Sugar House - Salt Lake City, UT

The name Sugar House comes from the sugar beet test factory run by the Deseret Manufacturing Company just a few years after Brigham Young settled in the area. Though Sugar House claimed the first Utah state prison, the prison closed and moved to Draper in 1951. Since then, the Sugar House scene has become home to many local and chain businesses.

Though Sugar House has few cultural events to speak of, driving the short distance to the Leonardo museum always makes for a delightful excursion. With rotating multicultural exhibits and interactive wings, the Leonardo adapts and changes frequently, making each visit a novel experience.

In addition, runners in the Salt Lake City Marathon travel through the Sugar House area and enjoy the greenery and youthful feel of the area.

If you’re looking for light Mediterranean cuisine, you can’t miss Mazza. Nestled on 15th and 15th, Mazza delights with its wide assortment of appetizers and exotic dishes. An appetizer sampler makes for a cheap and filling way to share lunch or dinner with a special someone. Its quiet indoor or outdoor seating makes Mazza the No. 1 stop for mouth-watering nibbles.

For your morning wakeup, don’t forget to drop by Jitterbug Coffee Hop. With spacious seating and $3 lattes, Jitterbug lets you get your coffee fix without breaking the bank. Because of its local following and wide selection, Jitterbug blows chain coffee shops out of the water.

Capitalizing on the popularity of Vietnamese cuisine, Pho Thin improved the restaurant scene when it moved into the area. Offering a choice between southern style and northern style pho, the restaurant makes sure no one ever leaves hungry. The portion sizes are generous, and though there is limited seating, servers work hard to make you feel welcome.

Want to grab some cheap drinks with a friend? Bongo Lounge offers great music, drinks as cheap as drinking at home, and plenty of TVs so you can keep up with the scores of the games. Though the lounge is cash only, the friendly atmosphere and the regulars make the inexpensive drinks even more worth it.

Can’t make up your mind about what to do tonight? Take walk down 21st Street or ride the S Line toward 700 East for a smorgasbord of dining options.

Salt Lake City, though small in comparison to other cities, makes up for its small-town feel with its phenomenal transportation system. In Sugar House alone, more than 20 buses run the streets, whether you want to go downtown, toward Sandy, up to the University of Utah or to Westminster. The S Line streetcar runs along 21st street and offers service to Trax trains as well as a variety of bus routes. Make sure you don’t stay out too late because service becomes very limited at night.

Except during evening rush hour, driving to and from Sugar House remains simple and fast. With on-ramps to both I-15 and I-80, traveling to other neighborhoods in Salt Lake proves easy. Also, the traffic on 700 East runs quickly and provides a good alternative to the freeways.

You don’t see many cabs in Sugar House, but the cab companies await your call whether you need a ride back from the bar or to the airport. Uber serves the Salt Lake area, including Sugar House, which can help you get around at any time.

Parking in Sugar House has become more difficult to find, especially near 1100 East and 21st street. However, if you arrive early, free street parking is plentiful, and many parking meters dot the street.

Many Salt Lake neighborhoods want to improve the safety of biking in the area, reflected by the fact that Sugar House has some streets with ample bike lanes. Utah drivers still need to get used to having bikers on the road, so watch out for yourself while biking.

Sugar House Park remains one of Salt Lake’s most frequented parks and claims its spot as the biggest park in the neighborhood. With a large pond that is home to many avian friends, the park offers a lovely place for a stroll or for playing any number of sports, provided you bring your own equipment. Dogs on leashes can also enjoy the park. The length of the park has been incorporated into the SLC marathon that happens every year. The park has free admission, and the public can use it from sunup to sundown.

As a well-loved neighborhood close to two universities, Sugar House has seen costs rise over the years. It costs about 10 percent more than the rest of Salt Lake City on average. Many of those additional costs relate to housing; renting a one-bedroom apartment costs around $1,000.

Getting a beer in the area, however, only costs $3-$4 if you go to the right bar, and gas prices frequently fall below the national average by about 7 percent. Traveling by either the Trax trains or the buses costs $2.50 for a two-hour pass.

Though 21st Street houses shopping centers all along its eastern side, the areas around 1100 East and 1300 East remain the best places for buying clothes, books, music and pet supplies. With Petco, Barnes and Noble, Whole Foods and many other chain retailers in the area, you can get everything you need in one place.

If you want an outfit custom-tailored to you, visit Sugar House Alterations, a little store with reasonable prices and friendly seamstresses. Or for something premade, head up to Turiya’s Gifts, a metaphysical shop that offers healing crystals and “gifts with spirit.”

Though Sugar House itself doesn’t have a centrally located farmers market, many Sugar House residents travel to the market in downtown Salt Lake City on the weekends during the summer and fall for fresh produce, food carts and handmade goods. During the week, most of the locals head to Smith’s for their groceries.