Art City Trolley is Springville dining treat
The Art City Special is pictured at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017,in Springville.
The Texas Double is certainly a mouthful at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
Jeremy Decker serves customers at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
An order of Rosemary and Garlic Fries is pictured at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
Sam Doman fills drinks as her co-worker, and fiancé, Jeremy Decker puts away menus at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
The Texas Double is pictured at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
Neta Palfreyman, right, eats her meal with her son Charlie and granddaughter Elizabeth Hansen at Art City Trolley on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Springville. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
Sunday marked a long-due moment for the Daily Herald — it was when our very first dining magazine made its public debut. Titled Taste of Utah Valley, the glossy, colorful pages highlighted a pretty wide sampling of Utah Valley restaurants both old and new, paying homage to the fantastic and unique flavors that define the local dining scene.
It also marked the introduction of a new feature on the Daily Herald website: an interactive widget that allows for more in-depth searching of local dining reviews by the Daily Herald features team. Whether you have a particular style of food in mind, a price range or even location, you can quickly access all the Daily Herald archives have to offer in the way of restaurant and meal suggestions. You can check it out at heraldextra.com/entertainment/dining. But that’s not what this article is all about.
Though Taste of Utah Valley did a great job of highlighting some of the county’s landmark restaurants — you know, the tried and true — I realized that there was one particular iconic restaurant that didn’t score a hardy mention. It was that observation that took me to Art City Trolley in Springville for an early weekend dinner with friends.
I’ve driven past Art City Trolley countless times since moving to Utah Valley — it’s pretty hard to miss, with its prominent placement along one of Springville’s main drags — but I had never actually taken the opportunity to check it out until now.
That’s a tragedy I’m glad to have since rectified.
My crew pulled into the restaurant’s wrap-around parking lot right around 5 p.m., and I was surprised at how quiet things were. Apparently the joint doesn’t really start hopping on a Saturday night until about 6 p.m. (at least on this particular Saturday), so our timing couldn’t have been better.
Our group was escorted through the main dining area and past a wide array of vintage signs and decorations to the classic namesake trolley itself, which makes up a hearty portion of the seating area for diners.
We were pretty excited to score a trolley seat, and appreciated the careful spacing of customers to allow for the most personal dining experience.
The seats were comfortable, our corner booth cozy, and we were definitely excited to take a glimpse at what the Trolley might have to offer us.
As some background, the Art City Trolley officially opened for business in February of 1994. It’s namesake is the 1931 Brill Bullet Trolley car that was found abandoned by Jeff and Kelly Decker. Seeing its potential, they restored it and converted it into a roadside diner that, with the help of friends and family, grew into the full “Trolley Station” that’s in business today.
The restaurant definitely comes with a healthy dose of history and community involvement, but it’s the menu that’s put the restaurant on the Daily Herald’s “Best of Utah Valley” lists year after year.
For those who haven’t dined at Art City Trolley before, the menu is made up of a few key sections, including starters, sides, entrees, burgers, salads, sandwiches, drinks and desserts.
Since we hadn’t visited before, our waitress was beyond helpful, suggesting to us that the Trolley’s burgers and quesadillas were among the restaurant’s most popular items.
We ordered a sampling of each, as well as a few of the sides, shakes and desserts.
The first to arrive, of course, were the shakes, and though they were well flavored and the perfect thinner consistency for drinking through straws, the most novel things about them were the Mason jar mugs they were served in. We sampled strawberry and chocolate mocha, but you can order up to three of a handful of flavors, so the customization is fun.
Since we had a toddler among our ranks, we made sure to get an order of macaroni and cheese, and the thicker cavatappi noodles and creamy cheese were a pretty big hit.
Our burgers included a “Custom Built,” single patty option with thick-cut bacon, sharp cheddar, dill pickles and caramelized onions on a pretzel bun, as well as the Wing Burger with mixed greens, Monterey Jack cheese, fried onion straws and a tomato basted in wing sauce — we went with the classic Honey BBQ.
The burgers were well-seasoned, the pretzel buns thick but delicious and the patties themselves nice and juicy but not greasy. The flavors were on point, and I especially loved the texture. Though I’m not much of a lettuce-on-burgers kind of person (I prefer my salads on the side), I gave the mixed greens a hearty try, and though they were crisp and well-balanced, having the dressier greens as opposed to the more traditional lettuce felt even more like having a salad on my burger. Which for some people, I guess could be seen as more of a pro than a con.
We also sampled the Trolley Chicken sandwich, which is essentially the chicken version of the Wing Burger, with the same toppings and a choice of sauce. No complaints here: The chicken was grilled, moist perfection and the sauce almost accented the chicken better than the burger patty.
Each burger/sandwich is served with a side, so we sampled the Rosemary & Garlic fries and the Beer-Battered Onion Rings. Both were great for their own reasons, but of the two, our preference went to the fries. The seasonings were spot on, and though we weren’t in love with the house fry sauce (a barbeque-y flavor similar to that of Red Robin), the healthy helping of fries filled in any gaps.
The onion rings were thick-cut and tasty, and we appreciated the fact the onion didn’t just pull out of the ring with the first bite. They were deliciously sweet as well, though the beer-battering left them less crispy than we hoped they might be.
Our last entrée was the Steak & Gorgonzola Quesadilla, which I saved for last to mention because I was honestly skeptical. I’m a penny-pinching kind of diner, so if food is going to be pricey, it had better blow my mind. This particular quesadilla loaded with grilled carne asada steak, mozzarella, gorgonzola crumbles, fried onion straws, diced tomato and sautéed mushrooms was priced at a lofty $13 and served on a bed of crispy tortilla chips with a side of salsa and honey BBQ sauce.
I had a really hard time believing a tortilla with meat and cheese could live up to that price tag. I was wrong. All wonder as to why the quesadillas were among the favorite dishes of regulars melted away after just one glimpse at the towering entrée. And at one bite? The price tag seemed much more understandable. It was by far our favorite dish of the evening, and it was gigantic. The flavors were distinct but not overwhelming, and it reminded me that meals are made to be enjoyed, not just eaten.
Our meal finished with the monthly dessert special — a blueberry and white chocolate cheesecake, as well as the carrot cake. Because with desserts, the more the merrier! The cheesecake was thick and creamy, and was reminiscent of blueberry pancake batter, as we were warned it might be. It was delicious but more on the sweet side of the spectrum than I’d expect from a cheesecake. It was missing a lot of the cream cheese flavor you’d generally expect. Still delicious, but a second place to the come-from-behind carrot cake.
I’m not the type to order carrot cake off a menu. More just the type to eat it if it’s the only thing at a party. This was my come-around moment. The cake was moist, sweet and delicious with a healthy portion of cream cheese frosting and nuts that were even better than what we were expecting. It even earned the seal of approval from the toddler, which, when it comes to desserts that prominently feature a vegetable, is a pretty big deal.
Overall, our dining experience was fantastic. The meal came quickly, the servers were attentive and helpful — and dining in a trolley car? It was actually ridiculously cool.
The menu pricing tends to categorize the Art City Trolley as a “nicer” restaurant, with the majority of main courses and appetizers in the $9 to $13 range (excluding the exceptionally popular Baby Back Ribs, which come in a little higher), but if you’re looking for high-quality food and a fun dining experience at a restaurant that’s been a local staple for over 20 years, drop by! Your taste buds will be glad you did.
Art City Trolley
Where: 256 N. Main St. in Springville
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday.
Cost: $3-$23, with most entrees in the $9-$13 range.
Info: (801) 489-8585, artcitytrolley.com