We’ve arrived at part 4 of my journey to find the perfect place to eat chips and salsa in Utah. This leg took me to Orem, St. George (again), and Salt Lake City.
Another reminder, my rubric is as follows:
- I’m looking for a sit-down restaurant. Meaning, I want a place where a hostess will lead me and my party to a table, hand us all menus, and set out chips and salsa. I need a large Diet Coke, preferably in a giant red cup.
- While chips and salsa are what I’m focused on most, the entrees obviously need to be good, because if I’m going to return to this place often, I want to have a great meal every time, not just a great appetizer.
- Even though my personal go-to will need to be in Salt Lake County, where I live, I’m trying spots all over the state to best inform readers.
Now, for this leg specifically, I feel the need to remind us all that the perfect place to eat chips and salsa does not necessarily need to be a restaurant that exclusively serves Mexican food. It just needs to have chips and salsa on the menu, which is why I decided to try one of the most controversial and most recommended spots on my list — Chili’s.
Chili’s
I met some friends at the Orem location at 122 E 1300 S. I don’t know if there’s a single soul alive who doesn’t know what Chili’s is and doesn’t have some sort of opinion of it, but just in case, Chili’s is a chain restaurant that serves Tex-Mex-ish food. Many of the menu options feature the phrase “southwestern” in their descriptions, and the interior decor is Cowboy-adjacent.
I find myself at Chili’s once every few years, and every time, I am reminded of how good the chips and salsa are. I KNOW it’s not authentic. I KNOW it’s not cool. I KNOW there are angry emails being sent to my inbox right this second, but I have to speak my truth. The chips and salsa at Chili’s are good.
Primarily because the chips are very thin. Impossibly thin. And sometimes so greasy they’re translucent. But still crispy? Honestly, it’s a scientific marvel. Sometimes you get a big chunk of the thin chips all stuck together, and it feels like winning the appetizer lottery.
The chips are served with a mild salsa that has just enough flavor to be consumed in great quantities.
For my main, I ordered a fajita, and you know what? It was delicious. I SAID WHAT I SAID.
Dinner for three of us, including an appetizer, our mains, three giant Diet Cokes, and tip came out to $96.22.
Los Tapatios
My last attempt at finding the perfect place to get chips and salsa in St. George was an unmitigated disaster, so for this visit, I reached out to a local to get her recommendation. She told me to try Los Tapatios at 987 S Bluff Street.
The interior of Los Tapatios looks like a party supply store exploded, in the best possible way. There are wooden parrots hanging from the ceiling, the chairs are decoupaged with scenes of old-timey Mexico, and the walls are painted bright coral, blue, yellow, and green.
My 10-year-old has become very invested in this project and has started offering her perspective on all the chips and salsa we try. “These deserve a good review,” she told me in between bites of fried tortilla at Los Tapatios. It was the sweet and slightly spicy salsa that she liked in particular, and I agreed, it was delicious. The chips were sturdy and a little underseasoned for my liking, but not anything a good sprinkle of salt couldn’t fix. The chips were also served with a small bowl of cabbage, which I didn’t care for, but appreciated having the option to try.
The highlight of the Los Tapatios experience was the birria quesadilla with consomme dipping sauce. But my enchiladas were also pretty good and served on a platter twice the size of my head.
Our server was kind and attentive, and even gave us a heads up before she and her fellow waiters sang happy birthday to a nearby table.
Really, my only complaint is that they do not serve Diet Coke. It is, sadly, a Pepsi establishment and therefore does not meet all the requirements of this mission.
The total for our family’s meal, including an appetizer, drinks, and tip came to $92.99.
Red Iguana
Alongside Chili’s, Red Iguana is one of the most-recommended spots on my list, unsurprisingly. It is perhaps Salt Lake City’s best-known restaurant. It is so popular that there are two locations just two blocks apart — Red Iguana and Red Iguana 2. I’m partial to Red Iguana 2 at 866 W South Temple only because the parking is more convenient and it’s easier to get a table.
My family arrived at 5 p.m. on a Monday before the inevitable rush, and we were seated immediately. Then immediately served chips and salsa.
Here’s the thing. Every time I go to Red Iguana, I think there’s no way it will live up to the hype or be as good as I remember it being. But then … it does and it is.
Of all the chips and salsa I’ve tried so far, Red Iguana’s is far and away the best. The chips are perfectly salted, and the spicy salsa is just the right consistency— not too thin and not too chunky.
We ordered the queso. I used to think I didn’t like queso. But then I tried Red Iguana’s seasoned chips and queso, and it instantly became my favorite comfort food. If you can look past the film that forms on the top of the dish, a delectable mix of gooey cheese and peppers awaits beneath.
For my meal, I ordered the Iguana plate because I was really hungry, I guess. The Iguana plate consists of a chile relleno, an enchilada, and a beef taco. The chile relleno was fresh, and the pepper wasn’t overcooked. The enchilada sauce leaned more mole than I was expecting but was delicious. And the beef taco cannot be improved upon. The shell is crispy, the meat is tender, and the fresh vegetables add a bright balance.
But my favorite bite of the night was a flauta from my daughter’s kids’ meal. It was chicken rolled in a mix of corn and flour tortilla and fried. Like a taquito but bigger. And better. And honestly, one of the most delicious things I’ve ever consumed.
I just wish I could have paired it all with a nice, tall, crisp glass of Diet Coke, but alas, Red Iguana is also a Pepsi establishment. So I had to settle for Diet Dr. Pepper, which is good, sure, but doesn’t hit the same notes as Diet Coke and is, in my opinion, an inferior companion to Mexican fare.
The lack of Diet Coke, though, does not seem to be slowing down business any. By the time we finished our meal, there was a line out the door. And I’ll be honest, even though the lack of Diet Coke disqualifies Red Iguana from my rubric, it is the place I’m most excited to visit again.
The meal cost $106.23 for five of us, including five meals, drinks, queso and tip.
Pepsi faux pas aside, this may have been the best leg of the journey so far, but I still have many more places to try in my search for the perfect place. So onward we venture.
