“I wanted a slutty burger on the menu,” executive chef Travis Herbert told me at the much-awaited Brownstone 22 soft launch in February. I nodded in agreement, clutching said voluptuous burger and waiting not-so-patiently until he left so I could lick the uni cheese sauce and caviar off my fingers. He elaborated on Brownstone 22’s concept: “We’ve got great seafood. Fantastic cocktails. And just look at this place.”
He wasn’t wrong about any of those things.
With co-owner Richard Romney, Herbert has piggybacked on the success of Brownstone’s sister spot, Felt Bar & Eatery, where Herbert earned a 2026 James Beard Awards nod for best chef, mountain region. From Felt, they tapped über-talented barman Josh Van Gorden to develop Brownstone 22’s cocktail program and chef Kayley Yearly to run the kitchen’s brigade.
The restaurant is housed in one of downtown Salt Lake’s most distinctive grande dames, a brownstone Romanesque-style edifice designed by Utah state capitol architect Richard K.A. Kletting in 1888. Local artist and interiors wizard Gary Vlasic has celebrated the stately bones while also making it feel completely new. Custom Murano glass chandeliers hang above cushy velvet banquettes and glossy marble tables.
An expansive abstract mural by artist Jessalyn Brooks covers one wall, and preserved exposed brick makes up another. Think Iris Apfel meets Grace Kelly, with a bit of vintage Versace thrown in. It works.
The food and drink menus echo this playful juxtaposition of nostalgia and modernity. The Brownstone 22 cocktail program has become one of my favorites in the city, with exceptional $16 martinis, aperitivi, and riffs on classics like a juicy Hemingway daiquiri and a sassy cosmopolitan that had me wondering why I haven’t ordered one since 1998.
Chefs Herbert and Yearly have capitalized on our landlocked locale’s craving for seafood fresh and fired. Standouts include a zingy scallop crudo, salmon belly sashimi, and a new-to-me dish, oysters Kilpatrick. Herbert describes it as a New Zealand-inspired preparation of grilled bivalves with smoky bacon, herbs, and a slightly spicy pepper-soy-miso butter. Unexpected and an absolute umami bomb.
The menu’s mains largely deliver, too. Along with the banger of a burger, the espresso chili-crusted Colorado lamb chops with pomegranate chimichurri was the winner at our table. However, I’m not a fan of nonedible elements on my plate, and what was otherwise a phenomenal dish of green curry clams with grilled shishitos was scattered with at least a half dozen fiery bird’s eye chili peppers — a sliver high enough on the Scoville scale to make even this “hot sauce in my handbag” gal raise a wary eyebrow. With that in mind, the team is clearly looking to adapt and improve in the kitchen; they’ve reimagined an unwieldy opening-night pasta dish as an absolute stunner, with squid ink pappardelle gilded in grilled octopus and a bright tomato-based chorizo and Calabrian chili sauce. And Yearly’s strong background in pastry sings as a finale; get the key lime pie if it’s available.
To say Brownstone 22 has set the bar high is an understatement. While the restaurant bills itself as a martini bar, it has clearly created an elevated downtown haven with drinks, dining, and design all top of mind.
WHEN YOU GO:
Brownstone 22
22 E. 100 South, SLC
brownstone22.com
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