The restaurant business is notoriously volatile, as anyone who’s worked in food service or caught the first two seasons of “The Bear” can attest. That’s especially true in a mountain community like Park City where businesses are subject to feast and famine economics and the oscillating whims of tourist spending habits. In such an environment, the success of restaurants under the Bill White Enterprises umbrella is nothing short of remarkable. The first restaurant in the portfolio, Grappa, opened more than three decades ago in 1992. The team behind the latest addition, Pine Cone Ridge, aims to add to the successful lineage that’s come to define Park City’s fine dining identity. 

Chef Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen has curated a contemporary American concept fusing local cuisine concepts with influences from her past and the culture of her colleagues. Thorne-Thomsen is a veteran of Park City restaurants, having worked with Bill White restaurants for 15 years. During that time she served as the executive chef at Ghidotti’s in Kimball Junction for five years and frequently developed menus and cooked for the restaurant group’s extracurricular and special events. Now she’s channeling that creativity into Pine Cone Ridge. 

“When they asked if I was interested in starting a new restaurant on Main Street with the support of the biggest, most successful restaurant group in town, I jumped at the chance,” says Thorne-Thomsen. “This is the first restaurant opening I’ve been part of. Working with so many skilled people who have different strengths has allowed us to focus intently on the menu concept knowing all the details are getting proper attention.” 

The cuisine at Pine Cone Ridge is a reflection of Park City’s restaurant community. “We worked from a starting point of classic American cuisine and included local ingredients, regional comfort food components and a lot of Mexican-American influences. We’re really proud of that because of how influential the Mexican community has been to Park City’s identity,” Thorne-Thomsen says. “I’ve been able to bring some of my perspective coming from New England as well with unique proteins and a lot of seafood. The Miso Chilean Sea Bass is a dish I just love. We overnight live lobster from Gloucester, Mass., which isn’t something you see a lot in mountain towns.”

The menu rotates seasonally to highlight as many local ingredients as possible, as one of Thorne-Thomsen’s aims is to feature the freshest, most local produce from the Wasatch Back. Come to Pine Cone Ridge to taste the flavors of Utah as reimagined by Chef Gudrun and some of the finest, most experienced cooks in Park City. 577 Main St., 435-615-0300, pineconeridgepc.com.

Local Name, Local Game

The restaurant’s name is inspired by the eponymous two-mile ridge at Park City Mountain running from Scott’s Bowl off the Jupiter Chairlift to the mid-station of the Quicksilver Gondola. Just as Pinecone Ridge serves up some of the area’s best long, steep powder runs, Pine Cone Ridge dishes out some of the area’s finest ingredients like the local lamb T-bone chops and the seasonally rotating selection of produce.  

The restaurant business is notoriously volatile, as anyone who’s worked in food service or caught the first two seasons of “The Bear” can attest. That’s especially true in a mountain community like Park City where businesses are subject to feast and famine economics and the oscillating whims of tourist spending habits. In such an environment, the success of restaurants under the Bill White Enterprises umbrella is nothing short of remarkable. The first restaurant in the portfolio, Grappa, opened more than three decades ago in 1992. The team behind the latest addition, Pine Cone Ridge, aims to add to the successful lineage that’s come to define Park City’s fine dining identity. 

Chef Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen has curated a contemporary American concept fusing local cuisine concepts with influences from her past and the culture of her colleagues. Thorne-Thomsen is a veteran of Park City restaurants, having worked with Bill White restaurants for 15 years. During that time she served as the executive chef at Ghidotti’s in Kimball Junction for five years and frequently developed menus and cooked for the restaurant group’s extracurricular and special events. Now she’s channeling that creativity into Pine Cone Ridge. 

“When they asked if I was interested in starting a new restaurant on Main Street with the support of the biggest, most successful restaurant group in town, I jumped at the chance,” says Thorne-Thomsen. “This is the first restaurant opening I’ve been part of. Working with so many skilled people who have different strengths has allowed us to focus intently on the menu concept knowing all the details are getting proper attention.” 

The cuisine at Pine Cone Ridge is a reflection of Park City’s restaurant community. “We worked from a starting point of classic American cuisine and included local ingredients, regional comfort food components and a lot of Mexican-American influences. We’re really proud of that because of how influential the Mexican community has been to Park City’s identity,” Thorne-Thomsen says. “I’ve been able to bring some of my perspective coming from New England as well with unique proteins and a lot of seafood. The Miso Chilean Sea Bass is a dish I just love. We overnight live lobster from Gloucester, Mass., which isn’t something you see a lot in mountain towns.”

The menu rotates seasonally to highlight as many local ingredients as possible, as one of Thorne-Thomsen’s aims is to feature the freshest, most local produce from the Wasatch Back. Come to Pine Cone Ridge to taste the flavors of Utah as reimagined by Chef Gudrun and some of the finest, most experienced cooks in Park City. 577 Main St., 435-615-0300, pineconeridgepc.com.

Local Name, Local Game

The restaurant’s name is inspired by the eponymous two-mile ridge at Park City Mountain running from Scott’s Bowl off the Jupiter Chairlift to the mid-station of the Quicksilver Gondola. Just as Pinecone Ridge serves up some of the area’s best long, steep powder runs, Pine Cone Ridge dishes out some of the area’s finest ingredients like the local lamb T-bone chops and the seasonally rotating selection of produce.  

On the other side of State Street, lies a utopia of brewpubs and taprooms. We’ll help you map out your next bar crawl of Salt Lake breweries.

1. Bewilder Brewing — 445 S. 400 West
2. Level Crossing Brewing — 550 S. 300 West #100
3. Kiitos Brewing — 608 W. 700 South
4. Fisher Brewing Co. — 320 W. 800 South
5. Proper Brewing Co. — 857 S. Main St. 
6. Templin Family Brewing — 936 S. 300 West
7. HK Brewing Collective — 370 Aspen Ave.
8. RoHa Brewing Project — 30 Kensington Ave. 
9. Squatters and Wasatch Taproom and Beer Store — 1763 S. 300 West
10. Grid City Beerworks — 333 W. 2100 South 
11. Shades Brewing — 154 W. Utopia Ave. 
12. SaltFire Brewing Co. — 2199 S. West Temple
13. Chappell Brewing —2285 S. Main St. 

Westside Brewery Sampler

Grid City Beerworks 

Ever wonder what your favorite brew would taste like as a Nitro, or a Cask? The folks at Grid City have answers. Choose a brew from their ever-changing selection of in-house beers and customize which style you’d like, or try all three with one of their flights. Food is always a hit, the flatscreens inside always have a game on and the rooftop patio is pooch-friendly. Gridcitybeerworks.com | @gridcitybeer

Chappell Brewing 

Another newbie to the west side’s beer scene, Chappell Brewing is a friendly neighborhood joint serving craft brews and seasonal novelties. Check their socials to see which food truck will be visiting that day, and stop by on Sundays for live music. Oh, and they host beer-pong tournaments. College nostalgia, anyone? chappell.beer | @chappellbrewing

Level Crossing Brewing 

Level Crossing recently opened a brand new taproom inside the Post District, an up-and-coming mixed-use community that also houses chef-driven restaurant Urban Hill. Same crushable brews, different city-slicker vibe. Pull up a seat on the patio and indulge in a wood-fired pizza. Levelcrossingbrewing.com | @levelcrossingbrewing

Wildcard H.K. Brewing Collective 

This women and queer-owned brewery specializes in bubbly, probiotic Kombucha fermented in-house. After getting their hands on a liquor license this spring, H.K Brewing has added an array of booch cocktails to their menu, like the Chef’s Kiss ’75 which uses local gin, lemon and rotating kombucha, pair it with an Empanada from Tina’s bakery or a selection of conservas. Hkbrewing.com |@hkbrewingco

Looking for a spot to enjoy the big game? Check out our list of Salt Lake’s best sports bars!

I ask the same question to almost everyone I meet: “Tell me about the best meal you’ve ever had.” And the answer is almost always the same. It isn’t a sublime dinner at an expensive restaurant. It is a meal where they are gathered around a chipped kitchen table at home, sharing a big meal with people they love. The dishes are traditional—not gourmet—and filling. The recipes aren’t even recipes because they are only passed down through generational know-how. Each person brings a dish that is “their” dish, one only they can make. And the Nona, Abuela or Mummu reigns at the head of the table.

