Half a Week in Utah!

We love travelling home to Utah! It has been fun feeling like a tourist in my childhood state! We try to pack as many of our favorite places in our trips but also try all the fun new spots too! This last trip was so much fun and we were able to do so much! Here are all the fun spots we got to stop by, things we did and food we ate on our four-day trip in Utah! 

Handel's Ice Cream- Utah has some awesome Ice Cream shops and Handel's is one of my top picks! They have quite a few locations now so they are easily assessable. It was my brother's birthday so we had a big group go get ice cream! They work quickly and are great with a crowd. I have tried so many flavors and love them all for their own reasons. They all are creamy and the portion sizes are so fun! The Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie is my go-to, but I have liked others I have tried like the Birthday Cake, Buttered Pecan and the Monkey Business which is a banana cake batter with caramel and brownies. 

Costco- It is a must to go to Utah's Costco's! They have some of our favorite snacks, drinks and treats. If you haven't had the Utah Truffle's from Utah then you are missing out! Costco has a big bag of bite size Mint Truffles that are a Utah company. My husband loves the Acai Juice that we have only found in our Utah Costco's. They usually have really good deals and options! 

Moochie's- One of my favorite cheesesteak spots in Utah is Moochie's! The original location is in downtown Salt Lake and is so fun to go to! We tried a new location this trip and it was just fine! I love the cheesesteaks with mushrooms, onions and peppers. The breading is soft, but don't get soggy. You can choose any cheeses you'd like. The chicken cheesesteak is my husband's go to. 

Temple Square- We always check out temple square when we are in Utah. The whole area is getting updated so it's been fun to watch the process. It is still very covered up in construction, but we did see progress from the last time we were in Utah. The grounds are still beautiful and of course City Creek is always a fun spot to be at. The State Capital building is a site to see from this area as well! Downtown is one of my favorite spots. 

Einstein Bagels- I hadn't been to an Einstein Bagels in a long time! We usually get bagels at Panera in Kentucky which are my favorite. There is a Panera close by one of the Einstein Bagel's and honestly, I would choose Panera next time, but we did get first day of school bagels from Einstein's. I like the Asiago cheese, cinnamon, and plain bagels. There are good smear flavors to choose from! 

JCW's- Utah has some great burger spots. JCW's is one of our go-to Burger restaurants. The menu has a lot to choose from and the burgers are very tasty. I like their French fries and onion rings too! The milkshakes are super good and they have a lot of flavors to choose from. I like the All American, which is just a normal cheeseburger with lettuce and tomatoes. The Swiss burger is really good as well! 

Rita's Italian Ice- I love Rita's! I first tried this on my missions so it is a nostalgic type treat for me. We were excited to have Utah open a few locations. Zeppe's is another Italian Ice company in Utah that is very similar and tastes great too! I really like the peach, mango, strawberry type flavors and then of course the custard! They do let you try the ice before making a choice on what you want. The storefronts are cute and fun to get a treat at.

Mountain View Village- The new shopping center called Mountain View Village is so fun to go to! This area has been building for years and it seems like it really has come together now! There are the coolest storefronts with beautiful, high end, classy designs. I was amazed at how pretty this area is! We have all of our favorite food spots here, but we did explore a bit more of the actual shopping stores and really enjoyed what they have available there. This is a one stop shop! 

Cinnaholic- There is a new location for Cinnaholic in Utah! We used to have one in Salt Lake, but it had closed down so we were so excited to see another location pop up. The whole concept of making your own cinnamon roll is fun! You get to pick the frosting flavors and the toppings on a cinnamon roll. The cinnamon rolls are soft and have great cinnamon flavor. I love the Marshmallow frosting and the brownie bites. I usually eat the brownie pieces by themselves because those are yummy too! It's like two treats in one. 

