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Can't choose just one restaurant for dinner? Choose three instead.
By Alex Springer

My zodiac sign is Libra, which means that, according to cafeastrology.com, it's the planet Venus' fault that I can't decide where to eat on my birthday. I tried explaining this to my wife, but she didn't lend much credence to the idea that Venus was making us late for dinner. In a rush of hangry inspiration, she suggested the idea of a perfect meal. We'd get appetizers at one restaurant, dinner at another and dessert at a third. Since then, we've done perfect meals several times at several places around Utah, but here is the menu that started it all.

• Derek Carlisle

Appetizer:
Pork Pot Stickers ($8)
Pot stickers rank pretty high on my dumpling spectrum, but I always find that they're either too fried and hence too crispy, or too boiled and hence too soggy. The pork pot stickers at Indochine, however, succeed in hitting the sweet spot in between. Texturally, they're marvelous. A quick pan sear makes them nice and crunchy on the outside, but that crunch soon yields to a beautiful, pillowy texture that escorts the flavorful pork filling into your mouth. They're also huge—these are not the kind of pot stickers that you eat in two bites out of social decorum, but rather those that you eat in two bites so you can breathe and chew at the same time.
230 S. 1300 East,
801-582-0896,
indochineslc.com

• Derek Carlisle

Dinner:
Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich ($6.49)
Contrary to popular belief, sandwiches can be a dinner food—if they're made at Moochie's Meatballs and More, that is. I know this rapidly expanding sandwich shop is known for their housemade meatballs, but I come for their Philly cheesesteak. Unless you've skipped a few meals, the 6-inch version is an entrée in and of itself. Moochie's uses locally made rolls which manage to retain their light crunch on the outside while the inside parties with melty American cheese, grilled peppers, mushrooms and heaps of thinly sliced ribeye. For a bit of extra punch, add a few squirts of their trademark jalapeño sauce—it's like Utah's famous fry sauce after it's had a few drinks and is looking for a fight.
Multiple locations,
moochiesmeatballs.com

• Derek Carlisle

Dessert:
Ruth's Chocolate Malt Pudding ($4.99)
On the evening of my birthday, we were seated in the outdoor patio at Ruth's Diner where we could watch the sun set amid the autumnal fireworks of the Wasatch Mountains. As soon as the chocolate malt pudding arrived, however, all my attention went to the tall glass of wonderful in front of me. It looks like an unassuming dessert that you might find at any ol' soda shop, but once a bit of this chocolate decadence hits your taste buds, you suddenly realize that you're experiencing irrefutable proof that goodness and purity truly exist in the world. It's rich without being cloying, it's smooth without being runny—in short, it's a miracle of pudding technology.
4160 Emigration Canyon Road,
801-582-5807,
ruthsdiner.com