THE ROOF

Where: The Roof Restaurant, Joseph Smith Memorial Building, 15 S Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah

Who Went: Chelsey & Devynne

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Standard Buffet

What It Cost: $97.17

What We Thought: 

The theme of the day was Treat Yo Self 2015. I had just finished my very last day of actual classes ever, so my sister and I hit up Salt Lake with a treat yo self mentality, which of course needed include dinner with incredible views. 

And what better way to treat yo self than STARTING WITH DESSERT? Yep, I did it. I mean, how can you resist an itty bitty eclair and tiny slice of your favorite pie, when its sitting on two GIANT tables of desserts? It's impossible, I tell you. And since it's time to treat yo self, go for it.

The menu options were quite expansive. On the chopping block the day we went were ham (meh) and slow-roasted prime rib. But if that didn't suit your tastes, there was poached fish, chicken roulade, pasta with a cream sauce and sundried tomatoes, and sooooo much more!

Basically it's the fanciest buffet you've ever seen, and this isn't even half of the desserts...by the way...

We thought that this little chocolate mousse was funny, because the chocolate piece had a cross on it, and we were at Temple Square (LDS joke..ha. ha...)

Um yeah, I was a bit too ambitious with my additional dessert plates. I basically was so full I only took one bite of each thing. But they were all FREAKING AMAZING. Especially that mini creme brulee!? I had two of them. The cheesecake was just okay, but the carrot cake was really moist and delicious, and the chocolate cakes were so rich!

Plus, I mean, can you beat this view?!

The other creme brulee, spotted here. Their interpretation of "salads" was interesting in the salad bar, but it was fun to try different combinations of "salad" and the fruit and cheese plates were pretty good too.

I know it might seem boring to end on a picture of soup, but this French onion soup was probably the best I've ever had, and I'm totally craving its simple, rich and wholesome flavor right now, even though its supposed to be 102 degrees today!!

What You Should Do: Yes, it's expensive. Yes, it's a buffet. But it's a dang good buffet, and can be a lot of fun if you go into it with that mindset. I'm not even a buffet lover (by ANY means) but we really enjoyed our visit at the Roof - it was special, the hot rolls were from heaven, the servers were fun, you got free unlimited soda, and THERE WERE SO MANY DESSERTS! I basically would have thought it was worth it just for the rolls + mini creme brulees + views. I would not take children here, but for a fun and special night out, it was awesome. I think maybe we caught it on a good night based on other people's experiences, but I would certainly try it again.

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CITY GUIDE NO. 3: DESSERT IN NEW YORK CITY

Dessert in NYC is no joke.

There are so many options, so many wonderful places to visit, and just, please save room for dessert! Like after every meal...

First up, Dylan's Candy Bar aka a true mecca for all candy aficionados! This place is three stories, chock full of any type of candy you could ever want. Sure it's a little overpriced, but man it's fun. They have a sweet photo booth (always a major attraction in my eyes), and an extensive candy bar where you can mix and match many different candies. I was extremely partial to the mini cinnamon bears!

Balthazar bakery is for you more sophisticated (slash...less childlike...) dessert lovers. These chocolate sables are pure deliciousness, not too sweet, and a great little snack while you peruse around SoHo (or sneak them into MoMA like I did!)

Ah, Laduree. Bring me back to Paris please! This place is just as good as in Paris, and as you can see...I'm a bit Paris obsessed...My favorite flavors include citron vert (lime), framboise (raspberry), salted caramel, and anything floral! But really, you can't go wrong here, and you can really do some amazing shopping in the neighborhood while you munch on your new favorite treat!

Next up was another Paris favorite...Maison Kayser! I ate at Maison Kayser in Paris, so when I saw they had one in NYC, it was at the top of my itinerary for the UES! Honestly, my only regret was eating here only once!! They had one of my all-time favorite foods, choquettes, and the croissant and apple tartine totally transported me back to Rue Monge. Though it was also quite enjoyable to eat it in Central Park across the street!