The Yard Milkshake Bar- This was a fun stop for sure! The Yard is a fancy milkshake, ice cream and cookie dough shop. The whole concept is really neat, the downside is it is very pricey. They do have scoops of ice cream and cookie dough that were reasonably priced, but the milkshakes are a pretty penny. It was my brother's birthday and this is what he asked for. He got the Mermaid milkshake which was super cool! I got a little bite of it and it was good! We got the cookie dough pops which were super good! The birthday flavor wasn't too sweet and it ate really well on the popsicle stick. 

Pizza Factory- We stopped by the Pizza Factory for lunch one of the day's and it was really good! I had grown up going here, but this was a first for my husband! He said he liked it too. My favorite is the breadsticks on a stick. They have a yummy seasoning on them, they are soft, and a fun way to eat a breadstick. We got a pizza to share that had all the meats. It was super cheesy and cooked well. They do have a salad bar and a whole menu of other options to order. 

Wheadon Farm Park- We found this super cute park for my nephews to go play at in Draper, Utah. The area was beautiful with the mountain views and the park was really well taken care of. There were walkways, tennis courts, baseball fields, and the park was a barn themed park. They had a real tractor you could sit on, hay bales as benches, animal statues and the structure was a replica of a barn. They had a tire swing, slides, swings, monkey bars and lots of field areas to play on. 

Cafe Rio- It's not a Utah trip without a Cafe Rio meal. I love everything on the menu here. The burritos, tostadas, salads, quesadillas, and the Creamy Tomatillo Dressing is the best! This is a great spot to go with a group, since they make it right in front of you and they are super quick. I love their Tres Leches cake too! There are so many options and ways to eat at Cafe Rio. 

Gourmandise- We used to frequent Gourmandise quite often when we lived in Utah. It is one of our favorite spots to stop by when we are in town. The vibe of the restaurant is my favorite and of course their desserts are so good. I have tried almost every dessert off of the menu, but my husband's go-to is the Strawberry Ring. It is a pate a choux ring with whipped cream and strawberries. It is super yummy. I love their cakes, brownies, tarts and the Creme Brulé. You can't go wrong with anything on their menu. 

Four Wheeling- Utah is a great place to go four wheeling at! There are so many desert lands to ride on and the views are amazing. My family just got four wheelers' a couple of years ago, so we try to go when we are in town! We have rented a side by side in St. George, that is super fun too! There are so many places to rent them from and to go to. I love the views while we are out in nature. 

Mo'Bettahs- Another favorite food spot for us is Mo'Bettahs. The prices here are amazing and the amount of food you get is crazy! I love the Kalou Pig pulled pork and the Teriyaki is good too! They have Macaroni salad, cabbage, rice and side salads to pick as sides and a few different meat options. I love their Teriyaki sauce. We have bought a big bottle of it a few times! 

Swig- My family hadn't tried Swig yet when we were there so we had to stop! Utah is known for their soda shops. They are on every corner and are every name you can think of for a drink. Swig is one of the original soda shops and one of my favorites. They have every soda and every flavoring you can think of. My go-to is the Strawberry Breeze which is a flavored water with coconut, strawberry and creme. They have really good sugar cookies as well! 

Ruby Snap Cookies- We always stop at Ruby Snap Cookies. They just have the most unique and yummy tasting cookies! This time we got to try their summer flavors and I fell in love with the Smore's flavor cookie! They won't have that one long, so my other favorites are the peanut butter dipped in chocolate, the vanilla bean flavor, the chocolate cookie with chocolate frosting and the chocolate and caramel cookie. They all have names and it makes it even more cute! If you get a box of cookies, they give you a free cookie card too! 

Beans and Brews- You can't go to Utah without at least getting a Beans and Brews at the airport! One of my husband's favorite coffee shops is Beans and Brews. I really like their pumpkin steamers or the hot chocolates too! There are lots of locations throughout Utah and one in the airport. We always get a drink while we wait at the airport and this was definitely on our list this trip. 

What new spots do we need to try in Utah? What are you favorite places in your state?