Went to Cloud 9 today for lunch and it was by FAR the best on-the-mountain dining experience I have ever had. Think of your typical lunch-time dining for a ski day. You walk in, you have to scour for 20 minutes for an open table, then wait in line for another 10 minutes and wait for them to cook your food, and then pay a fortune for food that isn't all that great. Cloud 9 is a completely different experience. The restaurant, which is located at the top of the Cloud 9 Lift in Aspen Highlands, is perched perfectly with a view of the Rocky Mountains. We made reservations for 3 through our hotel the night before, and couldn't have been more excited. The building seats maybe 25 people, and the tables are right next to each other. It is a very cozy situation haha! The inside of the restaurant looked identical to the inside of an Austrian or Swiss mountain restaurant. Very authentic! The waiter pours you a bottle of water immediately as you sit down. The menu is limited, which normally would bother me but EVERYTHING on the menu looked so good. On the left hand side of the menu are the daily specials, and the right side has specials for every day of the week. I had the Beef Pie, my sister had the salmon and my bro-in-law had the lamb sausages. INCREDIBLE!! For dessert we all split the apply cobbler with ice cream. Let me tell you: it was sooooo impossible to get back on to the mountain after that meal because we were so stuffed! The waiter even took pictures of us outside in front of the mountains with my camera after the meal. Amazing, and I can't wait to go back! read more

Visited Cloud 9 for apré ski on a Friday and had a great time. Front half of the restaurant is louder and more of a fun time with music and dancing on table tops. The back half of the restaurant (access is through the kitchen) is more quiet and calm. The staff was absolutely amazing and catered to our every desire. Selection on the menu was great and the drinks were plentiful. Be aware that ski patrol comes around 4:00 to move the guests off the mountain. Good times with the patrol escorted ski run down the hill after the mountain was closed and empty. read more

So much fun! My understanding is that you need to make a 2pm reservation several weeks out. We Went to the 2pm seating, which turns into a dance party by 3pm. Be prepared to spend some money when you are there, but worth it for the party. Charcuterie was good and so was the tomato soup. Husband had he prime rib and loved it. We skied down after a few drinks, not a great idea, took me quite a while and a lot of slow s-turns. Take the cat down if you're not a stellar skier. read more

One of the best party atmosphere on-mountain you'll experience. Make reservations for lunch as it would be difficult getting a seat otherwise. The food is nothing special, but that's not why you're there. The drinks are fairly good. It's always packed and the atmosphere is always good. Great views of the mountain as well as the surrounding area. The service is usually good considering. read more

This is my third time at Cloud Nine. The first time over ten years ago it was a tiny shack with great alpine food. Then five years ago they doubled the size and the prices but it was fun and the food was still really good. So we came back today for their signature gruyère fondue, which is just an awful powder mix that, despite asking three times, they never managed to get hot. We finally sent it back and settled for the dish of the day, a Wiener schnitzel that was small, way overfried, and just disgusting too. The waiter did his best and was very sweet, but that food just sucked. Even the tomato soup tasted more like a punishment. We were at the first, 11:30 AM, service, the 2 PM is more about dancing on tables and spilling Veuve Cliquot. I hope that part is fun, but I will miss my $180. read more

As we are leaving our condo in Snowmass that morning, my mother yells "Don't forget to get the apple strudel with the slague (whip cream)." By noon a blizzard had moved in. We were freezing despite skiing double blacks all morning. Our faces were numb. Time to stop and warm up. Considering the conditions, the mountain, let alone the place was empty. We sit down and order some hot chocolate and coffee to warm up. Looks like they have a wonderful wine list, but considering the weather didn't want to be skiing tipsy. The food and the service was wonderful. The little cabin is adorable. And yes Mom, the apple strudel was to die for. This place is wonderful and worth the price. Its completely different than your typical mountain lunch. Overall, it was an expensive, romantic lunch shared with my brother ... ok so a little awkward too. read more

Cloud Nine Snowcat Diner is a truly unique dinner experience. Recommend doing it once. Nestled inside of a warm and toasty European alpine ski hut at the top of the Cloud Nine lift on Aspen Highlands. 10,000ft +. Amazing evening views. One seating a night at 6:15pm. The food was very good equivalent to that of a michelin starred restaurant. Expect to pay $500+ for 2 people. The Snowcat ride up the mountain was quite the experience as well! read more

This is the best lunch / après ski place in the US. European style chalet - amazing fondue, champagne for days and people dancing on tables . Just don't forget you still have to ski down the mountain .... read more

Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro - Modern European Near Me

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Cloud Nine is a fabulous and unexpected log cabin on Highlands mountain at the top of the Cloud Nine lift. There are only about 10 tables inside and the decor is a collection of old ski collectables, nothing fancy. However, the food and the atmosphere is out of this world. The beer tartar is incredible and the homemade pasta dishes are something to brag about. The tasteful menu and charming small log cabin at the top of the slopes turns into an unexpected dance party as the lunch hours come to an end... around 3pm Cloud Nine turns into a party you would not want to miss. I wouldn't call this a family scene, but it definitely appealed to all ages over 21. Don't miss out on Cloud Nine! read more

Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro - Homemade pasta dish- love when you can tell something is homemade! - Modern European Near Me

Amazing time and atmosphere! Perfect for mountain terrain dining. Went in there to say 'Hi' to Chef Mike and ended up having the best time. Thank you to all for making mommy/daddy powder day date, the best! Food was so good that I wanted to lick my plate clean, couldn't due to the fact I still had to ride down the snowy slopes. Will for sure make a point to stop by more often! Amaz read more

Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro - Drinks after pow day! - Modern European Near Me

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Never in my life have I experienced anything like what goes on at Cloud Nine! It was perhaps the most fun I have had in a decade. Friends who live in Aspen described it to us but there was simply no way we could have been prepared for what took place. The 2:00 seating is it. Everyone was soaked head to toe with champagne and no one would have had it any other way. It was amazing to see so many $130 bootleg of Veuve used to shower the crowd. Only reason I'm not giving this place 5 stars was the cost - I spent $5,500! read more

The service was super slow! We sat us outside and we ended up waiting 40 min in freezing cold weather for our server to come and so we could order more food and drinks. 3 minutes after they brought the food they told us that we had to leave for second seating guests. We ended up devouring 180$ food in 2 min since they were pressuring us to leave immediately. I am not going back.That was ridiculous! read more

I think Cloud Nine is just something that anyone who visits Aspen has to see. It's a little more action than I'm looking for during my lunch, but I think it's most likely what many people visiting would at least be able to talk about when they get home. Tip: don't blow dry your hair the morning you come here if you want it to last, you will get sprayed with champagne....it's part of the experience. read more

Very unique experience, the food is great (we got bolognese, charcuterie board, and the beef tartare). We shared a few bottles of champagne before the lights went down and the music came on. I would definitely recommend booking as far in advance as possible to reserve a spot. We booked 30 days in advance for a January Thursday afternoon reservation. I would suggest booking the 2pm lunch if you have the choice. read more

Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro - Veuve display outside of the restaurant - Modern European Near Me

