Beaver Creek, Avon, Colo.
Park Hyatt Beaver Creek
has a plethora of après-ski dining options and programs that begin with
a complimentary s'mores happy hour each day for those coming off the
slopes, held around the fire pit. It also showcases the Masters of Food
and Wine culinary series of events, which connects locals and visitors
with the resort’s award-winning chefs and sommeliers, professional
chocolatiers, craft brew masters, and local farmers and tea producers.
"We believe we have a responsibility to ensure that our dishes are
thoughtfully sourced and carefully served," noted Robert Purdy, the
hotel's general manager. Elsewhere in town, The Metropolitan wine and tapas bar is great for an evening meal or midday coffee break. Also swing by The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch to try Anderson’s Cabin for traditional Swiss raclette, after you’ve skied from village to village, of course.
Banff is a major ski destination for those in North America, as it has the best of both worlds: snow and food. At The Fairmont Banff Springs there
are multiple dining options showcasing international cuisine, including
Canadian, Japanese, Alpine, and Italian. For those hungry skiers who
have specific dietary needs, the resort has a LifeStyle Cuisine Plus
program that provides nutritious meals for guests with specific
diet-dependent conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and celiac
disease. It also offers programs for those who follow macrobiotic, raw,
and vegan diets. Grapes wine bar is another must-try on property, as is
the afternoon tea that offers 12 loose teas, pastries, and tea
sandwiches all while overlooking the mountains. While in Banff, also try
the restaurant in the Post Hotel run by chef Hans Sauter, who has worked in Japan and Hungary and brings these influences to his cuisine.
Vail
Village is now home to two major culinary resorts: The Four Seasons and
the The Sebastian, a ski resort that has a deep wine cellar, a stellar
local menu, and one of Colorado's largest Scotch selections. Its main
restaurant, Lenora, offers a menu of alpine bistro fare crafted from the
freshest local ingredients. For on-mountain dining, The 10th Restaurant is
a ski-in and ski-out fine dining experience that opened in 2012. It
showcases dishes like hazelnut and ginger buffalo carpaccio with truffle
mayo, manchego cheese, and watercress raisin salad.
Local
Canadian cuisine is what they do best in Whistler, the site of the 2010
Winter Olympics. Known as a phenomenally popular ski destination for
avid skiers, it’s also great at producing excellent fare. At Bearfoot Bistro,
in the heart of the village, the chef is serving inventive dishes such
as white chanterelle soup and a chicken liver and foie gras parfait with
smoked duck breast, fig carpaccio, pickled ramps, apple ice wine, and
brioche. And inside the Nita Lake Lodge is Aura restaurant,
a fine-dining concept in a relaxed atmosphere. Try the pheasant breast
cooked with four spices. And for the best après-ski in town, check out Garibaldi Lift Co. Bar & Grill.
Steamboat
Springs is another "must-ski" spot overrun with delicious eating
options but with less crowds then Vail or Aspen. Chef George Morris runs
popular restaurant Truffle Pig with
a menu that features dishes like the "Fishwhich," which is comprised of
beer-battered Atlantic cod, mild Cheddar cheese, coleslaw, tomato, red
onion, and tartar sauce. The restaurant is located inside a residential
property at the base of Mt. Werner. The Mahogany Ridge Brewery and Grill microbew pub also delights with a superb beer list and items like quinoa-stuffed cremini mushrooms.
Mont-Tremblant,
a city in the Laurentian mountains of Quebec, is known as one of the
best ski resorts in Quebec, and home to, perhaps now more than ever,
some of the area's the best restaurants. For an authentic Québécois
cuisine experience, try La Savoie with a tantalizing menu of raclettes and fondues. Café Johannsen in the Tremblan.
