Here are some great Colorado ski restaurants.
Colorado culinary schools offer their students two unbelievable benefits. First and foremost, the schools are located in an area with a seemingly unrivaled culinary scene, appealing to foodies and casual observers alike. Secondly, Colorado culinary schools enjoy having an incredible natural backdrop as their campus. Students who attend these institutions can engage, during their free time, in an unbelievable amount of outdoor activity, not the least of which is skiing. Still, it’s rare for people to think of these two incredible perks as intersecting, when in fact they do all the time. Hitting the slopes for a weekend or even an afternoon doesn’t mean that you need to compromise on your post-adventure meal, either. Take a look at some of the ski resorts in Colorado that offer phenomenal restaurants:
Element 47
Few ski towns carry the same sort of name brand recognition as Aspen, one of the best skiing and snowboarding destinations in the country. The Little Nell hotel makes a great weekend getaway (if you’ve got the disposable income, that is), offering unparalleled access to the slopes and views of the beautiful mountain backdrop. More relevant to this article, though, is the fact that the hotel also holds Element 47, an incredible restaurant. According to Travel and Leisure, the restaurant is named for silver ore, a metal that brought Aspen great prosperity during its mining days. Chef Bryan Moscatello runs the show here, serving up classic state favorites alongside international classic like truffles and caviar.
Game Creek Restaurant
Located in Vail, Game Creek is one of the most exclusive restaurants in the area. In fact, though it opens its doors to reservations for the dinner hour, the earlier part of the day sees the restaurant operating as an exclusive club. Just getting a membership to the daily club requires annual fees plus a deposit of $50,000. Still, if you can find a reservation at this swanky eatery, it’s well worth the cost. The restaurant offers varying prix-fixe menus featuring between three and five courses on a nightly basis. What’s more, the restaurant sources many of its ingredients locally and offers rotating menus, capitalizing on the seasonal ingredients that Colorado harvests so bountifully. Of course, the price tag on most of the entrees means most people can’t come in every time they hit the slopes, but Game Creek would be a perfect place for a special occasion.
Truffle Pig
True fans of the culinary industry will need little more persuasion to patronize the Truffle Pig than the knowledge that the minds behind French Laundry came up with it. Ezra Duker runs this phenomenal restaurant at the base of Mt. Duker in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, according to Food and Wine. Duker offers a traditional spin on classically regal dishes, such as foie gras in a jar. Definitely take the time to try this restaurant during your next vacation, but be sure to call ahead to get a reservation!
