5 days in salt lake city

hello! i recently returned from my first trip to utah, and what a strange place it was. granted, i went for the kilby block party music festival, so i didn't get a ton of time to explore beyond that, but gleni — my travel companion — and i joked that the "L" and "C" in SLC stood for "lies" and "construction." sooo much construction. a handful of lies. but anyway, the festival! the lineup was my dream and basically 75% of my spotify library, so it was kind of a no-brainer to go. and while we were skeptical about making it through all three days of music, people, and bathroom lines in our late-ish 30s without dying, we did it! we did it, man.

DAY 1: 

gleni and i were fortunately able to book flights that got in within a half hour of each other, so we lyfted to our airbnb south of downtown in what's unofficially known as the "maven district." 

we stayed in a cozy 1918 bungalow that was ideal for our purposes, with an adorable front porch we enjoyed coffee on during the first morning, a big-ass kitchen, and an electric fireplace that came in very handy when we were drowned rats (more on that later.)

but speaking of coffee — that was obviously our first priority at 3pm if we were to stay awake to make it to our 8:30 dinner reservation. we strolled down to publik coffee roasters to caffeinate and grab a snack. i got a cherry chocolate scone and an iced brown butter caramel latte, both delicious!

next up was the legendary randy's records, which has been in business since 1978. i was pleased to see a ton of youths there, but the records were pretty overpriced so we didn't end up getting anything. 

we also popped into some cute boutiques, land of salt and mineral and matter, and i bought a rollerball perfume at the former (SHOCKING, i know, and my collection is officially out of control) that's called "sunrise" and is going to be my summer fragrance, i think. the area in general was very artsy and cute, with a bunch of murals:

we grabbed a pre-dinner drink at purgatory bar, which had a big outdoor patio area and a cool vibe. 

for dinner, we'd decided prior to the trip that since we were going to be relegated to shitty festival food for three days, we might as well go all out with a seven-course tasting menu on the first night. table x was sleek and minimal in terms of decor, but all of the food (and that VIEW!) was incredible. sidenote: it's so wild that SLC is just like, surrounded by mountains. we pointed into the distance 10,000 times a day and went "MOUNTAIN." it looked like a freakin' green screen!

here are some of the things we ate:

intermountain gourmet mushrooms 

baja striped bass

handmade torchietto pasta with chile sausage, chicories, and pecorino

niman ranch bavette steak

buttermilk custard

DAY 2:

we fueled up for our first festival day at park cafe, a no-frills breakfast and lunch spot where we lucked out getting a table right away. i had a combo called "french toast foolishness," with scrambled eggs and bacon and home fries, which was very on brand for me, and it was so good. the french toast was not foolish but it WAS fluffy AF. five stars.

it wasn't until we were in a lyft on the way to the festival that we realized past us had gotten VIP tickets, which entitled us to special bathrooms, a lounge area (below), and a designated food truck court. truly worth it for the bathrooms alone so good job, past selves!

overall, the festival was well-organized and had really good energy with minimally annoying people and we saw about 20 artists overall! highlights of the first day:

remi wolf: i didn't know any of her music, but she had such a great voice, sense of humor, and stage presence! she brought dominic fike (see below) onstage for a song they did together and we were like, "who's this dude? he's great!" and decided to check out his set.

dominic fike: i guess i've been under a rock because i've since learned this guy is massive with the kids and was on euphoria and all that jazz, but i swear i'd never heard his name until i saw people raving about his coachella set a few weeks ago but didn't look too far into it. i get it now!! his energy and voice were phenomenal, and even when i went to listen to his stuff the next day on spotify, a bunch of the songs didn't hit the same as they did live. love love loved him. highly recommend his song "3 nights" which went right onto my forthcoming summer playlist.

yeah yeah yeahs: not much to say except amazing, incredible, iconic. karen o. is a fucking goddess, yo. spot on and the perfect way to close out the first night. i may or may not have shed a tear during "maps," because it is basically the elder millennial national anthem.

