Ready For Aprés Ski Season? Here’s The Ultimate Guide to Telluride’s Slope-Side Dining Scene

Ski season is fast approaching and there’s nothing better than the adrenaline of a great run down the slopes … unless that thing is après-ski dining. Telluride, a known favorite of ours, is renowned for both its stellar slopes and foodie scene.

The following is the ultimate guide to Telluride’s phenomenal dining scene, with something to suit any mood:

For pretending you’re skiing in the Alps: Alpino Vino

At 11,966 feet, this cozy, slope-side hut is the highest elevation restaurant in North America. Stop halfway through your cruise down the scenic “See Forever” run for some spiked hot cocoa or chilled rosé by the fireplace and the charcuterie board of your dreams.

I’ll be honest, there have been times I’ve hit the slopes purely to make my way to Alpino Vino. You can also arrange for a snowcoach transfer to enjoy a four-course, North Italian dinner here after the lifts shut down for the night.

For enjoying the best cocktail of your life: The National

The National is a relatively new kid on the block, having opened about three years ago in the same historic Telluride building that hosts the Last Dollar Saloon. Billed as where the old meets the new, this restaurant is all about innovative and creative flavors while drawing inspiration from the past. During the peak of Telluride’s ‘wild west’ era, the space was home to a bar called the National Club where denizens would play billiards, smoke cigars and flirt with the dancing girls. Today, it’s the number one place I’d go to for a complex and imaginative cocktail. 

For a celebration of local, Colorado flavors: 221 South Oak

Judging by the restaurant’s exterior (and its name!), 221 South Oak looks like another small, endearing Victorian home that lines the street. Take a step inside and the colorful pieces on the walls may convince you that you’re in a beautiful, boutique art gallery.

But once the food arrives at your table, it’s clear that 221 South Oak is a masterful restaurant that punches way above its weight with a seasonal menu based on local ingredients. Dining here really is a celebration of fresh, Colorado flavors and the menu is always exciting and new. I’m forever looking forward to trying the chef’s newest iteration of the ‘Duo of Soups,’ which is always colorful, complex, and unlike anything I’ve tasted before.

For a great sushi happy hour: Cosmopolitan

Circling back on the joys of après-ski dining, Cosmopolitan (lovingly known around town as Cosmo’s) has an amazing happy hour from 4 to 5 p.m. on Wednesday through Sunday. It’s conveniently located at the base of the gondola and Lift 8 for minimal travel time between the slopes and the cocktails.

During happy hour, you can commune in the bar, the lobby, or the outdoor fire pits and enjoy Cosmo’s famous sushi rolls at a discount along with $7 wine or the restaurant’s namesake cosmopolitan cocktails.