March 2020 | Vol. 17 Iss. 03
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INTERSECTION OF CULINARY DIVERSITY:
COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS AREA REVITALIZED WITH NEW EATERIES By Joshua Wood | j.wood@mycityjournals.com
A
busy area near the heart of Cottonwood Heights has undergone a transition that can be described as a culinary revitalization. The intersection of 2600 East and Bengal Boulevard has exchanged a gas station and an old café in need of a makeover for three new eateries that have the neighborhood buzzing. Their international flavor adds a degree of diversity that should give foodies heartburn trying to decide which to choose on a night out.
AUTHENTIC MIDDLE EASTERN EXPERIENCE
Sumac Café is a Persian restaurant that has undergone a makeover over the past year. Until January 2019, it was the Bengal Café coffee shop. Now its owners serve the Persian dishes they love from back home in Tehran. “My partner is an extremely good chef with Persian food, so she decided the main talent that she has is cooking, and so we did that,” Sumac owner Mosen Panah said. “She has contact with Tehran, and if anything becomes popular there, she learns about it and tries it.” The food at Sumac Café celebrates the food Panah and the Persian community in the area enjoyed with their families in Iran. The restaurant’s offerings can be grouped into two main categories — kabobs and sauces — each served with a good helping of saffron-infused basmati rice. “It is original, authentic Persian food,” Panah said. “If you are eating here, or if you go to Tehran, it is the same thing. Everything is homemade. There’s no other way to do it.” The restaurant’s interior enhances the Persian cuisine. From a painting depicting Persian markets hundreds of years Sicilia Mia brings Old World Italian flavor to Cottonwood Heights. (Joshua Wood/City Journals) ago to Middle Eastern pillows, Continued page 5
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