Enjoy cowboy charm in a new pop-up bar in SLC

This article is excerpted from the Utah Eats newsletter. To get the full newsletter every Wednesday, subscribe at sltrib.com/newsletters.

Hello, Eaters! If you’re a fan of the Western aesthetic and country music, you should check out Hidden Boot Saloon, the latest pop-up bar from Flanker Kitchen + Sporting Club in The Gateway at 6 N. Rio Grande St. in Salt Lake City.

My dining companion and I visited last week and had a great time, and I thought everything — from the food to the decor — was on point.

Visitors can access the speakeasy room through Flanker’s main area — past installations have included a Christmas-themed bar and an ‘80s-themed bar. For this pop-up, the entrance is through an old-timey jail setup, complete with wanted posters.

Once inside, you’ll notice the many, many rustic details in the decor, including the swinging saloon doors, the authentic taxidermy on the walls and the vintage truck tailgates that make up the backs of some of the benches.

Most of the memorabilia and knickknacks you see are true vintage and antiques. The huge graffiti portraits of stars like Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash and Post Malone were done on-site, and all of the wood was charred and weathered by hand, said Ryan Hopay, special projects and beverage manager for Carver Road.

All of this Americana grit and charm comes together in a unique installation that Hopay said took six weeks to build. There’s even a mechanical bull, if you really want to get wild.

As we bellied up to the bar, we were greeted with a deep “howdy” from our bartender, Jeffrey, who did a great job that night.

My favorite drink that I tried that evening was a mocktail called the Cactus Cooler ($14), made with prickly pear puree and housemade chile de arbol-rose-lavender limeade, and topped with Fever Tree grapefruit soda and Wanderdust Grapefruit Shimmer dust. It’s a somewhat complicated ingredient list, but mainly I tasted prickly pear, grapefruit and flowery notes in this refreshing and complex beverage. (It also came in a cactus-shaped vessel, which was fun.)

To eat, I ordered the All American burger ($20), with American cheese, caramelized onions, pickles and something called Comeback Sauce. It was absolutely delicious, with the burger cooked perfectly. For Dish of the Week, though, I’m featuring my dining companion’s food, which was next level. To read more, go to the bottom of this newsletter.

If you want to visit this immersive pop-up experience, it will likely be up through the summer, Hopay said. Hidden Boot Saloon is open Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 11 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. To make a reservation, visit FlankerSLC.com.

Live deliciously,

Kolbie

Food News

Openings:

• According to the Downtown Alliance, a diner called Ramblin’ Roads is going to open its sixth location in the former Lamb’s Grill space at 169 S. Main St. in Salt Lake City. No opening date yet, but there’s an “opening soon” banner on the front of the building.

• Central 9th ramen spot Ramen Ichizu, at 915 Washington St., posted on Instagram last week that their upstairs bar is now open. It’s a place where you can enjoy some ramen and a cocktail while you listen to vinyl records, the post said.

• Vegan bakery Eats is going to be establishing its first brick-and-mortar location at 248 E. 100 South, Salt Lake City, in the space formerly occupied by Nostalgia Cafe, according to an Instagram post from the business.

• Fairway Bagels & Donuts is going to open in Logan, on the corner of 400 West and 400 South, right by the Cache County Fairgrounds, according to an Instagram post.

• Last week was the grand opening of the Two-Bit Bistro, the reincarnation of the Two-Bit Street Cafe, which was a mainstay of downtown Ogden established in 2003. The restaurant closed in 2023, but the owners posted on Facebook that “we were determined to make it a ‘see you soon’ rather than a goodbye.” Now, fans of the old place can experience the new spot in a gorgeous building on the corner of Historic 25th Street and Washington Boulevard, in Ogden.

• A new Wendy’s location held its grand opening last week in Eagle Mountain, at 4302 E. Pony Express Parkway, according to a news release.

Dish of the Week

If I were to write a country song about The Farmhouse burger ($22) at the Hidden Boot Saloon, it would be a wistful number about how I can’t eat this burger every day. Start with a burger made with Black Angus short rib blend, and melt Gruyere on top. Then add tomato, bacon jam, arugula, a fried egg and a pickle spear, and you’ve got a bite that’s meaty, cheesy, smoky, eggy and just perfect when paired with tater tots and fry sauce.