We booked this with high expectations. We started with the horse drawn sleigh ride, which the moment it started our sleigh crashed into a pole and everyone hit the floor, the lead of the horses barely apologized to us. The restaurant food was amazing, thus the reason for the 4 stars! However, the service was lacking. Our server greeted us, brought us drinks , took our order and then never returned to check on us, the food, dessert choices or refills. Nothing. The manager and another server had to help us. When we were ready to leave they're supposed to organize your return sleigh ride. They told us to proceed outside as our sleigh was arriving. We waited a few minutes and then they didn't let us onto the sleigh that arrived. Told us to wait for another one. Poor organization. The price for 2 people was $600, in my opinion the food was good but the overall experience and ambiance was not worth the price. read more

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We snow shoed out to the Cookhouse and had lunch. The setting is absolutely beautiful, as was the hike out there. The lunch is 2 courses for $55. The first course is a small cup of soup or a small side salad. The second course has many options and we had the lentils, the ceasar salad and the French Dip. The Dip was great, the salad and lentils were fine. Dessert is a la carte and we had the pecan pie with ice cream that was very good. The setting is definitely 5 stars. But given the price it's a bit ridiculous that this was really just a one course lunch with a side. I would suggest having a more robust appetizer and including dessert to make it a 3 course meal. read more

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Wonderful views sitting on the patio. We parked at the Ashcroft Ghost town and walked up (40 minute easy hike/walk). Food was good but not amazing. Definitely a great afternoon experience read more

My husband and I had the BEST lunch at Pine Creek Cookhouse yesterday. The gorgeous view of the leaves changing was just an extra bonus! We ordered a bottle of Chablis and had the Trout dip which was perfectly paired! Our waiter was amazing and we couldn't decide between the Cornbread Stuffed Chicken Breast and the Wild Game Club Sandwich, so we ordered both, which I'm SO glad we did! We shared them and let me tell you...we were NOT disappointed!! Truly a special treat for our tastebuds! The flavors were amazing with EVERY bite! read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - Views from the outdoor patio - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado

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Sat at the bar. Great local joint. Bartenders were super nice and made local recommendations. It's the kind of place that if you were local you would come once a week for good food and great company. read more

Let me start by saying, this is the most incredible view that I have seen while dining. The menu was extensive, with many delectable choices. my husband got the mushroom soup and I got the starter salad with apples and blue cheese. Both of the entrées were phenomenal. They do have bread if you request it, and it is so yummy. For our main entrée, we split a ribeye that came with mashed potatoes and broccolini. We added a side of fondant potatoes. The main course was absolutely mouthwatering. The view from this restaurant, as stated before, is unparalleled. Our server, Mihola, was an astounding, bartender. He was so personable, and kept a conversation going while running the entire bar. He made our experience exquisite, and went above and beyond to make us happy. Very happy with this place and I will come back again. read more

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We had a fun adventure with Nordic sleigh ride and Nordic ski. The place is well run like a metronome. Since I did not want to come back with the ski and do the sleigh ride they charged me an additional $40 which was not cool! The food is decent but the staff is super rigid on option and choices. Overall good food and fun dining experience. But this place lacks friendly services. read more

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Finally checked this one off of my bucket list. I really enjoyed the full experience and was very happy we chose to cross country ski in. There were several large groups for bachelorette parties and weddings and it seemed like a good idea for them to do the sleigh ride to stick together. We were a little taken aback that the price to cross country ski wasn't included in the lunch price which makes both the sleigh and cross country pretty close in price. We had a lovely lunch but the service could have been a little gentler. Because we skied we didn't have cocktails and it felt like we were a little forgotten as a result. I didn't appreciate though that the staff took my mild food allergies very seriously. The ambiance is beautiful and it was a lovely day in Pitkin county. Overall we were very glad we did it. read more

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My husband and I came here while we were on our honeymoon during the wintertime! We both had the trout almondine. It was delicious! The trout had a nice beurre blanc sauce and was cooked to perfection. The interior was cozy and looked like a log cabin! Make sure you are aware of how to get to the restaurant. Cars are not allowed where the restaurant is located, so you will need to rent skis or buy a ride on a sleigh to get there. My husband and I opted to ski there (not knowing how long the ski adventure would take us). We are beginner skiers and it took us about 45 mins to an hour to get to the restaurant. It is also mainly uphill to get there. Great overall experience! We had a blast. Note: there is a nearby location for you to purchase your rentals. read more

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Fabulous! Don't forget to make a reservation first. It's an experience not to be missed.