DAY 3:

brunch was at picnic cafe (not to be confused with park cafe from yesterday). we both ordered the lox bagel sandwich, and not that i was expecting it to be bad, but it was so much better than i anticipated. i also ordered a vietnamese iced coffee that came with some sort of cream float on top.

once we arrived at the festival, we watched this ridiculous local band, the moss, and laughed at the lead singer's antics. then we checked out wallice, a singer-songwriter who we both really enjoyed. 

goth babe's set was next, and he was entertaining, though the music was very h&m/forever 21-core. he had a girl from the audience volunteer to crowd surf on a watermelon pool float and it was a sight to see, but also had me scared to death for her. #old

as we were taking a food break, the sky opened up, so we sought shelter with our $25 korean rice bowls under a covered seating area with three younger girls and a 40-something mom whose daughter was camping out in the rain for indigo de souza. the conversation was very fun given our three generational differences and one of those memorable festival moments.

the rain cleared up after a bit and the music resumed with a great set by indigo, one of my favorite newer artists. 

and while music venues have yet to hear my plea to serve coffee, the festival had a coffee truck!! i was so excited. it was a bit chilly so a hazelnut latte with oat milk was hitting the spot, baby.

it started pouring again a half hour before the strokes went on and i was like "AW HELL NAW." after having my hopes dashed on my birthday last year when one of them contracted COVID and they dropped out of boston calling, i saw this festival set as a redemption arc of sorts, and the weather was not about to kill my vibe.

i am always woefully unprepared in these kinds of situations, but gleni came to my rescue by breaking into a storage cabinet in the VIP bathroom and stealing a huge garbage bag, from which i fashioned a makeshift poncho, because i was not going to miss the strokes again, dammit! fortunately, the weather cleared up right before they went on and stayed dry the whole way through, save for two minutes at the end of the set during "someday" when i donned my poncho "hood" and everyone was singing and it was all very magical and cute.

while their festival sets have gotten mixed reviews in recent years, gleni and i both agreed that this one was amazing. julian sounded great, the band seemed like they were having a blast, and the vibes were immaculate. jules took the stage by saying "GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM" and had a running joke for some reason about blowing nikolai?? and was like "DON'T TRUST THAT MAN!" it was hilarious. nick valensi still looked like homeless jesus, which is always a plus. i was also three for three in terms of hearing my favorite strokes song, barely legal! #blessed. my heart was so full and i'm so grateful i got to see them for a third time.

DAY 4: 

we had our hearts set on this breakfast taco place, la barba, that was supposed to be open, but was...not. and had no explanation for why? sooo we walked down to beans and brews, which seemed basically like the SLC equivalent of dunkin' donuts and got cold brews and breakfast tacos. they were fiiiine.

as i mentioned before, this festival was basically my dream lineup, and i even loved the undercard. so while we were trying to pace ourselves throughout the three days, i tended to want to be there pretty early to see some of my favorites. deeper was one of them, whose synthy post punk i've been digging for the past handful of years.

the rest of the afternoon included great sets from mannequin pussy, wednesday, the walkmen, and a break in there for some strawberry cheesecake ice cream and posing in front of the fun photo op stuff. 

after grabbing some dinner, we got more iced coffee and went to check out surf curse on our way to the pixies as the sky gradually became slightly ominous. my cell service shit the bed at like 3pm every day because of the crowds, so i was relying on gleni to keep me posted on the forecast, and it did not look promising! 

a few songs into the pixies' set, it started to rain and we broke out of the crowd to stand under a big metal tent structure so we could still watch from afar. that was great and actually kind of entertaining (because the sky was very pretty) until huge bolts of lightning started, the pixies stepped offstage without a word, the side-stage screens displayed "SEEK SHELTER UNTIL WEATHER PASSES," and everyone and their mothers began joining us. 

we soon became pretty freaked out and felt quite unsafe standing under a completely metal shelter as the lightning seemed to be like, a foot away from us, so we decided to make a run for it since we figured there was no way pavement was going to play. god bless the other festivalgoers who were committed to #content that captured the madness, but just picture thousands of people running as thunder and lightning struck all around and torrential rain pelted them.

we ubered back to our airbnb and proceeded to have the coziest night everrrr once we got into our pajamas: we ordered not-great pizza, made coffee and tea, turned on our electric fireplace, and watched this terrible movie on netflix called senior year. 

we were so happy to be alive and dry and not dodging lightning bolts that we didn't even care that pavement did end up playing like an hour after they were supposed to. i guess i'm just not meant to see them, man. oh well! the festival did release this amazing limited-edition t-shirt that gleni and i immediately bought the other day because it's the perfect souvenir:

DAY 5:

we needed a day to unwind and decompress before flying home, so a leisurely brunch was in order. we headed up to emigration canyon to ruth's diner, which is in a converted trolley car. the outdoor patio area was hidden away and so pretty, with the soothing sounds of a waterfall in the background as we ate our salmon hash and banana french toast.

then it was onto downtown salt lake, which was kind of boring, tbh? we popped into the mormon tabernacle... 

did a #mallwalk of city creek center (which was gorg)...

