Dining out: Harry's Bar and Grill

Harry's is the kind of place that's immediately appealing to many guys.

After all, it's in the E Center, a sports venue, which right away gives it some "man cred." The menu focuses on such specialties as steak, chops and prime rib, all traditional favorites with the fellas.

And despite my evening at Harry's, in which my husband had a much better dining experience than I, I still think the place can appeal to the gals, as well.

My husband and I had a quiet dinner at Harry's on a recent weeknight. It's a great place to unwind, with a casual, clubby-but-elegant atmosphere and great views of the Salt Lake valley to the south and cheering E Center crowds to the north. I liked our cozy half-round booth, with soft amber lights filtering down on us.

We started with the lettuce cups, sliced ribeye steak with "Korean-style" marinade in big, fresh lettuce leaves with pine nuts, and a confetti of red and green peppers scattered on top. The portions were ample and the sweet-tangy sauce complemented the lean beef. They're quite drippy to eat with your fingers, but the extra effort and sticky fingers are worth it.

For dinner, my husband had the 8-ounce filet mignon. Though he commits the (to me) heresy of ordering his steak medium-well, Harry's accomplished the tricky task of delivering an exactly cooked steak with a wonderful, full-flavored sear and a juicy, tender inside. The accompanying baked potato was plump and fluffy.

Alas, my dinner was not so successful. My grilled salmon was well-cooked but came with a heavy coating of red sauce that tasted a bit like barbecue. To my palate, the sauce was too assertive for a delicately flavored fish like salmon, especially the very tender and pink fish served at Harry's.

The salmon came with nicely grilled bell peppers, zucchini and asparagus split lengthwise, which I enjoyed, and au gratin potatoes, which were a little strange. Despite a thick, creamy coating, the potatoes and sliced onions hardly tasted of cheese at all. It was more like thickened cream, cream cheese or very mild sour cream — not exactly what you expect in au gratin potatoes.

For dessert, I hoped to try the green-tea tiramisu — after all, Harry's is owned by the same company that runs Mikado, which serves up a delightful green-tea tiramisu — but it was unavailable the night we visited.

Instead, I had the bananas Foster, which I wouldn't try again. The bananas, which should have been gently cooked in caramelized sugar and rum, were basically raw, and the sauce was thick, gluey and a little bitter. The dish was served with a nice vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce.