Avenues Proper

Good… It is the best one word description I can come up with. Mac & cheese, average, meatloaf sandwich, very good. Chicken tacos, good. Service, good… Nothing to write home about, but it was good…

One of my favorites in the salt lake valley. :) The food is simply AMAZING. I’ve yet to eat anything here that I didn’t love. The steak and frites is probably my favorite, and my hubby loves the chicken and waffles. The breakfast/​brunch is to die for as well! You can’t go wrong here, and the menu is always changing.

Spicy chicken sandwich was awesome. And the Luna Azul white ale went nicely with it. Would like to go back to try their burger.

Fun location located in the Avenues right next to Hatch Chocolates.
Came here for a family outing and overall had a great experience. We all ordered something different so we could try a bit of everything.
Frickles: 4 stars. Dill pickles meets tempura. One dunk in the buttermilk herb dressing and one dunk in the hot sauce (super spicy!) made my mouth happy.
Rarebit style Pommes Frites: 3.5 stars. No idea what’s on this but it’s definitely unique and unlike any fries I’ve had before. Try to eat quickly so the fries don’t go soggy.
Proper Mac & Cheese: 4 stars. Heavy yet earthy flavors. The smoked ham took this tool the next level.
Smoked Meatloaf Sandwich: 4.5 stars. If there’s one thing I’d recommend to someone eating here, this would be it. Never had a meatloaf sandwich but it works, and works well. Try it. Ciabatta bread gives a good chew and the jalapeño and bacon with the smoked meatloaf and white cheddar is soo good.
Proper Burger: 4 stars. Added bacon which was a good move. Meat cooked well, wasn’t a huge fan of the tomato jam but it’s still tasty.
Chicken & Waffles: 4 stars. Don’t usually get chicken and waffles but I’d order these again. Chicken is crispy and flavorful.
Roasted Beet Salad: 3 stars. Tastes good but it’s tiny.
Salmon: 4 stars. This was tonight’s special. Salmon cooked perfectly.

First the good:
Open on Sunday’s and has a nice ambiance. It’s cool that you can see the brewing equipment and the bar side of the restaurant is nice. Good beer selection, obviously, but limited wine selection.
Now the bad:
Wait staff was confused and lost, and overall bad. They confused our orders and forgot our food. When we got the food it was sub par. The salad was rotten to the point where we had to return it. I ordered the steak frites which was good but a little over buttered. My mother got a vegetable dish that was very oily. The sandwich we also got was cold by the time it was brought to our table, which took a while. The menu seems promising but lacks in delivery. Also VERY pricey for what it is.
It’s nice to have a restaurant in the avenues and we were hoping for the best, but we were let down. Hopefully they can hire some staff that aren’t stoned college kids, and get better ingredients.
I give it a one star for service, but the ambiance and alcohol bring it to a 2.

This was such a treat. Great service, exquisitely presented dishes that tasted a beautiful as they looked. A real surprise. Loved the ambiance as well. Casual, friendly but special at the same time.

The new brunch menu is fantastic and who can say no to tasty $ 3 mimosas!
Our party of 5 arrived at 11AM on a Saturday. The wait was minimal as we had to wait until at least half of our party had arrived before being seated. Our server Matty was attentive and friendly. We quickly ordered our food and handed over our IDs in anticipation of 11.30AM when we could get our mimosas. Matty was fantastic and made sure our drinks arrived only a few minutes after the state of Utah allowed us to begin. The mimosas are delicious and don’t even taste cheap.
Three of us ordered the Biscuit Sandwich. It is served more like an open-​faced sandwich with a generous helping of gravy spooned over the top. The biscuit was deliciously flaky, the gravy was so flavorful, and the bacon was thick and sticky sweet. I would definitely order this again.
My friend is a big fan of the Proper Burger and jumped on the opportunity to order the Sunrise Burger, which is the same but without the crispy shallots and $ 1 cheaper! And those fries are amazing!
Our vegetarian friend ordered the Garden Succotash and raved about how healthy it was but still so tasty. Such a great ingredient list. I tried some of the pickles that topped the dish and thought everything was bright and delicious.
The service was top-​notch this time and our server Matty was on top of refills for both mimosas and waters. We have had terrible service in the past but this visit made up for it!

Although the environment and the menu looks promising, the food was only decent and undercut by servers with abysmal attitudes. Too many good places in the neighborhood run by people who love what they do. I’ve no time for this place.

It took 2 ½ hours! We waited over a half hour to be seated when there were open tables. The hostess, River, looked like a lost puppy trying to keep track of people and tables. After looking over the mediocre menu options and making a practically desperate decision out of hunger, we waited another half hour to receive food. Lukewarm coffee, missing eggs on one dish, eggs on other dish had runny whites, and neither of us were impressed. After we finished eating, we waited 40 minutes to complete payment. Absolutely ridiculous experience and I would never encourage anyone to go there. Floored.
Beer is good, but proper burger sucks too, so save the trouble and just buy the beer from the brewery’s beer store.

