It seems obvious that Left Fork Grill, just off I-15 between two drab brown office buildings, is a place catering to the lunch hours of the men and women who work nearby.
But, at least in my experience, few of that type of restaurant have the quality, authenticity and painstaking attention to detail that characterizes the food at Left Fork Grill.
I remember the mostly pallid, indifferent food I bought from the eateries dotting office buildings' ground floors when I was a journalism intern in Washington, D.C. The only food that was memorable in any way was the incendiary Chinese almond chicken eaten once by my friend and fellow intern (he later became my husband). His face poured with sweat as he gasped his way through the meal — he's not a fan of spicy fare — but he was too frugal to toss it and buy something different.
I don't think that's the kind of thing any restaurant wants to be remembered for, even a workplace restaurant. That's where the food at Left Fork Grill is so astonishing. It's not just good. It's detailed, from the house-made pies to the chef's time-tested recipes for cole slaw and chili sauce. And there are a few things on the menu you'll rarely find in other places.
But before we get to that, here are two more great things about Left Fork: It's clean — a server whirred a quiet little vacuum around a couple of times during our meal, and the bathrooms were spotless — and the service is friendly, competent and enthusiastic, with servers who clearly like both the customers and the food.
After ordering a grilled ham and cheese for our two kids to share — it arrived piled with thin-sliced ham and oozing melted Cheddar on crisp sourdough bread — we took on the difficult task of deciding what to order for ourselves.
There were a lot of enticing things on the menu, including such classics as eggs fried in the middle of pieces of sourdough toast for breakfast, but we settled on the meatloaf sandwich with coleslaw for me and the chicken schnitzel for my husband.
The meatloaf, superbly textured, nicely browned outside and studded with bits of onion and green pepper, was served on a crusty ciabatta roll and topped with Left Fork's house-made chili sauce, which is sort of a sweet, chunky salsa with loads of smoky chili flavor and little heat. It was a delicious combination. The coleslaw, that sweet, vinegary kind with poppy seeds, might have been even better, with crunchy cabbage shredded almost paper-thin and mixed with carrots and green pepper.
But after I tasted my husband's schnitzel, I wished I'd had that. One of our servers said it's her favorite thing on the menu, and I can see why. It's described as "lightly breaded," and for once, that's no lie. The breading was whisper-thin, just enough to flavor the meat and give the dark, savory brown sauce some purchase. The dish was topped with melted Swiss and Gruyere cheeses and served with smooth, buttery mashed potatoes and fresh young beans of bright spring green.
We had pie for dessert. Really great pie: light, flaky, buttery crust, beautifully made fillings. My husband, an all-American sort of fellow, had the excellent apple pie, served traditional style with sliced cheese on the side, and the kids shared a piece of dark, intense blueberry pie with lots of whole berries. But I think I got the best one, the sweet, decadent blackberry cream, with whole berries running like a silk ribbon through mounds of cream filling in a crust so light it was barely browned.
Soup and salad $2.99-$9.99, sandwiches $6.99-$7.99, entrees $7.99-$12.99, desserts $2.50-$3.25, breakfast (served until 11 a.m.) $4.99-$8.25; sides 35 cents-$4.75.
Rating: *** 1/2
Where: 68 W. 3900 South
Hours: Monday-Friday,
6 a.m.-3 p.m.
Saturday, 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
Closed Sunday
Payment: Major credit cards accepted
Phone: 266-4322
Wheelchair access: Accessible, if a bit crowded
Also: Whole pies available with advance notice
Stacey Kratz is a freelance writer who reviews restaurants for the Deseret Morning News. E-mail: skratz@desnews.com