In 1965 Ramon and Maria Cardenas took over a small restaurant called Casa Grande in downtown Salt Lake City, with Maria cooking and Ramon waiting tables, sharing the Mexican dishes they had grown up with in Chihuahua. Twenty years later, in 1985, they reinvented it as Red Iguana on North Temple. The original location accommodated 18 diners. Lines formed on the sidewalk almost immediately. Red Iguana appeared in Season 4, Episode 7 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, “A Taste of Everywhere,” which aired September 15, 2008. Owner Lucy Cardenas let Guy Fieri help prepare more than 15 gallons of mole, tossing in everything from garlic to peppercorns to chocolate while Guy added a plantain from across the room and joked about cooking with his sock. Guy exclaimed “Holy Moley!” and has since returned, telling the family on a 2020 visit: “There will only be one Red Iguana.” The restaurant has been voted Best Mexican Restaurant in Utah for more than 25 consecutive years and was ranked number 35 out of the top 100 best restaurants in the nation by Yelp in 2022. Three locations now operate in Salt Lake City.
Quick Facts
Restaurant: Red Iguana
City: Salt Lake City, Utah
Cuisine: Mexican
DDD Season: 4
DDD Episode: 7
Episode Title: A Taste of Everywhere
Original Air Date: September 15, 2008
Address: 736 W. North Temple, Salt Lake City, UT 84116 (original location)
Phone: 801-322-1489
Website: https://www.rediguana.com/
Status: Open (three locations)
About Red Iguana
The Cardenas family’s North Temple location has been through city construction around it, a TRAX train line build that drove the creation of Red Iguana 2 two blocks away on South Temple, and a global pandemic that forced 111 days of closure. Through all of it, the recipes have not changed. Lucy Cardenas and her husband Bill Coker purchased the restaurant from her father in 2005 and have since expanded to Red Iguana 2 at 866 W. South Temple and Taste of Red Iguana in the City Creek Center food court. The Wall of Fame in the main dining room includes signed photos from Carlos Santana, ZZ Top, Elvira, Lewis Black, and Guy Fieri. The Cardenas family also maintains that mole (pronounced moh-lay) is the Mexican national dish, and they serve at least eight varieties at any given time, all made from scratch using chilies, cinnamon, garlic, cumin, dried fruit, nuts, and in some cases chocolate.
What to Eat at Red Iguana
The Mole Sampler is the starting point for first-timers: your server will bring a small taste of each of the eight available moles so you can choose your dinner. The Mole Coloradito, Mole Negro, and Mole Amarillo are the variations most often cited by regulars as the ones to build a first visit around. The Cochinita Pibil, slow-roasted pork rubbed with achiote, orange juice, and spices, is the other landmark dish that earns its own following. The Tacos Don Ramon, Enchiladas Suizas, and Chile Verde fill out a menu built on Cardenas family recipes prepared for generations.
Bring Red Iguana mole energy home — Guy Fieri Food: Cookin’ It, Livin’ It, Lovin’ It covers bold, complex flavor building that mirrors the Red Iguana philosophy, and Guy’s Flavortown Top Secret Sauce keeps the condiment game strong.
Plan Your Visit
Expect a wait at the original North Temple location on any weekend evening. Arriving early or visiting during weekday lunch hours shortens the wait considerably. Red Iguana 2 at 866 W. South Temple often has shorter waits. Both locations are open daily.
Address: 736 W. North Temple, Salt Lake City, UT 84116
Phone: 801-322-1489
Website: https://www.rediguana.com/
Status: Open
Flavortown Approved
Guy returned to Red Iguana in 2020 and called it “the high-water mark to which I’ve measured all the other restaurants since.” Find a Salt Lake City hotel on Booking.com and stream the episode on Amazon.
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Red Iguana appeared in Season 4, Episode 7 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, “A Taste of Everywhere,” originally aired September 15, 2008. The Cardenas family has been serving Salt Lake City since 1965. Guy Fieri returned for a second visit in 2020.