A few months ago, I traveled to Vail, Colorado. It was my first time to Vail and my first time in Colorado. I was blown away by the beauty of the village, and I already can’t wait to go back. The food was delicious, too. This Vail, Colorado Food Guide will keep you in the know for where to go during your trip.
Denver Brunch: Snooze
When flew into the Denver airport and arrived hungry. Vail is about 2 hours away from Denver, so we decided to stop at Snooze, which has a few locations in Colorado.
This place is a great 70’s-esque old-fashioned diner with a modern twist. They had a great bar and if I wasn’t exhausted at the time, I probably would have ordered a Bloody Mary.
Instead, I opted for coffee and breakfast burrito. When I say this breakfast burrito was huge, I mean that it was HUGE. So big that I don’t think I ate much else for the rest of the day.
Once we arrived in Vail, we took some time to explore Vail and Lionshead villages and get our bearings on the food scene for the next week.
Casual Dinner: Pazzo’s
One of the places that stuck out to me was Pazzo’s Pizza, an old, family owned place that just smelled delicious. You know when you enter a pizza place and you just know? The smell of sauce, dough, and ingredients knocks you over, and you know it’s going to be good. Pazzo’s is like that.
We ordered a few pizzas and salads and loved everything. Their pizza slices are huge, and you should easily be able to split a large pizza between four people. And if you’re still hungry after that, order more, because why not?
My go-to pizza order is always sausage and green pepper. It’s such a great flavor combination and I love adding red pepper flakes to give it a kick.
Since the sausage & green pepper combo is my favorite, it’s usually how I judge a pizza place. And Pazzo’s did not disappoint. There are a lot of pricey places in Vail, but I would argue you can get just as good of a meal here (for way less money, too).
Food Trucks
So we booked a trip to Vail not knowing that the Go Pro Games would be going on. Face palm. But it was a great surprise because there were so many food trucks and entertaining events going on!
During one of our days walking around, I had to sample from some of the food trucks. Let me tell you, they did not disappoint.
This Maui chicken was absolutely to die for – it had the most perfect crunchy fried chicken with a sweet sauce. It was served over sticky, warm white rice and topped with scallions. My mouth is watering thinking about it right now!
This dish took me back to Hawaii and I was reminded of all of the delicious food we ate on our honeymoon last year. Sigh. This makes me want to go back!
We also got tacos from a taco truck that were divine. Juicy and flavorful, they were everything I need from a taco.
I love a good carnitas taco and I really love when food trucks have a variety of sauces. This one had at least 6 salsa options and they were so delicious.
If you get the chance to eat from some of Vail’s awesome food trucks, I highly, highly recommend doing so. They’re going to save you a lot of money and still keep you full while you’re exploring all the beauty around you.
Best Vail Brunch: The Little Diner
I highly recommend The Little Diner for breakfast for at least one day of your trip. This place was so cute and it always seemed to be packed, which is promising. I ordered an omelette and it was delicious. The portions here are really big, so think about sharing between your group, or order your own and take the leftovers to go.
Their specialty dish is called the Pannekoeken. It’s an extremely thin, super delicious German pancake. It’s topped with powdered sugar. This thing was huge – but it was so extremely light and airy that we couldn’t stop eating it! I highly recommend trying this while you’re in Vail.
Nice Dinner: Up the Creek
If you’re visiting Vail in the summer, you’ll definitely want to make a reservation at Up the Creek. This quaint spot is located right on the creek, and I recommend getting a seat on patio with a bottle of wine to enjoy the view. Look how gorgeous it is!
We ordered a few dishes from Up the Creek, but the two that stood out are the bacon gouda mac and cheese and the caprese gnocchi. Do I really need to explain why I loved the bacon gouda mac and cheese? I think that one’s pretty self explanatory, it would be pretty hard to mess that up.
But the caprese gnocchi was one of the pretties presentations I think I’ve ever seen! This dish had tomato pesto, poached burst tomatoes, basil, grilled sweet corn, buffalo mozzarella, and balsamic. It was absolutely delicious.
Vail, Colorado Food Guide Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this Vail, Colorado Food Guide. Are they any places that I missed? What are your favorite places in Vail? I’d love to know in the comments!
