Chef focuses on homecooked flavors at grab-n-go shop and pop-up restaurant

Beth Dix-Balla stands in the kitchen of The Frontier Room, chopping green onions to prepare before the restaurant opens for service. 

In front of a window that looks out into the restaurant, she takes her prepped Bolognese sauce and puts it on a pan, made from scratch using local sausage, ground beef, simmer tomatoes and vegetables and parmesan cheese.  

She grabs a portion of tagliatelle noodles — wider and longer than a spaghetti noodle — with a pair of tongs and gently puts them into the sauce. With ease, she tosses the pan, the noodles flipping and landing back in line. 

The first dish she makes, pasta Bolognese, represents the homecooked meals she’s grown to love, with each bite packing a punch of flavor.

The menu, which Dix-Balla alters every now and then, ranges from steak frites to smash burgers to grilled chicken thighs. It comes from her passion for good, accessible food made from scratch. 

Dix-Balla grew up in Virgina but moved to the valley from Seattle. She has been in the restaurant business since she was 15 years old, working in private clubs, seafood restaurants and more, notably catering and private events. Over the years, she developed her own catering business.  

Dix-Balla rebranded her catering business into The Salty Calf in 2022. The Frontier Room is an extension of that brand. While The Salty Calf has existed as a grab and go meal market on West Idaho Street in Kalispell for years, Dix-Balla’s new venture near Creston is The Frontier Room pop up restaurant open every other Thursday through Saturday.  

The grab-and-go arm of The Salty Calf features a range of salads, enchiladas, noodle dishes, soups and desserts. One of the most popular items, Dix-Balla pointed out, is the Thai Peanut Noodles.  

“We realized what a need there was in the community for this,” Dix-Balla said. “Busy, working families want honest, homecooked meals. It’s the ease of a quick meal without it being bad for you.”  

The peanut sauce is creamy and flavorful. Made with rice noodles, grilled chicken, bell pepper, broccoli, lime and chopped peanuts, each bite has a bit of spice, cream and freshness.  

“We would like people to know that you’ll come in [to either location] and find a delicious meal with excellent selection, delicious food, good portions, and its fresh made,” Dix-Balla said. 

When walking into the restaurant location on Montana 206, patrons are stunned by the sprawling views of the Swan Range. The cabin-esque structure is detailed with wooden finishings and greeting patrons are a couple of taxidermy mountain goat heads on the wall. With a full bar and table service, the space transforms into the perfect date night or family dinner spot.  

Staying true to their roots, a grab and go cooler sits to the side, carrying all the classics that The Salty Calf has been known to have at its original location for people to shop. The space also features products by The Rancher’s Daughter, a local farm-to-table retail store.  

The sit-down space also offers specials. That night, cutting herbs in the kitchen, Dix-Balla explained that weekend’s specialty: steak Oscar. A fillet topped with asparagus, crab and bearnaise sauce served with mashed potatoes.  

“If you haven’t tried it, you really should,” Dix-Balla smiled, looking up from her cutting board.  

Items at the grab and go don’t change as much, but Dix-Balla is constantly trying new recipes and looking to see where she could add more.  

“The menu is pretty consistent,” she said. “I believe that people want to come to a place and know what they’re going to get.” 

The Salty Calf’s grab and go location is at 528 W. Idaho Street in Kalispell and the sit-down restaurant is at 100 Montana 206, open from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. every other week.  

To learn more, visit thesaltycalfmt.com or frontier-room.com. 

Reporter Kate Heston may be reached at 758-4459 or kheston@dailyinterlake.com. 

    Pasta Bolognese at The Salty Calf pop-up restaurant at 100 Montana 206 on Thursday, Feb. 6. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    A gluten free thai peanut noodle meal is always at The Salty Calf grab-n-go market on Idaho Street in Kalispell. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)
  

    The Salty Calf is a locally owned, grab-n-go market in Kalispell. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)
 

    Chef Beth Dix-Balla chops spring onions for a dish at her Salty Calf pop-up restaurant on Thursday, Feb. 6. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    The Salty Calf is a locally owned, grab-n-go market in Kalispell. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)