and then picked up some cold brews at this adorable little cafe called eva's bakery and sat outside and drank them:

we figured 4pm was a good time to start drinking — and the bar next door, the ruin, was open — so we snagged two seats and it was delightful. we each got the same cocktails (the "thunder from down underberg" with patron, underberg bitters, grand marnier, lime, and sugar and the "cherry blossom" with tito's, hibiscus rose berry tea, lemon coconut, orgeat, and sugar) and they were both AMAZING. the bartender was so fun, too. and then one of the baristas from eva's came in to get a shot because they had a bad day, and we bought them a drink, and they gave us free pastries they were going to take home with them. i love people!

after eating like garbage for the past four days, i got back on track for dinner at laziz kitchen, where i had a salad plate with grilled chicken that seemed healthy but was surprisingly delicious.

on our way home, we stopped into normal ice cream and got ice cream sandwiches that we ate on the couch later while watching the new season of queer eye. a perfectly low-key ending to a tiring-but-fun music festival weekend!

3 days in savannah, georgia

as i've mentioned (ad nauseam), i love love love cities that can be described as "magical," "spooky," or "enchanting" and for me, the three that most embody those qualities are new orleans, st. augustine, and savannah. like charleston, i had only been to savannah once before about 15 years ago with my folks, so i barely remembered it and didn't do anything i wanted to do. so, when i saw that i could finally use the jetblue points i've been accumulating forever on some free nonstop flights there, it was time to change that! i had such a fantastic time and it was just the escape i needed to recharge my batteries. 

just a note that if you're trying to decide between charleston and savannah, i'd go savannah. charleston was lovely when i visited four years ago, but as my walking tour guide put it, "we joke that the first question you're asked in charleston is 'what's your mother's maiden name?' and the first question you're asked in savannah is 'what'll you have to drink?'" and i get it. due to the art student contingent from SCAD, there are also a ton of cool vintage boutiques and antique stores (i could barely find any in charleston!) and just had a more laid-back vibe that i really enjoyed.

DAY 1:

i got into town around 2pm, so i grabbed a lyft from the airport to my hotel on the outskirts of the historic district, the present. i had gone back and forth when deciding between an air bnb and hotel this time around because i love the charm and character more common with air bnbs, but when i discovered the present, it split the difference. it's a 15-room boutique hotel in a renovated historic building on picturesque crawford square, so each of the rooms is totally unique. it's also interesting in that there is no on-site staff (typically — a sweet young man named tyler was there when i arrived and helped me check in a bit early while i was on the phone with their 24/7 guest service number trying to do so). so everything is a little DIY in exchange for a significantly lower price point without sacrificing style or quality, which was ideal for me. if you prefer having a concierge and room service and all that, it wouldn't be your best pick.

there was also a super cute courtyard where you can hang out...

and a little community coffee bar that was a nice touch in the morning!

my room was a king suite with a big claw-foot tub and it was simply gorgeous. i was immediately in love!

they definitely focus on little extras here, like these fun itinerary cards on the back of the door.

once i settled in, i set off to explore a bit. i grabbed a thai iced coffee at gallery espresso, a very homey, funky coffee shop, and was on my way.

i strolled all the way up to river street, the touristy strip — basically a calmer version of bourbon street — and bought three world-famous pralines from river street sweets (one for each night of my stay, obv) because i'm obsessed with pralines.

about a month ago, i made a reservation at the olde pink house, as it's considered a must-do when in savannah. i arrived a little early to try my luck since i had only eaten a glazed donut and a bag of cheez-its from the plane all day and was STARVING, and they were able to seat me right away.

omg, y'all. my meal was everything i had been dreaming of and more. i ordered the planter's punch cockail to start things off, and some incredible biscuits and butter arrived shortly after.

i got the BLT salad with fried green tomatoes, applewood bacon, and black pepper thyme buttermilk dressing:

and for the main course, the crispy scored flounder with apricot shallot sauce, stone ground grits, and collard greens:

the only thing i didn't make it all the way through was the grits and greens, but my waitress was like "wow, you clearly did your homework on the menu, and i'm so impressed with how much you ate!" bahaha. i resisted the urge to tell her about how my former coworkers nicknamed me "the brown bear." badge of honor, regardless. 

i had intended to have a nightcap at the peacock lounge, but i literally couldn't find it because the entrance is down an alley — not at the address you're given when you look it up — and it was dark and i'm stupid and didn't feel like figuring out what the deal was (i finally succeeded on friday). so i went around the corner to madame butterfly, an elegant korean steakhouse with a really cool cocktail menu. i ordered the "origami" with irish whiskey, amaretto, cappelletti, and yuzu. yum.

