Faustina
454 E. 300 South, Salt Lake City ; 801-746-4441
(see
map)
A stylish spot serving inventive upscale food with its roots in American cooking and its attitude edgy.
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| Kid-friendly |
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Cuisine: American, Eclectic
Price: $$$
Hours: M-Th, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; F, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; S, 5-10 p.m.
Liquor: Full Service
Corkage: $ 7
Reservations: Accepted
Accepts:    
Website: http://www.faustinaslc.com
Recommended Dishes: House salad, lasagna, dessert bento box.
May 3, 2006
Lobster pie perfection at Faustina: Restaurant succeeds with simplicity
By Mary Brown Malouf
It arrived from on high like a big gold harvest moon, Faustina's sublime lobster pot pie ($26.95) delivered from above by our server. A full 9 inches across (I measured), the pastry that sealed the top and draped down the sides of the bowl was baked to a perfectly uniform flakiness, the color of lager beer, of caramel cream, of made-for-TV biscuits. The crust shattered at the touch of a fork and fell into a brilliant, custard-thick, saffron-tinged sauce studded with whole claws of lobster meat, slices of purple potato and limp loops of orange rind. Suddenly it was just me and my pie; nothing else mattered.
A dish has the power to do that, if you love food. It's like when a music connoisseur says he is "swept away" or "lost" in listening to a symphony.
Most of the food I tasted at Faustina was good and more than one dish reached that pot pie peak.
Driving east on 300 South, we almost missed Faustina. I recommend you don't.
Faustina's short side faces the street, making its drive-up appeal subtle. The long side of the building faces a patio, cleverly landscaped to shield diners from excessive traffic noise and arranged into several small, intimate areas. Altogether, it is a pleasantly serene change from the urban cattle pens that attempt to pass for al fresco.
Inside, the serenity continues. At least, it did when I dined there, on early weeknights. On crowded weekends, I can imagine that the noise level exceeds my experience, but unlike other places with minimalist décors, Faustina has some softness to soak up the sound -- tables are draped in white cloths, the big horseshoe-shaped booths are upholstered. A half-wall divides the dining room, again breaking up the space into cozier settings.
My dining companions and I were settled into a spacious booth and had finished a remarkable salad ($4.99) before the pie's appearance. A plate of beautiful lettuces, from pale butter to deep red oak leaf that were lightly but completely sheathed in a roasted onion-sherry vinaigrette and topped with crisped red and gold beets, is the house salad at Faustina and I have not had a better one in a long time. The chef, Jared Young, seems to have a knack for knowing what to leave out as well as what to put in his food -- there were no woody tomatoes, overmature cucumbers, canned mandarin oranges or clumsy onion slices, just perfect leaves with a small salty garnish.
That fine salad accompanies the list of pasta and pizza entrees. (Yes, the new flatbread is still called "pizza" ($15.50) here and they are the kinds of upper-crust pies Wolfgang Puck made famous in the '80s (pesto chicken and artichoke hearts with goat cheese.) This workhorse section of the menu includes risotto -- I was disappointed with mine, a tomato-soupy bowl of underseasoned, overcooked rice ($18) topped with two slices of fresh Italian mozzarella -- and is offered, with a few additions and deletions, on the lounge menu from 2:30 to 5 p.m. and 9 to 10 p.m. Many of the dishes on this list are also available at lunch.
The dinner menu recently has changed; the deep-dish lasagna ($16.50) is a new addition. The carnival-colored tower of pasta was layered with thin-sliced grilled zucchini, roasted onion, spinach, ground beef, Italian sausage and salame bound together with ricotta and topped with a bright orange square of unexpected melted cheddar cheese. The serving was bordered with a balsamic vinegar reduction marbled with red bell pepper purée. Everything was so thinly sliced and judiciously proportioned that, in a forkful, the ingredients melded together into a single complex flavor. It was lovely.
Siding or saucing entrees with fruit is a balancing act many chefs are trying right now -- unfortunately, many times it means the sweet overwhelms the meat. Faustina pulls it off: Huckleberry sauce on roasted tenderloin ($24.95) depended on its native berry tartness to set off the richness of the beef. (This sauce would be great on venison.) The sour cherry reduction on five thin lamb medallions ($22.50) just segued into the sweetness of the meat, though rosemary threatened to overwhelm everything. The cut of lamb was unrecognizable but the thinness of the medallions made it a moot point that I requested medium-rare; when a piece of meat is a quarter-inch thick, your only preference is cooked or not. Pork loin medallions were slightly underseared but still juicy and just this side of pink in the middle; classic red cabbage was sweet and sour and the touted juniper berry dusting was undetectable.
Faustina did have some weaknesses, however. Shrimp bisque was not technically a bisque -- at least I didn't detect any cream -- and it lacked flavor. Complimentary rosemary "focaccia" bread was 2 inches tall and as soft and puffy as Bisquick biscuits. The wine list is unremarkable by the glass, a little better by the bottle. Prices seemed excessive for such pedestrian bottles. (Since when has Beringer white zinfandel been an "interesting white"?)
Regardless, there also are many more dishes I want to try on Faustina's menu -- house-made squash-stuffed ravioli with chopped hazelnuts and butter, salmon Wellington and three-cheese macaroni to name a few.
In order to have the maximum dessert experience, we ordered the dessert bento box ($15.50). It held two vodka glasses of mousse, one white and one dark chocolate; molten chocolate cake; and white chocolate crème brûlée, the whole garnished with a chrysanthemum floating in a glass bowl. Then we took our server's recommendation and tried the Faustina "Wrap," a warmed after-dinner snifter of brandy and Kahlua. And then, dinner was a wrap.
Tribune's rating system
Overall rating
1 star Good
2 stars Very good
3 stars Excellent
4 stars Extraordinary
Entree price
$ Entree under $10
$$ $10-$18
$$$ $18-$25
$$$$ Above $25
Restaurant Noise
1 bell Quiet (under 65 decibles)
2 bells Can talk easily (65-70)
3 bells Talking somewhat difficult (70-75)
4 bells Raised voices (75-80)
A bomb Too noisy for normal conversation (80+)
The Tribune covers the cost of all meals at reviewed restaurants. Star ratings are based on a minimum of two visits. Ratings are updated continually based on at least one revisit. There is no connection between reviews and advertising.
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