Valerie Phillips: S.L. chef goes to the extreme on food series

Both Pham and Brown had culinary-school training and cooked in high-end California restaurants before coming to Utah to open Spark in Provo. But their culinary philosophy differed from that of Spark's owner.

"When things didn't work out at Spark, I didn't want to come home to California," he said. "I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable and if I failed, at least I'd know I tried. Forage was never about the money, but about doing what we loved and satisfying people's palates. And it's worked out."

He said he hopes his appearance will help shine a light on Salt Lake City's restaurants.

"I felt like Utah's never really been on the map as far as dining destinations," he said. "But the dining scene is so different now that it was three years ago."

Valerie Phillips is the former Deseret News food editor. She blogs at www.chewandchat.blogspot.com. Email: vphillips@desnews.com