ML - Aspen Peak

2015 - Issue 1 - Summer

Aspen Peak - Niche Media - Aspen living at its peak

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DOWN HOME PHOTOGRAPHY BY C2 PHOTOGRAPHY (MEAT & CHEESE); ASPEN CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES (ROCK BOTTOM RANCH) The namesake: the famed meat and cheese boards, served with the proper accoutrement. RIGHT, FROM TOP: Chef David Wang; Korean barbecue brisket tacos with kimchi and tomatillo salsa. terroir The New Bounty AFTER AN AUSPICIOUS WINTER START, MEAT & CHEESE RESTAURANT AND FARM SHOP HAS HIGH HOPES FOR THE COLORADO SUMMER. BY AMANDA RAE Come to Aspen for the winter.… and stay for the summer. Nowhere does this town truism resonate more aptly than at new valley favorite Meat & Cheese. Wendy Mitchell, founder of Avalanche Cheese Company in Basalt, opened her new "restaurant and farm shop" on Restaurant Row last October to rave reviews. No doubt, the farmhouse-chic eatery and grocer will shine even brighter during our beloved—and long-awaited—summer season of abundant produce, farmers markets, and alfresco dining. On one side, a cozy 40 -seat restaurant serves globally inf luenced fare—soups, salads, and sandwiches for lunch, small plates and entrées for dinner. It's all paired with fresh-pressed juices, Rock Canyon coffee, eight revolving beers on tap, and a dynamic list of gently priced wines. On the other side, a curated marketplace features provisions fit for the most discerning foodie: artisanal oils, Japanese noodles, small-batch honey, and hearty breads baked daily. Anchoring both spaces is a rotisserie oven showcas- ing roasting chickens and porchetta, a marble butcher station f launting organic meats and seafood, and a showpiece display case packed with cut-to-order artisanal cheeses and domestic and imported charcuterie—includ- ing, of course, Avalanche's own award-winning goat's milk wheels and smoked and cured meats, made right down the road in Basalt. Along with summer comes tons of seasonal produce and f lowers from the fertile Roaring Fork Valley, overf lowing from vintage fruit crates set outside on the patio beside 40 additional café seats. Best of all, says Mitchell: "We're on the shady side of the street. In the summer it's a plus since you can sit without baking in the sun." It is a prime spot to sample chef David Wang's inventive and ever-changing taco creations—such as lamb barbacoa with chile de arbol hot sauce, or Korean barbecue brisket with kimchi and tomatillo salsa, or others—as well as refreshing cocktails mixed from Colorado spirits. Meat & Cheese might be the coolest, most colorful new kid on the block—but it isn't just a summer f ling. It came during the winter, and now it's here to stay. 319 E. Hopkins Ave., 970- 710-7120; meatandcheeseaspen.com AP Considered the definitive hub of local food production, Rock Bottom Ranch in Basalt is on track to increase its harvest of sustainable produce, meats, eggs, and honey. To help utilize the stock, the mid-valley outpost of the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies will once again host a series of coveted, five- course, farm-to-table dinners (on June 27, July 24 and 25, and August 14), plus an inaugural brunch (on August 16 and featuring vodka by Woody Creek Distillers, only two miles down the road), in the property's open-air pole barn. Diners sit mere steps away from the gardens and pastures from which they eat. Located along the Rio Grande Trail at mile-marker 18.5, Rock Bottom Ranch is where Aspenites go to meet their food—and the makers behind it. Can't swing a tour? Find Rock Bottom Ranch bounty, along with director Jason Smith, at the Aspen Saturday Market. 2001 Hooks Spur Road, Basalt, 970-927-6760; aspennature.org At Rock Bottom Ranch, you don't eat local—you eat right at the source. TABLE TO FARM 108 ASPENPEAK-MAGAZINE.COM TASTE Best Eats

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