Culinary Tourism

Touch, taste, smell, sight and sound ... excite all of your senses when you visit Gunnison-Crested Butte! From the north end of the county in Mt. Crested Butte and Crested Butte  and Marble to Almont and the south end of the valley in Gunnison, your expectations will be met if food and drink are high points of your visit.

A delightful gastronomic experience awaits you with more than 80 restaurants in our County ranging in price and selection. Great steaks, sushi, wild fish and game, vegetarian cuisine, tastes from around the world and locally grown Colorado products, including a wide variety of excellent Colorado wines, offer a diverse selection of exquisite options as you create your culinary tour of the Gunnison Valley. You will find family-style dining, bustling atmospheres, intimate settings and the favorite spots of locals, each offering up our usual Western hospitality and superior customer service.

Cooking Classes

If you like to be more hands on during your culinary experience you won't miss out in Gunnison-Crested Butte. Several local caterers and culinary experts demonstrate individual style in their kitchens, and you're invited to join in on the fun! Slice, dice, learn, laugh and sample unusual and everyday dishes that you can make at home and share new skills and recipes with family and friends. Cooking classes take place throughout the year in several locations around the valley.

Two of the Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley’s most popular chefs offer cooking classes on a regular basis.  Mike Busse, proprietor of Garlic Mike’s Italian restaurant, hosts classes at Interiors with Oohs & Aahs’ demonstration kitchen in downtown Gunnison.  People also may gather their own group (minimum of 12) to book their own class.  To find out more, go to www.garlicmikes.com and call Char at Interiors with Oohs & Aahs, (970) 641-3935.  

In downtown Crested Butte, Keely Murphy shows aspiring chefs how to make hearty soups, amazing chocolates, French and Italian cuisine and much more at her catering kitchen.  Arrangements Catering & Events offers a schedule of classes and custom classes for groups of eight people.  Call (970) 349-0956 or visit www.arrangementsandevents.com.

Catered Meals

If you're traveling with a group and would like a catered meal for 4 or 400, our caterers create magnificent culinary delights of all kinds, bringing them right to your venue, vacation home, cabin or condominium.

Food for Adventure

With many caterers and restaurants offering "meals-to-go," mix and match your food choices, mode of transportation and setting. Hike, horseback ride, raft, canoe, boat, snowshoe or Nordic ski to scenic picnic spots along rivers and lakes, feast in fields of wildflowers or toast on a mountaintop.

Culinary Events

Great food and Colorado's Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley go hand in hand (or hand to mouth!).  Not only do Crested Butte, Mt. Crested Butte, Gunnison and Almont have an amazing selection of locally-owned restaurants and catering businesses, the valley has a calendar of culinary events sure to please any food fanatic.

These aren't just any run-of-the-mill gastronomic extravaganzas that run from June to September.  Think themed parties in fabulous mountain homes, a Louisiana swamp party, fall festival of beers and chili cook-off, and a wine and food festival. 

Farmers' markets at both ends of the valley have become favorite places to shop for fresh regional produce, preserves and baked goods on summer and fall weekends.  On Saturdays, June 25 - Oct. 8, the Gunnison Farmers' Market takes place at Virginia and Main Street from 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.  On Sundays, June 12 - Oct. 16, the Crested Butte Farmers' Market is held on Elk Avenue between First and Second Streets from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. 

Schedule of Culinary Events
June - September  Tour de Forks, Various Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley Locations
June 3 - 10   Crested Butte Restaurant Week
June 12 - October 15  Crested Butte Farmers' Market, Elk Avenue, Crested Butte (Sundays)
June 25 - October 8  Gunnison Farmers' Market, Virginia & Main Street, Gunnison (Saturdays)
July 20 - 24   Crested Butte Land Trust Wine & Food Festival, CB & Mt. CB
August 5 - 7    Crested Butte Arts Festival Culinary Events, Crested Butte
August 29   Chefs on the Edge Competition, Crested Butte
September 10   Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-Off, Mt. Crested Butte

Crested Butte Restaurant Week, June 3 - 10
The second annual Crested Butte Restaurant Week will provide culinary aficionados with great dining and lodging deals from June 3 - 10.  Diners and overnight guests in Crested Butte, situated at 8,885 feet above sea level, can revel and relax to their hearts' content starting at $88.85 for meals or lodging.  Participating restaurants will offer multi-course dinners starting at $88.85 for a party of four, or $22.21 per person.  Establishments that do not serve dinner will provide multi-course lunch promotions starting at $8.85.  Special lodging rates will be available starting at $88.85 per room, per night.  Prices do not include tax and gratuity. Participating businesses and menus are posted at www.crestedbutterestaurantweek.com. 

