hawksbill

I'm in Moab right now, and I need to figure out where to have dinner for the next few nights.

There's some good discussion of Moab restaurants in this thread: http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...tc-in-moab.cfm Dayle's suggestion of Desert Bistro (I think that's what Dayle meant by "Desert Cafe") was the most exciting to me, and I will see if I can try to sneak in there without an advance reservation during this trip. However, tomorrow I plan to wipe myself out on the trails so thoroughly that I'm too exhausted for fine dining.

I'd still like to eat something tasty. What should I do? In the past, I really liked Moab Brewery. But their food seems to have gone way downhill (unless I accidentally ordered my burrito "extra watery, hold the flavor" this time). Furthermore, it's an ordeal to try to eat there. The wait for a table is interminable, and if you order takeout, you may have to wait five minutes on hold just to place the order, plus 30-45 minutes for the food to be ready, plus ten minutes at the front of the restaurant waiting for the server to show up and bring you the food. And then you have to pay an obligatory 18% gratuity for all takeout orders, and perhaps get glared at if you don't write in even more money under "additional tip."

Is there a restaurant where I can sit and eat a good meal fairly quickly while collapsed feebly against my armrest? And/or obtain some takeout food without having to fight through a busload of French tourists who are swarming the T-shirt-purchasing counter like they're storming the Bastille?

qwovadis

Eklecticafe, Love Muffin Cafe, Buck's Grill House, Sunset Grill, Milt's Stop & Eat are all good prospects based on what u like...

www.yelp.com/c/moab-ut/restaurants

DebitNM

I find yelp reviews to be almost meaningless; reviewers tend to be yuppie yelpers who wouldn't know good food if it jumped down their gullets.

Have you ACTUALLY eaten at those places or are you just googling?

Here's a report I did, but it is 3 years old. So not 100% sure if all this holds true, but at least these are places we actually ate at:

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...ong-report.cfm

And friend's recommend:
Miguel's Baja Grill

hawksbill

Well, I totally punted on my remaining dinners. As a food-centric traveler, I'm not proud of this. But Canyonlands left me so wiped out and starving that I didn't even have enough mental energy left to read a menu. What I discovered was that, although Pasta Jay's ironically doesn't make good pasta, their pizza is actually pretty good. Also, don't go to Jax.

I did find this year-and-a-half-old thread on Chowhound that has some information that would have been helpful: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/699342 There's some support there for Miguel's Baja Grill. And it appears that Paradox (right next to the Moab Brewery) would have been a good place for pizza.

I did manage to have the chorizo breakfast burrito at Love Muffin on my way out of town. It was a little greasy for my taste, but still pretty good, and that was definitely a place I'd go back to.

As for yelp, I wouldn't describe their reviewers as yuppies, but I agree that their reviews are nearly meaningless. Actually I sometimes find that I can pick out a good restaurant by choosing the ones that got the most negative reviews. Especially reviews with negative comments like these:

"The portions are too small! I had to stop at Burger King on the way home to fill up."

"They refused to serve my Dover sole meunière with ketchup. What a bunch of snobs. I won't be going back."

"My boyfriend took me there for a special meal on my twenty-first birthday, and they totally ruined it. Yes, I know they have a 'jackets required' policy. But my boyfriend was wearing a fleece with a zipper in the front. How is that not a 'jacket'?"

happytrailstoyou

I like the way to phrase your question! The only meal I remember in
Moab was a very annoying dinner at Sing Ha Thai where we were served
small portions with a lot of attitude and a "bottle" of wine that had
been conspicuously poured into a bottle that had been served to
previous diners.

To "low hassle" I would add "builds business on repeat customers."

HTTY

happytrailstoyou

Have you ACTUALLY eaten at those places or are you just googling?

It is extremely annoying to read put-downs like this. Guidelines for posting
At this forum include: “Please remain civil and refrain from personal attacks
on other posters.”

HTTY