The Spotted Dog Cafe

My boyfriend and I went to Zion in mid-​December, and this was the best place to go. The staff was extremely friendly and personable and the food was good for the price. Their atmosphere was also classier, but don’t let it stop you from wearing your hiking clothes. There was a mix of people dressed from business casual to hiking pants and boots. If you have a big group, I’d suggest making reservations beforehand. The layout makes it best for 2 – 4 people. The manager, James, was awesome. He gave suggestions for different hikes in the area and even drew out one of the paths for a lesser known one. The bartender, Rebecca, was also great. She also gave suggestions for hikes based on the weather and told us some of her favorite ones. The drinks she made were also very well done! All the food we ordered in the three times we ate there, including appetizers, were good to great. Their meat and fish were all cooked well. I’d give their food 4 stars (good, not amazing), but our consistently great service and the atmosphere made me love this place.

We were here for a Christmas dinner, just because we happened to be in town that day. It was hectic and everyone said that we needed a reservation because everyone and their Mother (literally!) wanted to have dinner here. But we did what we always do, stood by at the bar and started ordering drinks. Pretty soon a table became available and we took the opportunity like we won the lottery! Even though the night was crazy busy they managed to get everyone seated (eventually!) and managed the situation very well. Absolute great service at the bar, the guy was doing his best to get everyone their orders fast. The food was great too, try the mushrooms entre, and everything else on that menu! If you are a local you already know this is the place for fancy dinners, but for tourists this is a must stop, even if it’s only for drinks.

This was our first dinner out on the road trip. Started out a bit rocky when some employees ignored us as we waited to be seated — but then the host appeared and apologized for the delay.
I got the beef rib. I thought it was going to be ribs on the bone, but instead it was rib meat pressed together and sliced. Kinda like a meatloaf, but not with any filler. It wasn’t what I expected — but it was good. The lady got pear & squash purses (aka ravioli/​tortellini type vibe) — she loved it.
As starters I got a caesar salad which honestly wasn’t that good. I think the lettuce was a few days old (disclaimer, our visit was the day after xmas. so shipments of food may have been delayed). The lady got a tomato bisque soup which she liked.
I had two kentucky mules which were mixed well. With the real ginger bite.
For me it was a 3-​star experience. For the lady it was 5-​star, so I’m going to average this one out to 4-​star.

We absolutely enjoyed the flavors The Spotted Dog offered our pallets. We started with a wedge of brie cheese with an orange and cherry marmalade and then shared a bowl of sweet potato, maple, and thyme soup. omg… so amazing. I would have been perfectly content with just that, but we had already ordered the pork chop and leg if lamb. Needless to say… we pack up most of the main course for the hotel.
I wouldn’t recommend bringing little children here. You can dress casual, but the food is more like fine dining with a very reasonable price. Even though we didn’t have a reservation and were seated within 10 minutes, this place gets busy so one is definitely recommended.

Let me put it this way: A diner at a neighboring table asked my husband and I after we sat down and chatted a bit if we’d tried Oscar’s yet, and then assured us it was delicious. This implied to us that it is better than the restaurant where we were eating. And let me tell you, it is.
We dined on the earlier side, at 5:30 on a weeknight so we could get up early for a hike the next day. There were four seated tables in the very large restaurant, which has white table cloths, several timid waiters waiting in the wings, and awful pop music playing. The smoked fish dish was fine, but somewhat tough and lacking in flavor. The ginger carrot soup lacked much zing, though it was drinkable. The meatloaf and veggie burger were also both highly forgettable and lacking in flavor. Considering that our meal cost us over $ 60, and we had nothing to drink, I’d say that it was pricey considering the mediocre quality. I’m confident that the relatively high rating on Unilocal reflects only the fact that Springdale dining options are not that impressive.

Definitely have a reservation, this place was packed when we came in! We had passed it several times on multiple Zion trips and right before our visit, it came highly recommended. We booked a table for dinner and were not disappointed. It’s an easy walk from most of the hotels right along the main drag. The food was amazing. Definitely pricier than a lot of spots in the area but soooooo good. I had the pasta purses with pear, ricotta, and almonds. We rarely order three courses and wine but we did here and everything was delicious.

Everything was absolutely delicious. My wife and I both had the flat iron steak and we weren’t disappointed at all. The steaks were cooked and seasoned perfectly. We also had the roasted tomato soup to share. We aren’t big fans of tomato soup but WOW. This one is something else. Our waiter was Katie and she was just a doll. So polite, very on point, and a pleasure to have. My wife and I highly recommend this place.

Great food, pretty affordable. Got the lamb shank and while it is not the biggest, it is delicious. Even more affordable bistro menu with steak and fries along with other items. I was surprised how good price/​quality ratio is considering it is walking distance from the Visitor Center.

