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It wasn't a big surprise when WalletHub recently selected Utah as the top state in the nation for starting a business. Many Utah companies have parlayed their success in-state as a springboard to expansion outside the border including some well known regional and national restaurant chains.
Here are some Beehive State flavor favorites that are beloved outside of Utah as well.
Cafe Rio Mexican Grill
Cafe Rio Mexican Grill was the brainchild of Steve and Patricia Stanley, who opened their St. George restaurant in 1997. Built on the concept that "every ingredient must be fresh and made fresh to order," Cafe Rio exploded in popularity, so the Stanleys built five more restaurants.
Bob Nilsen bought Cafe Rio in 2004 and started expanding the chain even further, keeping the "fresh food, made fresh" mantra. Nilsen has since moved on, but the restaurant is still growing.
Today Cafe Rio has expanded to more than 150 locations. You can enjoy a good Sweet Pork Barbacoa burrito or any of your other favorites in Utah, Idaho, Arizona, California, Nevada, Colorado, Montana, Washington and the Washington D.C. area.
Cupbop
Cupbop owner Jung Song started out with a food truck at the Gallivan Center in 2013. Fast forward to 2023 and he now has close to 50 locations throughout Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada and Oklahoma. And that's not counting the food trucks and concessions locations.
The massive growth came after Cupbop fan Dok Kwon left an investment banking career in New York to help Song scale the business on a national level. Song and Kwon, who now serves as the chief operating officer, had an appearance on Shark Tank in 2022 and landed a deal with investor Mark Cuban.
Cupbop may be growing fast, but the owners will never forget where it all started.
"We're so fortunate that we started here, and we're so thankful to all of our customers everywhere, but especially in Utah, where we started, and is absolutely our home ground," Kwon told KSL.com in 2022.
Costa Vida
In 2003, friends Kenny Prestwich and JD Gardner opened the first Costa Vida in Layton. They found success from the get-go with their Baja-style burritos and tacos.
Soon afterward Sean Collins and Dave Rutter opened the first franchise location in Provo.
Collins and Rutter gained a controlling interest in the company in 2008. In the years since, Costa Vida has expanded to more than 90 locations in 14 states. They even have four locations in Alberta, Canada.
In an article for QSR, Collins is quoted as saying, "Costa Vida is great because of its food. …Everything is made from scratch," he continues. "We only have two canned products in our restaurant kitchens — condensed milk and evaporated milk for making our desserts: flan, key lime pie, and tres leches cake."
Arctic Circle
Aside from their signature fry sauce, Arctic Circle has been serving up delicious favorites such as the Brown Topper, Black Angus burgers and Alaskan halibut since the original location opened in Salt Lake City in 1950. Today, the restaurant has more than 70 locations in seven states.
Almost everyone knows that Utahns are famous for their fry sauce affinity. The funny thing is that there's a bit of controversy over who the original fry sauce inventor was. But if you ask Arctic Circle's president Kasey Christensen, there's no question about who first came up with the idea.
"Some other chains and restaurateurs also claim as well that they created fry sauce, but we're confident in our history and knowledge here that Arctic Circle was the birthplace of fry sauce before it ever became popular anywhere else," Christensen told the food website Eater in 2016.
Kentucky Fried Chicken
Don't be fooled by the name. The "finger-lickin' good" chicken at Kentucky Fried Chicken actually has Utah roots. According to OnlyInYourState.com, it all started when Col. Harland Sanders (yes, he was a real person) cooked a special "secret recipe" for restaurant owner Pete Harman in 1952. Harman had a feeling this chicken would be a hit with Utahns, so he made a deal with Sanders to start a restaurant franchise.
It was a sign painter named Don Anderson who came up with the "Kentucky Fried Chicken" name and Harman later trademarked the phrase and slogan, "finger lickin' good." The original KFC building in Salt Lake was demolished in 2004, but a new one took its place.
Iceberg Drive Inn
The first Iceberg Drive Inn opened in Salt Lake City in 1960. Visiting an Iceberg location today is still a bit like a journey back to a simpler time of life when great milkshakes and burgers at a local hangout were the focal point of summer evenings.
Founded by Lamar Sorensen, the company website reports it had the first drive-thru in the city. Sorenson operated the business at its original location at 3900 South 900 East until 1996.
In 1999 under new ownership, Iceberg franchises were born. Today there are 17 Iceberg locations in Utah, California and Arizona.
Chuck-A-Rama
Sometimes you want to go to a restaurant where "the choice is yours." Enter the Utah-based family buffet restaurant Chuck-A-Rama. If you hop on the Chuck-A-Rama website, you'll learn that this buffet-style restaurant has been feeding families since 1966.
A Deseret News article noted whenever possible, "The company prefers to locally source its foods, including locally milled flour from Lehi Roller Mills and Big J Milling Company, Apple Beer products and fresh fruits and vegetables."
The food is prepared at each location and cooked fresh throughout the day as needed. Today there are nine locations in Utah and two in Idaho.
Are you hungry?
If reading about these successful Utah restaurant chains has perked up your appetite, find a location near you and satisfy those hunger pangs. Don't forget to leave a glowing review online to help these establishments keep growing!
Craving great Asian food? Here are a few of Utah's best restaurants
Utah may not hold the same prestige as some Asian food metros such as San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, but there are some great restaurants here. With excellent offerings from every corner of Asia, there's something here for every noodle, sushi and Peking duck lover — and then some.Siegfried & Jensen
Since 1990, Siegfried & Jensen have been helping the people of Utah and surrounding states who have suffered needless injuries and death caused by car accidents, truck accidents, medical malpractice, defective drugs, dog bites, wrongful death, and other types of personal injury.
The firm is committed to keeping Utah families and communities safe by ensuring wrongdoers are held accountable. While a lawsuit isn't always the answer when it is needed having someone on your side can mean the difference between declaring bankruptcy and rebuilding your life and moving forward, especially when you're up against an insurance company or a hospital.
Siegfried & Jensen has represented more than 35,000 clients and recovered over $1.2 billion for them.