10th Annual Tour de Forks, June - September
Tour de Forks 2011 is ready to celebrate the summer in style, running from late June through early September.  With locations ranging from beautiful mountain homes and stunning outdoor vistas, the gourmet dining series promises culinary delights and architectural summits.  Eighteen themed events will be prepared and delivered by local and visiting chefs in tandem with local hosts.  A few examples are a fashion show showcasing local clothing retailers, golfing and a progressive dinner, and a Western-themed gourmet barbeque with returning Kansas City Chef Lon Lane.  
Another favorite is Chefs on the Edge on Aug. 29 where three chefs from the Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley square off on stage at Crested Butte Center for the Arts to decide who will win the 2011 title. Tickets cost $20.

Each event is individually priced and reservations are required. Brochures and reservation forms will be available in May at www.crestedbuttearts.org.  For information, call (970) 349-7487.

Crested Butte Land Trust Wine & Food Festival, July 20 - 24
The fourth annual Crested Butte Land Trust Wine & Food Festival will showcase wines from around the world and amazing cuisine.  The signature event is a Grand Tasting on July 23, 4 to 7 p.m., at the base of Crested Butte Mountain Resort ski area. The tasting will feature hundreds of wines and a selection of light appetizers.  Tickets cost $70 if pre-purchased or $80 the day of the event (ages 21 and over), with $15 tickets available for children and designated drivers.  Proceeds from the Grand Tasting benefit the Crested Butte Land Trust.

The most prestigious event is the Celebrity Chef Tour benefiting the James Beard Foundation. This year, the festival will host two dinners staged at Uley's Cabin located mid-mountain at Crested Butte Mountain Resort.  Each dinner will feature a celebrity chef and a Colorado chef who will create a multi-course dinner paired with some of the world's finest wines.  The dinners will be held on July 20 and July 22 at 5:30 p.m.  Tickets are $200 per person or $375 per couple.  Seating is limited to 70 for each dinner. 
 
Throughout the weekend, wine seminars will be hosted by sommeliers at Crested Butte Mountain Resort.  This year, a panel of top sommeliers has been assembled to determine the programming of the seminars with possible topics including Introduction to Wine, Wine and Food Pairings, French Wines and Spanish Wines.  Seminars will be held at 1 and 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. on Sunday.  Capacity and pricing vary.
 
New this year is Canvas & Cabernet on July 22 from 4 to 6 p.m.  Led by a professional instructor, this event allows guests to enjoy wine while painting their own work of art.  Held outdoors at the base of Crested Butte Mountain Resort under the Grand Tasting tent, there is no better backdrop for this artistic experience.  Price to be announced.  For more information, call (720) 375-5241 or visit www.crestedbuttewine.com.

Crested Butte Arts Festival Culinary Events, August 5 - 7
On the heels of a highly successful inaugural year, Crested Butte Arts Festival will offer expanded culinary programming.  Kicking things off on Aug. 5 will be an Arts Extravaganza where patrons can truly celebrate the visual, performing and culinary arts in an interactive and engaging format. Chefs Jason Rogers (Oskar Blues), Tyler Wiard (Elway's Cherry Creek), Brian Laird (Barolo Grill) and Vaughn Hobbs (Kimball/Viking) will create culinary works of art expertly paired with award-winning wines.  Patrons will mingle, talk with the chefs and observe art in the making as select visual artists create on the spot.  Immediately following this unique dinning experience will be a Crested Butte Music Festival concert featuring the American String Quartet.
On both days of the festival, Aug. 6 and 7, visit the culinary demonstration tent for free chef demonstrations, tastings and beer/wine pairings in a state-of-the-art VIKING kitchen.  Visiting chefs and top chefs from the Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley will sauté, julienne and flambé in front of a live audience all weekend.

When the festival closes at 5 p.m. on Aug. 6, head up to Mt. Crested Butte for seminars, wine pairings, dinners and interactive culinary events at various restaurants and retail establishments. A variety of festival specials and art-focused events are in the works and will be posted at www.crestedbutteartsfestival.com.

Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-Off, September 10
Get into the spirit of autumn with Mt. Crested Butte's Annual Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-Off held on Sept. 10 at the base of Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) ski area.  Heat up by sampling great chili prepared by area cook-off contestants, cool off with beers poured by several microbreweries and savor live music all afternoon.  For admission costs and times, contact the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce at (800) 814-8893 and visit www.cbchamber.com.  

Dinner Float Trip
Enjoy the area's only dinner cruise, Rocky Mountain style!  Start out at Three Rivers Resort in Almont by 4 p.m. and enjoy a 10-mile scenic float trip on the Gunnison River to Garlic Mike's Restaurant for a delicious Italian dinner. The cost is $58 per person and $35 for children ages 10 and under. You will receive the float trip, vehicle shuttle and a voucher for up to $25 per adult and $10 per child (age 10 and under) for Garlic Mike's. Anything above those amounts, including tip, is additional and payable at the restaurant. Garlic Mike will even throw in a special surprise at dinner! 
The total time required is approximately three hours.  The trip is available seven nights a week with at least 24 hours notice and a minimum of four people.  To book, call Three Rivers Resort at (888) 761-3474.

• Cooking Classes

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