This year, SLC is starting the New Year’s off with a bang, three nights early.  From now through New Year’s Eve itself, downtown’s alive with art, live music, skating, outdoor contests and fun for the kids.  The best part?  Access to ALL these events is a mere $15 per person, good for ALL three nights!  Some are inside, some are out, so whatever the weather, there’s something for you and your friends to check out each day and night.  Check out the Eve website for a full schedule of events and locations around town to buy tickets (or purchase them online!)

Looking for somewhere to have lunch today in Salt Lake? Wishing your favorite restaurant had a special today so you could justify eating out during this crazy week? Check out the daily Skweez and look forward to a text message in the mornings (not too early, don’t worry) with a daily special served up by a local Salt Lake City restaurant.

A small sampling of the goods: Spoon Me: 2 for 1, Jason’s Deli: free soup with purchase of sandwich, Jamba Juice: buy 1 get 1, Acme Burger: buy 1 get 1 half off. And rumor has it a bunch more are coming at the beginning of the new year…

Sign up online at www.skweez.com or send a text containing your zip code to signup@skweez.com (yes, you can text an email address).  Just here for the week? Sign up anyway and let the Daily Skweez lead you to your next delicious meal. You can always text reply “stop” so you won’t continue to be tempted from afar.

Created by Salt Lake City locals,  the daily Skweez offers a new deal each time and includes the address so you need to know nothing more.  You have to show the text to take advantage of the deal, so tell your friends!

Building off the success of their first restaurant, the Red Iguana’s second offering is another oasis for your palate here in Salt Lake City. Red Iguana 2 is an expansion of a very popular award-winning restaurant just west of downtown Salt Lake City. Like it’s predecessor, it offers more of the same in a brighter, slightly smaller package. Tonight was opening night for the public.

On our first visit we sampled the Red Pipian Mole (pumpkin seed sauce made with dried chile guajillo, peanuts, pepitas, onions, tomatoes, tossed with chicken) and the Enchilada Suizas (avocado slices with chicken topped with mole poblano and melted jack cheese). These two dishes offered a delicious, slightly non-traditional taste of Salt Lake’s Mexican flavor. The mole and enchilada sauces were rich, complex creations that accented tasty meats, vegetables and your choice of corn or flour tortillas. The energetic staff offered helpful recommendations and reassured that no choice on the menu would disappoint.

We were greeted by free valet parking (maybe limited time offer? not sure). The decor was festive and colorful, as were the finishing touches on every dish. The tres leches cake was the perfect dessert to top off a delicious meal!

736 West North Temple

www.rediguana.com

Open 7 days a week serving lunch and dinner.

Part of an ongoing series…

$200 has been stretching quite a ways in SLC!  With this past week’s snowfall, it was time to get in some inexpensive, but amazingly beautiful, skiing, so I headed up Mill Creek Canyon (3800S, off Wasatch Blvd), with my dog and my cross country skis.

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Winter’s back! In honor of the 48″ that have fallen in the last 48 hours I am going to post some of the better pictures from the last two months of pre-season shenanigans that have occurred here in Utah.

November 25, 2009
Thanks to Ravell Call/Wendy Leonard of the Deseret News for these photos!
I make 4″ of groomed ice look like 40″ of blower pow

I got heckled from the chair while nailing this lifestyle shot

It’s never too early to send it

Nov. 15, 2009
These photos are courtesy of Alex Deckard, a designer/photographer based out of Park City, Utah.

I get mine.

Oh winter, you are so damn fun

I spot my landings with emo style

No fake tanning here ladies, that pale skin tone is 100% natural…

Superior done right

I <3 my powder beard

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I’ve been a little under the weather lately. Food hasn’t had a strong appeal. Maybe some readers out there can empathize with me with some of the bugs getting around this winter. But yesterday, I finally started feeling better. The first thing I noticed was the return Mr. Insatiable. My appetite was back and he was back with a vengeance. As I thought of places I could go to temporarily please my hunger pangs. One of the first thoughts I had was Davanza’s. Davanza’s is a place for pizza, tacos, and burgers. Come on! PIZZA, TACOS, and BURGERS?! It’s like a three-punch combo of binging bliss. I love this place! Not only is everything on the menu made from scratch, but the atmosphere is unbeatable for somebody who likes to kick back and just eat. The service is that kind of service you only get at a hole-in-the-wall joint: no pretenses, just sincere happiness that you’re there to eat it up.

I’ve had all three of Davanza’s genres of food and the reports are all positive. I rate the pizza and tacos a continue reading…

Every year, the Sushi for Santa organization puts together an amazing Christmas charity event. The concept is simple: make a donation for entry into the event and enjoy an open sushi bar from some of the finest sushi chefs in Utah, including chefs from Mikado, Ichiban, and Naked Fish. While you’re delighting in the delectable dinner, participate in silent auctions and raffles of loads of donations from local businesses and organizations. You can also donate at the cash bar. And as if all this wasn’t enough for a great event, Sushi for Santa has been successful in years past by creating an exciting atmosphere. There will be music and happiness this Christmas at Sushi for Santa.

Each year Sushi for Santa chooses a different charity organization to support. For 2009, they have chosen the Angel’s Hands Foundation. The AHF raises money to help Utah continue reading…

Part of an ongoing series…

When you think of Salt Lake, does your mind go straight to sushi?  Perhaps it should. Last week, I joined friends to take in both the beautiful outdoor Christmas lights of downtown Temple Square and the gorgeous food and ambiance of Sapa, a sushi/Asian fusion restaurant just a few blocks south.

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It’s the year of the ox for a few more weeks. My placemat at Formosa Grill on 2100 S told me so. And that I was born in the year of the boar. Which makes me noble and chivalrous (naturally) and tells me my friends will be lifelong. And that I should marry a continue reading…

Part of an ongoing series…

When the weather turns cold and the days get shorter, breakfast in a sunny, warm, green nook is that much nicer.  And if it’s a lazy Sunday morning and you’ve got another free hour, bookshop browsing is a nice way to finish up the meal.  Enter the Oasis Cafe and Golden Braid Books.

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