Park City Eats

While we were in Park City, we ate some amazing meals – check that: every meal we ate was fantastic. This place is not only a ski town, but also a foodie town. In fact, there are over 100 non-chain restaurants in town (chains are strictly forbidden on Main Street & frowned upon elsewhere). Even the most seemingly basic ski resort restaurants are serving up high end cuisine (those are the ahi tuna nachos at Park City Mountain Resort’s bar Legends above). Here’s where to eat in Park City.

Best Local Breakfast: The Bridge

Probably my favorite thing about The Bridge, other than the freshly brewed coffee served in giant mugs & the heaping piles of French toast, is the view. Booths along the windows offer a front row view of skiers coming down the mountain at Park City Mountain Resort. Located right at the base of the Town Lift in the middle of downtown, this little spot serves up some of the best pre-ski breakfast around.

I love local breakfast places & it doesn’t get much more authentically local than this. We enjoyed fluffy omelets served with the best breakfast potatoes I’ve had in a long time, as well as the king of all breakfast sandwiches: a egg, ham & cheese sandwich served between two slices of french toast! Best of all? The Bridge serves breakfast all day long.

 Best Lunch at a Ski Resort: Farm

We enjoyed lunch at Farm in Canyons Resort, on a sunny but chilly afternoon. All of their farm-to-table offerings are super fresh & are prepared in a very open kitchen. We started with heaping, steaming bowls of chili & oxtail soup (Canyons’ spin on traditional french onion soup). Their chicken sandwich is the stuff that dreams (& heart attacks) are made of, but so, so good & so worth the calories. For a hearty meal, try the turkey meatloaf, served with the hottest vegetable in Park City: brussel sprouts. Farm is a great, sit-down alternative if you’re looking for a nice break during your day of skiing. They even have a fire pit out front!

Best Place to Have Seafood in the Middle of the Desert: Deer Valley Seafood Buffet

I’ll admit that when I heard that Deer Valley Ski Resort has a ginormous seafood buffet, I was a little skeptical: how could a ski resort that is basically in the middle of a desert have good seafood? A visit to this Park City institution on a busy Saturday night made me a believer.

Five stations of seafood goodness (along with their world-famous BBQ ribs) feed hungry skiers on Thursday through Sunday evenings at Deer Valley Resort. Some of their most popular offerings include the large cheese station (many of their cheeses are made in-house), a variety of crab legs, endless rows of sushi & Washington state oysters. Having sampled all this, & more, I can attest that it is all as fresh as if it was being served dock-side in Florida.

I should have worn my stretchy pants to dinner, since skipping dessert was not an option. Deer Valley’s famed dessert is the chocolate snowball. This decadent chocolate-truffel-like-ball-covered-in-whipped cream was absolutely amazing. So amazing that B & I each had two. Along with a few other desserts. Again, stretchy pants would have been helpful.

Best Après Ski Dinner: Silver Star Cafe

The minute we walked into Silver Star Cafe, I knew we were going to love it. This homey place at the base of Park City Mountain Resort looks like the inside of your friend’s mountain cabin: rustic, comfortable, very après ski. On Friday nights, they have live music. Sometimes, live music in restaurants can be loud & annoying, but in this case was the perfect acoustic accompaniment to our meal. Reservations are a must in this tiny place, which only seats about 50 people (however, during the summer they have a huge patio).

We started sharing a small plate of shrimp & grits, which was straight out of New Orleans. The dish was perfectly spicy & is a great option as a starter for two or a hefty lunch for one. The fresh beet salad which came next was colorful & really let the beets shine through without being overpowered by cheese. B’s butternut squash soup was tasty & super thick.

We both had salmon for dinner, which is usually the “safe” option on a menu, but was a winner at Silver Star. Ours was cooked perfectly & served with a  great selection of beans, brussels sprouts & a butternut squash puree. For dessert, while I curled up with a cup of mulled wine, B dove into a carrot cake which he described as “absolutely fantastic.” My pear & blueberry cobbler was a little disappointing, but I partially blame myself for trying to be healthy. Should have stuck with the chocolate cake!

Many of our meals were hosted by the amazing restaurants mentioned in this post or by the lovely folks at Visit Park City. All opinions, of course, are my own. Seriously, we ate very well on this trip!