Tip: make reservations or you’ll be waiting at least 45 min.
I had the southwest steak with mash instead of truffle fries. The steak was cooked medium rare and was sooo delish. I loved how their mash is made with red potatoes.
My boyfriend had the Jack Daniels ribs… mm mm good. So saucy and flavorful. The meat was so tender, just fell off the bone. Overall, a delicious meal.

So after a week of being out west where beef is king I had to try something lighter and different. So because we are hiking in Zion park I know having a salad is not going to cut it aside from doing damage to my tough (although pure myth) hiker image. I ordered the Pasta Purses, they were more like Pasta Backpacks stuffed with pear and ricotta chees. Delicious, satisfying, not heavy and a butter sauce that was bread dipping heaven. Service was very good and atmosphere was classy but casual. No need to dress up but knock the mud off your boots before coming in.

Make a reservation ahead of time, everyone wants to come here after their day at Zion! That said, once you sit, it’s delicious food and drink with wonderful servers. I love how a lot of the food is locally sourced.

We really liked this place. It was our first stop after a day at Zion. I ordered half rack of ribs and it was flavorful. The shrimp asparagus pasta also was good. The meatloaf my friend ordered was gone so false I didn’t get to taste it. The table across us had lamb and I wanted to come back the next to get that. We shared a bottle of wine at the table and it was perfect. If you could come early and ask for dining outside the view is very nice. This place does get packed so try to come before the crowd. One dish we didn’t like was the bowl of mushroom it was just really salty but rest was decent.

We ate here two nights in a row. Last night, my wife had the Lamb Shank and I had the Flat Iron Steak. Tonight she had the Flat Iron and I had the Short Ribs. All meals were excellent! The Flat Bread with Tomato Infused Olive Oil appetizer was great. Perfect mixture that is not too filling. Salads were fresh and tasty. The Caesar salad was light on the Anchovy, which I liked and there was no discolored lettuce.
The service was excellent both nights. The staff were very responsive and although they didn’t write anything down, everything was just as we ordered.
In other reviews the Truffle Fries were given a bad review. Last night I ordered my fries without the Truffle seasoning/​oil because of these reviews. Tonight our server, Jessie, brought us a sample when we explained why we wanted our fries without the Truffle. She brought us a sample and they were excellent. To each their own, but we both liked them with the Truffle taste.
Five stars for the service, quality and price.

Hubby and I had dinner there after returning from a long day of hiking. The service was good but we really just thought the food eas ok. I had the buffalo burger which was fine but the truffle fries were weird. Other than to sound fancy, I don’t know why you would want truffle on your fries.
The hubby had the flat iron steak, which was seasoned well but not prepared as he had asked, …undercooked. And his veggies were cold. He said they must have cooked them earlier and then forgot to reheat them before they served them to him.
Own overall a fairly average dinner for the money.

We had dinner here tonight after a long day of hiking in Zion and it was great. They seat up to 930pm. The flat iron steak dish stole the show. Their patio has a beautiful view. You can make a reservation through
. Check it out if you are in Springdale.
Update: this was so good we went back again tonight. The mushroom appetizer is fabulous. We were both famished as we spent the day hiking the narrows and both had the flat iron steaks. They also have a great wine list and the chef won an award from Wine Spectator.

We had dinner the second of our four nights at Flanigan’s (and also had breakfast each of the four days). The dinner our family of five had here was very pleasant, especially in such close proximity to Zion and the remote setting. The prices were reasonable and the service was attentive and pleasant. For the location, they have a diverse and expansive wine list.
For dinner, I had locally caught encrusted trout with wild rice and vegetable. It was a nice dish although the trout was slightly overcooked, but not too much to diminish the quality of the dish. My wife had the caesar salad with trout that she enjoyed. Our oldest son had a wonderfully tender lamb shank that was probably the best of the main courses. The other two children had meals from the children’s menu.
The breakfast for those staying at the hotel is a great deal. For adults, it is $ 7.99 and $ 4.99 for children (drinks not included). They have a buffet with eggs, potatoes, biscuits, gravy and either pancakes or french toast. Along with that is fresh fruit, yogurt, pastries and cereal. It was wonderful to grab a decent, cheap breakfast before heading out to hike for the day. The only negative was a surly waitress the third morning who stood in stark contrast to all the other servers we had for all our meals here.
Spotted Dog is definitely worth a try if you are staying outside Zion and are looking for a nice meal sandwiched between tough days of hiking.

