While all roads might lead to Rome, all truffles lead to La Bottega, at least in Vail. The newly renovated Italian restaurant has been synonymous with the sexy, funky, fabulous fungus every holiday season, offering a special truffle menu from mid-December through the first few days of the new year. Some say it’s the true beginning of the celebratory season.
“Our truffle menu is an annual tradition — it’s something special we like to do for our guests,” said Steve Virion, who owns and operates La Bottega with his wife, Elisabetta.
Virion fell in love with truffles when he was training as a chef in Italy. In Tuscany, the winter truffle season was met with much fanfare and expectation, something he found both delicious and captivating. Now, he continues the tradition at La Bottega, bringing in Italian black and white truffles.
This year, the menu includes beloved favorites such as the over-the-top Wagyu cheesesteak with foie gras mousse, mozzarella and black winter truffles. Between the foie gras, the beef and the truffles, there is perhaps no more decadent sandwich in all the land. Another favorite is the braised Wagyu short ribs, with truffled mashed potatoes, broccolini and — you guessed it — black truffles. And of course the house-made tagliatelle is a tried and true classic, highlighting the truffle’s essence with its simplicity, a simple shower of black truffles crowning the pasta.
Truffles can be added to any dish, though, so guests need not restrict themselves to the special items. And even when the menu runs its course, there are some truffle dishes on the regular menu. It’s part of that Tuscan charm. Case in point, the Tagliatelle Monte e Mare — referencing mountains and ocean. In this case, it’s fresh noodles, succulent lobster, wild mushrooms and black truffles.
The Virions opened La Bottega in 1997. What began as a sandwich shop those many years ago has become a much-expanded, Tuscan-inspired corner restaurant centered by the exhibition kitchen, which is set off by new Baccarat granite. The sounds of sizzling and saucing, the happy clang of eating and drinking, the friendly banter at the tables — La Bottega is a rich part of Vail’s culinary scene.
“And truffles,” Virion said. “We are all about truffles.”