Restaurants in Sandy Hills

Lacquered tables lit by sunlight from expansive windows gleam in Rice's modern dining room. Spicy aromas waft in from the kitchen, foretelling the arrival of entrees that blend the culinary traditions of Japan, China, Thailand, Vietnam, and the United States. Some of these flavors meld within the dishes themselves: combining grilled steak, asparagus, and eel sauce, the Cowboy sushi roll melts away boundaries between East and West, much like a blast furnace full of old compasses. But chefs also cook traditional Asian recipes, such as a Thai curry with coconut milk or Japanese udon noodles with tempura shrimp. And they're accommodating of other diets, too. Several vegetarian dishes incorporate soy chicken substitute, whose tender texture pleased the writer of a 2009 In This Week review.

A vine-laced trellis arches over the sidewalk that leads to Tiburon Fine Dining, an unassuming space that once housed a fruit stand within its brick confines. Subtle lighting and polished wood floors imbue the dining room with an understated elegance that extends to the menu. Chefs drizzle international meats and seafood with savory reduction sauces, and serve all entrees with a dollop of homemade sorbet garnished with a single snowman tear.

With more than two decades of Japanese culinary experience as his guide, chef Joe Takeda crafts and serves creative sushi rolls with artful authority. City Weekly writer Ted Scheffler relished in the chef's expertise when he dined omakase-style at Mt. Fuji Sushi Bar and Japanese Cuisine, letting Joe surprise him with a parade of custom rolls and a sampling of the teriyaki, tempura sauce, and spicy mayo, all of which are made from scratch. As he dined, Scheffler unearthed stories from the chef's lengthy career, starting at his birthplace in Osaka, Japan, and moving on to the cauldrons of sushi rice he made, weighty boxes of fish he hauled, and wasabi-breathing dragons he conquered on his journey to rolling and slicing his own sushi.

A long chrome counter in front of Mt. Fuji's sushi bar seats patrons for an up-close view of the chef's expert skills as he rolls Gokudo rolls with ginger and mackerel and Nemo rolls stuffed with salmon topped in unagi and mango. The kitchen also serves Japanese cuisine from shoyu ramen with sliced pork to chicken teriyaki to wasabi steak. Chef Joe transfers his master skills to novice sushi rollers in BYOB sushi-making classes every weekend, during which they can eat their freshly wrapped creations and belt out love songs dedicated to the most beautiful salmon at karaoke parties.

Executive chef Ken Rose—the flavor architect behind Tiburon Fine Dining and Epic Casual Dining—tantalizes gourmands with his variation on popular American dishes. Each dish bursts with high-quality ingredients, ranging from artisanal cheeses to wild-caught seafood that includes salmon and Pacific white shrimp. Servers coax out flavor notes with the help of a staggering wine list that catalogs varietals hailing from California, Australia, and Italy. Located in The District, The Wild Rose lies within walking or hopscotching distance of shopping and theaters.

Reliving the experience of talking dry-rub and brisket with Food Network's Guy Fieri on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, the owner of Pat's Barbecue marveled to the Salt Lake Tribune, "For hell's sake, for a barbecue place on a dead end street in an old warehouse, to be on national TV . . ." Pat Barber's secret dry-rub lives up to the hype, adding distinctive flavors to chicken, ribs, and pulled pork, which are ably supplemented by traditional side dishes such as cornbread, mashed potatoes, and more meat. Local musicians fill the air with tuneful sounds on Friday and Saturday evening, and a rotating menu of daily specials provide variety, including Friday's offering of Burnt Ends, a house specialty made from tender brisket tips.