By Michael Patrick O’Brien–
If you asked me a decade ago to identify the most memorable places that I associate with my old friends, the Utah Trappist monks, Salt Lake City’s Ruby River Steakhouse would not have even made the list. Now it’s near the top.
The local steakhouse opened in 1993, just east of downtown near the ever-popular Hire’s burger joint. With the stated goal of providing a high-quality Western-style dining experience, Ruby River serves up hand-cut USDA Choice beef along with all the side fixins.
It has grown to include several locations, earned numerous awards, and was voted Utah’s Best Steak multiple times. Started by Sizzling Platter—the culinary group that also brought Utahns the beloved Sizzler restaurants—Ruby River now is owned by the HP Management Group based in Provo.
One travel guide describes the place this way: “Walking through the doors feels like entering a mountain lodge designed specifically for carnivores. Exposed wooden beams stretch overhead, creating a space that manages to feel both airy and intimate. Stone accents and tasteful Western touches add character without veering into theme-restaurant territory.”
Monks usually don’t frequent steakhouses. But there are some special circumstances associated with Utah’s monastery, the Abbey of the Holy Trinity near Huntsville, Utah.
Founded in July 1947, the abbey closed in 2017 when the monks aged out. There were about a dozen elderly Utah monks alive at the time.
Three transferred to other monasteries in the United States. One —who was there only temporarily to help with the transition—returned to his Iowa abbey.
The remaining eight monks all became a part of Gethsemani Abbey in Kentucky, the monastery which started Holy Trinity Abbey right after World War II. Those eight men moved together to St. Joseph’s Villa, a retirement home and care center in Salt Lake City.
It was an unusual arrangement, likely a compassionate nod from Gethsemani Abbey to the deep ties between the Trappists and their Utah home. Most monks “retire” within their own abbey walls or reside in their monastery infirmary.
Although unusual, the Villa arrangement was a boon to those of us who knew and loved the Utah monks. We could continue visiting them and help care for them during their years of decline.
And so, we did.
My friend Bill White (who bought and preserved the monastery land) wisely suggested we also all get together as frequently as possible, given that most of the monks were in their 90s. We often drove them to Huntsville to see their old monastery and for picnics featuring some of their favorite things, like chocolate chip cookies and potato salad.
Sometimes we took the monks to local Salt Lake City restaurants. The first such group lunch was at Ruby River, based on the suggestion of one of the Trappists who had been there before and liked it.
Five of the surviving monks joined Bill White, Jim Truett (another monk friend and the first Catholic mayor of Huntsville), and me. It was a big, noisy, and happy table, so I did not hear what everyone ordered.
I left to go to the restroom just before our food arrived. When I got back, I was stunned to see how the table runneth over with beer, appetizers, and steaks.
Most monks are teetotalers and vegetarians, but given the special circumstances and their advanced age, I suspect the Utah monks had a dispensation to eat meat and drink beer. I didn’t ask and they did not tell.
Moreover, these kind men had devoted their lives to praying for the world and spent so little of their income on themselves that when their abbey closed, they donated millions of dollars to help a variety of good causes. They deserved a decent steak.
Rarely have I seen anyone more appreciative of a good meal. Over the next few months and years, we enjoyed several encores.
We tried a couple of other eating venues, which were fine. Inevitably, however, the monks politely asked us to take them back to Ruby River.
In August 2021, I was able to sign and give them a copy of my then-brand-new Monastery Mornings book. We held that private book launch party at Ruby River.
Soon after, three of the four monks who attended—Father Leander Dosch, Father Alan Hohl, and Father Patrick—all graduated to Heaven. One more Villa monk (Father Casimir Bernas) who joined us sometimes died in August 2024.
Now that leaves Father David Altman—the former Holy Trinity Abbey accountant and abbot who is 87 years old—as the last Utah monk standing. He is bravely battling his own health problems.
We are grateful to have him as long as we can. Still, we understand—to paraphrase the Gospel of Matthew—that we know not the time nor the hour.
So, just like we did when the other Utah Villa monks were alive, from time to time we take Father David to visit his old monastery home. And, of course, we take him to lunch at Ruby River.
He always orders two of God’s best creations—ribs and a loaded baked potato.
*Mike O’Brien (author website here) is a writer and attorney living in Salt Lake City, Utah. Paraclete Press published his book Monastery Mornings, about growing up with the monks at the old Trappist monastery in Huntsville, Utah, in August 2021. The League of Utah Writers chose it as the best non-fiction book of 2022. Mike’s new holiday novel, tentatively titled “The Merry Matchmaker Monks,” will be published in time for Christmas 2026.
Beautifully written Michael 👏