Squatters offers artful food, respite from the Sundance grind
The Bacon Topped Meatloaf at Squatters Roadhouse Grill in Park City.
The Fried Cheese Curds with marinara at Squatters Roadhouse Grill in Park City.
The Raspberry Lemonade at Squatters Roadhouse Grill in Park City.
Whether you’re covering or attending the Sundance Film Festival, oftentimes eating becomes an afterthought.
Dashing all over town almost exclusively on shuttle buses, with only a certain limited amount of time between screenings or other appointments, it’s hard to find large enough blocks of time for a good sit-down meal. On top of that, many of the Main Street restaurants are booked for private events at key times, so even places you’ve planned to visit may not be available once you have decided to drop in.
I usually pack at least one lunch a day and bring a lot of snacks, knowing I can take some with me in my backpack and always pop by the car for a quick restocking as needed. Still, I always look forward to the time when I’m able to visit an actual restaurant, hit the pause button and briefly unwind from the stress of constantly having to be somewhere else.
So it was that I visited Squatters Roadhouse Grill one late afternoon over the weekend. Situated on Park Avenue just off the corner of Kearns Boulevard, the restaurant had caught my eye several times driving into the festival because its location offered .a bit of seclusion from the hubbub while still remaining close to the action. Squatters is located just across the street from a main theater district housing the Park Hotel and Holiday Village cinemas as well as The Ray, a theater making its debut this year.
It was just starting to snow as I was seated in Squatters and being able to relax in a warm restaurant while glancing out the window at the change in weather as daylight was dissipating indeed had a calming effect.
Dining alone — which, come to think of it, might have also contributed to the calm — I wasn’t able to partake in a more thorough sampling of the menu. But I did choose an appetizer and a main menu item.
Squatters is also a brewery and pub, for those who imbibe, and offers a wide variety of options in that regard. I’m a lemonade man, myself. Raspberry with vanilla. I don’t much care if it’s shaken or stirred, as long as it is sweet. Squatters addressed my needs perfectly.
Admittedly, so many things on the menu looked tantalizing. There was a full spectrum of choices in the following categories: Appetizers, Soups and Salads, Pizza, Pub Favorites, Burgers, and Sandwiches. There is a large variety of food styles on the menu, especially under Pub Favorites — which contained everything from Jambalaya and Pub Top Sirloin to Thai Yellow Curry and Straight Up Mac & Cheese.
For an appetizer, I settled on the Fried Cheese Curds, which proved to be an excellent choice. These were extremely delicious. The breading was just right and the marinara sauce was actually a highlight of the experience. Most marinaras are typically quite thick, but the Squatters style was much thinner, extremely flavorful and much more to my liking. The smaller cheese curds were the easiest to dip and eat, all with one bite. There were several larger-sized curds, which proved to be a bit more of a challenge as the cheese inside was still chewy enough that I couldn’t get through it with one clean bite through the middle.
When I ordered the Bacon Topped Meatloaf for my main course, I didn’t know I would be presented with a work of art. But there it was, an unexpected, eye-pleasing delight. The meatloaf was placed on top of a mound of mashed potatoes, which was in turned topped with some very crispy bacon and onion straws, with everything drizzled in gravy. There were four spears of sauteed asparagus, two on each side of the main course.
The meatloaf, made from Niman Ranch ground chuck, was a bit spicy, and the combination with mashed potatoes, bacon and onion straws all at once was an interesting and delicious dynamic. A great choice.
Squatters was pretty relaxed during the time I was there, but one can definitely envision that it probably gets pretty lively in there during the main dinner rush.
My visit to Squatters was exactly what I needed — a calm from the storm and a respite from the daily Sundance grind. Plus it was just a short jaunt to my next screening that night.
SQUATTERS ROADHOUSE GRILL
Where: 1900 Park Ave., Park City
Hours: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday 8
Prices: $399-$23.99
Info: (435) 649-9868, squatters.com,