So it seemed appropriate to ring in the holiday season by talking about the biggest and best family meals of the year with three families whose traditions range from all over the world but who make Utah home. We’ll talk about the Italian Feast of the Seven Fishes, make Mexican-style tamales and gather ’round a Scandinavian Smörgåsbord. But most of all, we’ll celebrate what comes with the food—a feast of cultures, heritage and the joy of breaking bread together.

Gather Round the Table with the Caputo Family—Feast of the Seven Fishes

Feast of the Seven Fishes isn’t truly Italian in origin, but rather an Italian-American celebration. While it may have roots in the coastal regions of southern Italy, it grew up and came into itself here in the United States. It is an emblem of family, food and gathering around the table, as well as a growingly inclusive way to include dishes from other cultures.

There is a back-and-forth debate on why there should be seven types of fish on the table. It may represent the seven sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church. Or it could correspond with the number of days it took the Biblical God to create the universe. Those intimidated by cooking fish may think it takes seven days to plan and prepare for such a meal. After all, Feast of the Seven Fishes sounds like a grand spread that takes up an entire table. Even the word “feast” may sound daunting. Who has the time the energy or the culinary chops to conjure up seven crowd-pleasing dishes with fish?

In all actuality, the origins of this particular feast are humble. On Christmas Eve in Calabria and Sicily, meat is avoided on high holidays. Fish was the natural alternative, with the Mediterranean just out the doorstep. While the exact number of dishes can vary from family to family, the spirit of a family-style oceanic feast is more accessible to put on the table than a traditional holiday roast. Matt and Yelena Caputo, owners of Caputo’s Market & Deli, shared their menu with us and tips to assemble a stunning global feast in less than two hours.

More on Christmas Eve at the Caputo Household, and their Feast of the Seven Fishes Menu, here.

Making Christmas Tamales With Cristina Olvera From Casa Del Tamal

Eating tamales is like unwrapping a present. A tightly-wrapped-in-a-corn-husk kind of present with a soft steamed maize dough bundled around a rich, spicy filling. With the time and effort that goes into making each one, tamales feel like a gift of love and tradition during the holidays. Tamales have their origin in symbology and ritual. They were a cornerstone of ancient Mesoamerican civilizations; for the Maya, the Aztecs and the Toltecs, they were always more than just food. Maize was believed to be a gift from the gods, and tamales were part of religious ceremonies and festivals. They were even offered to the gods during ceremonies, symbolizing gratitude and reverence. This may be why tamales stayed firmly on the table as indigenous beliefs intertwined with Christianity.

There is a ritual around making tamales. It is labor intensive, which makes it a special-occasion dish. Prepping tamales for Christmas is a communal affair known as “tamaladas.”

Leading up to Christmas, families and friends gather around a table to prepare large batches of tamales. It’s a time for bonding, storytelling and tradition where families to come together for the communal effort of tamale-making.

My dad’s side of the family is from Mexico. This was our family tradition but my grandmother (abuela) passed away when I was young. So I missed out on the family tamaladas with messy corn masa, long-simmered fillings, burned fingers and the assembly-line precision of making holiday tamales. This year, I decided, would be my year to learn to make tamales. I asked the family behind Casa del Tamal to teach me and share their story.

Find The Olvera Family’s entire Nochebuena Menu here!

Kimi From Kimi’s Chop & Oyster House On a Scandinavian Smörgåsbord Christmas

Like our Mexican- and Italian-American friends, the big holiday dinner happens on Christmas Eve in Sweden. When you hear the words Smörgåsbord, you may conjure visions of a long table groaning with food. And you’d be right. But “Julbord” is the proper term for the feast at Christmas, literally meaning “Christmas table.” But the idea of a spread of dozens of dishes, some cold, some hot, with a warm mug of Glögg feels like a feast. 

Kimi Eklund from Kimi’s Chop and Oyster House explains the flow of a true Smörgåsbord starting with the cold dishes, “You start off with the fish, a variety of herrings, and cured gravlax, smoked salmon, poached salmon, caviar on eggs and shrimp salads.” We’re already at eight or nine dishes, just with the beautiful fish. “Then you move into the pâtés, maybe a liver pâté, some seafood pâté,” Kimi mentions that there would be at least three. So now our dish count is up to 12-ish. 

