Similar to how that smashed peanut butter and jelly sandwich can taste like filet mignon when you eat it on the chairlift, somehow a good meal becomes the greatest of your life when preceded by a blast of fresh air and perhaps a bit of sweating.
Truth be told, these dinners stand alone as delicious, but are that much better with a side of adventure.
Stay overnight in one of the sleep yurts on Tennessee Pass near Leadville after dining at the Tennessee Pass Cookhouse. (Grace Hubbard, provided by Sleep Yurts)
Tennessee Pass Cookhouse
Backcountry dinners: nightly, all winter
One of Colorado’s unsung gems, this backcountry dining experience happens every evening all winter (along with lunch on Saturdays and Sundays) through mid-April on Tennessee Pass near Leadville. The Cookhouse is situated in a cozy yurt in San Isabel Forest, overlooking the majestic Sawatch Mountain Range. Reaching the multicourse dinner involves snowshoeing, hiking, cross-country skiing or fat biking on the mile-long route through the woods.
“The coolest thing with the experience is you feel so remote and off-grid,” says Shauna Bocksch, who has treated her kids to a Cookhouse dinner every winter for the last several years, also staying overnight in one of the property’s Sleep Yurts. “You’re in a warm yurt with the fire crackling and enjoying this amazing five-course dinner. You have the good feeling of having worked up an appetite getting in, enjoying the stars on the way and warming up with a bonfire outside on the deck when you get there. It’s a true, self-propelled, backcountry experience.
“The best is when you get there before sunset and have a cocktail or hot chocolate before dinner. Looking out at the Collegiate Peaks is just breathtaking.”
Bonus: The property’s Nordic Center is open every day through mid-April and features almost 17 miles of groomed trails for classic and skate skiing, snowshoeing and fat biking, along with lessons and gear rentals. There’s even a free sledding hill with complimentary tubes. Dinner, lunch and Sleep Yurts (each solar-powered with wood-burning stoves, accommodating up to six guests) must be booked in advance. tennesseepass.com/cookhouse
Arapahoe Basin
Moonlight Dinners: March 7, April 4
Unsurprisingly, A-Basin offers numerous ways to arrive at a good meal by way of lung and leg power. These events have become so popular that they fill up quickly once registration is available. The Basin’s Moonlight Dinners offer a chance to skin (or take the chairlift) up to Black Mountain Lodge at mid-mountain for a massive, multicourse buffet dinner (with a theme) and a live musician.
Uphill N’ Chill breakfast: Jan. 30, Feb. 28
Begin your day in a similar fashion with Uphill N’ Chill, an early-morning skin up to Black Mountain Lodge, rewarded with a hearty (chicken and waffles, anyone?) chef-prepared buffet breakfast.
Progressive Skinner’s Dinner: April 24
Launched last season, the crown jewel of the Basin’s adventure dining offerings is the Progressive Skinner’s Dinner, each of its four courses requiring some traveling. The hardest haul is right from the get-go; from then on, gravity is on your side. You start by slapping your skins to your skis or board at the base of the mountain and shuffling about 1,800 vertical feet to il Rifugio, North America’s highest restaurant at 2,456 feet. There, you are offered a spritz toast and scrumptious Italian-themed first course. Then ski or snowboard down to Steilhang, the German/Austrian themed hut, to sit down for your next course while catching the amazing view of the setting sun on the East Wall cliffs outside the window. The main course (last year it featured fresh seafood paella) and gastronomy buffet happens at mid-mountain’s Black Mountain Lodge. Save a little room, though, because the evening finishes with a final ski down to the 6th Alley in the base area A-Frame for dessert and live music. arapahoebasin.com
Buttermilk Full Moon Dinners
Monthly, every full moon through April
Slog to the top of Buttermilk Mountain to the Cliffhouse Restaurant for a Full Moon Dinner. (Provided by the Cliffhouse)
Aspen’s uphillers are just as passionate as its downhill enthusiasts, which is why each time there’s a full moon, between 300 and 500 people don headlamps, slap skins on their skis or boards and slog to the top of Buttermilk Mountain to The Cliffhouse Restaurant. Here, a festive bonfire, live music and á la carte access to the restaurant’s full food and bar menu (including the Mongolian BBQ) await.
“I love how dedicated our community is to uphilling,” says Aspen Snowmass’ Hannah Dixon, who regularly participates in the Full Moon Dinners. “The Cliffhouse is packed every time, even on nights when it’s dumping snow. The Full Moon uphills are such a unique way to gather with the community. There is truly nothing like the feeling of skiing fresh corduroy, or sometimes powder, under the moonlight after a warming bowl of noodles.”
An Aspen Snowmass Uphill Pass ($74 for the season) is required, but otherwise the Full Moon Dinners are free to attend (the cost of the meal food is based on a la carte pricing). The Cliffhouse is open from 5 to 8 p.m. for the Full Moon Dinners. Alpine touring or telemark skis, boots and skins are available to rent at Ute Mountaineer in Aspen. aspensnowmass.com
Beaver Creek
On-mountain cabin dinners, nightly
Tucking under a blanket in the back of a Snowcat-drawn, open-air sleigh to get to your gourmet dinner brings an instant chill of excitement at Beaver Creek. (Eric Dunn, provided by Beaver Creek)
Tucking under a blanket in the back of a Snowcat-drawn, open-air sleigh to get to your gourmet dinner brings an instant chill of excitement (as well as an actual chill) as you make your way amid snow-flocked trees up the slopes to one of three luxury log cabins. The fare at Beano’s Cabin favors Colorado-sourced meats, cheeses and veggies, while Allie’s Cabin leans toward the rich flavors of northern Italy. Zach’s Cabin, meanwhile, casts a vast European-inspired net, from schnitzel to fondue. Sleighs to Beano’s (closed Sunday and Monday except during holidays) and Allie’s (closed Monday and Tuesday except during holidays) pick up at the base of the slopes in Beaver Creek Village. Zach’s (closed Tuesday and Wednesday except during holidays) sleigh picks up outside of the Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch. beavercreek.com
Copper Mountain
Aerie Sunset Ski dinners, March 15, March 21
The culinary spread at The Aerie on Copper Mountain is bountiful, ranging from tacos to pasta, seafood, salads, chili and upscale desserts (oh, the desserts!). (Curtis DeVore, provided by Copper Mountain)
Cutting out the uphill element and ideal for skiers and riders who love open slopes and never feel like they get in enough runs during the day, Copper Mountain welcomes the arrival of longer spring days with the opportunity to experience the lift-served slopes exclusively with only a few dozen others, in late afternoon. After the chairlifts close to the general public at 4 p.m., sunset skiers and riders will be able to access the Excelerator and American Eagle lifts from 4 to 7 p.m., skiing to their heart’s content while also dipping into The Aerie lodge at mid-mountain to indulge in a variety of gourmet food stations.
The culinary spread is bountiful, ranging from tacos to pasta, seafood, salads, chili and upscale desserts (oh, the desserts!). Aerie’s bar is also open throughout the event, with live bands and DJs providing the soundtrack. At the end of the evening, you’ll have the option to ski back down to the base or download on the gondola as the sun makes its final dip below the peaks. coppercolorado.com
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