This article is excerpted from the Utah Eats newsletter. To get the full newsletter every Wednesday, subscribe at sltrib.com/utah-eats.

Hello, Eaters! Monkeywrench is a vegan ice cream shop founded by Roxy Carlson and Alex Jamison in 2017, in the Gallivan Center in downtown Salt Lake City. At the end of March, the couple opened a second location, in Sugar House, at 1845 S. 700 East, suite C.

Monkeywrench’s ice cream is decadent, satisfying and, yes, creamy, with everything made in-house. It’s made with 13% to 15% fat from either organic coconut cream or a combination of coconut cream and cashew cream. (The national standard for ice cream is 10% milkfat.) Vegans and omnivores alike will enjoy this ice cream.

Recently, I visited the new location of Monkeywrench, had a nice chat with Carlson and Jamison, and experienced this ice cream for myself.

The origin story: Carlson has been vegan for almost 14 years, and Jamison has been vegan for almost 20. They decided to go plant-based because they “recognize the violence being perpetrated upon animals in our food system,” Jamison said. (The couple also own the vegan sandwich shop Buds.) They had sampled vegan ice cream in other cities, and Jamison had even been making it at home in a KitchenAid ice cream maker, and they thought, “This would be amazing to have here in our city,” Carlson said.

They sought out a second location mostly so they’d have more room to make ice cream, they said.

The vibe: Like the Gallivan Center location, the Sugar House location of Monkeywrench is also a walk-up scoop shop where you order at a window. There are tables on the north side of the building where you can sit and eat your ice cream. There are napkin dispensers on the tables if you need them, and a trash can next to the window where you order.

Carlson said that compared to the Gallivan Center, the Sugar House location has been a place where families like to stop while riding their bikes or walking the dog. “The thing that I’ve really come to love about ice cream is people are always in a good mood when they’re coming to get a treat,” she said.

The menu: At Monkeywrench, you can get ice cream in scoops (in cups and on housemade vegan waffle cones) and pints, plus there are shakes, ice cookie sandwiches, brownie sundaes, affogato, root beer floats, pink frosted cookies, triple fudge brownies and a classic hot fudge sundae. There are usually 15 flavors of ice cream available, and Monkeywrench features new flavors every month. June’s flavors are rainbow sherbet (for Pride Month!), matcha strawberry and ube cookies & cream.

With the menu at Monkeywrench, Jamison said they want to show people that they can have the “the typical experiences with food that they always had, but in a different context with animal-free food, and see that you’re not missing anything.” To read more about my order, scroll down to “Ice Cream of the Week.”

The hours: Monday through Thursday, noon to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, noon to 11 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 8 p.m. (Hours are the same at both locations.)

Live deliciously,

Kolbie

Food News

Openings:

• Magnolia Bakery is now open in Holladay Hills at 1895 E. Rodeo Walk Drive, Suite B101, according to an Instagram post. The bakery has had a cult following ever since its cupcakes were immortalized in “Sex and the City” and “The Devil Wears Prada,” and on Monday, the Magnolia Bakery team celebrated the shop’s opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Another location will be opening in Foothill Village in the fall, according to the bakery’s website.

• The coffee shop formerly known as Blue Copper 2000, at 401 N. 300 West in Salt Lake City’s Marmalade neighborhood, was scheduled to reopen Friday under its new identity, Mira Mira, according to their Instagram post. Hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Konala, a national fast food chain known for its high-protein bowls, has opened its first Utah location, at 210 W. Cougar Blvd. in Provo, near the BYU campus, according to a news release. The Konala website says everything on the menu is 100% gluten free, and made with allergy-conscious ingredients.

• An Eater let me know that there are new signs on Left Fork Grill (which, if you remember, closed in April) at 68 W. 3900 South in South Salt Lake, that read Knife and Fork Grill. A peek at their website revealed that a person named Efrain Soto, who apparently was mentored by Jeff Masten (the original owner) and led the Left Fork Grill kitchen for 17 years, has taken over and is keeping to the old grill’s format, just under a new name. Even the logo looks similar. People have said Left Fork Grill had the best hollandaise in town — I wonder how Knife and Fork Grill’s will stack up.

• I spied an Instagram post for a place called Gramercy House in the Avenues that the post describes as a “tea and coffee house” but doesn’t give any other info. A little poking around revealed Gramercy is located at 569 E. Second Ave., Building B, in Salt Lake City, a pretty spot with lots of exposed brick and vintage window panes. It looks like this project has a Kickstarter campaign going for it, and the goal is for it to be a retail and community event space as well as a tea and coffee shop. I’ll share more info when I have it.

• Has a restaurant opened or closed in your neighborhood? Let us know at food@sltrib.com.

Booze (and Drink!) News

• Terra 5047, a vineyard in Pine Valley outside of St. George, was scheduled to open to the public for the first time on Saturday, according to a news release. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the winery was to hold a wine release party called “Heights and Bites.” For more information, visitTerra5047.com.

Ice Cream of the Week

OK, real talk. If you had told me that Monkeywrench’s ice cream didn’t contain any dairy, I wouldn’t have believed you.

I ordered a scoop of the lavender blueberry honeycomb on a waffle cone, and I thought the ice cream was a dream to eat. Creamy, fatty and luscious, it was everything I want in my ice cream, and I’m not vegan by any means.

A top seller for over a year, the lavender blueberry honeycomb ice cream is a combination of lavender ice cream (made by infusing coconut oil with fresh lavender flowers and then blending that into ice cream), housemade blueberry compote that’s rippled throughout, and “honeycomb” pieces, which instead of coming from bees, is a type of candy that’s crunchy but dissolves quickly in your mouth.

(Note: That honeycomb candy has some pretty charming names depending on where you’re from, including seafoam, sponge toffee, cinder toffee and my favorite, hokey pokey. It tastes like caramel corn to me.)

Normally I eat the most chocolatey ice cream I can find, but I thought this flavor was so cool and creative, with just a touch of lavender flavor, and great texture from the honeycomb candy.