Led by Vail’s revitalized Larkspur, September’s restaurant selection scales new culinary heights.

Larkspur Restaurant

458 Vail Valley Dr., Vail

970-479-8050

larkspurvail.com 

In a glamorous resort town like Vail, where fickle foodniks chew up restaurants and spit them out like apple seeds, Larkspur would likely be considered a stalwart. Opened in 1999 by Thomas Salamunovich and his wife, Nancy Sweeney, the essential mountainside restaurant, nesting at the base of Golden Peak, continues to raise the bar for upscale Vail Valley dining, even as a changing of the kitchen guard is raising a few eyebrows in elitist culinary circles. Salamunovich, who is embarking on a new restaurant project at Avon’s soon-to-be-open Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa, has turned the reins over to Armando Navarro, a Mexico native who cut his knuckles at San Francisco’s highly regarded Jardiniere and Masa’s; New York’s Daniel, Alain Ducasse, Le Bernadin and Jean Georges; and, most recently, at Redd, in Yountville, Calif. 

So far, the transition appears to be seamless. 

Sleek and modern, with requisitely rustic Rocky Mountain nuances, Larkspur gives you everything you want in a sophisticated restaurant: artistically presented, flavor-bombed dishes that focus on local and seasonal ingredients escorted by a certifiably astute and friendly waitstaff on stark white plates to cozy banquettes and tables overlaid with soft white linens offset by earth-toned walls and amber-glowing lamps and sconces. The food temple’s focal point, a glass-encased, walled wine vault, showcases more than 5,000 bottles—an impossibly vast selection overseen by sommelier Kevin Furtado, whose playful and refreshingly unpretentious approach to the grape divide—makes even the shyest amateurs feel like seasoned professionals.

Navarro’s menu, which turns out everything from pork belly and chilled corn soup swirled with chive-blossom oil to duck confit sided with cheddar grits and rack of Colorado lamb festooned with fava beans, is full of verve and creativity, but is deliberately not intimidating. Of course, like the majority of Vail restaurants, the prices are as steep as the slopes, but the kitchen’s commitment to perfect ingredients and masterful preparations makes the splurge worth every cent. 

If you’re a voyeur …book the chef’s table, which directly faces the gleaming open kitchen, accommodates four to six people and includes a multi-course feast paired with wines. Things to note: Reservations must be booked 48 hours in advance, and the price is $145 per person, excluding wine and gratuity. 

If you’re a hopeless romantic …there’s no better place to perch than in the intimate alcove near the blazing hearth, its mantle bedecked with flickering candles. 

If you’re a barfly …saddle up on one of the stools in the ambient lounge and nibble and nosh from the small, but far less expensive roster of hearty edibles that zigzag between truffled French fries, halibut ceviche and pork spare ribs to beef carpaccio and a wild-mushroom pizza drizzled with white truffle oil. 

If you’re a scene-stealer …grab a coveted table on the mountainside patio and behold the beautiful alpine panoramas that encapsulate the village. No matter the season, the views from Larkspur’s outdoor perch are some of the loveliest in town. 

If you’re an oenophile …sign up for one of sommelier Kevin Furtado’s “(L) University” wine classes, held weekly throughout the summer months. Classes are $40 per person, last for an hour and include a tasting notes log and a “Club Card,” which can be used to purchase a half-priced bottle of wine during a future dinner.

If you’re a ski bum …check out The Market, located directly next door to Larkspur Restaurant, for terrific sandwiches stacked on artisan breads, house-made soups, salads and morning pasties that provide required sustenance before a day of schussing down the slopes. 

If you’re on a budget …then you’ll be happy to know that Thomas Salamunovich also developed the concept for Larkburger, a streamlined, fast-casual, order-at-the-counter affair in Edwards (and, soon, Denver and Boulder) that serves a fantastic, hand-formed burger made with Coleman Natural beef. You can gussy it up with truffle aioli, order a side of truffled shoestring fries and a milkshake, and call it a (cheap) day. 

 

September Selections

 

India’s Pearl

It’s an upstairs-downstairs proposition at this new curry castle in Platt Park, where the second-story lounge attracts a cocktail crowd, live music fans and grazers who can sample from a large roster of Indian snack foods, such as lamb samosas, pakoras, onion bhaji, chicken lettuce wraps, and shrimp tikki, curry spiced shrimp and potato cakes. Downstairs, the ambience is more subdued and refined, with a gorgeous, L-shaped wine wall, spacious booths and an ambitiously long menu that packs in predictable suspects like chicken tikka masala, along with more contemporary Indian offerings like quail masala, venison curry and duck vindaloo. 1475 S. Pearl St.; 303-777-1533; indiaspearl.com 

 