Here is a wonderfully executed operation. While we visited on a Friday evening without a ‘reservation’ the hostess was able to get us a table in the bar (a great place for two to eat).
Both the Brussel Sprouts dish and the gnocchi dishes were perfect in flavor and presentation. We were both pleased!
Cocktails? Weak. They could use a big improvement on this part. Seeing that they stay open late, I would think that cocktail quality would be important.
Bottom line: go for the food, ambiance, even beer, but skip cocktails at this point (until they upgrade this part of the business).

Surprise in SLC, excellent microbrewery and an awesome Proper Burger.
It started with a very friendly and informative welcome from the hostess River (yes River is her name so get over it!). We were then greeted by a sample tour of all the house beers by the incredibly knowledgeable Becca. Mind you this was a guided tour with pairing chosen by our waiter and it didn’t disappoint. By the time our burgers came up, we were juiced up with the delicious brews. The Proper Burger with candied bacon and rarebit sauce was excellent. My traveling partner has the Proper burger, candied bacon and wait for it. sunny side egg! He was also happy with his meal. I will let you discover what the rarebit sauce is by yourself, after all you need a little mystery and good luck while visiting SLC. We shall return as our trips to SLC will continue for few more weeks.

I was really tense yesterday and the idea of cleaning and cooking stressed me out even more. I knew I needed beer as soon as possible and a burger would be nice. We racked our brains for a new place to try that could meet these needs and landed on Avenues Proper within a minute. Sitting at the bar, they were pretty quick at getting you beer. As an appetizer we got their pickled vegetables. They were great for munching on while waiting for our meals and very unique in flavor. The Proper Beer was pretty smooth. I love veggie burgers but usually restaurants serve them as an afterthought. When I saw that they made theirs in house and that it had ghost pepper cheese my decision was made. They even added jalapenos for me. It was very delicious, very flavorful and not dry at all. The shoestring fries and the aioli complimented the burger perfectly. We will be coming back again as all of their menu items are so unique and beg you to try them.

We had brunch here on Saturday with the family. I had the El Burrito breakfast burrito. It was very good. The chorizo was just about perfect along with the eggs and potatoes. The poblano crema had a smokey flavor that added to the burrito without stealing the show. We ordered the house biscuits and jam as a starter and the raspberry jam, one jam made with beer (sorry I forgot what they called it) #awesomebutdifferent, and spun raw honey. Each was very different and I enjoyed them all. Other people I ate with had the Cuban sandwich and fries that looked fabulous, the chicken sausage and waffles looked good also. I will be back to try their burger. The server was attentive and my coffee cup was never empty. This says alot as I drink coffee fast.
I would definately recommend this restaurant for someone to try.
On a side note it is right next door to a Hatch’s chocolate shop to top off the meal.

My first experience here was for brunch and Avenue’s Proper was truly a surprise. Getting off the flight from Salt Lake City, we were famished and wanted to grab a nice sit down bite to eat.
Everything here is true gourmet and worth the price. It houses a friendly atmosphere and wonderful service. They are a local sourcing micro brewery as well, so we definitely had to order a flight of beers to taste. They pride themselves on serving refined pub food relying on local produce. The results were incredible.
Chicken And Waffles is the dish that I ordered, served with house made chicken sausage, waffle, thyme infused maple syrup and quail egg. Slightly spicy, a little bit creamy, crunchy and sweet… what more do you want? My wife ordered a Bloody Mary and an Eggs Benedict, served with roasted potatoes, bacon, and Hollandaise sauce that explodes with flavor!
This is one of my favorite places to have a simple sandwich or burger accompanied by some of the best beer on tap in Salt Lake City.

This is a place I keep coming back to. I considered bumping up to 5 stars and while I don’t have any complaints, I think this place is a very strong 4-​star joint. Most of the food is very good, though once in a rare while I order a dud (like the duck fat popcorn — and I love popcorn!). They’ve updated their eggs Benedict, ditching the pork belly and adding butternut squash. I like this iteration better.
This is one of the places in the city (along with Café Niche, Copper Onion, and similar) that I would recommend or take visitors to for brunch. The drink options are still very good, and I also love coming here for a post-​work beer and snack. This place is worth the time and energy of a drive up into the Avenues.

Avenues Proper is a cool gastropub that gets very busy on weekends, so reservations are definitely recommended. Luckily my wait for brunch wasn’t too long at only 10 minutes this past Sunday. $ 3 Bloody Mary’s and Mimosas kept me from the beers they brew, but I’ll definitely give them a try next time. For my entrée I went with the biscuit sandwich which was served deconstructed with some delicious gravy, bacon, and chicken sausage. It was very good and super filling. I liked the vibe of this spot, and I’ll definitely be back.

