Utah scones, Navajo tacos and honey butter: what to order and what they are

Order a scone in Utah and you will not get what a British tea room serves. You will get a piece of fried yeast dough, puffy and golden, usually split open and topped with honey butter. Here is what Utah scones, fry bread and the dishes that grow out of it are, so you can order with confidence. The history is part of the fun, and some of it is unsettled.

What is a Utah scone?

A Utah scone is a piece of yeasted dough that is deep-fried until it puffs up, then served hot. It is closer to a sopaipilla or a doughnut than to a baked British scone. People eat it two ways: sweet, with honey butter, powdered sugar, jam or cinnamon sugar, or as a base for savory toppings. It appears at diners, family restaurants, county fairs and ski lodges across the Wasatch Front. A good one is crisp outside and soft and steamy inside, and it should be eaten while hot.

What is honey butter?

Honey butter is butter whipped with honey until it is light and spreadable. In Utah it is the classic partner for scones, rolls and cornbread. It may come in a small cup or already melting on the plate. You can ask for extra, and many restaurants will bring it without a charge. If you do not like sweet, ask for plain butter or a side of jam.

Where did the Utah scone come from?

The honest answer is that nobody is sure. It is often connected to fry bread, which Native American communities in the Southwest developed in the 1800s from government rations of flour and lard. Some say pioneers or missionaries brought it, and some link it to European yeast-dough traditions. None of these stories is settled. What is documented is that by the middle of the twentieth century the scone was common in cafes and lodges along the Wasatch Front, and it has been a feature of Utah restaurant menus ever since. Treat any single origin story with caution.

What is a Navajo taco, and is it the same thing?

A Navajo taco, also sold as an Indian taco in some places, is a piece of fry bread topped like a taco: beans, seasoned meat, lettuce, tomato, cheese and salsa. It is a savory plate that you eat with a knife and fork, or fold if the bread is thin. The bread is related to the Utah scone but not identical, and the two dishes have different traditions. Fry bread has a complicated history tied to Native American communities and to the forced rations of the nineteenth century, and many Native cooks speak of it with both pride and a sense of history. If you want to eat it at its source, look for restaurants and stands owned by Native families, especially in the southeast and the Four Corners region, and ask the cook what they recommend.

How do you order at a scone restaurant?

Many Utah scone restaurants sell them by the piece, as a basket or as a "meal" with a topping. A scone as a side with a meal is usually cheaper than a full order. Ask whether the scone comes with honey butter and whether it is sweet or savory. If you want a savory option, ask for the taco-style version. A basket is good for sharing, and one scone is enough for most people as a dessert.

What else is part of the same Utah comfort-food family?

Utah has a set of dishes that appear at family gatherings and church dinners: funeral potatoes (a cheesy potato casserole), fry sauce on french fries, green Jell-O salads and rolls with honey butter. The guide to Utah food words in this series covers fry sauce and funeral potatoes. Utah is also known for its sweet shops, ice cream, cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate, all of which fit with cold weather and ski days.

What about dietary needs?

Scones and fry bread are made from wheat flour, so they are not gluten-free, and many are fried in oil shared with other foods. Most contain milk or eggs, and honey butter is dairy. A vegan version needs a plant-based fat and no honey, which few places offer. If you have an allergy, ask how the dough and the fryer are handled. Savory versions may contain meat, cheese and sour cream.

When should you eat one?

Eat a scone fresh. Breakfast and weekend brunch are common times, and many people order one with eggs. At a county fair or a summer festival, a hot scone or fry bread from a stand is a snack in itself. If you are traveling, eat it at the table: it goes stiff within minutes.

If you are cooking at home, a Utah scone is a good first deep-frying project. The dough is simple: flour, yeast, milk, sugar, salt and a little fat, left to rise, rolled out and cut into squares or triangles. Oil at a steady temperature, hot enough to puff the dough but not so hot that the outside burns, gives a golden color. Drain the scones on paper, and serve at once with honey butter. Many Utah families make them for Pioneer Day in July, and for cold-weather Sunday dinners, which shows how deeply they sit in the state's food life.

How do you remember the best scone in Utah?

A scone with honey butter is the kind of thing you promise to find again and then cannot place. Mosey is a food app for finding, rating and sharing places to eat, and it rates by the dish, so the fried scone, the Navajo taco and the cinnamon roll each get a score and a tag such as Must-Try or Good Portions.

Gather your favorites in a Utah comfort food list, share the invite link with whoever is riding along on the road trip, and follow friends who know the Wasatch Front. When the family argues about which scone was best, the ratings settle it.

Rate your first Utah scone in the Mosey app and tell the next visitor what to order.

More guides to read next:

• Are Utah restaurants open on Sundays? What to expect and how to plan
• Where to eat during ski season in Utah: Park City and the canyons
• Where to eat near Utah's national parks: a planning guide

More in the US food guides and the ranked lists of places.