My Other Home: Crested Butte, Colorado
I first laid eyes on Crested Butte in the winter of 2002/03. I had just finished university and was due to start my first job as a baby lawyer in March 2003. A few months of adventure seemed like the right thing to do before I got all serious and adult-y. This would be my last hurrah, right? Down to business after that. Little did I know I would make a bit of a habit of decamping for months (or years) at a time and would still be doing it at 40! Little did I know that Crested Butte would become a second home to me and so much part of my life that I would work another season there in 2005/06 and then keep visiting, over and over.
Back when I first arrived, Crested Butte was marketed as the last great Colorado ski town, the end of the road, unique and proud of it. It boasted of the steepest, most extreme terrain in North America, it was violently anti-establishment and it still had wet t-shirt competitions as a reason to visit on its very primitive website. It might only be 20 miles from Aspen as the crow flies over the mountains, but it was (and still is) light years away from the glitz and glamour of that playground of the rich and famous.
Nearly 16 years later, not much has changed…oh, except for the fact the mountain was just bought out by Vail, one of the biggest, shiniest, most establishment ski resort businesses in the world. Vail owns ski areas all over the world, including Perisher in Australia. The announcement was made the day before I arrived, so I walked straight into the shock and outrage of a community not known for its love of change or corporations!
As the news sunk in, the response has been an interesting mix of resignation about the inevitability of this because of the way the ski business is becoming almost exclusively large-scale corporate; panic about the likely increase in visitor numbers and what this will mean for a very small permanent population, with proportionate infrastructure and services; giddy optimism from home owners about their property prices; despair from the hundreds of pay-check to pay-check workers that fear they will never be able to afford to buy in this town now; hope that Vail will invest and understand that Crested Butte has its own very unique selling point (as Vail representatives put it after the announcement, ‘we have a Vail in the portfolio, we don’t have a Crested Butte’).
This purchase and what it means for CB people is about more than just simple distrust of corporations. If you want to see the gap between the rich and the poor in the US, spend some time in a mountain town. It’s a microcosm of wealthy tourists and second home owners and those that serve them. Leading into the busiest time of the year, local businesses of all types were actually reducing their opening hours because they couldn’t find workers. Restaurants that had been opened seven days a week were closing Monday and Tuesday. My friends in hospitality were working 10 days straight on understaffed rosters, despite really only wanting 6 shifts in that time because they also want to enjoy their short summer hiking or biking or fishing. The local paper had four pages of help wanted ads and one column of places to rent, all of them at prices that would make it impossible for any of the low wage workers. As I commented to several friends over my time there, Crested Butte is a beautiful, magical place, but it is also a really hard place to live for many. The numbers don’t stack up.
But, my friends, the people I love in this town, stay. They work their butts off in the summer and winter to save for the spring and autumn where they will earn much less. They drive beat up cars and live with room-mates and drink cheap beer. They commute from nearby communities via the free public bus to lower their living costs. They do all of this so they can ride mountain bikes at breakneck speeds along stunning single tracks and hike up fourteeners and fly fish in world class rivers and, Ullr willing, ski down the steepest grades in North America on clouds of fluffy, virgin powder. It’s not always an easy existence, but goddamn it, I think it might be worth it. I will be forever grateful I found my second home and the people in it.
My Top Ten 10 Favourite Places to Eat and Drink in Crested Butte
Crested Butte does not have a single chain fast food outlet. Not one. Most of the places on this list have been in business for at least as long as I’ve been visiting and the new ones I’ve added deserve to join that company. Be patient with the wonderful servers and tip well…they are overworked and underpaid. The great news is that Crested Butte is fantastic for foodies. I’ve mainly included casual dining and drinking places here because that’s how I eat when I’m in CB. But if you’re looking for fine dining, there are great options at Soupçon, The Wooden Nickel, Lil’s Sushi Bar and Grill and Django’s Kitchen. You will eat very well indeed in CB. Oh, and try Third Bowl Icecream if you’re there in summer!
Camp 4 Coffee
Everyone’s go-to coffee spot. Seems like it always has been and always will be. It actually started out of a cart in 1993. Great coffee, pastries that sell out early, take away beans that can be ground to order for you and the cutest shop front you’ve ever seen. Grab an Americano and just watch the people come and go from a chair out front.
