Imagine dining at an elegant, garden-inspired room, replete with subtle, hand-stenciled and trompe l'oeil walls, fine-crafted stone mantels and handmade, log-pole-type chairs.
The room grabs immediate attention for its detail in decor, but the praise thins as you notice your Saturday night dining companions. There's a boisterous high school prom group, senior citizens from out of state, a pair of blue-jean-clad young marrieds with noisy baby and a yuppie couple on a weekend date. With such an eclectic group of dining companions, it's difficult to define dress or even manners at the Garden Wall Restaurant, a classy corner of the Thanksgiving Point complex in Lehi.Mixed messages abound in the menu offerings as well. Under the direction of former Sundance chef, Donald Heidel, the Garden Wall kitchens turn out a regional American menu based on the theme, "We prepare food the old-fashioned way: We grow it." (Many of the vegetables and herbs used to prepare the daily offerings are actually harvested from the complex gardens and greenhouses). But the garden plenty fails to smooth out the bumps.
Entrees buckle under an attempt to travel in multiple directions on a single plate, striving for a cosmopolitan or sophisticated appeal. For example, the macadamia halibut ($19.95) drowns in a crumb and nut breading, sits atop a heavy potato pancake and a cache of steamed vegetables, and swims through a puddle of chutney sauce. And don't overlook the garden of chive straws sprouting from the fish as a garnish. The dish works if separated somewhat, but it creates a startling combination of flavors that don't quite mesh.
Another entree, grilled breast of turkey ($15.95), brings a generous helping of chewy, actually downright tough poultry, tender crisp haricot verte and a puff of sugared sweet potatoes growing an enormous escarole tree garnish.
It seems as though the chef is bursting with wonderfully creative ideas but wants to include them all on a single plate. (Almost a metaphor for the whole complex).
Monday evening family-style dinners are available at the mere family-friendly price of $15.95 for adults and $7.95 for kids. Nevertheless, folks who stop by to enjoy the wide variety of events and attractions at Thanksgiving Point may have to settle for a more economical deli sandwich, an ice cream soda or one of the 32 flavors of hot chocolate available in the ice cream parlor rather than the pricey lunch or dinner.
The Garden Wall, 2095 N. West Frontage Road, Lehi, 801-768-4990 Hours: Monday-Saturday 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday 5:30 p.m.-9 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 5:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Closed Sunday. Payment: All major credit cards ***