If the length is daunting, see my «Too Long; Didn’t Read» at the bottom :3
When Avenues Proper first opened on 8^th Avenue, I gave them a try; visiting during their dinner hours. I remember the food being extremely overpriced, with extremely small portions, and I left with an empty stomach and an empty wallet. The people I went with on this first visit have never been back. However, things seem to have changed some since their opening year — at least brunch wise. Visiting Avenues Proper on Saturday or Sunday is now a common occurrence for me.
They have a fairly eclectic brunch menu, featuring the normal «breakfast» items, kale salads, sandwiches, burgers, and a ton of sides. My favorite is their Veggie Hash — 2 eggs (I always get an additional egg for $ 1), topped with tomato jam and their amazing house zucchini pickles, on top of a bed of assorted cooked veggies, greens, and potatoes. It doesn’t look like much when it first comes out — most of the veggies are hidden below the eggs — but with the added egg, and my satisfyingly slow eating, it keeps me satiated throughout the day.
Another nice aspect during the brunch menu: Mimosas and Bloody Marys are both $ 3… so it makes it easy to go through a lot of them.
However, I am a little annoyed with their price of their (La Barba) coffee … it’s $ 4. I mean, in the grand scheme of things $ 4 is a minuscule price, but I have been to many other restaurants in which the price of coffee is around $ 3. (EVEN if it IS La Barba — Pig and a Jelly Jar is a perfect example). On top of the price, the coffee is usually served in these really small coffee mugs — today was the only day in which I had a somewhat normal sized mug. I just can’t quit you, coffee. So I suck it up and order it, in turn drinking way more mini-​mugs than I should.
Since I’m such a local-​foodie, local company freak, I love that Avenues Proper makes a point to get as many of their ingredients from local farmers. (I learned today that the honey used to make the Stumble Bee beer is collected between 1^st and 5^th avenue!) This is always a plus in my book, and does make me more understanding of the slightly higher price of food.
I do like the feel and set-​up of Avenues proper, though some of the tables are small or too close together (especially along the walls in the «bar» side of the restaurant). Overall, the staff is really nice — though today we did have a grumpy hostess. The service of taking orders and getting the food is usually about the perfect speed, but I do find that it takes a bit longer for someone to actually get back to you to refill water, or to take any further orders on sides or drinks (and the drinks usually finally make it to your table a lot later they should.).
Definitely make a point to try some of their beers while here. They have a fun selection — some with pun-​y names, and I’m sorry, pun-​y beer names totally speak to me. If you’re wanting to try something, and not feeling particularly adventurous (like getting a full pint of the Gose the Gozarian) you can get a $ 1 sample, try it, and see if it suits you. This has been very helpful to me, because a huge glass of the salty Gozarian (There is no Dana, only Zuul !!!) would have destroyed me.
TL;DR:
Overpriced coffee in small mugs does not make a Stephanie happy, but the $ 3 mimosa have her dancing on the tables. The brunch menu is fabulous with a little something for everyone. Try the beers — if only for the pun-​y names. Scream and rant about Zuul while floating above your seat, attempting to down a $ 1 sample of Gose the Gozarian, OR get a pint of the Hopspital IPA to go, while heading next door to the hospital (Okay, don’t be silly. it’s not Bourbon Street, yo. Calm it down.).

After coming back a few times I’m really digging more on Avenues Proper. Service and food are not always 100%, but it’s consistently close enough to do, and the beer menu is really fun.
Just had the biscuits and gravy and the Aves St. Fair. Woah Nellie! Very nummy indeed, well-​seasoned and moist, substantial biscuits to boot.

This place was worth seeking out. I had never ventured out to the Avenues, so it was a neat walk from downtown passing some old buildings and cool houses. A nice uphill climb to get your workout in before feasting at Avenues Proper. Many of the reviews commented that the prices were too high, which might be the case for SLC but I didn’t think it was bad especially for the quality of the food. They have a great menu with so many choices. I started with the heirloom salad which was quite good — small enough for one as an appetizer but could easily be shared while waiting for your main meal. I went for the spicy chicken sandwich which was super flavorful. I liked the mixture of spicy with the coleslaw and pickles.
During my meal I tried the 8 different house beers via the 2 at a time small taster samplers (Utah law limits flights of beer to two at a time). I liked the Hopspital Session IPA the best and the Proper Ale and Little Sister both good. Others were unremarkable but drinkable. I wish they had a stout, but I guess it’s not fall/​winter yet.
I will definitely come back to try either the burger or the chicken and waffles.

Finally visited Avenues Proper for brunch! Stopped by around 1PM (is it still considered brunch at that hour?). There was no wait and we were immediately greeted and seated. We opted to sit inside but patio seating was also an option.
The décor is minimalist and modern, as expected. There was also a brewery, if you’re into that kinda thing.
The server was very knowledgeable and answered our questions about the chicken in the waffles and biscuit sandwich. I was thrown off because it’s a chicken sausage (?!) that they make in house. It’s basically ground chicken seasoned and formed into a patty and fried. I definitely had my doubts going into it as I’ve never heard of that before. But I was proven wrong very quickly, as my biscuit sandwich was delicious and the chicken was generously seasoned but not over the top.
The only thing I will comment on is the portions are kind of small. I had a really sad helping of potatoes in my meal. It’s not a big deal as the food was delicious but something I noticed.
There are also $ 3 mimosas for brunch. Wasn’t in a drinking mood, but I’d like to try when I go back.