Park City and Ogden food guide: two Utah mountain towns

Park City and Ogden are both mountain towns within an hour's drive of Salt Lake City, but they eat in different ways. Park City is a resort town with a Main Street built for dinner after skiing. Ogden is a railroad city with a historic main drag, a lower price point and a younger crowd. If you can visit only one, pick by mood: the first for a polished night out, the second for a relaxed one.

What is dinner like on Park City's Main Street?

Park City's historic Main Street runs through the old silver mining district, with restaurants in the converted brick buildings. There is a strong après-ski scene around Deer Valley and Park City Mountain. Many restaurants are small, with a bar and a handful of tables, so reserving ahead in winter is sensible. In ski season, expect the busiest hours to run from about 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., with lighter crowds earlier or later.

When do Park City restaurants close for the season?

The short answer is that some close for weeks in spring. When the lifts stop, usually in April, a number of restaurants shut for a few weeks or most of April and May, and some stay closed into early June. Owners say staying open costs more than it earns in those weeks. Others, including long-established casual restaurants, keep regular hours. Ski Utah's advice is to check with each restaurant or the local restaurant association's website for dates, since they change every year. Do not plan a special dinner in late April without a phone call.

Summer brings a second wave of visitors for hiking, biking and concerts, and many places reopen with patios.

Where does Ogden eat?

Ogden's center of gravity is Historic 25th Street, a few blocks of old commercial buildings near the former Union Station. Most of the bars and restaurants cluster there, including a sushi bar and grill. Ogden is a good place to try a pizza-by-the-slice, a sushi dinner or a brewpub meal without the resort markups.

Which is cheaper?

Ogden, usually by a wide margin. Park City prices reflect the resort market, with entrees that can be a third higher than in Salt Lake City. If you are on a budget, eat a big lunch in Park City, where lunch menus can cost less, and a casual dinner at a counter or a pub. In Ogden, a full dinner for two is often possible at a price you would pay for one entree on Main Street.

In a ski town, lunch menus are often a third cheaper than dinner for the same dish, and the counter or the bar is where small plates and pub food cost less. Buy groceries at a supermarket for breakfast and snacks, since slope-side cafeterias are expensive. And check whether a restaurant adds a service charge for large groups, which is common in resort towns; read the menu footer or ask.

What about Sundays and Mondays?

Many Utah restaurants close on Sundays and Mondays, which matters if you are driving up for the day. Resort towns tend to stay open more of the week in season, but small independents keep their own rhythm. Look at a restaurant's own page for its days, and be prepared for a quieter schedule in January after the holidays.

How do you get there and around?

Park City is about 35 miles east of Salt Lake City along Interstate 80, a drive of around 35 to 45 minutes in good conditions, longer on a snowy Friday afternoon. Free buses run through the town in winter, so a car is optional once you arrive. Ogden is about 40 miles north on Interstate 15. If you are visiting both in a day, start in Ogden for a late lunch and finish in Park City for dinner, so you drive against the heaviest traffic.

What should you ask about when you book?

Ask if the kitchen can handle an allergy, since small mountain kitchens may be short on staff in busy weeks. Ask whether the restaurant takes walk-ins at the bar, and whether there is a deposit for a large group, a practice that is increasingly common in resort towns. For dinner in a group of six or more, make the booking days ahead during ski season. For more on booking in the US, see our guide to reserving a table.

What is the nightlife like after dinner?

Both towns are early. Park City's Main Street has bars with live music and a late crowd on winter Saturdays and holiday weeks, but most kitchens stop taking orders by 9 or 10 p.m. Ogden's 25th Street has a handful of bars and music venues, and a slice shop that stays open later than the dining rooms. If you want a late meal, ask where the kitchen closes, and eat your main meal earlier than you would at home.

How do you remember where to eat in Park City and Ogden?

Two mountain towns, two kinds of dinner: a polished night on Main Street and a relaxed one on 25th Street. Mosey is a food app for finding, rating and sharing places to eat. Rate the dish you ordered at each stop, make one list for Park City and one for Ogden, and follow friends who ski or hike here to learn where they warm up. When spring closures hit, your list tells you which favorites to call first. Rate a dish after tonight's dinner and both lists have a first entry.

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