Plato's Restaurant (Closed)

Simply the Best! This restaurant is tucked away in the Meadows Resort, off the beaten path, which allows for it's gorgeous view. The menu changes every season, but while we were there, we tried the Pierogi's & Agnolotti, both of which I could've eaten an entire meal of and would've been content…so delicious! For entrees, we had the Prime Bone in NY Strip & the Sole Schnitzel…again, amazing! Unfortunately, we were so full we were unable to try the dessert…but we plan to go back.

I had a fabulous "Butterscotch Glazed Pork Chop" that I thought was one of the best meals I've had in a very long time. Our server, Duffy, was very informative and helpful with the wine selection. A treasure in the West End! AND check out the bar menu: $3 beers!

Tonite we went to an old fave, Plato's at the Aspen Meadows in the Aspen Institute, one of those liberal, thinking places that ponders issues such as global disasters, national security and foreign policy rather than gun rights, gay-bashing and infringing on women's rights. It's a resto on a ledge overlooking the canyon off which bears come up and threaten to maul hotel employees. Hummm. Colette had a corn soup with parsley that was very good with a beet salad with greens, quite nice, and I had lamb two ways, a ribeye (yes) black 'n blue (perfectly cooked) and ribs with a tamarind sauce - yum (why has Rachael Ray ruined a perfectly good word?) With no bottled water but some nice Sicilian red and no coffee or dessert, our bill was $86.11 before tax - and no extra charge for the sunset.

A favorite remains Plato's at the Aspen Institute, a place located in Paris terms, in the darkest 20th, that is, far from the tourist hotels. On the other hand, it's the perfect spot for dining between a concert at the Music Festival in Harris Hall or the Music Tent and a movie at the Aspen Film Festival held in Paepcke Auditorium. This year, they offered both an all day bar-type menu and a more pricy evening menu if one sat on the terrace which we did twice. Colette is partial to their peach and champagne soup, which she declared was better this year than ever and also liked her "local" salad with grapefruit and chicken. The second meal, she repeated it and liked it just as well. I, on the other hand, loved the crisp outside and almost raw inside of my loin of elk, which while dry and lean, as good elk is, came with innovative jellied bars of chutney, saute'ed baby squash (in place of pureed sweet potato which I detest) and a ravioli of elk rillette. My next time I played Jack Nicholson and asked for a ½ portion of the "local" green salad without all the frou-frou and our bartender cum waiter said "No problem." I also had two less than light and thrilling zucchini blossoms stuffed with what turned out to be almost a sausage; this is the only dish in several years here I've thought failed to fulfill its promise. Our bills the two nights with a bottle of wine at each dinner were $72.01 and $87.28 before tip. John Talbott's Paris

What a wonderful surprise! It was a special occasion... and we wanted something different. The atmosphere was relaxed and enjoyable. Food presentation was exceptional... and the taste was wonderful! Would go against any restaurant in Santa Fe, Telluride, Carbondale and Aspen! Wait staff was attentive but not hovering! Dinner for two with wine was just under $100. Well worth the money!

Plato's space at the Aspen Institute has been, in one incarnation or another, an acceptable safe harbor when seeking a good meal between events at the Music Tent and Movie Festival. The relatively new chef, who revived the place a year plus ago, seems to have lost interest. Things started out a bit roughly; the music (jazz) in this center of intellectual fervor was blasting, the amuse-bouche of oyster with veggies and parmesan was a nice try but both bad product and execution and the lettuce in my Colorado green salad had browned stalk cuts (no charge after I conspicuously cut them further off and pointed them out to our waitstaff) Since the chef was in the salle chatting up one table of notables while my salad was being prepared, it is possible the salad guy just got lax and he (the chef) did not pass on the final plating, but one of the waiters should have caught it. However, once the chef returned to the piano, things picked up: Colette's Colorado peach/champagne soup was pretty good, I loved her lamb (short) riblets with mint BBQ rub and tolerated my angel hair pasta with nice pancetta on a bed of parsley pesto. Our bill with wine before tip with no coffee or dessert was $66.25. More at eGullet