This is my second to last day in Ogden and I saved Hearth as a last hurrah to restaurants in Ogden. I really had high hopes. So, here we go...
The ambiance is really nice and I was seated promptly (it was only 5:15PM). They had a few TVs on playing black and white movies with no sound, the lighting was pleasantly dim and they had soft jazz playing in the background. I sat in a bench table with a cushion begging to be replaced. You know that feeling, lots of butts have sat there and mostly on either side. Since it was just me, I sat in the middle kind of straddling the unsunken part. That's not why I took off two stars, though.
The service was great, I cannot say anything bad about that. I ordered a glass of wine and asked about the menu, soup of the day was Butternut Squash and the daily soup is Tomato Basil, there are no specials. The menu seems to vary seasonally, which is nice. I was in between the pork and the steak. The server suggested the pork, so I ordered the pork. I started with the Butternut Squash soup, really good! At first I thought it needed a bit more salt but after about three bites I realized how good that soup was without the usual amount of salt you get in restaurants. Then the server brought me some bread and a side of dark chocolate balsamic and blood orange balsamic (how did she know I love dark chocolate and orange?) it was really good! I wish the bits of bread were just a straight French bread rather than the light rye, it would allow the balsamic to really shine. Then, because the meal was taking a bit long to prepare, they gave me a taste of an appetizer with some pickled onion and something else, again, the cracker overwhelmed the toppings. It was still tasty, though.
Then the main course is served, it was beautifully presented. The roasted veggies on the side were ok, some were over roasted. The couscous was fragrant and really overwhelming in a big bite but super tasty in little additions to the veggies. The main attraction was the 8oz pork loin, when the server brought it out she also brought some citrus broth to pour over the pork, I opted to keep it on the side. I cut into the pork and really had to saw it to cut it. I tried a few other parts of the pork but all of it was dry the server came to check on me and I showed her how dry it was, it was flaking it was so dry. She took it back to the chef, they agreed it was over cooked and offered to redo the dish or do something else, I declined, I've seen Waiting... The server asked if I wanted a dessert or anything else, I politely declined and asked for my check. She brought the check and they deducted the meal. I really hate when a restaurant has to do that, I feel terrible for the waste of food and I don't like the restaurant having to take the hit on their bottom line. However, in this case it really was the right thing to do and I appreciate that. I just have to review the food and the fact that I waited to try this place because I saw promise in the menu and going on a not so busy night would ensure a great meal. I was actually pretty sad because I was so looking forward to eating here and wanting to post a rave review. Five weeks of waiting, such a bummer.
I'm not sure I would try them again. They are a little bit more pricey but would totally be worth it if the food delivered the quality anyone would expect. I would go for the Butternut Squash soup, though.
And, if you're wondering I did tip the server based on the full price of the meal, she did what she could. read more