Bistro One

When the SoBo masses are six-deep at the lively watering holes around the corner, you can sneak away to this sophisticated, contemporary American bistro overseen by Executive Chef Olav Peterson, formerly of 1515 Market and Euro. The minimalist space, much like Peterson’s menu, is simple and attitude-free, with exposed red brick, concrete stained floors, dark woods, and tables and chairs shaded chocolate and vanilla. Brunch brings quiches, crab cakes Benedict and French toast, while the kitchen turns out everything from crawfish macaroni and cheese and smoked venison carpaccio to steak frites and vegetable pot pie at dinner. 1294 S. Broadway; 720-974-0602; bistroonedenver.com

 

Annie’s Café

After years of doling out nostalgia to Park Hill crowds, Annie’s Café recently relocated to the former Goodfriends digs along bustling East Colfax, taking its yesteryear memorabilia right along with it. Antiquated lunch boxes are strewn across the ceiling; old movie posters frame the walls; and the lengthy menu, which reads like War and Peace, still satiates old-timers and new curiosity seekers with breakfast staples—oatmeal, scrambles, omelettes, breakfast burritos, pancakes—and an Americana romp of burgers, sandwiches, salads and soda-fountain favorites like egg creams, lime Rickeys, and hand-dipped malts and milk shakes. 3100 E. Colfax Ave.; 303-377-4244; annies-cafe.com 

 

Jonesy’s EatBar

Billing itself as Denver’s first gastropub—a British term coined in London to describe pubs that peddle above-average bar grub, coupled with stellar hand-crafted beer and wine lists—Jonesy’s EatBar, named for owner Leigh Jones, is hoping Denverites will embrace the across-the-pond culinary trend. The menu, while short, is a step in the right direction, offering truffled fries, coconut green curry, White Rascal beer-steamed mussels, a lump blue crab and heirloom tomato salad, and a red and yellow beet salad with candied walnuts and goat cheese. A noteworthy happy hour draws eclectic neighborhood imbibers. 400 E. 20th Ave.; 303-863-7473; jeatbar.com 

 

Firenze a Tavola

If the kitchen at Parisi owes you any favors, you’d be wise to let them pay you in pappardelle, just one of the pastas served at Firenze a Tavola, the subterranean, brick-enclosed, dinner-only dining room that sits at the foot of the stairs at Parisi. The Thursday-Saturday, Tuscan-themed dinners sell out quickly, so book well in advance if you want to partake in the smorgasbord of foodstuffs that litter the table: house-made gnocchi with a rugu of rabbit, tomatoes, carrots, onions and garlic; braised Colorado lamb shank with polenta; seafood stew; and herb-marinated porterhouse steak. On Wednesday evenings, the restaurant hosts family-style gatherings at the community table for $30 per person. 4401 Tennyson St.; 303-561-0234; parisidenver.com

 

Aspen Grill

Even if the spectacular views of Evergreen Lake weren’t part of the package at this popular mountain newcomer, it would still be worth the pilgrimage for the parade of well-executed dishes that fly from the kitchen. The menu, firmly planted in familiarity, isn’t groundbreaking, but the grilled sliders sided with a bison jus, meat loaf, short ribs and Flatiron steak partnered with truffled fries are confidently solid. An impressive wine list, lovely deck, live music, rollicking happy hour and monthly recipe contests just add to the perks. 29029 Upper Bear Creek Road, Evergreen; 303-674-9463; aspengrillevergreen.com 

 

Las Tortas

It’s counter service only at this minute Mexican spot tucked into a nondescript small mall, but what it lacks in square footage, it makes up for in the plate-spanning tortas, hefty Mexican sandwiches served on crusty white rolls layered with frijoles refritos, mayonnaise, grilled onions, queso asadero, avocado, chipotle salsa and your choice of meat, including chorizo, asada, carnitas and ham. The hardest part is choosing among the nearly two dozen tortas the kitchen staff concocts. The menu is in Spanish, and the clientele follows suit, but the majority of the staff speaks English if your shaky language skills don’t pass muster. 5355 Leetsdale Dr.; 720-379-7269

 

Which Wich 

“Which wich do you want?” is the million-dollar question at this brightly decorated sandwich shack, which has numerous franchisees around the country and has somehow managed to perfect the art of deftly creating more than 50 different sandwiches and uses a paper bag as the menu. Here’s the deal: You grab the brown paper bag, tick off your choices, which include four varieties of mustards, four different mayonnaise spreads, eight sauces, onions done every which way, more veggies than you can shake a celery stick at, oils and spices, extras like bacon, pickle spears and avocado, and cheeses and meats, and then hand your bag to the counter staffer, who then prepares and toasts your sandwich and shouts your name when the whole shebang is done. It’s a clever concept that works. 303-221-4660; 8331 S. Willow St., Lone Tree; whichwich.com