Visiting someone’s house to share a meal with them has always been one of those commonplace yet intimate events that make us humans feel more human. This has always been fascinating to me, and that fascination is even more distinct when I check out a restaurant space that was once somebody’s home. While there is no shortage of spaces like these around town, only a few of them really lean into that feeling that you’ve just popped over to a friend’s house for a lovely dinner—and the recently opened Roux is one of them.

Dining at Roux truly evokes the sensibilities of a cool pal who just so happens to be an expert in the culinary arts. The cool pal, or pals, in this case, are Chef Adam Cold and Chef de Cuisine Dominuquee Roberts. They’ve gone above and beyond to convert Roux’s repossessed domicile into a welcoming restaurant space with no shortage of style.

The menu at Roux does plenty to fit in with the cozy environs with plenty of familiar menu items prepared with some dramatic flair. It’s designed to help you build a three-course meal for yourself, or simply create some tasting plates while enjoying some local beer or wine. I’ve done a bit of both since Roux opened its doors, and both options will have no problem leading you to greatness.

The majority of the starters celebrate hale-and-hearty vegetables like roasted baby carrots ($12) with coriander yogurt, and harissa Brussels sprouts ($13). The latter represents some of the finest preparation of this beloved cruciferous veggie that I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing. The harissa gives the dish a nice red pepper kick, but it’s the drizzle of local honey that ties the whole thing up in a spectacular culmination of sweet and spicy.

You start to get a sense of the chefs’ sense of humor when you get to the funeral potato pave ($9) and the Nashville hot oyster mushrooms ($15). I’ll always appreciate a local fine dining establishment that recognizes the humble funeral potato as Utah’s culinary claim to fame, and the Nashville hot mushrooms once again prove how well a mushroom can substitute for an animal protein; this will be a must for plant-based diners who pay Roux a visit.

The pasta side of the menu is replete with scratch-made options—you can see the kitchen staff whipping up all their agnolotti, pappardelle, gnocchi and even some bubbly foccacia through the dining-room wall cutout. The standouts here are the pappardelle pasta with fennel sausage ($24) and the enchilada gnocchi ($21). Yeah, you read that last one right. Fans of pasta dishes that are on the lighter side will gravitate toward the pappardelle for the ways in which the preserved lemon plays with the fennel sausage and wilted kale; this one is perfect if you’re planning on adding a third course to your dinner. And what more can be said about enchilada gnocchi? Two rich, flavor-forward powerhouses of cuisine unite for something truly original.

When you get to the mains, it’s really a toss-up that depends on several factors. Those after something on the light and fresh side will want to check out the brown butter rainbow trout ($32). Anyone who’s fished Utah’s local waters knows the delights of a freshly cooked rainbow, and these trout from Payson’s Spring Lake Trout Farm perfectly capture that essence. Those seeking a fish dish with a bit more umami oomph will dig the miso maple black cod ($42), with its rich sesame vinaigrette and earthy purple sweet potato puree. On the more punk-rock side of things, you’ve got the lamb shank birria ($30), which will quickly rise to the top of your favorite local birria list; lamb shank works a little too well with this traditional Mexican stewing process.

There’s also the smoked pastrami and charred cabbage ($36), which absolutely sent me. I get a little weepy when someone takes comfort food like a Reuben sandwich and turns it into some high-level gastronomy, and that’s exactly what is happening here. Your thick medallions of house-smoked pastrami are stacked against a beautifully charred hemisphere of cabbage, then placed on a liberal dollop of Roux’s “Big Mac” sauce before getting sprinkled with a rye crumble. Of course, Roux gets brownie points for recognizing how awesome Big Mac sauce is, but tracing it back to its Russian dressing roots to create this gorgeous deconstructed Reuben shows culinary genius spiked with a welcome sense of humor. It’s dishes like these that make me feel seen as a diner, and Roux is full of moments like this for those cut from that same cloth.

Thanks to the experience level of Chefs Cold and Roberts, Roux has been able to hit the ground running. Its inviting interior does a lot to welcome diners to the table, and its menu of spruced-up comfort food does a lot to show diners that this team isn’t afraid to have a good time.