Magnolia Bakery - cupcakes were meh (I've decided we are extremely spoiled with amazing cupcakes in Utah!!) but the banana pudding??? YUM!!! SO GOOD!!! WANT TO EAT IT EVERY DAY! I've since made a copycat recipe at home, but it just wasn't the same. Probably my favorite part of Magnolia Bakery was watching them frost the cupcakes…their technique was mesmerizing… 

Serendipity 3: Honestly, I don't know if I'd go here again. Our experience was just…weird. The service was AWFUL (the host walked up a staircase and just expected us to follow, not saying anything, and then walked to our table and just waited for us to catch up. It was extremely weird). The frozen hot chocolate was good, but not amazing enough to compensate for the bizarre-o atmosphere. I'd probably say go to the location in Las Vegas instead - much more pleasant. 

My only regret: passing by Momofuku Milk Bar without stopping in. I AM SO BUMMED I MISSED THIS PLACE! I'm a huge Christina Tosi fan, and this is like my number 1 regret from visiting NYC. If you are going soon, please bring me home some Karlie's Kookies and Crack Pie!! I'll pay you back :) 

Don't forget to check out my other NYC post if you want to eat real food (i.e. besides dessert only.....)!

COW CHIP

Where: Cow Chip, 102 1st Avenue South, Seattle

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Cow Chip with Walnuts + Peanut Butter Cookies

What It Cost: $4.50

What We Thought: 

So, like I said, we are moving to Seattle. And actually, Owen is living/working there part-time right now, so we have started scoping out the neighborhood, trying to find some great places to eat! This cookie place had an adorable sign outside, and since I tear up instantly when I think about leaving Ruby Snap behind (honestly, a tragedy), I figured I need to find the best possible cookie replacement in Seattle (though nothing could ever truly replace Ruby Snap of course).

Owen passes this place every day on his way to work, so I thought we definitely needed to check it out.

On the surface, these cookies look fine. And in reality, they WERE fine. But they weren't awesome. They didn't change my life. All they did was make me think "Wow, that was an expensive cookie." And the customer service was quite terrible. I'm not a huge fan of feeling like I'm an inconvenience to whomever is working, and this place was super awkward and we just wanted to EAT OUR COOKIES AND GET OUT OF THERE.

What You Should Do: Yeah, skip it. I know, you thought a pretty cookie picture for a Friday sounds pretty good...sorry to get your hopes up. If you're still in the SLC area, go to Ruby Snap for me and cherish it, okay? Thanks.

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SWIG

Where: Swig, 1523 N Canyon Rd, Provo

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Strawberry Bliss Soda, Dirty Coke with Cherry, Sugar Cookie

What It Cost: ~$9

What We Thought:

In essence, we like Sodalicious better. It's not as close, but I like their predetermined flavor combinations better (don't make me make too many choices here, please), the sugar cookie seemed better there, and the seating at Swig was just awkward.

What You Should Do: Go to Sodalicious to get your drink fix instead. This place is fine, but it made me think too much, and I need to save my brain power for chemistry, not sodas.

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THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY

Where: The Cheesecake Factory, 65 Regent Street, Salt Lake City

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 2

What We Ordered: Tex Mex Egg Rolls, Macaroni and Cheese Burger, SkinnyLicious Factory Chopped Salad, Wild Blueberry White Chocolate Cheesecake (not pictured), and Reese's Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake

What It Cost: $57.36 (excluding price of salad)

What We Thought: 

Keeping in the tradition of overpriced restaurants lately (sorry, I promise to get some cheap stuff on here soon!) we decided to venture to the well-known and oft-debated Cheesecake Factory. We went to the one at City Creek, though I am pretty sure they all get their food shipped in from the same provider and that it all tastes exactly the same no matter where you go so...yeah. Apply as you may. 

We started with the Tex Mex egg rolls, because you know my weakness for these special/weird egg rolls from CPK. Mmmm.. Look at that grease pile. And sooooo much sour cream. Yeah. It's all a fat bomb up in here. The egg rolls were filled with chicken, black beans, cheese, peppers and onions and were certainly flavorful. And filling. I was totally full after the bread and appetizer. 

And what else did we have look forward too -- more fat! Oh yeah! I know Cheesecake Factory gets a bad rap for being calorie-loaded and this mac & cheese burger totally lives up to that reputation. I mean, it's not like we were expecting anything else when we ordered this, but it was still pretty funny. On top of an actually decent burger, they placed a fried wad of mac & cheese, and then drizzled it with cheese sauce on top. Hahahhahahaha oh man. This thing is nuts. It actually tasted pretty good (I really liked the bun!) and the fries were quite tasty, but yeah, you can't eat anything else for a week after this not-so-little guy.