Was it racism (I'm asian) or agism (we're 20s/30s)? The ENTIRE experience from making reservation to finish was utterly subpar! Though young, we're well traveled foodies who dined at truly gourmet places: Restaurant August, Stella!, Emeril's, Chez Panisse, Marcel's, Bouchon etc. easily spending $300-$500/meal. Cloud 9 is only comparable to these in $$$$ but far inferior in service and food! We made reservations for both fondue and raclette 10 days in advance. I was copied on the first two emails that appeared to be one person passing the buck to another to make the reservation. A week goes by (which is now 2 days prior to our arrival) without any confirmation from them, I emailed the group once again to see about my reservation. Only then did I get an email comfirnation back. I should have know this was the beginning to a perpetually declining experience. Then we finally arrived for our reservation...our party of 3 was put into a cramped little corner by the mulling wine pot (which smelled really bizarre). There was melted butter and potato slices/wedges on the raclett grill top...but the grill itself was cold!! After about 20 minutes have passed with us just sitting there and multiple servers trying multiple plugs and electrical cords...moving the grill in all sorts of ways and dragging the dirty electrical cord across our plates multiple times, they finally figured out that they had plugged in THREE raclettes (the two on the larger table nxt to ours) into the same extension cord and plug and blew that fuse! Really?! If they require at least 24hrs advance reservation, and we made ours 10 DAYS in advance, and arrived right at opening time, which is when they are not at all busy, shouldn't they have worked out all the kinks? At this point, we were still in good spirits, enjoyed the views and sipped on the bottle of wine we had ordered. (It was a white wine and the server (Kerry) promised she'd come back with "a bucket of snow" which did not make it to our table until the bottle was almost empty...and we were refilling our own glasses.) Then they brought a tray of bread before the fondue arrived or the raclette was working, and my little brother was too hungry to wait so he asked for some olive oil (which was in bottles on every table BUT ours) to dip the bread. Another server yanked it from the table diagonally to ours and SLAMMED it on our table! And it gets worse...our water was quickly emptied (bc fondue was beyond salty!) and was NEVER refilled. Food was not much better than service: 1. FONDUE: First of all, our server had no idea what cheeses were in the fondue when my BF first asked (as a test)...she said "there's fondue, and gruyerre and swiss...I think". My BF (whose family members live in Switzerland for decades, who just came back from visiting them, and who have had raclette at home on pretty regular basis) asked her about emmentaler, and she said "oh yeah, I think that's in there too". Shouldn't she KNOW with CERTAINTY what is in their fondue?! Then when it came out, it was extremely SALTY! We've had fondue in Europe, we've made fondue at home, and even when compared to the chain restaurant "The Melting Pot" this was THE WORST fondue anyone of us have ever had. Fondue is NOT supposed to be salty! Then to add insult to injury, the Sterno burner on too high and the fondue boiled and started separating at top and burning on the bottom of the pot... BF very politely asked the server to turn the sterno off (citing that the cast iron pot will hold enough heat to keep the cheese melted), she (the same one that slammed the bottle of olive oil earlier) stomped off, grabbed a rag to lift the pot and proceeded to BLOW the sterno fire out with a table full of food on platters (meat, cheese, veggies, bread)! We were all apalled! 2. Soup: A butternut squash&carrot soup w/ a hint of curry was good but nothing to write home about...and certainly not worth $20 for the cup! I say that because without the soup, the raclette would've been an appetizer charge of $18pp instead of $38 entree price. The server didn't inform us that having the soup makes the raclette into an entree (which she DID explain to the party that arrived after and sat nxt to us) 3. RACLETTE: Once the grill worked, we started grilling the potatoes in butter, onions and garlic. The cheese and meat platter was pretty ordinary with slices of swiss cheese and three cured deli meats. Altogether the experience is fun, but there's nothing gourmet, special or difficult about raclette. The bill was $220 and the server (Kerry) came back to bitch at me for giving her a 10% tip!! Given her poor service, she's lucky to have gotten any! Save your money and avoid filthy serving techniques, and pack a sandwich and a beverage and enjoy the view outside the restaurant! The view is the only thing that didn't disappoint!!! read more

Made reservation days in advance and Took my wife to the highlands snowcat dinner ride($130pp). Arrived early and assembled and waited @1 hour before scheduled departure at 545 pm to take the snow cat ride to cloud nine restaurant. Three snow cats scheduled and only two available at 6 pm. The cats have open trailer and people 12/cab) are packed in at 615 Because we were behind the herd we were told we would have to wait another 45 minutes for the cat to return and take the remaining diners to the top of mountain My main complaint is that matt Engels(sp) was supposedly in charge at the base but he never apologized for the inconvenience . He never tried to make accommodations or explain options. Matt never announced what the protocol would be to those in back of room so that they could hear and understand , the herd in front of room that were lucky to hear and closest to the door chose to push forward to the cab and got on the two snowcats and the unfortunate sheep were left behind to wait while It would be nice if matt made a pre announcement before loading and what is before boarding going to happen . 2/3 of the diners got the great mountain views and dinner . The time is limited on the top because you are scheduled to return by cat at 1030 pm so by the time we get there we would have already lost time for food and entertainment we would conceivably have to wait another hour on top due to the lack of transport and missing the bus/shuttle We asked for a refund since we were suppose to be enjoying food and views not waiting in a ticket office at the base for $260 dollars. Most all what irked me and others is the total lack of customer respect and no offers of apology for the inconvenience by matt Engels--absolutely nothing Not recommended read more

this place is fun and embodies Aspen. A must do if you come to Aspen! I would recommend reservations because the place is difficult to get into to read more

Cloud Nine is a total ultimate experience! First of all, you NEED reservations. To get there you need go to the Ritz (so it's convenient if you're staying there and FYI it's a fabulous hotel) and it will cost you about $150+ per person for their set menu and more if you're drinking. It's about a 20 minute ride up the mountain, so if you go in 20 degree weather like we did, make sure you are extremely well suited up. We literally dressed in our ski clothes and didn't regret it. Once you get up there, you realize you're quite literally in the clouds and it's awesome. The pictures are nothing short of incredible. Everyone in the restaurant has the same reservation time so you all get there, eat, and leave at the same time. The actual food is of excellent quality and really delicious. Each course comes out quite quickly. And the best part? Chocolate fondue for dessert. The only reason I took off a star is because when it's so freezing, the trip can really be a bit uncomfortable and I'm not sure it's actually worth the very high price even though it is great. If you can, then go! It's worth it at least once. read more

