Where to Eat in Beaver Creek

The restaurants in Beaver Creek are good. But you’ll get the best from them at dinner rather than lunch.

Up on the mountain, private clubs hold sway

There are three private-dining cabins up on the mountain – Beano’s Cabin, Zach’s Cabin and Allie’s Cabin. Despite the name, these are all posh fine-dining restaurants – and during the day they’re open only to Beaver Creek property owners and other VIPs. Which is a shame, because that leaves Spruce Saddle as the only proper mountain restaurant for everyone else. Set at the main mid-mountain hub of lifts and pistes/trails, it’s a typical American eating-shed: great for a quick lunch before hitting the slopes again, but not exactly bursting with mountain charm or atmosphere. If the weather’s good, you’ll enjoy the barbecues at the Red Tail Camp more.

Still, it’s not far to go if you want a proper lunch: just ski down to Beaver Creek Village or Bachelor Gulch. At the former, the slopeside Beaver Creek Chophouse does good steaks, as well as upmarket burgers and sandwiches, while Wolfgang Puck’s Spago at the Ritz Carlton is the obvious choice at the latter.

Lots of choice at dinner

For dinner, the restaurant scene in Beaver Creek lacks a little of the natural vigour you’ll find in Aspen. But the prospect of eating out here at dinner is mouthwatering nonetheless. At least once on your ski holiday you need to book a table at one of the mountain cabins – Beano’s Cabin, Zach’s Cabin or Allie’s Cabin – which are open to the public in the evening, and are a snowcat ride away (the snowcat is free once you’ve made your booking). You have to check out the metropolitan razzmatazz at Spago, too: and the rich, comforting standards (dover sole, rack of lamb) at Splendido, which has one of the most consistant reputations in the resort (The Mirabelle, a short drive down the mountain, has a similar menu and is also good.) Finally, an evening of tapas beckons. Sharing food off a table loaded with small plates is the new way to eat out in Beaver Creek, thanks to both The Metropolitan, and The Osprey Lounge.

It’s not all fine-dining, though. Cheaper eats come courtesy of the Mexican menu at the Coyote Café, Blue Moose Pizza, and the Dusty Boot Steakhouse.