Salt Lake City: Livability in the 21st Century

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Lucy Cardenas, Red Iguana co-owner.
‘Institution’ is a moniker not often used to describe a
restaurant, but in the case of Lucy Cardenas’ Red Iguana, the
shoe fits. Lured by the promise of work in the Kennecott Utah
Copper Mine and good quality of life, the Cardenas family
moved to Salt Lake City from San Francisco in 1965. Lucy’s
parents—Maria and Ramon, Sr.,—opened and closed two
restaurants before launching the Red Iguana in 1985. Fueled
by the unique combination of Maria’s irresistible riffs on
traditional Mexican cuisine and her brother Ramon, Jr.’s edgy
personality, the Red Iguana evolved into a place where locals
and visitors from all walks of life gather to enjoy a satisfying
slice of life unique to Salt Lake City. And though Lucy left
Salt Lake City for Los Angeles for a brief time, she and husband
Bill Coker are back, proudly carrying on the Red Iguana
tradition. They operate the Red Iguana at the eatery’s iconic
original location at 736 West North Temple, as well as at
locations just a couple blocks away at Red Iguana 2 (866 West
South Temple) and at Taste of Red Iguana downtown in the
City Creek Center. “My parents loved the energetic, urban
feel of being in the North Temple area and I do too,” Cardenas
says. “I work every day to honor the legacy my parents built.”
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