Big Dipper Is Reinventing the French Dip in Salt Lake City — And the World Is the Menu

There's a moment that happens at Big Dipper Sandwiches. You pick up the Seoul'd Out — house-roasted beef, kimchi, yakisoba noodles, a fried egg, kalbi ketchup, and sesame-ginger mayo all piled onto a bun — and before you even take a bite, someone slides a small bowl of ramen broth across the counter toward you. And you think: wait, that's genius.

That's the whole idea, and it hits you immediately. As one Yelp reviewer put it, "Seoul'd Out might have been the best sandwich I've had in Utah." High praise in a state that's been quietly building one of the most exciting food scenes in the Mountain West. But Big Dipper isn't just a great sandwich shop. It's a world food passport stapled between two pieces of bread — a place where the French dip, that quintessentially American invention, gets reimagined through the lens of Korean street food, Vietnamese banh mi, Cuban sandwiches, and Alpine German flavors.

And it all started with one very good idea in Park City.

How a Simple Concept Became Utah's Most Creative Sandwich Shop

The origin story of Big Dipper is refreshingly honest. Partners Matthew Safranek, Cortney Johanson, and Fabio Ferreira opened the first location in 2021 at 227 Main St. in Park City. Johanson's original idea was to have a restaurant focused on French dip-style sandwiches, and chef Safranek took the concept and ran with it. 

Ran, as in, sprinted straight to Seoul, Saigon, Havana, and the Swiss Alps.

Chef Safranek's expansive culinary worldview isn't accidental. Growing up with his parents in the military, he traveled extensively as a kid and continued doing so as an adult — and that accumulated experience bleeds into every item on the menu. The result is a sandwich shop that feels less like a deli and more like an atlas. Each sandwich pulls from a distinct culinary tradition, and each one comes paired with a custom dipping broth or soup designed to deepen, complement, and round out the flavors.

It's a format that shouldn't work as well as it does. But it does.

The Park City location itself carries its own rich history — the property at 227 Main St. began life as a small cottage in 1889, passed through the hands of Chinese-American entrepreneur Lung Hing D. Grover (a remarkable figure who managed to purchase nearly 60 houses in the city), and eventually became the Star Hotel before being thoughtfully restored and reimagined as the home of Big Dipper and Star Bar. There's a sense of layers here — historical, cultural, culinary — and the sandwich shop wears all of them well.

In late February 2025, Big Dipper opened its second location at 208 E. 500 South in Salt Lake City, replacing the former Taco Taco space and joining a cluster of beloved local businesses near Baby's Bagels, Chez Nibs, and the Salt Lake City Public Library. The timing felt right. Downtown SLC's food scene has been gaining serious momentum, and Big Dipper landed in one of its most promising pockets.

The French Dip Sandwiches Salt Lake City Has Been Missing

Walk in and you're immediately confronted with a menu full of sandwich names that make you grin. The When I Dip You Dip We Dip. The Hunk-a Hunk-a Bernese Love. The Saigon in Sixty Seconds. The Hermosa Habana. These aren't random — each name tells you something about where you're going.

The When I Dip You Dip We Dip ($16) is where a lot of first-timers land. Made with house-roasted beef, housemade cheese spread (similar to Cheez Whiz), caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, and horseradish cream, it's served with rosemary au jus and is described by chef Safranek as a mashup of a Philly cheesesteak and a classic French dip. It's also, reportedly, the most popular item on the menu. The rosemary au jus is the kind of thing you consider asking for more of without any sandwich attached to it.

The Seoul'd Out is for the more adventurous. That combination of beef, kimchi, yakisoba noodles, fried egg, and ramen broth creates what a City Weekly reviewer called something with "a bibimbap thing going on — a really nice fusion of all those flavors, and the ramen broth adds some buttery richness to the whole affair." The Korean-Japanese mashup is bold, layered, and exactly the kind of sandwich that makes you want to tell someone about it immediately.

