Cache’s Classy Cottage
Tucked neatly behind Main Street, there is cranberry-braised turkey and pan-seared salmon cooking in a restaurant that is still a secret to many Cache Valley residents.
The name of this restaurant is The Cottage and is located on Main Street, right behind that Baugh Motel.
“The experience you get at The Cottage, you can’t get for 100 miles,” said chef Nelson E. Swett, who is one of four classically trained chefs in Cache Valley. “It’s the kind of place that you bring someone to propose to, or for your anniversary. This is the kind of place that you bring someone when they mean something to you, where the food and the service is that much better.”
The food at The Cottage is a contemporary American style with a classically trained contemporary chef. Swett is a culinary arts graduate, and has trained everywhere from New York to France.
“I have worked at three of the finest dining places in Utah,” said Swett.
Ashley Rouser, a waitress at The Cottage and also an undeclared freshman, said, “The food is unlike any other food around town. You won’t find anything like it.”
Swett said, “We are a step above everybody else in terms of food and service. We are not the typical Cache Valley restaurant. This is where the chefs in town come to eat.”
The Cottage has been at home in Logan since 1979. It is part of the Baugh Motel property. According to Swett, the restaurant has been leased out for the past years by several people, and was recently taken over by the motel. In the past when the lease expired the restaurant had to be closed. Now that the motel has it will be able to stay open constantly.
“I am probably the seventh or the eighth person to be in charge of the restaurant,” said Swett. “Food has always been a part of my life, and now it is my chance to make it part of people’s lives in Cache Valley.”
Many different dishes decorate The Cottage’s menu, including: grilled Morgan Valley lamb, roasted Cornish game hen and black and pink peppercorn crusted ahi tuna.
“The staff favorite is the caramelized banana split with coconut, guava and mango ice cream, all homemade,” said Swett.
The food served at The Cottage is unlike other restaurants in Cache Valley. Aside from the food setting the restaurant apart from others is the
atmosphere. It has a very warm welcoming environment. The restaurant was originally a home. Swett said they kept the integrity of the home when it
was turned into a restaurant.
“The idea of the cottage is to get away from it all without actually leaving,” said Swett. “Come and eat at our house. Our philosophy is to be the best,
but to keep it simple. It’s fairly simple foods, but we maintain a freshness and a simplicity by buying locally.”
Much of the food served at The Cottage comes from Utah, particularly Cache Valley.
“If there’s no local source then I try to find [other] places in Utah,” said Swett. “We buy as much local as we can get. We do what we can to support the local community, because the local community supports us.”
Every meal of the day is served at the restaurant. Breakfast is served on Monday through Friday from 7a.m. to 10 a.m. Lunch is served Monday through
Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner is served Monday through Saturday from 5p.m. to 9 p.m. and they also serve brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The cost of items on the menu varies depending on which mealtime it is and what the meal may be.
“You can come in and have dinner for two for under $40. You can also eat for over $40,” said Swett.
The Cottage caters not only to romantic dinners for two, but also to large groups for parties.
“We have three rooms that can be fully private and there’s one room that’s semi-private. We also have the conference room in the motel,” said Swett.
Much of the promotion for the restaurant for and after their grand re-opening has come from the staff.
“People are learning about here, mainly by word of mouth. I have really big staff, and they are our biggest promoters,” said Swett. “They are excited about working here.”
Natalie Landeen, a waitress and also a sophomore, who is a dual major in elementary education and communicate disorders, said, “I love the atmosphere and the people I work with. It’s really a warm environment.”
As word of mouth spreads about The Cottage, it is gaining patrons who are curious to try it out. Nelson said that his favorite part about The Cottage is the staff’s and the public’s response to what they are doing.
Swett said, “We don’t want The Cottage to be just a place people come on a special occasion, but The Cottage itself to be a special occasion.”
-rbarlow@cc.usu.edu
The Cottage Restaurant is a great place for breakfast, lunch or dinners. The Cottage opened in 1979 behind the Baugh Motel on Main Street. (Photo by Jennifer Wheatley)