DAY 2:

i lazed around a bit in the morning because i could, but was obviously ready to eat again by 9am — so i hoofed it over to mirabelle, a cutesy coffee shop/cafe that specializes in liege waffles. 

they have a handful of fun varieties, including the "lemon zinger" with lemon-lavender curd cremé, raspberry & cardamom jam, and whipped cream, and the "croque monsieur" with maple smoked ham, melted swiss, and and black pepper béchamel. but since i was in georgia, after all, i opted for the "peach cobbler" with housemade peach compote, cinnamon streusel, and whipped cream and some cold brew to wash it down. it was a LOT for earlyish in the AM (and given my lunch plans), but it was delicious! 

thennnn i strolled around looking at pretty houses on jones street while scoping out the situation at mrs. wilkes' dining room, a legendary savannah restaurant where you line up to eat at a table with nine strangers and share a family-style lunch. the line usually stretches down the block and around the corner by the time it opens at 11am since it's first come, first served, but was an a strangely quiet day, so i was among the first eight or so people in line at 10:20ish. oh my god, it was the best! the host sent me to this table in the corner where i was sitting by myself at first, and an older man at the table across the room yells, "young lady, come over here and sit with us!" so i took the last seat at their table and the fun began. 

i was sitting with two other tourists from texas who i'd been talking to in line on one side of me, and on the other, the electrician for the restaurant — a native georgian who was probably in his 60s and also plays in a blues and country band, natch. across the table was a man who has apparently eaten at mrs. wilkes EVERY DAY since the 1960s. we passed around fried chicken, meatloaf, mac & cheese, collard greens, black-eyed peas, chicken and dumplings, and all sorts of other amazing dishes, and it was such a unique and fun experience. loved every minute. plus, banana pudding for dessert! on my way out, i realized the man who called me over to sit with them worked there and told a random customer, "i had the pleasure of dining with this young lady!" lolol and i was like "i had the pleasure of dining with YOU, sir!". dads foreverrrr.

to walk off lunch, i went to check out vintage store east & up, which was super cute but out of my price range, and the beautiful e. shaver booksellers.

if you've followed along with my various adventures around the U.S., you know that i love me a good walking tour. and while savannah doesn't have an official free tours by foot (my fave) operation, they partnered with a similar tour company, free savannah tours, that was just as good. now that i'm looking at FTBF's website, i realize i've done their tours in 1/4 of the american cities they offer them in. #obsessed. anywho! our tour guide, joe, was a born and raised savannahian (?) who was super knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the city, and it was great to get some context for the spots i had wandered around over the past day.

the tour finished up right near forsyth park, so i took a stroll through and to the sentient bean for an iced coffee pick-me-up.

before dinner, i popped into the amusingly named treylor park for an appropriately trashy and fun cocktail called the cherry coke with cherry kool-aid vodka, cola, and lime with a luxardo cherry. they were playing shutter island on the tv for some reason — maybe because of leo being in the news recently for dating a 19-year-old? no clue.

and what do you know? it was time for supper! i was a lil' tipsy from my tasty cocktail and walked down to the crystal beer parlor while listening to one of my trip theme songs, "cowboy nudes" by geese (the other: "getting into trouble w/ the boss" by white reaper) and i was so happy. 

this legendary restaurant actually has a really neat history: it used to be a grocery store in the early 1900s, and was reportedly one of the first american eateries to serve alcohol after the repeal of prohibition! i sidled up to the bar and had a blonde ale and a bison burger with mashed potatoes as i chatted with more dads, of course. one of them was from portland maine and we talked about bourdain for like a half hour.

i had one more drink at a dimly lit, sultry bar on my way back to the hotel called savoy society, which boasted an impressive vinyl collection and eclectic decor. my 7 and 7 had a fun twist in the form of midori and mexican sprite!

then i ate pralines in my hotel bed while watching season 2 of degrassi: the next generation. everything was beautiful and nothing hurt.

