Denver Magazine / July 2010 / Taste-Trotting: Crested Butte

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Taste-Trotting: Crested Butte

A Gourmand’s Guide to Road-Tripping in the Rockies

No matter how often we visit gorgeous Crested Butte, we’re struck by the sheer volume of restaurants every time we pull into town. For such a remote place, it must set some kind of per-capita record. While many think of Crested Butte as a winter destination, we love it in the summer, especially July, when the Crested Butte Land Trust Wine & Food Festival (crestedbuttewine.com) takes place. This four-day, à la carte festival puts wine before food (in its name and on its agenda) and supports a good cause: preserving the ranches, open space, and wildlife of the surrounding Gunnison Valley.

 Ginger Cafe

A visit to the Gunnison Valley is hardly complete without a stop at the locally loved Ginger Cafe. This Asian bistro includes Thai, Vietnamese, and Indian menu items and uses produce from farms just over Kebler Pass in Hotchkiss and Paonia such as Thistle Whistle and Raincrow. This July, try the peach lavash, a crackerbread topped with impressive Avalanche goat cheese made in Basalt, peaches, Colorado honey, chives, and truffle oil (entrées from $11; 970.349.7291; thegingercafe.com).

The Dogwood Cocktail Cabin

If you find something appealing about sipping a swank, urban-inspired drink in a historic cabin that predates Prohibition, you’ll love Phoebe Wilson and Doug Pedersen’s Dogwood Cocktail Cabin. The couple, who moved to Crested Butte from Portland, turn out carefully crafted cocktails such as the Beetnik (a roasted beet-infused vodka martini), the D-Cup (a Pimm’s Cup with housemade ginger ale and wasabi), and the Sexy Thyme (tequila, thyme, and summer strawberries) among others (cocktails from $10; 970.349.6338; thedogwoodcocktailcabin.com).

Brick Oven Pizzeria

While Crested Butte’s winter visitors wait hours for a table at the legendary Secret Stash, locals know to get their summer pizza fix from the Brick Oven instead. The thin-crust and deep-dish pizzas hold their own, but the outdoor seating is the real draw. With 24 beers on tap, this 2,000-square-foot patio becomes a sea of bikers, hikers, paddlers, and anglers every afternoon. In the summer, bartenders at the multisided bar (made of reclaimed barn wood and a tin roof) pour both Colorado suds and hard-to-find imports. The patio might stay open as late as 2 am when the weather is nice (pints of craft beer from $3; 970.349.5044; brickovencb.com).

Django’s

Following the wine festival’s grand tasting at the base of the mountain, nearby Django’s will be packed. And for good reason: the husband-and-wife team behind this small plates bar churns out some of the best food in Western Colorado. This summer, check out a few of the newer additions to Chris (host) and Kate (chef) Ladoulis’ menu, such as cocoa butter caramel seared scallops with haricot verts and Meyer lemon confit (small plates $4–$17; 970.349.7574, djangos.us).

Soupçon

This petite, Provençal-inspired restaurant housed in an 1891 miners cabin is our first choice when it’s time to splurge. Queens-born Jason Vernon, a graduate of the famed Culinary Institute of America, has been at the helm since 2006, when he came to Crested Butte to escape the big city. He’s embraced his new surroundings, using cherries from Paonia in stuffings and stacking beets from Hotchkiss for a warm beet and goat cheese tower. Pair any of Vernon’s spectacular courses with a wine from his 215-bottle list (entrées from $34; 970.349.5448; soupconcrestedbutte.com).

Camp 4 Coffee

Crested Butte isn’t just home to fabulous restaurant options; it’s also got its own coffee roaster. Since 1993, owner Al Smith has been roasting beans from Sumatra, Brazil, Guatemala, and Costa Rica for his four area locations. The Crested Butte South store recently started offering omelets, quiches, and other sit-down breakfast options on weekends and will schedule roasting tours for anyone who’s interested in learning about first crack and other tricks of the trade (small coffee, $2; camp4coffee.com).