I went and ordered something off of the SkinnyLicious menu, and can I just say, it is SO embarrassing ordering off that menu. I mean, can you imagine if you were a guy ordering off the menu? Not to be sexist, but even as a female, it's totally humiliating. ANYWAY. Got the SkinnyLicious Factory Chopped Salad, which is supposed to have chicken, avocado, corn, bacon, tomato, apple and blue cheese. Immediately I was put off because, as you can see, the hunks of blue cheese were gigantic - and blue cheese is something that's better as an accent, not a mouthful! But I decided to start into the salad anyway, only to find that the taste was just...off. I'm not sure if it was the lettuce or the dressing or what, but it was bitter and weird tasting, and it totally made me lose my appetite. So I sent it back (I'm becoming quite the complainer I guess...) and then was done for the meal. YUCK. Couldn't eat it, not sure why but the ingredients were not very fresh and it was just all kind of gross.

The cheesecakes were obviously pretty good. I do have to say that I am a sucker for all of the flavors they have - it's so exciting. I really like the peanut butter one, and cheesecake is way hard to make at home, so this part is pretty good. They were both a little dry, but overall, tasty cheesecake with fun and unique flavors.

What You Should Do: The server told us that she would take the cost of the salad off our bill, so I was surprised when it still came out to be $60! It would have been closer to $75 with the salad! I don't know about you, but that is totally not worth it to me. There are a LOT of other much more delicious restaurants out there (just click here for some excellent choices!) that you can go to for special occasions. The Cheesecake Factory is just too cookie-cutter now (excuse the really lame dessert pun) and the food all tastes just kind of tired. And expensive! I'd probably only go here again for the cheesecake, and even that can have better options elsewhere. You won't have to order from an embarrassingly-named menu, you won't have to wait an hour to be seated (you may even be able to make a reservation!), and you won't have to be ashamed of all the calories you mysteriously consumed.

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CHEF'S TABLE

Where: Chef's Table, 2005 S State Street, Orem

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 2

What We Ordered: Cheese & Charcuterie Board, Macadamia Crusted Halibut, Rack of Colorado Lamb, Bananas Foster Cheesecake, and "Chocolate Dream Dessert" 

What It Cost: $118.44

What We Thought: 

It's so funny -- probably one of the "nicest" restaurants in Orem is really in not so nice of a location -- across the street from D.I. and next door to PC World...ANYWAY. Since it's won so many awards (lots of Best of State, Zagat, etc), we of course had to check it out. The first time we had a Groupon (scout these out -- so worth it here!), but we actually kind of liked it, so we had to go a second time...

You know those nights when you're just feeling like, I want to go somewhere nice and expensive! Okay, okay, it's rare (we are students, after all), but when you do, Chef's Table totally fits the bill (literally). Though it's in a really weird location, it has a pretty view of the mountains, and a very pretty dining area. We started our meal with the cheese & charcuterie board, and you know that song "These are a Few of My Favorite Things"? Well, this board is that song to me...Tartufo Salami, Soppressata, cornichons, gorgonzola, merlot-soaked sharp cheddar, crostini, prosciutto, and kumquat marmalade? These are a few of my favorite things! In all seriousness, this charcuterie board was a great mix, and a super delicious start to the meal. The only things that could make it better -- 1) More crostini (it was a little awkward to eat the cheese & meats without a good carb base) and 2) The server didn't know who made the meats - I thought it was Creminelli, but it would have been nice to know for sure :)

I mean, is there anything that makes you feel more sophisticated or like this is an Important Meal than a lemon sorbet to cleanse your palate? I think not.

Now...for the entrées...YUM! Owen got the rack of Colorado lamb, which was served over the creamiest polenta, with a roasted tomato sauce and green beans. The lamb was cooked perfectly medium rare, and was sooooo juicy and tender. I would eat this every day if I could afford it haha.

I ordered the macadamia crusted halibut, which was served over a delightful risotto with asparagus and beurre blanc. The risotto and sauce were AMAZING, and the halibut would have been really great except for the fact that I am totally picky and the fish was a little overcooked for me. It was still all really good, but when I mentioned to the server that the fish was a little dry/overcooked, he offered to make up for it with some free dessert. Yeah, you know I couldn't turn that down...

