Junah
At Junah the arancini is shaped like an onigiri, the triangular Japanese rice ball, and made with risotto rice around buffalo burrata and topped with salmon roe in ponzu.
Why go
Hiro Tagai and Felipe Oliveira, who run the ramen shop Koyoté in Marmalade, opened Junah in Central Ninth in March 2025 to cook itameshi, the Japanese word for Italian food as Japan cooks it (Utah Stories). Oliveira, who grew up in Belo Horizonte in Brazil, was executive chef at Valter's Osteria and at Per Noi. Tagai grew up in Utah and trained in ramen shops in Japan. He spent a week eating at itameshi restaurants in Japan to gather ideas for the menu. Oliveira told Salt Lake Sideways in 2026 who the result is cooked for: We are in Utah. Not in Japan
(Salt Lake Sideways).
Ted Scheffler of Utah Stories ate here in November 2025 and agreed with friends who had found the menu Italian: Junah skews far more to Italy than to Japan
(Utah Stories). Go anyway. Scheffler himself called the cooking very good,
fusion or not. Alex Springer of City Weekly put Junah first on his list of 2025's best dishes: It's rare to encounter a restaurant that fires on all cylinders the way that Junah does
(City Weekly). In January 2026 the James Beard Foundation named it a semifinalist for Best New Restaurant (James Beard Foundation).
The room is small, with a four-seat counter facing the kitchen (Salt Lake Sideways). Scheffler went on a full Saturday night and was surprised that he could hear my wife speak, sitting across from me at our table
(Utah Stories).
Start with the Aurora crudo. Oliveira has shima aji (striped jack, a sushi fish) flown in from Japan every week for it (Salt Lake Sideways). The fish comes sliced thinner than sashimi, almost like a carpaccio, with mandarin, fennel and a champagne vinaigrette (Salt Lake Magazine). Lydia Martinez of Salt Lake Magazine wrote of the fish in 2025: It's firm, sweet, buttery, and has a clean finish
(Salt Lake Magazine). Then have the tartare di manzo, minced raw tenderloin on four pieces of potato pavé under a Parmigiano foam. Springer was still thinking about it at the end of 2025 (City Weekly). Scheffler called it one of the very best interpretations of beef tartare I've ever encountered
(Utah Stories).
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Aurora crudo of shima aji, $19 in November 2025 (Lydia Martinez, Salt Lake Magazine, 2025).3
- Order: the tartare di manzo on potato pavé, $18 in November 2025 (Ted Scheffler, Utah Stories, 2025).2
- Order: the tagliolino al mentaiko, thin house pasta in a sauce of mentaiko (seasoned pollock roe) with shiso, $23 in November 2025. Alex Springer (City Weekly, 2025):
the briny wonders of a mentaiko-infused pasta sauce.
4 - Order: the glazed maitake on a garlic potato foam. Lydia Martinez (Salt Lake Magazine, 2025):
the mushrooms are crispy, sweet and sticky, served with shaved cured egg yolk on top for a salty, umami finish.
3 - Order: the Atlantic cod. Alex Springer (City Weekly, 2025) remembered
its crisp miso glaze.
4 - Drink: a glass of rosé with the crudo, as Lydia Martinez (Salt Lake Magazine, 2025) recommends.3
What locals & experts say
- Ted Scheffler, Utah Stories (2025):
the atmosphere is lovely, and the service is second to none.
2 - Kim Bojórquez, Axios Salt Lake City, in the opening week (March 2025):
My favorite was a tagliolini pasta dish cooked in clam broth and a dry white wine sauce.
5 - Salt Lake Magazine Dining Awards, Restaurants to Watch (2026):
chefs Hiro Tagai and Felipe Oliveira have done with both flair and substance at Junah.
8
Good to know
- When: dinner only, Tuesday to Saturday. Shut Sunday and Monday (the house's site, September 2026).
- Booking: book on OpenTable through junahslc.com, or call (801) 382-9182.
- Price: in November 2025 the small plates ran $11 to $19, the pastas $23 to $31 and the tagliata steak $44, with a glass of Gavi at $17 (Utah Stories).
- Drinks: in 2025 Scheffler found no cocktails, about fifteen wines, sake and beers from Japan, Brazil, France and Italy.
- Where: 916 South Jefferson Street, Suite B, in Central Ninth.
Verdict
should-visit — Book dinner for the beef tartare and the raw striped jack from the two chefs behind Koyoté. Ted Scheffler found the menu leaning Italian and a full Saturday room quiet enough to talk. Plates ran $11 to $44 when he ate in November 2025.