{"id":2451630,"date":"2019-11-27T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=316741"},"modified":"2019-11-27T05:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T12:00:00","slug":"a-mix-up-in-snowmass-dining-options-both-on-and-off-the-mountain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/a-mix-up-in-snowmass-dining-options-both-on-and-off-the-mountain\/","title":{"rendered":"A mix-up in Snowmass dining options both on and off the mountain"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
A rendering of the Sam’s restaurant on Sam’s Knob provided by Aspen Skiing Co.<\/strong>
Courtesy photo\/Aspen Skiing Comp<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

The mix6 restaurant in The Collective and other One Snowmass dining options aren\u2019t the only new places to eat this winter in Snowmass. Locals can look forward to a few other new and improved options with Aspen Skiing Co.\u2019s restaurant rebrand on top of Sam\u2019s Knob and the Westin Snowmass\u2019 revitalized Double Black Noodle Bar menu.<\/p>\n

FROM SAM\u2019S SMOKEHOUSE TO SAM\u2019S<\/p>\n

When it comes to new ideas for on-mountain dining in Aspen-Snowmass, Jim Butchart, executive chef and culinary director for Aspen Skiing Co., is always ready with a running list of \u201cconcepts\u201d to explore.<\/p>\n

This winter, Butchart is checking one of those concepts for Snowmass Ski Area off the list with the opening of Sam\u2019s, the Italian rebrand of Sam\u2019s Smokehouse on top of Sam\u2019s Knob.<\/p>\n

\u201cItalian is so popular all around the world and Snowmass doesn\u2019t have a lot of Italian options,\u201d Butchart said. \u201cPeople will be able to choose their own experience and either sit down for a two-hour lunch or just stop in for a quick bite.\u201d<\/p>\n

From homemade bread, pasta and grandma-style pizza, to an expanded bar, live-action kitchen and slipper room area where people can choose to kick their boots off and \u201ctuck in,\u201d Butchart feels the new Sam\u2019s will have something for everyone to enjoy.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the time you enter the door you\u2019ll see how things are different. Everything we did was really thoughtful,\u201d Butchart said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be the kind of place where you either order way too much food or feel like you have to come back again and again.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Butchart talked about the new Sam\u2019s lunch spot and what restaurant goers can expect on Sam\u2019s Knob this winter, it was clear the $2.5 million rebrand didn\u2019t happen over night.<\/p>\n

Butchart said the new Italian eatery has been in the works for about two years and that he\u2019s planned every aspect of the new restaurant down to the ceramic dishes sitting on each table.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also visited a handful of top Italian restaurants in places like New York City and Chicago for menu ideas, taken notes from cutting edge airport dining options and had one last trip to Italy in the fall before Sam\u2019s debut Nov. 28.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m super excited, this was a really fun concept to work on,\u201d Butchart said.<\/p>\n

The casual, high-quality culinary experience Butchart and his staff have planned for Sam\u2019s aligns with the executive chef\u2019s broader ambitions to change the way people eat on the mountain.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany people have this expectation that on mountain dining means overcooked burgers and food that sits beneath a hot warmer all day,\u201d Butchart said. \u201cYes, we still serve chicken fingers and burgers, but how can we make sure they\u2019re the best?\u201d<\/p>\n

Opting for grass-fed beef, locally sourced foods and choosing to compost in every Aspen-Snowmass restaurant is part of how Butchart aims to achieve his goals. But he and his staff also look to offer new, unique dining experiences for locals and visitors like Sam\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely like to push the boundaries on what\u2019s expected and what\u2019s possible with dining on the mountain,\u201d Butchart said, smiling.<\/p>\n

NEW FOOD, APRES OFFERINGS FROM THE WESTIN<\/p>\n

While Sam\u2019s is set to serve up homemade Italian-style pastas, the Double Black Noodle Bar at the Westin Snowmass Resort is rolling out its new and improved homemade ramen and pho.<\/p>\n

According to David Miles, executive chef, the noodle bar open for just three months last season is back with a new, from-scratch menu that will debut in early December.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe noodle bar is totally different with homemade ramen and broths,\u201d Miles said. \u201cWe also plan to keep really low prices to drive more locals in the door. We want it to be the spot for locals.\u201d<\/p>\n

The revamp of the ramen and pho spot is one of the Westin\/Wildwood resort complex\u2019s efforts to improve its culinary offerings, host more community-driven events for locals and guests, and boost both the nightlife and apres ski scenes in Snowmass Village.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith our six outlets, we want to own apres-ski in Snowmass,\u201d said Jeffery Burrell, general manager for the Westin Snowmass Resort and Wildwood Snowmass Hotel.<\/p>\n

The Westin Snowmass Resort, which boasts five restaurants and a conference center, and the Wildwood Snowmass, a retro hotel with a popular village bar of the same name, are both owned by the Starwood Capital Group. Burrell explained.<\/p>\n

Burrell said locals and guests can look forward to all of the Westin\/Wildwood complex restaurants and bars being open early in the season, along with special events throughout the season like chef\u2019s table dinners, family movie nights, live music and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal of our apres-ski programming is for people of all ages to have fun and relax and to make our part of the mountain more active like it used to be,\u201d Burrell said.<\/p>\n

mvincent@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n

via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A rendering of the Sam’s restaurant on Sam’s Knob provided by Aspen Skiing Co.Courtesy photo\/Aspen Skiing Comp The mix6 restaurant in The Collective and other One Snowmass dining options aren\u2019t the only new places to eat this winter in Snowmass. Locals can look forward to a few other new and improved options with Aspen Skiing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2451630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-19 04:38:06","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley's Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2451630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2451630"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2451630\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2451630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2451630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2451630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}