271 N. Center Street | Salt Lake City, UT | 801 596 0566
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Em's is a cute little bistro tucked away in a upscale neighborhood near the capital building. It was a little hard to find since this neighborhood is so residential I didn't expect to find a restaurant here. Em's seems to be in a old store or former market. It was recommended to me from Beau at basicjuice.com.
The interior of Em's is decorated very simply with modern art, schoolhouse lamps and tables dressed with crisp white tablecloths. It's Wednesday night at 8:30 and they aren't too busy at all.
The menu has a wide variety of modern American and French selections with dishes such as halibut, rib eye steaks, cassoulet, interesting pork dishes and rack of lamb.
Starters are in the $7-9 range and entrees are in the $15 range. This seems very reasonable considering the atmosphere and unique offering on the menu. Em's also offers a daily specials menu which has a selection of at least 3 items in each category.
I was a bit let down by the "by the glass" wine list which consisted of a lot of run of the mill wines that could be found in any wine shop. On the positive side, they were all decent selections such a Big House Red, Kris Pinot Grigio and Coppola Claret. The wines by the bottle were all pretty decent also. You have to remember that Utah is a semi-dry state and I believe wine is controlled by the government. What does the government care about a good boutique wine from France?
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My starter was a bit unique. It was a Moroccan dish which was a paste made from walnut, red pepper and cumin topped with a slice of apple on a toasted crostini, delicious. ($9). My first choice for a starter was a fig stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped with prosciutto, but since it was a special, they had already run out.
For my entree I ordered the rib eye steak which was topped with a onion confit and blue cheese and served with roast red baby potatoes and pencil thin asparagus ($19). Wow! That's a good dish and the steak was huge, tender and cooked perfectly medium rare. I ate my meal with the "Big House Red" which was a decent wine and a deal at $5 a glass!
Zagat gave service here a marginal rating and I expected the worst but I found the service to be attentive. My waiter was very helpful in assisting me with my selections and making sure I was satisfied. Every time he brought a dish he asked, "Is that to your liking? If not I can get you something else". That's good service.
For dessert I ordered the special which is a rustic black cherry tart with white chocolate ice cream. ($6) How fabulous is that? Well it wasn't. I found it to be "floury" and bland. It's a shame because I love cherries. I had a lot of nerve and when the waiter asked me what I thought I told him it was "disgusting". Oooops, that's the wine talking (but it wasn't good). He apologized but offered no solution.
One thing that was obvious about Em's is the people here are a far cry from other people I have seen around Salt Lake. It's a more like I'm in a small neighborhood of San Francisco, than Salt Lake City.
Overall I would give Em's 4 hearts, minus the horrid dessert which I really wish could have been better. One minor complaint is that the bistro was a bit too dark and could have use some candles at the table or brighter lighting. Why is it that I always feel like I am eating in the dark?
Total bill which included 2 glasses of red wine and a cuppa cawfee was $48.96. I was surprised that after I expressed my disgust with the dessert that it wasn't removed from the bill.
For a nice dining experience, I highly recommend visiting Em's if your travels take you to Salt Lake City. I doubt you'd regret it.
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Leave it to you to find the good food.
Posted by: eric | Thursday, July 14, 2005 at 05:45 PM