Stein Eriksen Lodge | Deer Valley

Another gorgeous bluebird day was spent cruising the slopes at Deer Valley. This majestic mountain is skiers only and quite a refined skiing experience if I do say so myself. We lunched at Stein Eriksen Lodge's Giltretind inside next to a crackling fire. (Although the outdoor dining with tables surrounding fire pits looked equally as inviting!) Timing wise our food service left much to be desired - our appetizers and meals came out together and took for-ev-er. It was incredibly busy. The food was still excellent. 

We shared Green Deviled Avocado Eggs & Ham ($15), I drank a Wasatch Brewing GhostRider White IPA, plus a glass of Rosé. I had an outstanding sandwich: Iberico Pork, Serrano Ham & Egg ($21) layered with grilled shoulder, shaved ham, herbs and pickled mustard seed on ciabatta with an arugula pesto and pumpkin seed quinoa salad. 

The #SafeAsKittens #JonsWapiti Utah 2017 crew! The Treats is not pictured here / taking the photo.

Park City + Alta | Utah

In January we traveled out west to PARK CITY, Utah! I fell in love with this chic mountain town and surrounding ski slopes on a trip with my dad and sister over 10 years ago. For Christmas Bob gave me a ski travel bag and the card hidden inside it revealed this trip! A bunch of friends were on board too. With easy direct flights from BOS to SLC, we rented a four bedroom house situated in between the Park City Town lift and Main Street. Utah's Wasatch Mountain Range offered plenty of snow - we had an absolute blast. Would you expect anything less?! 

Here's a look at where to play in Park City, Deer Valley and in Little Cottonwood Canyon at Alta. 

On PISTE: Lookout Cabin at The Canyons @ PCMR 

Stein Eriksen Lodge at Deer Valley (post here)

Park City Mountain Resort: Lookout Cabin is located at the top of Short Cut Lift and off the Orange Bubble Express mid-station. They offer table service, a full bar, and gorgeous views of the Wasatch Range. After an incredible morning that saw us up early for first corduroy tracks, navigating from Park City Town Lift to the Canyon slopes via Quicksilver Gondola, and skiing runs at pretty much every peak area including Ninety-Nine 90, Sun Peak and Murdock Peak, we were ready to relax. We shared a jalapeno poutine, I drank a glass of sparking rosé, and we enjoyed a cauldron of creamy Mac n Cheese.

In town: High West Distillery & Saloon is a must! Located at the bottom of Quittin' Time ski run - they're the only ski-in gastro distillery in the world! High West encompasses a rowdy, sprawling saloon as well as intimate drinking and dining spaces. We settled in a back room on some comfy leather couches to sample their award winning whiskey via flights and impressive cocktails. I wouldn't hesitate to make dinner reservations at High West next time around - the plates of alpine inspired Western fare passing by looked really good. 

I'm drinking You're a Daisy If You Do ($13) - stirred and strong with Campfire, Ron Zacapa 23, Carpano Antica + Ramazzoti. I sampled the whiskeys in Bob's High West 101 Flight ($13) - the Campfire is sweet, spicy and smoky.

Zoom is Robert Redford's restaurant located on Main Street inside a restored train depot. Pictured is my entrée of Smoked Chicken ($28) accompanied by cheddar grits, chicory lettuces + puffed farro. I was a big fan of all the appetizers we shared like Hamachi Crudo ($16) with citrus, pear, kimchee chips + a cilantro emulsion, the Fried Brussels Sprouts ($9) with dates, almonds + a fennel hatch chili mostarda, and Grilled Meatballs ($12) made with wagyu, roasted chicken, stewed chickpeas + peanuts. Zoom was a crowd pleasing and noteworthy meal.

Shabu is an intimate subterranean sushi spot ideal for date night. With two seats at the raw bar we watched ski movies playing overhead and noshed on specialty maki rolls. The Coco Loco ($18) with albacore tuna, cucumber and Thai basil topped with maguro tuna, salmon, tobiko and sweet wasabi coconut aioli was indeed crazy (loco) good! The Nitro Roll ($19) with tempura shrimp, avocado and pineapple, topped with maguro, tempura flakes and eel sauce was another exceptionally creative maki. We paired our rolls with fun Sake Flights. 

Continuing with the Park City town recommends:

Riverhorse on Main - Friends dined here for their date night and were raving. I ate here ten years ago and remember it fondly! Riverhorse is actually one of the oldest and most distinguished restaurants on Park City's Main Street and continues to set the standard for fine dining in Utah.