And WOW am I glad we didn't! First off, it is rare that more than one dessert sounds even remotely appealing after, you know, a full meal. But at Chef's Table, literally every dessert sounded super intriguing. I ordered the Bananas Foster Cheesecake, and Owen got what the server described as "It's really chocolate-y - chocolate brownie topped with chocolate mousse and chocolate wafers and chocolate sauce...yeah, it's a lot of chocolate." Of course we had to try that. The cheesecake was divine - I looooove bananas foster AND cheesecake, so I knew this would be a win for me. The flavor was phenomenal, and I loved the brûléed banana - it was perfectly cooked and the bananas weren't mushy at all! I was surprised with the raspberries on top, but it was a perfect bit of tartness on a dessert that could have been overwhelmingly sweet. I WANT THIS RIGHT NOW.

I can't even describe this chocolate dessert except...best thing ever/I love chocolate/so intense but so good/you gotta try it/never take this off the menu

What You Should Do: Like I mentioned before, Chef's Table is a great place for those special occasions where you really feel like splurging! The service was really excellent and they want you to have a wonderful dining experience. My only advice is hey, if you're going to be spending more than $100 on a meal, let's dress a little nicer, okay? Just a personal thing... :) I would probably give this place four stars, but it is pretty expensive in reality, and I'm not recommending going here every day!

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RITA'S ICE

Where: Rita's Ice, 1283 N University Avenue, Provo

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen 

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Birthday Cake Milkshake and Key Lime Ice with Chocolate Custard

What It Cost: $4.26 (we had a coupon)

What We Thought:

Who doesn't love ice cream, right? Well maybe lactose-intolerant people, but anyway...we decided to try Rita's, and I was pretty excited because there was a frozen custard place near my home in Washington that was super good -- the custard was basically creamier, heavier, more delicious ice cream! I got the birthday cake milkshake. The flavor was really delicious - and really tasted like birthday cake! This treat would definitely be good for those of you who are sprinkle fanatics. Towards the bottom quarter of the shake though, it seemed like it was more sprinkle than ice cream, which was not quite as delicious.

Owen got an Italian Ice + Custard mix, choosing key lime ice + chocolate custard, inspired by the chocolate covered key lime pies we had in Key West a couple of years ago. It was kind of good - the lime was a little too tart and the chocolate not rich enough, but still fun to combine your own choices. Personally, I wouldn't go for the ice again - it was just like an overpriced slushie, but the custard was pretty delicious. I wish they had more custard flavor options!

What You Should Do: If you happen to be wandering around near BYU campus one day and it's still hot outside, this place is a fun deviation from the norm, and is worth a trip or two!

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SODALICIOUS

Where: Sodalicious, 30 W 300 N, Provo (in the barber shop)

Who Went: Chelsey, Owen, Kim, Daniel, Kelsey, Jessica, etc.

Number of Visits: At least 7...

What We Ordered: Various sodas, rice krispy treat, sugar cookie

What It Cost: ~$5

What We Thought: 

OH MY GOSH HOW HAVE I NOT POSTED ABOUT THIS PLACE YET.

Sodalicious is...happiness. It's life. It's what makes everything better.

Okay, it really is a little shack on the side of a barber shop that serves soda with mix-in flavor choices. And they come up with the best combos. It's kind of bad actually. I never even really liked soda before coming here. And now, I lie in bed at night thinking about the Boy Scout (rootbeer + toasted marshmallow + half & half). I've tried so many different flavors here, and have only been disappointed once (different people have different tastes, of course). I can't remember all of the clever names they have for everything, but it is a really wonderful treat for $2. We've found the best way to maintain balance and ensure beverage success is something like: sweet soda + slightly acidic fruit + something creamy. For example, Coke + raspberry + coconut or Dr. Pepper + cranberry + half & half. Oh yeah. Don't knock it until you've tried it!

As far as the other food -- the popcorn is your typical movie theater style (meh), the rice krispy had potential, but was sadly stale, and sugar cookie is the best I've ever had.

What You Should Do: GO ON TWO PUNCH TUESDAYS. 1. Get a punch card 2. Get some soda. 3. Drink 4. Repeat (5. Bring me some?)

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