Utah
A Ruined Pop-Up: Arthur Residency at The Ruin
You may recall that I’ve written about Kevin before. A couple summer ago he and his wife Alexa staged a terrific pop-up dining series called Arthur at Nohm restaurant. Kevin Finch hails originally from right here in Utah – Sugar House, to be precise – and has an impressive resume that began when he was fifteen working at The Grand America and includes cooking in Michelin-starred houses of the holy such as Maaemo in Oslo, NYC’s Betony, Ensue restaurant in Shenzhen, and – most impressive to me because Dominique Crenn is a hero of mine – as Chef de Cuisine at San Francisco’s Atelier Crenn. Now, and through August, Kevin is lending his skills to The Ruin with a residency and new Arthur menu that changes weekly. As I said, this ain’t your daddy’s bar food.
Kevin’s eclectic cuisine is particularly well-suited to The Ruin Mach 2 – having moved from Sugarhouse to Main Street downtown – which is eclectic itself in decor and design. It’s an eye-popping lounge decorated with bric-a-brac including women’s garments on the wall, scantily-clad mannequins, original local art, mod-style vintage furniture, comfy banquettes, a vibrant color scheme, clever lighting features, and more. The vibe is fun, funky and friendly.
The Ruin is open Monday through Sunday from 2 pm to 2 am with kitchen hours Monday through Thursday from 5 to 9 pm and a late night menu ‘til 11, and on Friday and Saturday from 5 to midnight.
I love that a portion of the cocktail menu at The Ruin is an “Ode To Our Industry” and features drinks created by a bevy of SLC’s best mixologists. They include cocktails like Jalatlaco, Stirred, from Water Witch’s Scott Gardner; one called Highly Ordered Structure from Crystal Daniels of Bar Nohm; Julie Tall’s Death’s Dance from Bar X; Cyprus en Vogue from Copper Common’s Mckay Middleton, and many more, including The Ruin Old Fashioned.
Haus Music Cocktail
There is also wine, beer, spirits, and a non-alcoholic cocktail selection. We particularly enjoyed a Phony Negroni and a tropical tasting cocktail called Haus Music made with Four Roses Bourbon, D’usse, Saffron, Coconut and Citrus, garnished with fresh mint leaves.
As I mentioned, the Arthur pop-up EATS menu at The Ruin changes frequently so you’ll probably want to take a look at it on the bar’s website to see what’s currently being offered. For example, I was looking forward to enjoying Escargot ($6) at The Ruin – Burgundy snail skewers grilled over charcoal with brown butter and roasted garlic – but it wasn’t on the menu when we visited. As I write this, it’s back on.
Spicy Nuts
Even if you’re just in the mood for a simple bar snack and a beverage, be sure to order the Spicy Nuts ($8). It’s a whopping portion of candied peanuts, walnuts, and cashews tossed with Szechuan peppercorns, Thai bird’s eye chili, and fried garlic. They are fiery and addictive. Other snack type items include charcuterie (priced at $9/$24/$35 depending on the combo ordered); “Bread and Butter” ($7), which is Leavity Sourdough with whipped butter seasoned with alliums and sea salt; and Radish and Butter ($9) – breakfast radish and whipped butter also seasoned with alliums and sea salt.
Lettuces
Although we felt it was a tad overdressed, we loved the flavor of a dish simply called Lettuces ($12). It was a plate of young lettuces with a scrumptious sherry vinaigrette, thinly sliced radish, herbs and shallots. A recent addition to Kevin Finch’s menu is a Tokyo Turnip ($15) with nori, creme fraiche, calamansi and trout roe – a fine example of Finch’s eclectic and creative palate.
Beef Tartare
Meat lovers will enjoy menu items like Bone Marrow ($18) with grilled sourdough and parsley-shallot salad; Steak Frites ($48), which is a peppercorn-crusted culotte steak with au poivre sauce and fries; and the Steakhouse Burger ($21) of dry-aged beef on a brioche bun with roasted garlic mayo, Burgundy mustard, caramelized shallots, and Delft blue cheese. For my money, Chef Finch’s Beef Tartare ($28) is as good as any I’ve ever had, including famous Parisian versions at spots like Bofinger, Chez Julien, and Bistrot Paul Bert. The Ruin/Arthur beef tartare is finely minced raw American Wagyu top sirloin that isn’t fussed with too much: tossed simply with shallots, minced chives and roasted garlic and topped with a sous vide egg yolk.
Fries
I love that the plates the food is served on at The Ruin come from Keven and Alexa’s personal collection and each vintage plate is unique and distinct. Even the from-scratch French fries – which are among the best in the city – are served on a pretty antique plate – tossed with parsley, chives and served with roasted garlic mayo.