Love the Cookhouse but the food was terrible this summer. Hope it's better soon. The setting, of course, is unmatched.

Where to start.. Service.. It is a good thing they enforce a 20% tip, our server woudn't have got that much. We were a party of 6 and they totally missed bringing out our first course. we got the second first. getting drinks was slow (our official waitress really didn't do much for us at all and the manager had to step in so we could get some service. 2. the food reminded me of what you would expect to get at a wedding (and ive had much better food at a number of weddings. The meat was OK. The potatoes. (can you say raw on the inside but slightly brown in spots on the outside. Desert.. (got to paradise bakery there food is way better.) Re deserts I ordered the apple something but got a chocolate brownie instead. (did i mention the service was BAD) My first trip to the pine creek cookhouse was in the 90's it was exceptional (but much smaller and very cozy in the early 2000's it was acceptable. (it was after the first one was burned down and they had added a new room. this trip the place had grown again.. More seating and money for them, but the quality was terrible - too many seats for a single sitting. last week it was a total waste of $1700. I will definitely not be returning for a 4th visit . They should really offer multiple seating times. maybe then they could concentrate on the type of quality food and service we had back in the 90' On the good side. the wine was nice. the salad was good and the dressing (no choices) was really good too. Don't waste your money. read more

Smelled like tootZ, wasnt excited about the wind, and thought the management was checked out

Absolutely awful which breaks my heart. We have been customers of Pine Creek Cookhouse for years, but this year they have really dropped the ball. From the food to the stench from the septic tank and finally the service all were beyond terrible. With regards to the food, the small bites they served before the meal felt they were pulled out of the freezer section at Costco, heated up and served. The stench of human waste was so bad that two guests in my party had to go outside for fresh air. Finally the service was as bad as the food and ambiance. We felt we were an inconvenience to our server which is unacceptable on all levels. Unfortunately when you pay almost $3,000 dollars and have a less than mediocre experience, that will be enough for us to never return. I would strongly advise not going. Aspen has many options, all of which are better than Pine Creek Cookhouse. I wish I could give them negative stars, but one will suffice for now. read more

I was warned this is a ripoff. Regardless we went for lunch. To be fair my friend said dinner was the true ripoff. Ok if you view it as an activity but don't go for the portions, service, or music. From the start you are offered a soup or salad as part of the two course seating. The soup is a cup. Really? Charge me 50 cents ($170.50) and make it a bowl. The Hunter's Stew was served in the shallowest setting used in restaurants. It was cold -- shame on us for not saying anything. Trout was good. The Elk Chop at & $34 extra dollars was also good. As was the apple crisp dessert. The playlist of hard driving 70s rock classics didn't match the physical space which is as nice as the view. If you cross-country ski there is a $40 pp rental fee in addition to the $100 advertised cost. read more

