14 Best Restaurants in Southwestern Utah, Utah

This cheerful food truck, which doles out superb burgers with imaginative toppings, along with fries and soft drinks, parks in different parts of Torrey (often beside The Chuckwagon hotel)—check their Facebook page for the latest hours and address. Favorites among these over-the-top creations include the burger topped with gooey mac-and-cheese, smoked bacon, coal-roasted green chilies, and whole grain mustard; and another slathered with pulled pork, cream cheese, pickled jalapeños, and barbecue sauce. 

You can watch your handmade artisanal pizza being pulled from the fires of the brick oven, then sit back and enjoy a seasonal pie layered with ingredients like house-made fennel sausage and wood-roasted cremini mushrooms. The creamy vanilla gelato layered with a balsamic reduction and sea salt is highly addictive.

But for a smattering of colorful papel picado (cut paper) flags strung along the ceiling and some neon Mexican beer signs, this unassuming eatery on the east side of Torrey lacks much in the way of ambience. The plates brimming with vibrant sauces, fresh vegetables, and tender steak, chicken, and seafood, however, hint at why this relatively new Mexican restaurant has such a passionate following. Service is friendly and knowledgeable, too.

Stop by this cheerful coffeehouse with hanging plants and several tables on a spacious side patio to fuel up before your big park adventure or to grab some healthy sustenance for later. Hearty cacao-acai and chipotle aioli–quinoa bowls, toast with goat cheese and fresh strawberries, bagels with the requisite schmears, breakfast burritos, and house-made granola are among the tasty offerings. There's also a nice selection of camp mugs, travel tumblers, and coffee-related gifts.

This warm and inviting log cabin–style restaurant—operated by a local tour operator that also runs a camp store and cabin and camping compound—is a great place to sit back and relax after a day of hiking, fly-fishing, or road-tripping. Try one of the creatively topped pizzas, a veggie sandwich, or an apple-pecan-arugula salad, or drop in for a well-crafted (Fair Trade) coffee and a light breakfast to kick off the day.

This hip sidewalk café and bakery on the ground floor of a downtown St. George apartment building is a pleasing option for both decadent sweets—think passionfruit-coconut–glazed doughnuts and blood-orange tarts—and filling sandwiches on crusty house-baked breads. Notable drink options include brown sugar–cinnamon lattes and high-octane cold brews.

This charming patisserie and bistro in the center of downtown is a favorite stop for lattes and cold brew; crepes and salads; heartier dinner specials (salmon, filet mignon, ratatouille); and ethereal pastries and sweets, including a rotating selection of chocolate, berry, lemon, and seasonal tarts. It's also perfect for stocking up on picnic supplies before a hiking or biking adventure. In warm weather, you can dine on the cute patio out front.

On the stunning grounds of the Boulder Mountain Lodge and a frequent James Beard Award semifinalist, this remote eatery—its creative, oft-changing menu is inspired by indigenous, Western range, Southwestern, and Mormon pioneer recipes—is worth the 40-mile drive from Torrey or 25-mile drive from Escalante along scenic Highway 12. The amiable chef-owners (and cookbook authors) source many ingredients they use—in dishes like braised beef with kale, tomatoes, and green-chile polenta; and pappardelle with smoked trout and farm veggies—come directly from their own organic farm or one of the area's sustainable purveyors.

This fun stop along scenic Highway 12, about 13 miles east of Escalante, was constructed by the late artist and inventor Bradshaw Bowman, who began building it when he was in his eighties and spent two years finding and transporting the 13 Douglas-fir logs surrounding the structure. The distinctive eatery with amazing views serves a daily-changing array of made-from-scratch soups, bagel sandwiches, tamales, oatmeal pancakes, salads, and decadent desserts, plus exceptional coffee and espresso drinks. Open from March through October, the café also rents two overnight accommodations in a nearby cabin.

A charming patio overlooking Ancestor Square with contemporary Southwestern art on the walls provides a romantic setting for enjoying contemporary American fare with an emphasis on seasonal ingredients, many from the owners' private organic garden. Consider chorizo-stuffed quail with a tamarind glaze, followed by a juniper-brined bone-in pork chop with stuffed pears and smoked-tomato relish, and don't pass up the standout sides that include chipotle bread pudding, zucchini fritters, and blue cheese–walnut–stuffed pears. The white chocolate cheesecake tower is a standout among several excellent desserts.

What you could easily mistake for a classic diner with its black-and-white-checkered floor and green-vinyl seats is actually one of the few restaurants in the state specializing in the boldly flavored cuisine of the Andes. At this friendly café across from downtown Hurricane's civic park, enjoy classics like grilled rotisserie chicken with Peruvian spices and chilies, Venezuelan arepas stuffed with shredded beef, and fried rice with seasoned ham, eggs, and vegetables. Alcohol isn't served, but there is a selection of seasonal fruit juices.

In a handsomely restored little house in the tree-lined, historic village of Santa Clara—about 15 minutes west of downtown St. George—this sweet, cozy neighborhood restaurant with seating in a colorful front garden serves extraordinarily tasty, locally sourced contemporary American–Mediterranean fare. It's worth the trip to this slightly off-the-beaten-path locale to savor coconut labneh with spicy harissa, charred heirloom tomatoes, and hazelnut dukkah and seared skirt steak with jalapeño-parsley chermoula. The desserts change nightly and are also tantalizing.

The sophisticated contemporary Mediterranean fare served in this snazzy bistro with a cathedral ceiling and an open kitchen would hold its own in any big city. Start off your evening with escargot with herbed garlic butter or French onion soup, before graduating to gnocchi with sautéed lobster tail or pan-seared duck breast with a cherry reduction and truffle-dusted potatoes.

This beautifully designed adobe oasis in the Kayenta Art Village in Ivins, about 10 miles northwest of St. George, offers gracious indoor and outdoor seating, the latter overlooking fragrant high-desert gardens and the surrounding red rock ramparts. Pronounced zay-tah-vah, the space began as a coffee bar and is still a source of lattes and mochas, but you'll also find an eclectic selection of globally inspired all-day fare, including blue-corn waffles, ham ciabattas, peach-glazed organic chicken, and wild mushroom burgers. Weekend brunch is extremely popular.