DAY 3:

the rain fortunately held off during the morning hours on friday, so i took a long walk down to the starland district, which is considered the hip/artsy/funky neighborhood in town. while i read some warnings about safety here as a solo female traveler since some of the area is still in transition, i didn't feel unsafe at all during the day. 

anyway, when researching places to eat, a little venezuelan breakfast spot, troupial, kept coming up over and over again. and oh my goodness, what a sweet, wonderful, and delicious experience! i thought it was just a takeout counter spot, but when i walked into the adorable yellow house that was a bit off of of the beaten path and saw that you could sit and have table service, i figured i'd stay for a while. the atmosphere was just lovely — the other clientele seemed to be solo regulars, and dean martin/frank sinatra-type standards were playing.

i ordered one of the breakfast combinations, the golfeado (a venezuelan sticky bun that's made with cloves, anise, and cinnamon and has MELTED CHEESE ON TOP) with fresh fruit and a cappuccino. y'all, the sweet and savory worked perfectly and it was cute as hell, too. it was such a serene way to start my day.

a short walk away was a big antique mall, picker joe's, where i fell in love with this gorgeous fringed handbag. score! 

there's actually an in-house cafe/diner here, which i learned was relocated there when the diner was in danger of going out of business several years ago. so cool!

i wanted something quick-ish for lunch and ordered a chicken sandwich online for pickup from the grey market, an outpost of the upscale grey restaurant. i was going to grab it and eat somewhere outside since i wasn't sure of the table situation there, but as i started walking, the sky opened up and it started pouring. fortunately, i got to the market and saw that it was a southern-style lunch counter type of vibe and the girl at the register kindly let me take my sandwich and sit down with it to eat there! yay.

but THIS SANDWICH, DUDE. crispy panko-breaded chicken, white bbq sauce, arugula, and bread & butter pickles. like a gourmet chick fil-a on steroids. incredible.

after lunch, i bopped around the corner to stop into the paris market, which i saw recommended several times. i was under the impression it was another big antique mall, so i was a little disappointed to see it was basically an even more overpriced anthropologie. like, i love anthro, but it was just a lot of very expensive housewares and accessories and "antiques" that i had no desire to buy. very very pretty, though! 

there's also a tiny but gorgeous cafe here, but all of the seats were taken and since the rain was still coming down, i ducked into a cute little coffee shop right next door, the coffee fox, and sat with my horchata latte for a bit, watching the people go by.

while i was distinctly not in a museum/ghost tour/cultural attraction mood on this vacation, i figured the weather was a good excuse to check out the american prohibition museum. i opted for the guided tour, which was mostly unnecessary, but it ends in a little speakeasy where you get a free drink, so that was cute.

i followed the advice of one of the dads at the bar the night before and returned to river street to hit up the j.w. marriott hotel lobby, which has a huge-ass dinosaur sculpture and a mini natural history exhibit, and the adjacent music venue district live, which has a bunch of gretsch guitars hanging from the ceiling. neat!

while i got a little lost on my way to the next antique store, it was a fated detour because i stumbled upon the olfactory co., which satisfied all of my witchy, spooky needs. there were tarot decks and goth clothing and spell books and incense and i loved it all. i ended up buying a beautiful necklace and this pretty emerald-colored, eucalyptus-scented arrangement.

finally, wright square vintage & retro mall blessed me with this sweet sweater:

i wasn't really feeling any of the spots i had written down on my list for dinner, food-wise, so i did some quick googling and decided to check out the emporium kitchen & wine market in the perry lane hotel. it turned out to be an EXCELLENT choice! the atmosphere was warm and classy and it wasn't too busy yet around 5pm on friday. i ordered the butter pecan old fashioned (obv) and the lobster pasta (obv) — both were fantastic.

thankfully, as previously mentioned, i finally figured out how to get into the peacock lounge and was able to enjoy a new york sour with bourbon, lemon, aromatic & orange bitters, egg white, and a red wine float. the vibe was speakeasy meets upscale nightclub, with fun holographic displays and a neon sign that read "send nudes." hehe. the bartenders were very attentive and friendly and definitely knew their stuff.

to close out the night, i took a luxurious bath in my MF claw-foot tub because i felt like it would be a true waste if i didn't take advantage of it.

before i headed to the airport late the following morning, i took a quick stroll over to franklin's, a small and chic counter-serve breakfast cafe where i was BLOWN AWAY by the steak and egg sandwich. as i declared in my instagram story, one of the top 20 things i've ever eaten in my life, and i stand by that. here was the sitch: sliced prime rib, baked egg, melted cheddar, arugula, red onion, boursin spread, au jus, and  crème fraîche on buttery toasted sourdough. i....iiiiiiii.....i am still not over it and it was one of those meals i'll be thinking about for the rest of my days. wow. franklin's is located down a level from the street, so it provides a unique and cute vantage point for you to sit and sip and snack.

and i squeezed in two more stops at shopSCAD, a gift shop with artwork and souvenirs created by SCAD students...

and the book lady, a delightfully cozy and smelly used bookstore:

the perfect ending to the perfect trip! though i'm pretty proud of how much i packed into a few days, i can't wait to return to savannah to check the rest of the spots i didn't make it to off my list. :)