North America's ski mountains have always fed you — usually a lukewarm burger in a crowded cafeteria. This winter, the big operators are spending serious money to change that, and some of the additions are genuinely tempting whether or not you ski.
Vail Resorts is calling it its largest food and beverage investment ever, and the headline act is at Whistler Blackcomb: caviar and Champagne service on the patio at Steeps Grill & Wine Bar, inside Roundhouse Lodge near the top of Whistler Mountain. Not to be outdone, Christine's on Blackcomb is adding On The Rocks, an outdoor ice bar serving cocktails and bubbles at the top of the Blackcomb Gondola.
Park City Mountain in Utah has gone a more playful route. A roaming "S'mores Sleigh" will dispense free s'mores at surprise spots around the resort — no schedule, so it's pure luck if you cross it. The resort is also expanding Peak to Plate, a $150 guided ski-and-dine tour that runs from breakfast burritos on the Sunrise Gondola, via doughnuts at Cloud Dine and lunch at Mid-Mountain Lodge, to a private après gathering at Lookout Cabin. Lift ticket not included.
The biggest single build is at Snowmass, Colorado, where the beloved Ullrhof reopens in November 2026 after a $42 million rebuild. The three-level, all-electric restaurant sits by the Big Burn lift, seats more than 600 (roughly double the old capacity), and splits into four concepts: Ullrhof, Ullrmarket, Ullrbar, and Ullrgrill. Burgers and milkshakes survive the revamp.
Elsewhere, Big Sky, Montana is building a staircase so nonskiers can reach Iglu, its après bar carved from snow and ice near the Lone Peak Tram, and bringing back chef Grant Achatz's pop-up M by The Alinea Group — last season it served ponderosa pine ice cream made with a charred log. Revelstoke, British Columbia gets a Chop Steakhouse & Bar at the base this winter, opening ahead of the 155-room Cabot lodge it will eventually anchor. At Mammoth, the Westin Monache's Whitebark has been rebranded as Apricity with a seafood-leaning menu, while Stratton in Vermont adds a slopeside lounge — though only for premium pass holders.
Smaller but welcome touches are rolling out everywhere: a Kodiak Cakes Waffle Shack at Park City's Mountain Village, waffles on sticks at Keystone's Summit House, Mexican food at Brighton's converted Milly Chalet alongside Asian noodles and sushi at Snow Blossom Bistro, igloo dining at Sugarloaf in Maine, a maple syrup tasting flight paired with mini waffles at Mount Snow, and extra nights of Alpine Fondue at Sun Peaks in BC — complete with a snowcat that now ferries nonskiers back down the mountain afterward.
Alterra, which runs Mammoth, Palisades Tahoe, Steamboat and Deer Valley among others, is pouring more than $350 million into its resorts for 2026–27, but most of that is lifts and snowmaking rather than food. The dining arms race is mostly Vail's game this year.
Why it matters: mountain food is now a legitimate reason to pick one resort over another. If you'd happily trade a chairlift lap for a glass of Champagne in the sun — or you're travelling with someone who doesn't ski at all — this season gives you real options.