Still on the cold dishes, but moving down the table, you’ll find the cold meats. “You will find prosciutto and other cured meats,” she says. The mandatory centerpiece, Julskinka, or a salt-cured fresh ham that is sliced and often (though not always) served cold. If we’re still counting, we’re in the high teens, say 19.  

Ushering in the hot dishes are the much-loved Swedish meatballs. “Along with small little hotdog-style sausages,” says Kimi, “and little short ribs that have clove, cinnamon, spice,”  You’ll also find red and brown cabbage dishes, along with potatoes. Then the desserts, which may need their own table. “So there’s like 40 to 50 different dishes that you have.” Whew. 

Make Your Own Julbord Menu with Kimi’s Tips

Kimi Eklund from Kimi’s Chop and Oyster House explains the flow of a true Smörgåsbord starting with the cold dishes, “You start off with the fish, a variety of herrings, and cured gravlax, smoked salmon, poached salmon, caviar on eggs and shrimp salads.” We’re already at eight or nine dishes, just with the beautiful fish. “Then you move into the pâtés, maybe a liver pâté, some seafood pâté,” Kimi mentions that there would be at least three. So now our dish count is up to 12-ish. 

Still on the cold dishes, but moving down the table, you’ll find the cold meats. “You will find prosciutto and other cured meats,” she says. The mandatory centerpiece, Julskinka, or a salt-cured fresh ham that is sliced and often (though not always) served cold. If we’re still counting, we’re in the high teens, say 19.  

Ushering in the hot dishes are the much-loved Swedish meatballs. “Along with small little hotdog-style sausages,” says Kimi, “and little short ribs that have clove, cinnamon, spice,”  You’ll also find red and brown cabbage dishes, along with potatoes. Then the desserts, which may need their own table. “So there’s like 40 to 50 different dishes that you have.” Whew. 

A ‘Simple’ Julbord Menu

Still waiting to go all-in on a full Julbord? Here’s a simple menu to get you started.

Swedish Glögg 

Mustard Herring with crème fraiche, minced red onion & boiled baby potatoes

Swedish caviar Eggs

Gravlax with Dill Mustard Crème 

Swedish Meatballs with Lingonberries

Jansson’s Frestelse (Swedish Anchovy Potato)

The Perfect Glög For Christmas Eve

One of the unique things about Swedish Glögg, a mull-spiced wine, is the addition of golden raisins, currants and whole peeled almonds. 

Ingredients

• 1 bottle Cabernet Sauvignon (750 ml)
• 1 cup orange vodka 
• 1 cup sugar (depending on desired
•  sweetness add ½ c more)
• 3 oranges, juiced + orange peel (minus the pith)
• ¼ cup mulling spice (or make your own by adding 4 whole cinnamon sticks, 6 star anise, 10 whole allspice, 10 cardamom pods and 10 cloves)
• For serving: golden raisins, dried currents, peeled whole almonds

Directions

1. Put all the ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a simmer. 
2. Remove from the heat and allow spices to steep into the wine for 30 minutes. Strain the mulling spices and orange peel from the wine using a fine-mesh colander or cheesecloth.
3. Serve warm along with golden raisins and peeled whole almonds.

Tip: To peel the almonds, place a small saucepan with 4 cups water over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the whole almonds to the boiling water. Cook for 2 minutes. Drain off the water and push the almonds out of their skin. 

Don’t Eat Hot Food With Caviar Eggs

“The difference between how Americans eat at a buffet and how you eat at a Smörgåsbord is that you don’t pile everything on your plate all at once. “You don’t take the whole buffet and go sit down,” Kimi explains. “You start with herring. And with the herring, you will have a beer or schnapps. Then you go get some gravlax and everything that goes with it. And so on. So you probably have like six or seven plates of food. It’s a two to four-hour meal, where you are grazing and drinking.” Lesson: Don’t mix different things. Eat things one at a time or similar things together. And go back a bunch. In the words of Kimi, “You wouldn’t take the hot food with the caviar eggs.”

