If you know about this place you either live in the area, visit often or know someone who does. Everyone who's eaten there will likely tell you that it's a really good restaurant. And I'd have to agree. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that Tarahumara has some of the best Mexican food in the state. Everything - the familiar and the obscure - is made from scratch, and nothing on the menu is more than $11.
After checking out the molcajetes (lava rock mortar and pestle), metates (corn grinder) and baskets lining the desert-hued walls, you find out that the restaurant takes its name from the indigenous tribe of Chihuahua, Mexico, famous for long-distance runners and a psychological inability to lie. To a Tarahumaran, people are more important than things; fitting for the namesake restaurant to offer casual, comfortable and accessible hospitality.
Take something as simple as agua fresca ($1.50). A veritable nectar of liquefied fruit, a bit of sugar and water, it's poured from large, clear jars into barrel-like drinking glasses. Could be watermelon one day, pineapple the next. Lucky you if it's the latter.
Even side dishes ($1.50 to $2) get their due attention. On their own or as part of a combination plate ($9.95), it's always nice to taste rice and refried beans that don't have an industrial aftertaste. A baked potato is just what you need to pair with charbroiled boldly spiced pork ribs ($10.95 half-rack). And if you insist on salad, choose the passion fruit vinaigrette for its lovely sweet-tart balance. Most surprisingly, the mélange of green and wax beans with onions caught my attention. They're infused with such a buttery succulence, they're an example to even some upscale restaurants on how to properly treat a vegetable.
The regional cuisine of Chihuahua shows up in a classic chile con queso appetizer ($5.75). "I could eat this with a spoon," my friend cooed. Ancestral masa (ground corn) in the form of soft, warm tortillas or tamales are another deeply satisfying way to enjoy the soup-like concoction. Dip the rounds to fish out roasted green chilies or dig into the tidy pocket after de-robing its corn husk wrapping (all tamale plates $7.95).
Seafood doesn't usually come to mind in such a sleepy, landlocked town. But in a lime-accented ceviche of scallops and white fish ($8.95), it's perfectly appropriate. Better still are the strips of grilled mahi mahi nestled in corn tortillas. The fish tacos ($7.95) are just as meaty as carne asada. And it's absolutely stellar when five to six perfectly seared sea scallops ($10.95) wade in an aromatic pool of tart passion fruit juice, onions, garlic and puréed tomatillos. The effect is symphonic.
Of course, even in our food-induced giddiness, we weren't blind to some flaws produced in the kitchen. Such is life that pork spareribs (same price as above) and carnitas tamales ($7.95) come out dry. Meaty tortas with their soft round buns ($6.95 with guacamole and potato chips), though a good value, paled in comparison to other offerings.
I could accept them, however, if followed by dessert. If you eat just one thing, try the churros. Not only because the cinnamon-sugar-dusted fritters crisp under the teeth yielding a custard-like interior, but also because you get a generous stack of them for $1.50. Forgiveness also comes when there's a mesa of dense coconut flan ($2.95) on the table, generously draped with a thin, bitter caramel. And maybe a slice of margarita cheesecake ($3.50), fragrant with lime, or a vanilla cake decadently doused with fresh, condensed and evaporated milk - tres leches ($3) - could sway me.
That is, if I still had room. Luckily, there's a refrigerated case by the front counter offering most of the pasteles for take-out. I can be convinced yet.
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* VANESSA CHANG is a Tribune restaurant reviewer. E-mail her at food@sltrib.com. To comment on this column, write livingeditor@sltrib.com.
Tarahumara
* OVERALL RATING: 
* FOOD:
* MOOD:
* SERVICE: 
* NOISE: 1 bell
* IN A NUTSHELL: Some of the best Mexican food in Utah lies in sleepy Midway. Casual, excellent value for road trippers, golfers and locals alike. Everything - from the familiar tacos and enchiladas to obscure aguas frescas - is made from scratch daily. Seafood options such as mahi mahi tacos and seared scallops with a passion fruit-tomatillo sauce are delicious surprises. Desserts are fantastic, especially the churros.
* WHERE: 380 E. Main St., Midway; 435-654-3465
* HOURS: Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
* CHILDREN'S MENU: Yes
* PRICES: $
* LIQUOR: Beer and wine
* CORKAGE: $5
* RESERVATIONS: No
* TAKEOUT: Yes
* WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: Yes
* OUTDOOR DINING: Yes
* ON-SITE PARKING: Yes
* CREDIT CARDS: All major
