At the Michelin Guide celebration in Denver, Vail area restaurants toast to another year well-done

​​Tucked between the busy highways of Interstate 70 and Interstate 25, in the former Midwest Steel and Ironworks building, Colorado’s Michelin list chefs gathered Monday evening to celebrate the second year of awards and accomplishments. Having taken the main artery into the Front Range, the Vail Valley’s own were among the celebrators. 

The Michelin Guide celebration at Mile High Station was smaller this year, but it fits Colorado’s tight-knit culinary ecosystem. The guide covers Boulder, Denver, Aspen, Vail, Snowmass and Beaver Creek, and all players were present, mingling as a Champagne Lady posed for pictures and the line at the bar never dwindled.  

It was easy to spot the new additions to the list since the Michelin Guide was announced at 7:30 a.m. on Monday morning. Chef Johnny Curiel of Alma Fonda Fina, which was awarded a star this year and has proudly raised Colorado’s starred restaurants to six, didn’t drop a smile the entire night as people clasped his shoulders and shook his hand. The five other restaurants that retained their stars from the inaugural 2023 Colorado list are Beckon, Bosq, Bruto, Frasca Food and Wine, and The Wolf’s Tailor.

One thing was missing, though: their food. You can find that in their restaurants. This was a rare time to celebrate the faces behind those expertly curated plates and tantalizing smells curling in from a busy kitchen. 

No stranger to the Vail Valley, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, along with Tim Wolf, director of the Colorado Tourism Office, was among a few speakers who recognized the hard work behind each plate of Alma Fonda Fina’s crispy carnitas on a sourdough tortilla or Splendido’s pomegranate rack of lamb.

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“Every one of those nights you are sitting in a restaurant, with someone that you love or the people you love, these are the joy factories, the places we go to remind ourselves why we are lucky to be alive, and these are the folks that make these places so special,” Johnston said. 

Jasper Schneider, executive chef at Wyld, is one of those chefs making Avon special for those who visit and call it home. 

“I found a local farm that now for the last six years I’ve partnered with so every summer for about six to seven months we get produce from them,” he said. “Now they’re starting on all their apples so we have about 3,000 pounds of apples.” 

They’ll use those apples for their desserts and apple butter on the charcuterie boards.

Almost all of the Vail Valley’s Michelin-recommended restaurants were present at the celebration except for Osaki’s. Brian Ackerman, chef and owner, and chef Cory Melanson of Splendido at the Chateau in Beaver Creek, Matt Morgan, owner of Sweet Basil in Vail Village, and Paul Anders, executive chef and partner of Sweet Basil, caught up after the awards were handed out, already anticipating the coming fall season and rush that follows. It’s always a mystery as to whether one or two faces in that rush might be an inspector.

Since 1900, when the first Michelin Guide was published with the goal of increasing automobile mobility, and ultimately tire sales, Michelin inspectors have been using their sharp eye for quality, cooking technique, flavor, the personality of the chef, and consistency to assess whether a restaurant is deserving of a star.

Has their approach changed now that the Michelin Guide has been present in Colorado for two years? “You should always be who you are anyways … just execute,” Anders said, shaking his head.  

Melanson spoke up, calling consistency an important ingredient. Everyone readily agreed. 

Regardless, it’s still a guessing game as to who’s an inspector. Ackerman said a guest claimed to be part of the organization this past winter, which is why it’s important to deliver every night of the week. 

As the restaurants transition to winter, it becomes especially apparent that while the Colorado food scene spreads statewide, there are sections, like the mountains, that experience a different clientele. People may come for the skiing and riding, but the restaurants aren’t competing. They’re just as busy as the slopes. 

They deliver, they ski or board when they can, and they spend time with family – these are the people creating the Vail Valley’s joy factories and they’re ready for another season.