Not too long ago, we’d never dream of eating outside in the winter. Hot food instantly turns cold along with your fingers, toes and nose. Can you say unpleasant? But with all of the new rules surrounding Covid-19 safety like limited seating or full-indoor closures, resort restaurants have been forced to get creative or lose their businesses. 

No indoor dining, you say? We’ll do you one better and offer really expensive indoor-outdoor dining for your vacation pleasure. How’s that for finding a silver lining to the Covid-19 ski season circus? Enter tent, yurt, igloo and dome dining. Even old gondolas find a new home this winter.

 

Colorado Dining Cabs

In Steamboat Springs, Mountain Tap Brewery has taken three, bright purple gondolas and repurposed them with electric heating, Bluetooth speakers, twinkly lights and room for up to six friends to safely dine and drink. 

Telluride also has set out 20 newly refurbished, heated, ventilated and socially distanced buckets. Up to eight guests can sit on plush seats, and order from 12 different restaurants around the plaza.

At Aurum Food and Wine in Breckenridge and Steamboat, you can climb inside a yurts, bundle up with quilts and lanterns and feast on a special chef’s multi-course meal. 

Vail, Colo., restaurants have also gotten into the game by adding heated tents and igloos. 

Utah’s Yurts Igloo and Dome Dining

Speaking of igloos, Alpenglobes are all the rage in the Beehive State. The Utah-based company designs these clear domes to offer diners a 360-degree, panoramic view from posh spot like the deck of the Stein Eriksen Lodge and Butcher’s Chophouse in Park City. It’ll cost you $200 for 90 minutes but what’s that kind of money compared to the company of good friends and family on vacation. Plus you get adjustable heating, Bluetooth music dimmable chandeliers, mountain views and cocktails.

The Wasatch Brew Pub at the top of Main Street in Park City erected their own cool little igloos to serve Covid-conscious diners. Each dome seats up to eight people and reservations are required.

And at the bottom of Main, you’ll spot another Alpenglobe for whiskey fans. The High West Distillery’s Nelson Cottage .  The eight guests not only get those panoramic views, heat, and ventilation but variable mood lighting as well. They won’t be able to dine off a full menu but can get sips and snacks.

The Yurt Village at The St. Regis Deer Valley is quite the spectacle over at the hotel’s “Ski Beach.” Three custom-made yurts feature mahogany lattices, plexiglass for stargazing and radiant heat. They are themed based on the 2002 Olympics events that were held at Deer Valley (Aerials, Moguls and Slalom) and seat eight for a gourmet mountain meal.

All of these unique dining spectacles come with a high pricetag, demand and limitations. Most can seat only 6- 8 guests and are booked up well in advance. There is also a food and beverage minimum ranging from $200 – $400 (depending on the date and time) plus tax and gratuity. But getting engaged, having a birthday, only taking one vacation during a pandemic? If you can score one just once, it might be totally worth the splurge.