zest kitchen & bar

as a treat to myself, i went tozestkitchen & bar in salt lake city before heading home from this trip. located downtown, i quickly located a parking space and headed inside. i was super early on a wednesday night so the place was pretty quiet. i loved the feel of it even though there weren't many people there. it's a quaint place with a bar at the entrance and plenty of seating. the entrance is constructed of stone and the bright, brown glossy tables had silver chairs to complement them.

we had an absolutely wonderful dinner here. not only was the atmosphere great, but the food was delicious. the marinades were unique and flavorful and the drinks were pleasantly creative. last but not least, the staff was delightful. i would highly recommendzestto vegetarians and carnivores alike!

seriously fun spot!. went tozestfor a friend's birthday dinner and ended up dancing the night away. such a fun place!!!

zest kitchen & bar has been open for a few years but i hadn't visited before slug magazine asked me to review it for the january issue .  the food was fantastic and so much more satisfying than i'd ever imagined. let me assure you as a junk-food vegetarian (sandwiches and pancakes are my jam!) thatzestkitchen & bar serves killer cuisine. you won't leave hungry or feeling like you dined on rabbit food. each dish has layers of vibrant flavor and different textures. and i've been consistently craving the chocolate cake since i first tried it. i don't seem to get out at night much so i was thrilled when i learned thatzestkitchen & bar is now open for lunch tuesday - saturday. this is great news for homebodies and day drinkers like myself! check out my review in slug for details about my favorite drinks and dishes and let me know what you think!     

saying thatzestkitchen & bar is unique is a bit of an understatement.  just trying to categorize it is proof that it’s different from everywhere else in salt lake city.  it’s a restaurant specifically focused on vegetarian cuisine, conveniently making it vegan- and gluten free-friendly.  it’s also a bar, so visitors must be 21.  it’s open late, at which point its focus shifts primarily to a bar, complete with a dance floor and sometimes a dj. the black bean sliders were one of the highlights of dinner. i went tozesta few weeks ago to try out the bar scene and was excited to find out that they play house music on fridays (a rare find for salt lake city).  the crowd was intimate and the vibe was energetic.  anxious to try the food side of zest, a few friends and i returned last week for dinner. the whiskey sour, emphasis on the sour. the cocktail menu has some creative concoctions on it, but i was disappointed that most of them were on the sweet side.  the high west whiskey sour (lem

i'm not a vegan or vegetarian, couldn't tell you the difference, and don't care too. but i'm always down for trying new places, different foods, especially those that present themselves well...zestfits that bill. food is fine, and the club atmosphere is good, after hours can be fun. i ordered 2 appetizers and a main course between 2 people. it's definitely a small menu, and a bit pricey for weeds imho, and i thought the portions small. however, surprisingly i did feel full after, and the owner bought us drinks on top of the half price wine tuesday they offered which was awesome. (or was it thursday? hmm *shrug*). anyway i recommend a try.

amazing vegetarian gastronomy. synopsis:zestis an upscale dinner club with a cuisine so fresh flavors burst within your mouth.

zest has a modern approach to the supper club theme. first, their cuisine is local and organic. zest’s ingredients are farm-to-fork making the flavors delicate, fresh and vibrant. even their cocktails are made from organic fruits and vegetables. second, it's mainly vegan so your palet won’t be over burdened with any heavy creams, animal oils or butters. you'll feel full without feeling guilty. third,zestturns into a night club after regular dinner hours. i love this because their seating is built on a higher tier creating a great people watching venue. you can see the dance floor from your table. really fun!!

the verdict? i like to be constructive with my feedback but sometimes you gotta hope that restauranteurs will just cash it in and make space for someone else. the space currently occupied byzestis such a nice location that i'm hoping we'll eventually see a tenant that lives up to its potential.

one of my new favorite restaurants here in salt lake city iszestkitchen and bar, which just opened a few months ago. owner and operator, casey staker, successfully ran w lounge for several years before closing its doors and taking a chance in opening the fresh and flavorful, zest. i am pretty sure it was his destiny – because this restaurant is wonderful for so many reasons.

in response to hl. hey there! we are sad to hear about your experience atzestlast week. we definitely value your opinions and put all suggestions and comments into review.
we are for sure going through some growing pains and getting kinks ironed out. we are constantly working on improving our menu.
you caught us on our summer/fall menu change and maybe the server didn't talk to you about some of the fall replacement menu.
i'm sorry the drinks took that long! i'm not sure why but i will talk to everyone on staff and make sure things like this do not go unnoticed. we really value feedback from our vegetarian friends! i am approachable when it comes to issues because i want this to work. the reason for creatingzestis to offer more healthy veg. options in salt lake. i am sorry if i gave off that vibe. i am more than happy to talk to any guest at anytime there is a problem.
i would hope in the future that you will be willing to give us another try. :)
our new menu is out and ready for fall!
my sincere apologies,
casey staker
owner/operator
zest kitchen & bar
please feel free to email me if you have any other questions or concerns.
thank you.
casey@zestslc.com

trying too hard.. some friends and i came uponzestafter enjoying the downtown gallery stroll last friday night. when we walked in, there wasn't a hostess in sight, then we come to find her eating at the bar. after being seated (at a table that did not have any place settings, we had to grab them off the surrounding tables) it took the waiter at least ten minutes to even approach our table. the wine and beer was average price, nothing to complain about. looking through the menu i was very hopeful. i am vegatarian and prefer not to eat gluten, so they had a lot to offer. after waiting almost a half hour for our drinks to arrive, we finally got to order. all three of my original choices were shot down because the restaurant had run out. mind you, it was dead empty in the place when we walked in at 8:30 pm. what restaurant runs out of three things on a small menu in the middle of a friday night? what i finally ordered was the goat cheese with chives on cucumbers. it came with five dried out cucumbers and cheese that looked like it was squeezed out of a toothepaste container by a two year old. and it cost $9 dollars.
this restaurant will not last by the end of the season, much less a few months.
worst service, horrible atmosphere, elevator club music playing too loud, pretentious owner and the worst "healthy" food i have ever had. stay away from this restaurant.