Sweet Lake Biscuits & Limeade, 54 W. 1700 South, has expanded, so customer wait time should be reduced at the busy Salt Lake City restaurant.
But the additional kitchen and seating area comes at the expense of The Dispensary next door, which closed after four months in business. The cleverly named restaurant— dispensaries are where cannabis is sold in states that have legalized marijuana — specialized in “legal” pot pies and promoted the notion of “food as medicine.”
A combination of factors — including concept and food — may have led to the demise, owner David Heiblem said. “I wasn’t able to communicate what we did very clearly.”
That’s not the case for Hasen Cone, who sold Sweet Lake mint limeade at the Downtown Farmers Market for 12 years before opening the sit-down restaurant and expanding the menu to include Southern-style biscuit sandwiches for breakfast and lunch.
Lennie Mahler | The Salt Lake Tribune Customers pack in for lunch at Sweet Lake Biscuits & Limeade, a breakfast and lunch spot at 54 W. 1700 South in Salt Lake City.
Since then, there were often lines to be seated, and the small kitchen couldn’t contain the volume. When The Dispensary space became available, Cone nabbed it.
“We were bursting at the seams,” he said. “We have a very loyal customer base.”
A partial remodel was completed in the space before the weather turned and outdoor seating was no longer available, Cone said. A more extensive remodel is planned in the spring.
Now a hallway connects the original dining room to the new space, where there are large tables that can accommodate groups of six or eight, something that was difficult to offer in the cramped main dining room. The Dispensary’s small kitchen also serves as the new limeade-making station, opening up space in the kitchen.
Cone attributes Sweet Lake’s success to a strong following from the Downtown Farmers Market, a neighborhood that is being revitalized with new condominiums and businesses, and customers who appreciate made-from-scratch food.
“It’s all organic and locally sourced,” he said of the menu. "We even make our own yogurt and cheese.”
Sweet Lake Biscuits & Limeade • 54 W. 1700 South, Salt Lake City; 801-953-1978 or http://sweetlakeslc.com/. Open Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.