The Best Backyard Bistro in Salt Lake City Is Hiding Down a Driveway — And Nona Is Worth Every Step

There's a small chalkboard on the sidewalk at 346 East 900 South that says, simply, Welcome to Nona. And a neon sign in a bungalow window that reads food and drinks. That's it. No marquee. No valet stand. No Instagram-bait facade. You could walk past it a hundred times and never know that one of Salt Lake City's most enchanting dining experiences is tucked just down the driveway, through a hops-covered arch, and into a backyard garden that feels more like Sonoma Wine Country than the middle of a Utah city.

That's exactly the point.

Nona is a backyard bistro set behind a classic bungalow in downtown Salt Lake City — and once you find it, you'll understand why regulars are a little reluctant to tell too many people about it. One OpenTable diner put it plainly: "It feels like a secret garden with delicious food and impeccable service." She's not wrong. This is the kind of place you want to keep for yourself. But it's too good not to share.

The McMasters and the Vision Behind the Vines

Nona Bistro is the creation of Will and Emily McMaster, co-owners of one of the best pizzerias in Utah, Pizza Nono. Emily is also the owner and designer of her very successful Mabo kids clothing company. This is a couple who builds things with intention — beautiful, considered things. And Nona is no different.

Will and Emily didn't set out to open a conventional restaurant. They took the outdoor space behind a residential bungalow and transformed it into something that the restaurant industry doesn't have a clean category for. It's not a food hall. It's not a beer garden. It's more personal than both — a backyard that happens to have a wood-fired oven in it, a wine room up front, and a lamp-lit garage for when Utah's shoulder seasons roll in.

The garden itself was designed by floral artist Sarah Winward, whose work you may know from high-end editorial and event spaces across the Mountain West. Will McMaster has said that she "put in so much work to make it magical." Walking through the hops arch on a warm evening, past the potted plants and flowering vines and the low communal tables — you believe it.

The through-line connecting Nona to Pizza Nono isn't just ownership. It's a philosophy. Both restaurants resist the over-produced, over-branded dining experience that's become standard in any city worth visiting. The McMasters seem genuinely uninterested in noise for its own sake. What they're after is something quieter: good food, good wine, and a setting that earns your attention rather than demands it.

Wood-Fired, Rustic, and Unapologetically Simple: The Nona Experience

Nona serves rustic, non-fussy, wood-fired dishes, fresh cocktails, and beer and wine al fresco in the summer and in a cozy lamp-lit garage in cool weather. The menu is tight — deliberately so. You're not going to find thirty options here. What you will find is a focused list of Italian-American classics prepared with real care, most of them kissed by the open fire in some way.

Start with the focaccia. This is not an afterthought bread basket. The wood-fired preparation gives it a crust that crackles when you tear it, and the interior is airy enough to make you reconsider every focaccia you've had before it. It's become a non-negotiable for regulars, and you'll understand why immediately.

From there, the wood-fired lasagna has developed a genuine following. It's layered with burrata and ricotta, charred slightly at the edges from the oven, and rich in a way that feels earned rather than excessive. One guest who reviewed the restaurant described it as "rich, hearty, and simply divine," noting that you could taste the quality of the ingredients in every bite. That's the kind of language that gets used when a dish is made with actual conviction.

The Sicilian meatballs draw equal praise — consistently described as tender, perfectly seasoned, and full of flavor. Order them. The wood-fired branzino and the ribeye with chimichurri round out the protein side of the menu with the same confident simplicity. Nothing is trying too hard. That restraint is a deliberate choice, and it's one of Nona's best qualities.

On the lighter side, the charred cabbage on yogurt with harissa has become a sleeper hit — it sounds odd, tastes remarkable, and has turned more than a few skeptics into converts. The wood-fired shishitos are equally worth your attention, especially paired with one of Nona's fresh, seasonal cocktails.

And then there's Notes — the wine room inside the bungalow up front, offering a carefully selected natural wine and a bite. If you're a natural wine person, Salt Lake City doesn't have a lot of dedicated spaces for you. Notes is filling that gap, quietly and well.

Guests can bring their own wine for a $10 corkage fee if you've got a bottle you've been waiting for the right occasion to open. A warm evening in this garden qualifies.

A Neighborhood Spot That Actually Belongs to Its Neighborhood

Nona sits in the heart of one of Salt Lake City's most beloved residential corridors — close to 9th and 9th, walkable from Liberty Park, and surrounded by exactly the kind of low-key, lived-in East Side energy that makes that part of the city so appealing. It's not trying to pull from across town with celebrity chef branding or a Michelin whisper campaign. Its regulars are people who live nearby, who've made it their spot, who bring people there the way you bring someone to your favorite neighborhood bar.

That community rootedness shows in the details. The garden design was done by a local artist. The restaurant is sister to a beloved local pizzeria. The wine program prioritizes smaller, independent producers. Even the service model — guests order at an outdoor station and food runners bring dishes to numbered tables — feels less like a cost-cutting workaround and more like an invitation to slow down and be present.

The atmosphere gives off a distinctly European vibe, and heaters are available for cooler temperatures, which means Salt Lake City's brief shoulder seasons don't have to end Nona's patio season prematurely. And when winter really settles in, the lamp-lit garage becomes its own kind of cozy — warm and amber-lit, the kind of indoor space that still feels connected to the outdoors somehow.

Nona also hosts events and private dining in the Notes wine room, garage, or patio — making it one of the more distinctive small-event venues in the city for anyone looking for something beyond a private dining room at a chain hotel. Intimate birthdays, rehearsal dinners, small corporate gatherings — the spaces are well-suited for curated, personal occasions.

Planning Your Visit to Nona Bistro

Address: 346 E 900 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84111 — between 3rd and 4th East on 900 South. Look for the chalkboard sign; don't blink.

Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM. Reservations are recommended and available through OpenTable.

What to order: Focaccia (always), wood-fired lasagna, Sicilian meatballs, charred cabbage on yogurt with harissa, and whatever the seasonal cocktail situation is that evening. If the branzino is on, get it.

Notes wine room: Pop into the bungalow up front before or after dinner for natural wine and a bite. It's an experience in its own right.

Parking: Street parking on 900 South and surrounding neighborhood streets. Not a huge lot situation, but it's a walkable neighborhood — plan accordingly.

For events: Email events@nonaslc.com. Spaces available for everything from small birthday parties to weddings.

Follow along: @nonaslc on Instagram.

Why Nona Matters

Salt Lake City's restaurant scene has grown up significantly in the last decade. There are more ambitious chefs, more adventurous eaters, and more genuine diversity on the plate than this city used to get credit for. But what's still rarer is a place that feels effortless. That doesn't overexplain itself. That trusts the food and the setting to do the work.

Nona is that place. It's a backyard bistro in the purest sense — wood smoke in the air, vines overhead, natural wine in your glass, and nobody hurrying you out the door. Reviewers consistently call it a hidden gem, with a mix of traditional and new flavors that makes it a great choice for date nights or gatherings with friends and family.

Down the driveway. Through the hops arch. Welcome to Nona. You'll want to stay a while.