The Sunflower Café
I love this place! They have a super cute dining room for colder days and a great courtyard out the back with big umbrellas for shade. The brunch menu is served from 8am to 2pm and includes a fantastic menu of open sweet and savoury tartines, served on the fantastic house-made sourdough. You can also buy the best bread in town, with a daily special and a constant sourdough and rye option. The service is always delightful and I spent several mornings here, catching up on writing or reading over breakfast and a bottomless cup of coffee.
Brick Oven Pizzeria & Pub
30 beers on tap, changing regularly. Huge courtyard that looks directly out onto Elk Avenue and has some trees and umbrellas for shade in the summer and heaters in the winter. Great outdoor bar to sit at if you’re just after a drink or a quick bite. Large and varied menu caters to all tastes and is a great spot for a group – everyone will get something they want!
The Secret Stash
The Stash has been an institution in CB for ever. They’ve moved into a much bigger premises in the centre of town since last time I visited and seem to have no trouble filling up the space. Quirky Asian style décor with lots of treasures from the owner’s travels. They do have a pretty broad menu, but really, it’s all about the pizza. By the slice or whole pies, it covers the gamut from pepperoni to blue cheese and fig (the Notorious F.I.G.). A great spot for a solo diner too – pull up a stool at the bar and grab a beer and a slice. Happy days.
Pitas in Paradise
Just across Elk Avenue from the Stash, Pitas has a great corner patio and a large indoor space and bar seating. Big TV screens if you need to catch a game of some sort – the World Cup was on whilst I was there. Cranking out consistently great quality pita wraps, gyros and curly fries. Do The O.G. (Original Gyros) with lamb and all the usual gyros trimmings. If you’re used to great Asian food, avoid the curry bowls!
The Last Steep
Reasonably priced, good quality American fare such as burgers, wings, sandwiches and huge salads. Most importantly, the self-service Bloody Mary bar is a must do. You get a glass with vodka and ice in it and then you can make your Bloody however you like, including a large variety of accoutrements like bacon, pickled beans and jalapenos. Get a seat on the deck overlooking Elk and your people watching can begin!
Teocalli Tamali
In one of the brightest and smallest shop fronts in town, Teo has been serving up enormous burritos, tacos and tamales filled with great quality ingredients for years. If you can’t get a seat, get yours to go and eat on a bench on Elk or in the Totem Pole park like Molly and I did. Unless you’ve had a huge morning hiking, you’re likely to have plenty left for an afternoon snack or dinner!
The Dogwood
The Dogwood is the place to go in CB if you want some seriously delicious, innovative drinks and great food to go with them. Owners, Drew and Sarah-Jane, have put together a cocktail list of bold flavour combinations, packed with botanicals. My favourite was the Yellow Rose – vodka, lemon and rosemary that smacked me in the face with flavour. And for the purists, the whisky list is extensive, with plenty of classics along with some interesting local options. It’s located in an old miner’s cabin built in 1891 and during winter would be the cosiest of spots to hide from the cold. But in summer, happy hour in the cute courtyard totally lived up to its name!
The Talk of the Town
Good, old fashioned American dive bar. It has barely changed since I first walked in there and it’s dark enough to not notice the stains and smells of winters past. Pool tables and fuseball upstairs, bands and juke box downstairs. Be careful, time and space can get quite unaccountably altered at the Talk and questionable decisions are almost guaranteed. Don’t miss the last bus!
Tassinong Farms
Located out in CB South, Tassinong Farms is a great little wine and food joint. They have a self-dispensing wine system which allows you to taste various wines by the tasting pour, half glass or full glass in addition to a full wine list. Very European! Food is fresh and light and they grow a lot of their own veggies and salad leaves out the back in massive hydroponic containers. You can buy salad leaves direct. There are salads, flat breads and a great selection of cheese and charcuterie. Definitely worth the drive or bus out to CB South if you’re looking for something classy and modern!
Garlic Mike’s
Ok, this is number 11 and it’s in Gunnison, not Crested Butte, but I would be remiss not to include it! Chef Mike Busse and his wife Traci have been running Italian restaurant Garlic Mike’s, located on the Gunnison river on the outskirts of town since 1994. Consistently great food and service with a decent wine list. The River Bar is open in summer and is a great spot to enjoy some tunes and a drink before dinner. If you’re overwhelmed by the large menu, just order the Con Pepe steak, it’s always great! And my CB bestie, Erika, works there so make sure you say hi!
