Roux opened in mid-February in a lovely little renovated bungalow on Broadway on the eastern edge of what many would consider Downtown Salt Lake. The building was quite dilapidated at one point, and I would know; I used to live kitty-corner of the block where they are located. I love a good bit of urban renewal that includes taking a dilapidated home and turning it into something unique and useful rather than tearing down and building yet another big block of monolith apartment buildings. Roux has done a beautiful job making the intimate space feel cozily sophisticated and modern. With a tiled bar-esque area that dominates the central room, dark ceilings, warm wood, peachy walls, and geometric teardrop chandeliers, it stands in contrast to the white exterior and black sign.
Roux has a lot going for it: kind and knowledgeable staff, a curated menu, a fusion-y culinary flair, and a crisp wine and beer list. Billed as a neighborhood eatery, it presents as a little more sophisticated than your average weeknight out at a local joint. I’m assuming that with their beautifully built-out bar space, the hope is eventually to add a full liquor menu.
While I loved the atmosphere, it was on the noisy side. With small rooms full of people, it was a little echoey and hard to hear across the table. The restaurant’s name, Roux, also lent to a bit of dissonance. When visiting a new restaurant, I try to skip the research and just show up with a reservation in hand to get the full just-off-the-street experience. I would have expected a French-forward or NOLA-style experience. Or, at the very least, a menu with abundant roux-based sauces and stews. Not so.
Roux is one of those restaurants that I’m very excited to see where they land in a few months. I visited twice, and the culinary experience was a little uneven. I recognize how hard it is for a new restaurant to smooth out the wrinkles, so I don’t want to hold it against the team clearly working hard here.
Roux’s menu is exceptionally creative but lacks cohesion, with unique dishes that don’t quite flow into one another for a full dining experience. That being said, there are some clear winners that are worth the trip. Again, I can’t wait to see how the culinary team expands and hone in over time because the talent is there.
One dish that is a stand-out must-order is the Nashville Hot Oyster Mushrooms. Crispy, burnished with a layer of crispy breading and spices and served with a blue cheese dip garnished with chili oil, the mushrooms disappeared off the plate quickly and were one of the stars of the night. Less luminous was the Funeral Potato Pave. The term “pave” literally means cobblestone or paving stone. A potato pave is a delicate construction act of layering very thinly sliced potatoes into a brick of deliciousness. From a technical sense, the presentation was masterful, but the flavor was underwhelming. The potatoes were crispy and ruffled around the edges but lacked salt. The promise of something funeral potato-like was missing, replaced with a veloute (a roux-based sauce) that was on the bland side. I wanted to love this dish. So much.
Several other dishes had promising elements and snaps of genius with a couple of opportunities. The Leek Angnolloti with soubise and crispy leeks was like spring in a bowl. But the pasta was a little doughy and undercooked. The Lamb Shank Birria was beautifully presented bone-on in a bowl of broth with fresh corn tortillas for assembling tacos. The lamb shank was fall-off-the-bone tender; the broth was rich and meaty. But there were all kinds of treats (like beans) to add to the tacos down at the bottom of the bowl under the shank and broth, hidden. And with no serving spoon, we didn’t find them until we packed up our leftovers. They made for a great stew the next day, but I would have loved them on my tacos as a creamy foil to the lamb.
Along with the mushrooms, the other must-order dish of the night was the house-smoked pastrami with charred cabbage. If I could have ordered bonus charred cabbage, I would have. Served on “Big Mac” sauce, which had a great vinegar tang and added creaminess, it was the dish of the night. The crispy ash of the cabbage balanced out the salty pastrami, and the rye crumbles added bonus texture.
I’m very excited to see how Roux grows into their neighborhood eatery role and beautiful space.
If you go:
Roux
515 E 300 S | SLC
Reservations Recommended: rouxslc.com
