South County flair: Dining options abound in and around Payson
Two plates of Shrimp Ceviche and a Shrimp Cocktail at Don Chuy's Taco Shop in Payson.
The Fried Shrimp Po'boy at Boudreaux's Bistro. To read the Herald's roundup of Payson's best dining options, visit provodh.com/m4zao.
Living in Payson for the past four years, I’ve become quite familiar with the town’s dining fare — everything from fast food favorites to a delicious, popular steakhouse. For this week’s restaurant review, I decided to do a bit of a round-up — four restaurants in and around Payson just perfect for a night out or a fun post-Payson Temple open house dinner.
Don Chuy’s Taco Shop
I recently discovered a new classification of Mexican restaurant — a cross between the fast food and local favorite joint. The late night/early morning taco shop where drive-thru orders prove to be freshly made, bursting with flavor and sure to satisfy any craving no matter what time of day.
Don Chuy’s in Payson is just such a restaurant, and I must admit, I was pleasantly surprised!
“The Carne Asada Fries are awesome,” said 17-year-old Preston as we pulled into the parking lot.
Being a fan of anything featuring the wonderful mixture of steak, onions and cilantro that make up a good carne asada, I was sold.
Ordering our meals was quite easy, thanks to Preston’s recommendation. One order of Carne Asada Fries, one order of Carne Asada Super Nachos and a to-go order of five rolled tacos (taquitos) and bean and cheese burrito.
Don Chuy’s boasts a great salsa bar with multiple options ranging from extremely hot to a milder green chile sauce — perfect for everyone’s taste buds. What caught my attention was the selection of sliced vegetables available for people to snack on. Grab your favorite salsa or two and dip slices of cucumber or carrots while you wait for your entree.
The Carne Asada Nachos were a deliciously messy mix of corn chips, refried beans, pico de gallo, shredded cheese and piles of chopped steak, all topped with sour cream and guacamole. The fries boasted the same fixin’s all atop a huge helping of French fries instead of chips.
When it comes to portions, Don Chuy’s is a clear winner. The Super Nachos certainly lived up to their name, and for only $7.49, they were a great bargain! The Carne Asada Fries, also priced at just $7.49, could easily feed two people. In fact, Preston had to request a to-go box for his leftovers.
– Don Chuy’s Taco Shop, 1024 W. 800 South, Payson, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. Friday-Saturday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, (801) 465-0480, www.facebook.com/don.chuys
CLOSED: Boudreaux’s Bistro
We may have been raised in the West, but Boudreaux’s Bistro, now located in Salem, left us ravin’ about Cajun cuisine.
Boudreaux’s offers a slice of Southern comfort in south Utah County, from its lively ambience to its Louisiana-inspired menu options.
We eyed the Cajun Creole Favorites portion of the menu and thought we were being prudent by choosing the “pick three” option — allowing a plate with portions of three different choices. However, we loved the Red Beans With Sausage selection so much, we wished we had ordered a full plate of it. The creamy concoction was served over white rice and the whole combination was simply sumptuous.
Not that the other two options were chopped liver — which, thankfully, they weren’t. The other two samples were of the Chicken Étoufeé and the Jambalaya. The Chicken Étoufeé was an ever-so-slightly spicy chicken stew with onions, bell pepper and celery that was also served over rice. The Jambalaya featured a fusion of various flavors from the combination of rice, chicken, sausage, celery, onions, bell peppers and a tomato sauce. Both dishes were excellent.
Another solid dish was the Blackened Chicken Pasta, which was accented with a garlic sauce, rotini pasta and diced tomatoes and parsley on top.
We couldn’t leave without ordering a dessert that caught our attention: Fried Candy Bar. Yes, you read that right. The candy bar, in this case a Milky Way, was dipped in batter, fried, and then drizzled in chocolate and caramel and served on a skewer. We could definitely get used to Southern dining if this is what follows a meal.
Boudreaux’s recently moved to its new location in Salem, but can also be spotted around the valley on Mondays in a food truck. Restaurant hours are 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-8:30 p.m. Friday and noon to 8 p.m. Saturday.
– Boudreaux’s Bistro, 78 E. State Road 198, Salem, (801) 704-7209 or getyourcajunon.com (coming soon).
Fuji House
In 2006, I had the incredible opportunity to live in Tokyo for a few months as a tourist. Throughout those few months, and with the help of my cousin, Linda, who had lived there for several decades, I became quite immersed in the culture — teaching English to wonderful men and women, traveling to the outskirts of the main city, experiencing cultural traditions like bath houses and even learning some simple phrases in Japanese.
The one thing I just couldn’t fully embrace, however, was the cuisine, with a few delicious exceptions — ebi tendon (tempura shrimp), miso soup and the array of baked treats (I still dream about the Beard Papa Cream Puffs) were those select favorites. Basically, I was not a fan of sushi or sashimi.
Well, times have changed and I now look forward to an occasional sushi date with my husband. While I do stick to the cooked rolls, I have been known to venture out and enjoy some fresh tuna from time to time.
Our latest foray into sushi took us to Fuji House in Payson. The menu is full of all sorts of traditional Japanese food — edamame, gyoza, udon, chicken teriyaki, katsudon, sukiyaki, yakisoba, and more than two dozen sushi rolls.
With so many choices, we sampled a little of this and a little of that with the help of the Fuji House special — an entree served with one sushi roll. I opted for the Fuji Chicken with its tempura meat and veggies served over rice with a delicious Fuji apple twist on a sweet and sour sauce. I also enjoyed the Vegas Roll. My husband selected the spicy Samurai Chicken and the Amy Roll, which he declared a new favorite.
Wanting a good sampling of sushi, we also tried the Funky Roll and the Cowboy Roll — fried with beef and chicken — and actually managed to get our 16-year-old daughter to eat some!
With Fuji House so close to my home, I’m really looking forward to going back to try out the ebi tendon, miso soup and katsudon to relive my memories of Japan.
– Fuji House, 17 S. Main, Payson, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, noon to 9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, (801) 465-4018
– Daily Herald Features Editor Doug Fox contributed to this report.
Dining