Roast Chicken Ballotine
Chicken dishes at Arthur/The Ruin rotate and may include Szechuan-style Hot Chicken Sandwich ($15); a Half Chicken ($40) with market veggies, mushroom, and brown butter sabayon; or the dish my wife enjoyed: Roast Chicken Ballotine ($35) – deboned breast and tenderloin with skin wrapped around a mousse of the chicken thigh with cream, topped with brown butter sabayon, and served with butter-glazed English peas, roasted mushrooms and potato pave. A simply stunning dish.
Here is some good news for fans, like moi, of Kevin Finch’s cooking. He and Alexa are planning to open a brick and mortar restaurant in the near future called, most likely, Arthur. For now, through August, we can continue to enjoy his creative cuisine at The Ruin.
Photos by Ted Scheffler
Culinary quote of the week: “I’m the president of the United State and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli.” – George Bush
Utah
'She's my best friend now': Utah mom and daughter run handmade business for sensitive skin
CEDAR CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Lynette Bullock already owned other businesses, but when her daughter came to her with an idea, she was immediately interested.
Her daughter Alex Miner, a master esthetician, wanted to make bath bombs with ingredients that would be soft on people with sensitive skin. In 2016, Miner and Bullock began testing dozens of recipes together until they found one they liked.
They started selling the bath bombs during the Christmas season but got busy during the year and did not continue with the products. The following Christmas, about a hundred people reached out to them asking for more.
That’s when Bullock said she knew they had a business and The Skin Candy was formed.
“Making these products are actually really fun. Choosing the colors we’re using, choosing the design we want to put on it,” Miner said. “And then we also can look into the science behind each individual ingredient. “
Miner said the business has also brought her closer to Bullock, and while at times there are some differences of opinion, she has loved the process of creating and selling with her mom.
“She’s my best friend now, from that week on,” she said.
The Skin Candy’s products are in about a dozen locations throughout Utah and over 50 retailers across the U.S., Bullock said. The company sells several products from soaps and moisturizers to candles and wax melts — and of course, bath bombs.
While they used to also sell their products on Etsy, they said they didn’t feel like their products would get enough visibility on the online market and the fees were high.
When Michaels opened its own handmade goods online platform last November, Bullock — who worked at Michaels years before — joined the market. The online marketplace is called MakerPlace and has both handmade goods and classes for creative pursuits.
Michaels is now piloting a nationwide program where they invite MakerPlace vendors to bring their products to their local Michaels store for one day.
On Saturday, July 20, The Skin Candy will be featured at the Orem Michaels store with Bullock there to promote her products from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. On the same day, another local business called Jande Summer — which sells personalized art — will be at the Riverton location.
When asked what she expects for Saturday, Bullock said she expects it will be a day of teaching.
“I think it’s going to be a lot of education,” Bullock said. “Letting people know that we’re here, that we’re local.”
Utah
Craig Swapp + Associates: Utah backpack swapp meet
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (Good Things Utah) Join the Utah Backpack Swapp Meet, brought to you by Craig Swapp + Associates!
It’s a fun event to help local families get free backpacks and school supplies. Just visit www.backpackswappmeet.com to reserve your backpack, or come on July 20th from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. At Granger Elementary School, 3700 S 1950 W, West Valley City, UT 84119. Enjoy free shaved ice, music, and more. Bring new or gently used backpacks to donate. Let’s support our community together!
Visit the website or contact events@craigswapp.com for more information.
Sponsored by Craig Swapp + Associates
Utah
Best Utah Registered Agent Services Of 2024
To determine the highest-quality registered agent services, we researched over 15 providers and chose the 10 best. We reviewed these services across six primary categories, with a total of 17 different metrics. The criteria were weighted to stress features that are valuable for small businesses.
Here are the metrics we applied to assess the most effective registered agent services:
Pricing
We assessed both the startup and renewal costs for registered agent services, as well as any extra or unexpected fees, including surprise add-ons. We also factored in any guarantees and additional benefits. Pricing makes up 20% of the final score.
General Features
Thirty percent of our review methodology included looking at how providers manage documents, communicate the arrival of new correspondence and whether they alert you to important registration renewal deadlines and urgent documents.
Mobile App
Modern business often extends beyond a single office location. Many entrepreneurs use mobile technology to maintain smooth operations. We assessed whether services provide a mobile app, although this feature only represents 5% of the score because it does not affect the core services provided by the agent.
Service and Support
Unlike mobile features, we found that the ability to get in touch with live help at any time is a crucial component of a superior service. We researched the customer support availability for each provider and rated them based on the different methods of contact, the availability of 24/7 support and the existence of a knowledge base for self-help. These factors make up 15% of a provider’s total score.
Ratings and Reviews
To understand user perceptions of each provider, we looked at third-party user reviews and ratings. We assessed the average rating for each provider and the count of reviews they collected. These ratings make up 10% of the total score.
Expert Score
Based on our direct experience, we considered a variety of metrics such as user-friendliness, feature quality and popularity to determine the top services. This expert review constitutes the final 20% of the total rating.
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