You’ll find everything from a traditional Donald Duck cartoon in the afternoon to lots of singing, dancing, sipping, and eating if you’re lucky enough to get invited to Julbord.  

Learn about another Utah family sharing their tradition—The Feast of the Seven Fishes!

Matt and Yelena Caputo, owners of Caputo’s Market & Deli, shared their Feast of the Seven Fishes menu with us and tips to assemble a stunning global feast in less than two hours.

Christmas Eve at the Caputo Household

“We have a very diverse array of family that come to our house on Christmas Eve,” says Matt, to start the conversation about their traditions. “We have Greek and Italian on my family’s side and Brazilian. And Yelena’s family have a Russian and Armenian background.” Within this cultural and culinary melting pot, they found the commonality for dinner was a tradition of having fish on Christmas Eve. The Brazilian family brings a layered Brazilian/Portuguese casserole made with salted cod, while the Russian side makes cured salmon. 

“We had this great meal with everyone bringing all these wonderful fish dishes,” says Matt. “It was just an epiphany that we had,” adds Yelena. “We realized that we all had the roots in this tradition, but it also dovetails so nicely to hosting a big gathering. Everybody knows they will come to our home for Christmas Eve. The Feast of Seven is like this conduit, which is a very easy way to assign a dish to everybody and say, ‘We want your cultural contribution to this melting pot.’ And that’s how we build the Feast. It is an easy and succinct way for everybody to get on board.”

The Caputo Family Feast the Seven Fishes Menu

Appetizers

1st Fish: Anchovies (Room Temp) | Smashed Cured Anchovies on Salted Butter Toast

2nd Fish: Trout (Cold) | Smoked Trout Dip with Tinned Smoked Trout, Creme Fraiche, Capers, Shallots and Lemon;Served with Potato Chips

Sips: Vermouth Spritz and Chilled Bubbles

Second Course

3rd Fish: Bacalahau aka Salted Cod (Warm) | Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá, Brazilian Salted Cod Layered Casserole with Potatoes, Olives and Hard Boiled Eggs

4th & 5th Fish: Squid and Trout (Hot) | Squid Ink Risotto with Curried Trout Conservas (Tinned Fish)

Sips: Orange Wine

Third course

6th Fish: Salmon (Room Temp) | Fatty Baked Salmon with Crème Fraiche, Lemon Zest and Dill. Served with a lemony herb salad.

7th Fish: Cockles (Hot) | Fresh Cockle Pasta with Olive Oil and Garlic

Sips: Beaujolais or Pinot Noir
(Yes, you CAN pair reds with fish)

Dessert

Melomakarona — Greek-style honey cookies | Trubochki — Russian horn-shaped pastry filled with cream | Apple Pie — American as they come, and a nod to Tony Caputo, who loved pie

Sips: Amaro Bar

Recipe: Squid Ink Risotto with Curried Mackerel

This inky-black recipe for risotto is made on the spot but topped with a warm tin of curried trout for a black-orange showstopper of a dish. It comes together in about 20 minutes and the stirring can be assigned to one of your guests if everyone tends to gather in the kitchen and nibble as you cook.

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup diced fresh tomatoes
• 1 tbsp sliced garlic 
• ½ bag Spanish Bomba Rice 
• Splash of white wine
• 4 cups fish broth (we prefer Aneto Fish Broth but can use chicken or vegetable broth, or even water)
• 1 tablespoon Squid Ink 
• 1 tin of Jose Gourmet Mackerel in Curry Sauce 
• Salt & Pepper 

Directions:

1. Warm olive oil in a large pan or pot over medium heat. Add diced onion and saute until almost soft. 
2. Add tomatoes and garlic and combine with onion. 
3. Add Spanish rice and coat rice with the sauteed mixture to allow flavors to marry. 
4. Add a splash of white wine to deglaze the pan as rice begins to stick. 
5. Allow wine to evaporate and begin adding broth ½ cup at a time giving time for rice to absorb the broth. Continue the process with remaining broth. Taste rice as you go to determine if desired texture has been reached. If you prefer a softer bite, add water in addition to the broth until desired texture is reached. 
6. Add squid ink and incorporate in the dish. The color will start to change almost immediately. If needed, add more broth or water to help incorporate squid ink throughout the dish. 
7. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. 
8. Plate the rice and top with a tin of Jose Gourmet Mackerel in Curry sauce. Be sure to use ALL the sauce from the tin. It may be your favorite part!

