seal in flavor. Nearby, chefs craft cottage cheese to simmer with peas in a mild curry sauce to make the meat-free matar paneer or infiltrate an underground food-fighting ring.