Blue Lemon–Try it Twice, at Least!

By Chelsea Nelson on July 15, 2010 • ( 4 Comments )

The Blue Lemon is one of the first new restaurants to make its appearance in the Downtown Rising project of City Creek. It is only a block and a half up the street from where I work, so naturally, I was anxious to get in and try the new fare. Additionally, The Blue Lemon sounded like a place I could identify with because of their very well marketed campaign to use only recyclable material and be conscious of their impact on the environment. They also use local and organic ingredients, which is really rare for a chain restaurant to do. So, before I even ate a bite of Blue Lemon’s food, I was already impressed.

Then, walking into the restaurant and noting the pretty great decor and fun fresh colors, I figured that the food was going to be just as fun and eclectic.

The first time I went to Blue Lemon, I left with this thought: “For just eating healthy food, I feel like that sandwich was a little heavy and perhaps a bit greasy”. Although, it did taste good. I ordered the Lemon Grilled Chicken BLT–because I love anything “lemon grilled”. And my friend ordered the Grilled Balsamic Chicken Panini.

Can you tell the difference between my grilled sandwich and the panini? Yeah, we couldn’t either. The panini was just a grilled sandwich–which I guess is fine, but my friend was a bit confused. Both sandwiches tasted pretty good, but we really liked the side dishes more. My friend got the Panini with a side of sweet potato fries, which were awesome and accompanied by a sauce that was based in BBQ flavors with a bit of a tang. They were a nice surprise. With my sandwich, I ordered the side Butternut Squash Soup–and that was divine. The flavor was very intense, but not too rich and came with a nice piece of bread for dipping.

We definitely didn’t dislike our food, but it wasn’t everything we were hoping for to be honest. And I certainly didn’t walk away with the feeling that I had done something good for my health by eating my grilled sandwich.

However, I always give things a second try–and Blue Lemon does have quite a large menu to choose from. So, with the help of two wonderful ladies that I work with, we decided to give it another shot. This time, I was going to order something different…something lighter…and something that just sounded mouthwatering!

We decided that a few side dishes would be a great start…so we ordered the sweet potato fries (again!) and the hummus. The hummus had lemon in it, which sold me on it from the start and the fries were just as good as the last time I ordered them. Both dishes get two thumbs up–from all three of us:

So far so good.

Then came some wonderful main dishes. I decided to go with a salad–to keep it light and see what kind of flavor they could offer me. I ordered the Oriental Salad and it was not only beautiful and well-presented, but the flavor was great and surprisingly light, but bold.

My friend ordered the Roasted Turkey Avocado Sandwich–which was not grilled, but came out on a wonderful soft ciabatta bread. The avocado spread was fresh, and the color of green that avocados should be (this is hard to find any any avocado spread) and the sandwich overall looked healthy and delicious.

These were all wonderful dishes. However, the real gem of the Blue Lemon the second time around was the Fresh Black Bean Ravioli. This dish made my taste buds really happy about the fusion of Italian and Mexican. The ravoil were cooked perfectly–not too hard or too soggy, and the red pepper sauce was a little spicy and well-rounded. Please note: I do NOT like bell peppers of any color–and the idea of a “red pepper sauce” was not something I was excited about. But this sauce rocks and I have been craving this dish for the past 3 days. No joke. Even the corn succotash was flavorful. Go to Blue Lemon right now and eat these Black Bean Raviolis. Go. Quit reading and get in your car. Or ride your bike. Just get there!!

So. What did I learn from reviewing this restaurant? First impressions aren’t always lasting. Every restaurant deserves a second chance. Try different menu items if you didn’t like the first ones. And lastly, take a few people and share. Am I happy that Blue Lemon is up the street from me on a daily basis? I certainly am.

Now I am going to go eat Raviolis.

Categories: Restaurant Reviews