Learn about another food tradition from the family behind Mexican restaurant Casa Del Tamal!

There is a ritual around making tamales. It is labor intensive, which makes it a special-occasion dish. Prepping tamales for Christmas is a communal affair known as “tamaladas.”

Leading up to Christmas, families and friends gather around a table to prepare large batches of tamales. It’s a time for bonding, storytelling and tradition where families to come together for the communal effort of tamale-making.

My dad’s side of the family is from Mexico. This was our family tradition but my grandmother (abuela) passed away when I was young. So I missed out on the family tamaladas with messy corn masa, long-simmered fillings, burned fingers and the assembly-line precision of making holiday tamales. This year, I decided, would be my year to learn to make tamales. I asked the family behind Casa del Tamal to teach me and share their story.

La Familia Sobre Mesa

Cristina Olvera immigrated to Utah in 1999 from Hidalgo, Mexico. A single mother to five children, she always had multiple jobs. And on the side, she would make tamales out of her kitchen at home, explains daughter Salma. 

“My mom was a hard worker making tamales on the weekends to support us. As we got a little older, we helped her with whatever we could. She would have us cut cheese or clean corn husks.”

Eventually, the family bought a house and moved to Tooele. Cristina would still make tamales overnight and then, at 7 a.m., deliver them from Tooele to Park City and all around the Salt Lake Valley. As her reputation grew, clients started asking to cater and she began catering quinceaneras and weddings. 

Salma explains, “Eventually, she was able to quit her job to focus on tamales for events. With the money she had saved up from the business, she could start selling tamales at the swap meet at the Utah State Fair Park.” 

After moving into a tiny commercial kitchen space, Salma’s older sister started promoting the business on social media platforms right at the start of COVID. And business took off. “We would have a huge crowd at the swap meet. It was insane. The line would go back to the entrance. That’s when we decided to move into a bigger location.” 

Casa de Tamal was born.

No Such Thing as ‘Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen’

One thing I learned in assembling tamales is that it can be a multi-day process. And you really should take your time with the steps.

The corn husks must be washed and soaked, or they will crack. The dough or masa has to sit long enough to be soft and will only get softer with steaming. The filling needs to simmer for a long time on the back of the stove for all the spices and flavors to meld and for the meat to become fall-apart tender.

Assembling tamales is so time-consuming and precise that you might as well make batches of 50 or more at a time. While you’re at it, abuelas will be teaching the little kids how to put things together. It’s part of the process and part of the tradition.

Finally, setting up big pots and loading them so they are just full enough but not too packed is an art. And steaming the tamales takes at least 90 minutes, if not longer, at our altitude. But guess what? Sometimes, the masa is too dry, the filling is too wet, or the tamale gods are frowning down, and a batch doesn’t quite work out. A sacrificial tamale always gets opened and tested on behalf of the rest of the batch.

There are many recipes for making tamales, but the best way to learn is to find an abuela to teach you hands-on. The more hands in the kitchen, the better. There’s truly no such thing as too many cooks during tamaladas.

The Olivera Family Nochebuena Menu

Leading up to Christmas is exhausting for the Casa del Tamal family— they’ve been working until late into the afternoon on Christmas Eve since it is their busiest time for tamales. But back at the house, the Christmas Eve or Nochebuena meal is where the family comes together to relax and eat.

Their menu includes tamales, of course, but also other holiday favorites:

Posole — a hearty pork stew made with white hominy and chile and garnished with radish, cabbage, lime and spicy chilies.

Tamales — including Verdes de Pollo (Green Chile Chicken), Rojos de Puerco (Red Chile Pork), Rajas con Queso (Tomatoes, Jalapenos and Cheese) and Mole Poblano (Chicken Mole) 

Rice, Beans & Tortillas — because
no authentic Mexican table is ever without the staples.

A Colorful Fruit Salad

Champurrado — Thick, warm Mexican chocolate drink made with masa harina, spiced with cinnamon, and sweetened with unrefined cane sugar.

Find more Utah food inspiration from the experts at Kimi’s Chop and Oyster House!