{"id":2452160,"date":"2019-12-12T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2019-12-12T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=317505"},"modified":"2019-12-12T11:30:00","modified_gmt":"2019-12-12T18:30:00","slug":"food-matters-renaissance-art","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/food-matters-renaissance-art\/","title":{"rendered":"Food Matters: Renaissance art"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If food is art \u2014 if eating an exquisite meal is on par with attending a spirited concert or viewing an esteemed painting \u2014 then Rob Ittner is leading a one-man traveling exhibition.<\/p>\n

On Dec. 17, the chef-entrepreneur revives Rustique Bistro \u2014 which he operated for nearly 20 years on Hopkins Avenue in Aspen and closed this past April \u2014 during a special pop-up dinner at Anderson Ranch to conclude the art mecca\u2019s annual Holiday Open House. \u201cRustique at the Ranch\u201d will showcase a multicourse, family-style supper of classic dishes from the beloved restaurant, served in the Snowmass Village property\u2019s Schermer Meeting Hall beginning promptly at 7 p.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make it more elegant,\u201d says Anderson Ranch marketing director Katherine Roberts. \u201cNot to take away from the homespun fun of the event, but something new and dynamic.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Rustique Bistro resurrection fits naturally at Anderson Ranch, home to more than two dozen resident artists who invite the public into their creative workspaces and offer studio tours and talks during the free Holiday Open House. Ittner believes that this culinary enhancement to the 25-year-plus tradition will bring newcomers to the Ranch, \u201can international art treasure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beginning in 2013, Ittner ran the subterranean Cooking School of Aspen \u2014 a 2.0 revival from an earlier iteration that launched in the 1990s, then closed around 2007 \u2014 guided by an artful philosophy.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy whole mission with the Cooking School and Rustique: food is art,\u201d Ittner says. \u201cI think it quite often gets ignored as an art form. Just like listening to something at the Music Tent or going into an art gallery, experiencing a meal is a form of art. It\u2019s something you\u2019re going to remember for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rustique at the Ranch \u2014 priced at $50 per person and featuring linens and servers \u2014 reprises iconic dishes that persevered for almost two decades. To start: Rustique\u2019s spinach salad with bacon lardons, goat cheese crostini, and shallot vinaigrette, alongside shared appetizers including the restaurant\u2019s famed roasted mushroom-truffle mac and cheese. Three-time winner of the bygone Aspen Mac and Cheese Festival, the dish of creamy, savory gemelli pasta is likely one of the first that resurfaces when folks reminisce about Rustique.<\/p>\n

Next up, a family-style main course of former bestsellers: braised short ribs over polenta with root vegetables and slow-baked salmon topped with balsamic-tomato jam, alongside country ratatouille, mushroom risotto and caramelized Brussels sprouts with bacon-orange gastrique. The feast finishes with apple tart tatin and a selection of French cheeses.<\/p>\n

In featuring such classics, the Rustique redo might be compared to revisiting favorite European master works. \u201cI don\u2019t say, \u2018Oh, I\u2019ve (already) been to the Mus\u00e9e d\u2019Orsay,\u2019\u201d Ittner explains. \u201cI say, \u2018I want to go back and experience \u201cStarry Night\u201d again.\u2019 I define art very specifically in my cooking classes: experience through our senses that inspires emotion. It\u2019s not (always) something you listen to or see, but it can be something we smell, taste or touch.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ittner shares a story of visiting the Louvre in Paris and observing a group of blind students led through a Degas exhibit. \u201cThey all had white gloves and were allowed to touch the sculptures,\u201d Ittner marvels. \u201cIt was amazing \u2014 a direct reflection that all (senses) experience art. My expression has been smell and taste.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nostalgia, then, is the ability to experience emotion over and over.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe memory of Rustique in my mind has to do with refined flavors in a rustic manner,\u201d Ittner says. \u201cAnd comfort. The mass following of Rustique had to do with feeling comfortable (there), comfort food. That\u2019s the emotion. Food as art.\u201d<\/p>\n

Passionate about recreating a certain coziness through hospitality, Ittner is calling upon former Rustique sous chef Neal Stiles and select waitstaff to bring Rustique back to life for the night. Anderson Ranch chef Greg Basiliere will assist Ittner, who serves as executive chef for the event.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny meal you have is an art form \u2014 even making an omelet in the morning,\u201d Ittner says. \u201cDoing things with purpose. When you add salt, pepper and flavors to an omelet, you\u2019re expressing yourself in a particular way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though Rustique at the Ranch was announced a couple of weeks ago and has since reached capacity of more than 100 seats, those hoping to get on the waitlist should contact Molly O\u2019Leary at 970-924-5056. Wine, as always, will be available for purchase during dinner.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe often think of art as extracurricular activity, as a pleasure of life,\u201d says Ittner, who is consulting on a possible guest chef series at Anderson Ranch this winter. \u201cI think experiencing food as art is a necessity.\u201d<\/p>\n

amandaraewashere@gmail.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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

If food is art \u2014 if eating an exquisite meal is on par with attending a spirited concert or viewing an esteemed painting \u2014 then Rob Ittner is leading a one-man traveling exhibition. On Dec. 17, the chef-entrepreneur revives Rustique Bistro \u2014 which he operated for nearly 20 years on Hopkins Avenue in Aspen and […]<\/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-2452160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-19 02:34:59","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\/2452160","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=2452160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2452160\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2452160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2452160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2452160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}