The most authentically Colorado restaurant to win a Michelin star is Bosq in Aspen.
What to know: From the foraged to the fermented, the tasting menu reflects the bounty of the forest (the restaurant’s name is a play on old French for woods.)
- The food invites diners to eat with their fingers and breathe in the Earth’s aromas in a way that transports them to a mountainside where you’re gathering ingredients alongside chef Barclay Dodge.
Why it matters: The intimate 30-person restaurant in downtown Aspen is the only one outside the Denver metro to receive a Michelin star when the guidebook made its first picks in Colorado in 2023, and it stands apart in its dining experience, too.
Details: Owned and operated by Dodge and his wife, Molly, Bosq features a five-course tasting menu starting at $185 a person, or a nine-plus plate chef’s menu at $255 each.
- Local ingredients star in the dishes, but even favorites like lobster and caviar arrive with a local twist, such as the lobster grilled and served over juniper branches.
- The sommelier offers whimsical wine pairings that can include Japanese barrel-aged sake and fino sherry from the Jerez region of Spain.
Zoom in: One recent night, the chef’s menu reached 11 plates, including three dessert courses, one of which showcased a sweet, chewy baby pinecone.
- Three early plates, including the inventive one called deer bark, came without silverware. Five featured a variety of mushrooms. And more than a few included touches from the restaurant’s own koji fermentation lab.
The bottom line: The elaborate and decadent courses, served inside the dark and exclusive restaurant, obscure the thoughtful restraint on the plate and the cozy down-to-earth vibe at Bosq that makes it inviting to visit regularly.