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The best thing was the ride up the mountain in the snow cat. It was a great experience! It was a very cold winter night the snow was falling hard brrrrr. We were covered in snow when we reached the top. So glad we wore snow gear over our clothes. Not a place for strappy heels or suede...be practical peeps! One couple canceled when they found out they couldn't ride in the cab. The guy was dressed in suede head to toe, even his cowboy hat :) They provided us with blankets for the ride up which was really nice. The restaurant was warm and inviting. We were seated right by the fireplace...aw man it was so warm and toasty. The food was really good. If in Aspen and wanting to go somewhere unique for dinner this place is a must!!! read more

Had a great time! Food was great. Champagne was pretty spendy but delicious. The music was loud but songs were perfect for our group of baby boomers and millennials. read more

Tough to get into unless you plan ahead. The ambiance is amazing and it is such a comfort during a cold day on the slopes. The fondue is to die for. A must if spending time at Higlands. read more

Cant think of a better place to stop during a white out. Stew and vino.

The food we had was overpriced and average at best. The Raclette is ok, but super overpriced for a pile of chopped potatoes served with cheese and cold cuts. Dealing with the flattop grill for the raclette on our table was kind a pain and annoyed people sitting near us, as it smokes and sputters hot juices from the onions and mini peppers. The lobster bisque was below average in flavor and consistency. The absolute fail was the apple strudel. It contained hardly any apples and was nothing to write home about. The prix fixe for the 3 courses is $55 per person. The pluses are the cool location and champagne options. Having lunch at Cloud 9 is definitely a thing, can't say we would soon repeat, if ever. Fortunately, the service was very good. read more

Alpine feeling to it! Food is good we had the cheese fondue and my husband the tartar. A bit pricey for being lunch but try it one day at least! read more

I have lived in aspen for 20 years and restaurants come and go. This is the single most unique experience we have, in a good way! The most fun place where the room breaks loose around 3pm every day like I have only experienced in Austrian ski resorts. Our #1 choice for birthdays and when we have visitors from out of town. read more

Great location! Fun atmosphere! The views are perfect especially on a sunny spring day! Definitely a place to check out when you are on Aspen Highlands. Would highly recommend a reservation during peak hours read more

Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro - View from outdoor patio - Modern European Near Me

i dunno who can afford to have $300 raclette in the middle of their ski day. (i mean you cook it yourself. . .how can it possibly cost that much?) but on the rare occasion you might want to substitute that $13 bowl of clam chowder or $20 cheeseburger with fries at the regular ski lodge for a several hundred dollar meal of melted cheese and mulled wine then i would recommend cloud nine. read more

This really pains me to write this negative review of Cloud Nine. What we expected to be an intimate dinner turned into a nightmare. There were four tables of two people and a group of 27 Australian wine makers. Their noise level was so loud that the waiter brought us ear plugs. Two women sitting at the next table were putting their fingers in their ears. They succeeded in driving the eight dinners not in their party out of the restaurant on the first snowcat down. The worse part about it is the management did nothing to control the situation. I should have presented our bill to the head of the group an insisted he pay for a miserable experience read more

If you go to Aspen, you have to check this place out. The views are spectacular. The food is 5 star, the service was fabulous, and the crowd was fun. The alcohol flows heavily, so be prepared for a drunk ski back down to base. Justin Michael was our server. He was tons of fun! read more

Great food and fun section atop Aspen Highlands. Fondue was very well done. The party seems to really get going there at 2pm on weekends. Will definitely return. read more

You can't beat a place that packs it's wine chillers with snow & lets you dance on the tables in your snowboard boots.

So I must start by saying what you are paying for is the experience of riding a snow cat at night to the restaurant 10,000' up. Wear very warm clothing because you sit in the back of the cat. The food was ok but not in line at all with a $300 plus tab for 2. read more

WARNING THIS IS A DISCO, NOT A RESTAURANT unless you take the 12 Noon seating. The only other seating offered, at 2pm, requires you to put up with very loud music. When we complained and asked to be able to finish our meal in peace, we were ignored. read more