Then there's the Hunk-a Hunk-a Bernese Love ($16), a German-inspired sandwich loaded with house-roasted pork shoulder, bacon, raclette cheese, caramelized onions, caraway sauerkraut, and dill pickle, paired with a stoneground mustard-lager jus. One Salt Lake Tribune reviewer described it as so good they could have eaten the whole thing — and it wasn't even their sandwich. Oktoberfest energy, year-round.

The Hermosa Habana ($15) is the Cubano — tender house-roasted pork, char-grilled ham, melty Swiss, thin pickles — paired with black bean soup. And for plant-based diners, the Forecast: Sunny and Shwarm brings vegan chik'n into the fold with its own black bean dip. Nobody gets left behind.

Don't sleep on the sides. The Bosozuko Tots are loaded with character — try them with sriracha mayo, soy sauce, and pickled ginger. And the We're Indus Together Now cheese curds with chaat masala and tamarind chutney? One food blogger called it "game changing." That's not hyperbole. That's chaat masala on a cheese curd. It works in ways you won't predict.

A New Kind of Lunch Spot for Downtown Salt Lake City

Big Dipper's SLC location has settled into a neighborhood that feels tailor-made for it. Just south of Library Square, steps from the TRAX Library Station, and right in the heart of the Central City and Liberty Wells corridor — it's a natural gathering point for downtown workers, library-goers, and the growing lunch crowd that's quietly made this stretch of 500 South one of the most interesting blocks in the city.

The huge crowds at lunchtime have already made an impression on local reviewers, who see Big Dipper as having a bright future at both locations. The patio, once warmer weather arrives, is the kind of outdoor seating spot that fills up fast. It's also dog-friendly, which in Salt Lake City is essentially a civic amenity.

Over in Park City, the Main Street location has been a fixture since 2021 — and it attracts a different kind of crowd. Ski season visitors who want something with more personality than resort food, locals who've been going since the beginning, and Sundance film festival attendees who need a serious meal between screenings. The menu travels just as well at altitude.

Both locations feel genuinely welcoming. A TripAdvisor reviewer noted that the staff made helpful recommendations for out-of-towners and that the service was timely — a meaningful distinction on a Main Street where many restaurants struggle with crowds.

Planning Your Visit to Big Dipper Sandwiches

Salt Lake City location: 208 E 500 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84111 — right across from the Salt Lake City Public Library, near the Library TRAX stop. Phone: (385) 541-7100.

Park City location: 227 Main St, Park City, UT 84060. Phone: (435) 513-7100.

Hours (both locations): Sunday–Monday, 11am–4pm. Tuesday–Saturday, 11am–8pm.

What to order on your first visit: Start with the When I Dip You Dip We Dip if you want something familiar but elevated. Go Seoul'd Out if you're ready to commit to something bolder. Add the Bosozuko Tots and, if they have them, the cheese curds. Finish with a scoop of soft serve — the dairy-free pineapple option is worth trying even if you don't usually go that route.

The SLC patio is the move in warmer months. Park City is ideal in ski season and equally worth the trip in the summer. Both take online orders.

Follow along on Instagram at @bigdipperparkcity.

Why Big Dipper Matters to Utah's Food Scene

Utah has always had food worth paying attention to. But what Big Dipper represents is something specific — the idea that a sandwich shop can be a genuine act of culinary ambition. That you can take one of the simplest formats in the food world and push it somewhere unexpected without losing what made people love it in the first place.

The French dip format gives Big Dipper a familiar anchor. The global flavor passport gives it somewhere to go. And in a state that's increasingly becoming a destination for serious eaters, that combination lands exactly right.

City Weekly summed it up well: "I also love a collection of internationally-inspired sandwiches, because nothing quite brings people together like a good sandwich."  Big Dipper gets that. So does the lunch crowd filling those tables every Tuesday through Saturday.

Go dip something. You'll understand when you get there.