This is a surprise for me in Springdale. Altering hiking all day, I was recommended by the B & B host to go to this place, he said their meat loaf is the best he ever tasted, plus it is a game meat one, a combination of game meat…
First the sign of the restaurant actually stated «The Spotted Dog Café Restaurant», i guess at some point the owner has an identity crisis or may be another story. It cannot decide if it wants to be a café or a restaurant. Let me tell you this, it is definitely more of a restaurant than a café. The food quality to start with.
Our waiter recommended us to have some clams — from California, but it was really fresh and tasty in a butter sauce (by this point, calorie counting is no longer on the agenda!) Then I had the meat loaf, which contains, bacon, elf, buffalo and beef. I am not a meat loaf kind of girl, it is very tasty and gamy, a bit on the heavy side for me, but it was good. It comes with vegetables and mashed potatoes and gravy. I can see why the B & B host like it, he is Irish, meat and potatoes kind of food seems to be his thing.
Dessert was great, rather large portion size, the lemon cake is light and the crème brûlée is on point too.
All in all, the dinning experience is lovely, more pricey than I thought Springdale would have, but worth it.

Dressed in ratty and probably smelly clothes from camping a couple days in Zion National Park, I felt way underdressed in this restaurant. To my surprise it was a rather upscale spot with white table linens, buttoned up servers and a quiet, elegant atmosphere.
I was hungry and heard good things about the Spotted Dog, so I decided the dine anyway. The Guiness BBQ ribs ($ 15) were tender, boneless short ribs in a tangy sauce with subtle hoppiness. The truffle fries accompanying it were skinny, crispy, and heavy on the truffle flavor.
There’s a kid’s menu available. My son loved the buttered spaghetti noodles, although the pasta tasted like boxed pasta as opposed to something made fresh in-​house.
Regardless, Spotted Dog was a surprisingly good spot that was a huge step up from the typical camping fare I had the previous couple days.

We descended on the breakfast after the Zion half marathon. Good selection of scrambles, pancakes, pastries, biscuits, sausages, potatoes, yogurt and fresh fruit for hungry runners at less than $ 10 each — no complaint here. The pancakes were especially yummy. We ate on the pleasant, sunny patio, although the interior was nice and rather upscale.
Food 4, Service 3, Ambiance 4

The Spotted Dog Café doesn’t resemble much of a café. It’s actually one of the swankier and more upscale restaurants in Springdale. You can imagine there aren’t very many fancy restaurants in this area since visitors of this small town aren’t necessarily high-​end diners. They’re more like rugged hikers and outdoor enthusiasts ready to take on Zion.
The food at Spotted Dog is standard but I’m handing them an extra star for their convenient location, impressive views of Zion’s soaring cliffs, and the aforementioned spiffy setting/​ambiance.
After a long and vigorous day of hiking in Zion, my partner and I were exhausted, ravished, and feeling celebratory over our successful day of exploring the park. We decided to have a nice dinner at Spotted Dog. We hopped off the free shuttle at the Flanigans stop (the hotel that owns the café) and requested for a table outside on the patio.
The inside of the restaurant is cozy with art-​filled dining rooms and a full bar. It’s quite romantic and elegant. However, if weather permits, opt for outdoor seating. You must! The views totally justify the pricey dishes.
We had the hummus with pita bread to start. The hummus was made with chickpeas, tahini, lemon, and garlic. It tasted rather plain and the pita bread was too doughy. I ordered the Cedar Mountain Style Lamb Shank which came with mashed potatoes. The lamb was huge! Although it was slow braised, the meat was too dry. It wasn’t succulent or flavorful. The lamb was also drenched in a brown gravy that went better with the potatoes than the main item. To my disappointment, the sauce ran out quickly so my lamb lost the only thing keeping it moist.
My boyfriend opted for the Southwest Flat Iron Steak with Parmesan Truffle Fries. The steak was topped with a tangy and zesty avocado mango salsa. He enjoyed it and I liked the fries. We had some beers as well because no celebration is complete without some brews!
The meals are on the expensive side, but like I said, the views of Zion are worth it. Plus, if you’re looking for a special dining spot, the Spotted Dog is a solid choice (see what I did there?). Nice folks working here too so no harm in showing them some love.

Völlig unfähiges und überfordertes Personal. Dass wir einen Tisch bekommen haben, dauerte schon mal gut 5 Minuten, obwohl drinnen wie draußen etliches frei war. Danach interessierte sich unser Kellner nicht mehr für uns, daher waren wir gezwungen bei der Kellnerin vom Nachbarbereich zu Bestellung-​um Gottes Willen. Das war dann beinahe auch nicht möglich. Irgendwann kam das Essen (2x Burger bestellt) und es hat nach nichts geschmeckt und dann war noch Plastik im «frischen» Salat. Das Fleisch war trocken, keine Saucen usw…
Wenigstens hat man uns dann einen Burger nicht verrechnet, nachdem wir das Plastik im Salat reklamierten. Einzig positiv ist anzumerken, dass der Außenbereich zum Sitzen für hiesige Verhältnisse sehr schön ist. Dennoch: Geht irgendwo anders in Springdale hin!