Switchback Grille & Trading Company

Pass this place by - quickly.  My family of four and I ate here on a Sunday eve during our trip to Zion.  The place couldn't have been more than 1/3 full, so the problems couldn't have been because they were overwhelmed with diners.  Where to begin: terrible, nursinghome-esque atmosphere on their patio, awful elevator music playing, deathly slow service, poor food and high prices... other than that, everything was great.  My summary on the atmosphere - unless you're 80 years old, this place will make you feel like taking a nap - it's that dead in there.  We were one of about five total tables on the patio, and the time between apps and main course was at least 30 minutes - I was about to get up andwalk out when the food FINALLY arrived.  My sons "pink trout" looked surprisingly like salmon and was overcooked, my other son's lobster tails were so overcooked as to be like rubber and my prime rib sanwich was passable but chewy.  There are wwwwaaaaayyyy to many other choices in Springdale - pass the one by, quickly.  Among my recommendations - the Spotted Dog (great interior and patio dining, attentive, fun staff, good food and reasonable prices.  If you want tasty take out (the inside is loud and very cement-like) the Flying Monkey is fun - good beer, too.

First of all, I'm biased because these awesome people catered my Wedding. But to be fair, we shopped around, and in the end we were more than pleased with the results.

Their Chocolate Gateaux Cake was so rich and decadent we didn't even bother with a Wedding Cake. It was that good. Even the guests agreed.

The salmon was fresh and wonderful with the best Hollandaise sauce. The Southwest Chicken was a great way to share the Ssouthwest flavor that we love with our out-of-town family and friends. The grilled asparagus was tender and flavorful.

In short, everything we sampled here was perfect. And the final dinner menu we selected was a hit. Sapphire, the Catering Manager was very friendly and responsive every step of the way.

For a lovely dinner or for a catered Wedding, I give the Switchback a full 5 Stars. Thank you!

Great view, easy to get to (Shuttle stop just across the street!), good service, good food, but extremely overpriced.

Great View: Giant floor-to-ceiling windows look towards the west side of the valley, beautiful at sunrise and sunset. The dining room is sparsly laid out and was nearly empty by the time we placed our order. Seems a lot of people who made reservations bailed on them. (see: Overpriced)

Good-not great-Service: Our server was super friendly and accommodating, but there was an issue. When one of our party (a petite woman) ordered the porterhouse, he neglected to tell her it was a 27-oz steak.  Not only couldn't she eat 27 ounces of beef (which I doubt any of us could) she specified that she wanted "A STEAK." A good waiter would suggest the best steak on the menu. A great waiter would take into account her tiny frame and suggest the best steak on the menu that a normal person could eat in one sitting.

Food: I wouldn't write home about it- in fact this is my shortest part of the review. It was filling, but nothing stood out to me. I can't even remember exactly what I ate!

Overpriced: for two people who drank water, had two appetizers, and two mid-priced (on this menu) entrees, the bill was $130. I call that RIDICULOUS. I get that this is the "season" in a "Resort Town" and this place is "nice" but that is exorbitant. I had a much better time the night before at the place across the street and it didn't cost an arm, a leg, and a pound of flesh.