Rock n Reilly's - more of a warning and not a solid recommend. With a divey alpine ambiance it worked just fine to watch the Patriots playoff game but the food was supbar. Wings came out cold, they were out of about half the menu, and the meals they did have were drab and disappointing. If you do end up here - skip the food.

O'Shucks - Inexpensive beers, shuffleboard, pool and pinball. They also have a nice selection of hot beverages - I'm drinking a Hot Buttered Rum!

No Name Saloon - I love this place! In fact, adding to my list of best ski town/après bars. (Alongside Chambre Neuf in Chamonix, France and Merlin's at Whistler Blackomb, BC.)

The photos below are from Alta and surrounding mountain views in Little Cottonwood Canyon which is about an hour drive from Park City. This was my first time skiing Alta and it was beyond impressive. (I've skied Alta's adjoining neighbor, Snowbird, amazing in its own right.) Alta makes you work for it.

We ended the trip on a classic note before catching the red eye home! Goldminer's Daughter at Alta is a sprawling saloon with floor to ceiling window views of the slopes, cozy fireside seating, and excellent loaded chicken nachos. Then we headed next door for one more at The Peruvian. The cozy locals bar on the second floor of this hotel has live music, boxed wine, and the.best.shot.ski ever. It has legit ski boots, eight of them, that clip into adorable little bindings.

Go West | Boulder Bound

My good friend Laura moved out to Boulder, Colorado last August. My best college girlfriends and I head to visit her this weekend! Travel plans work out nicely so that we all arrive in Denver within one hour of each other. We have so many great adventures and meals planned, I can't wait!

I have never been to Colorado but I have taken quite a few trips out west, absolutely falling in love with every state I traveled to. It all began my freshman year of college during winter break of January 2003. My Dad spontaneously took my sister and I to Park City, Utah for a week of skiing. We stayed in downtown Park City, the namesake mountain ski lift was less than a block away from our Marriott Hotel. We also skied The Canyons, Deer Valley and Snowbird. The Sundance Film Festival was underway, we saw a movie premiere and partook in the fun associated. We ate at all the best restaurants, I remember lots of sushi and fancy three course meals. My Dad really splurged on us that year, it was an unforgettable vacation. I would post some pictures but freshman year of college I was still using disposable cameras. Same goes for that Summer when my Mom took me to Bozeman, Montana. I was captivated by Montana in all her big sky glory from the moment I stepped foot off the airplane. We had family out there at the time, so with them we did a lot of hiking, dancing around bonfires, swimming in hot springs, white water rafting and a road trip south through Yellowstone National Park to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It was simply incredible. I didn't travel back out west until June of 2008 with Adam to Las Vegas, Nevada! We spent 5 amazing days in the "desert" carousing the strip from our home base of The Flamingo Hotel. We also took a day trip to visit the Hoover Dam which is an incredible site to behold.

I flew solo to San Francisco, California in November of 2008 for my best friend Jen's 25th birthday celebrations. I was a Pacific Ocean virgin at 24 years old, so this was pretty cool. 

The epic view from Lower Pacific Heights where Jen lives. She remarked you can rarely see across the bay due to intense fog (of course!) It was a rare and unbelievably clear afternoon.
So there was quite a bit of partying. My favorite bar of the trip was The Makeout Room located in the city's Mission District.

An afternoon spent at Mount Tamalpias with Jen and her roommates was one I'll never forget. The Pacific Ocean vistas meets rolling mountains flanked with massive Redwoods was exceptional!

I had a fantastic morning exploring Alcatraz Island. The history and the jail cells are something else.

Here is what the prisoners ate on March 21, 1963. 

The island itself is also quite lovely. Below is the Agave Trail.
This is the lighthouse and Wardens house (what is left of it.)
I was able to take in some other major city landmarks and sights among various neighborhoods while I was visiting.

Ghirardelli Square

The Transamerica Pyramid

Market Street & Fishermans Wharf via cableccarChinatown

(Which apparently I really loved, I have so many pictures from this neighborhood.)

Wine bar in North Beach

And much much more (Golden Gate Park, Haight-Ashbury, City Lights Book Store, Napa Road trip...) It was an awesome four days!! 

So there you have it. My personal version of "how the west was won." I would love to be able to travel back to these cities and states as I haven't stopped thinking about them since. They all hold a special place, as do the people who were a part of the experience. I also have a strong desire to journey places I haven't been. The possibilities for travel are endless. And with that Boulder, Colorado here I come!