This is an absolute gem of a place and I highly recommend coming here for lunch in the winter! Prior reservations are recommended. You drive to King's Cabin in Ashcroft. At the check in counter, you can check in for the sleigh ride, ski or snowshoeing passes. You are not allowed to hike. The ski/snowshoeing passes are $25 for the day. I also highly recommend getting your own gear as it would be another $25 to rent. The folks at King's Cabin are super helpful with any questions, maps and recommendations on the best trails. I did the snowshoeing in and out, while my friends took the sleigh ride and it was tough to figure out who enjoyed more! The entire land is clothed in untouched snow (except the trails) and on a beautiful day like ours, we had a blast taking pictures and enjoying the views. The distance to the cookhouse is about 1.5 miles, which is 20 mins on the sleigh and 40 mins skiing/snowshoeing depending on your speed. Once you reach the cookhouse, they seat you immediately. The package includes 3 courses but drinks are separate. The log cabin is beautiful, sitting in the middle of snowcapped mountains, elk horn chandeliers, a central wood burning fireplace....so so beautiful! The first course was a green chili and beef soup or a salad. Both were delicious. We pretty much finished it. The second course topped the first and was a perfect end to the meal - we got the trout, mushroom and spinach crepes, the steak sandwich and the elk bratwurst. Everything was delicious. The trout was definitely fish-y enough for me, not at all tough, and the sauce and rice it came with, were delicious. If you love fish, this is the dish to go with - more fish, less background noise. The crepes were very rich but oh so so good. Even having snowshoed the way in, I couldn't finish them. But as delicious and full of mushrooms and creamy sauce, as they were, I took them back to eat later! The steak sandwich was also good but I, personally, would've liked a little bit more seasoning and salt. My friend loved it though, so just my opinion and also why I didn't order it. The elk bratwurst was a nice zingy surprise! The sausage was well-made but the peppino sauce on it raised its level. Just enough zing to make things interesting, but also not too overwhelming on the spicy level. We were stuffed so we didn't get dessert. The ride back was also beautiful, just windy. I took the snowshoeing trail rather than Flynn and the views and the experience was amazing! This whole experience is definitely pricey. I don't know that I would be ok with paying so much for a summer experience. I think the cold, snow, winter activities made it a little more palatable to enjoy this. So my recommendation would be to come here for lunch during the winter months. Looking forward to my next trip here! read more

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The place itself was a cool experience. The guy at the front counter was a piece of work. He was super rude and rushed us out by saying "we have another seating at 1:30pm" (open tables EVERYWHERE) and then charged me for $165 sleigh ride I did not request. When I told him about the charge he gave me attitude. Besides the less than hospitable guy at the front, The food was "ok", the mushroom crepes came out COLD & the fish was alright... only positive things was the Service was great from our server. Besides that, over priced, not very nice apparent "manager" and two bathrooms for the whole place. read more

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We attended a wedding and the venue, service, and food was phenomenal! The Mountain View's, grounds and food had plenty of creativity and flavor. The decor for the wedding was top notch! read more

If you are looking for a Colorado dinning experience you will want to try The Pine Creek Cookhouse. The ambience is exceptional. The dinning room feels like a luxury cabin. Service is great. The food is delicious. It's authentic to the mountain backdrop. I also recomendar you try their horse back adventure before dinner. read more

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We've eaten here a number of times and had a great experience. Today at lunch however was not enjoyable. Waitress was rude and a bit snobby. Slow to serve and NEVER came to refill water or iced tea glasses. When I complained at the end of the meal she said "I came and asked how your meals were." I said yes, but my glass wasn't empty at that point. The neighboring table, a 4 top had EVERY glass on the table dry as a bone. Asking for a refill seemed to be a bother to them. Food average and the sandwich I had was about Subway quality. I told them I was NOT paying 20% for the experience we had and the reaction from a guy that may or may not have been the manager was so defensive and dismissive I tipped NOTHING. It'll be a while before we come back. The view and ambiance of the place is great, food average, and service non existent. Actually I'd have preferred to go into the kitchen, pick up our meals, and serve them myself. read more

We had a good laugh that the extremely pricey menu managed to misspell "prix fixe" and "a la carte" , and at the kids menu. $30 two course meal. We were cracking up. Beautiful view, and kind waitress who gave our teething kid crackers and saved the day. Meh food it's gone downhill post Covid, too bad. read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - Kids menu - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado

WARNING!!!!!! Do not make a reservation with this place, unless you want to be part of a scam. We are being charged $800 for a meal we never had. We made a reservation a month in advance. It is impossible to find transportation to the restaurant. In fact, we had transportation lined up 3 days in advance for $200 each way, which is crazy expensive, but we decided to try since we heard the restaurant was interesting. Our transportation cancelled on us 3 hours before the reservation. With little options, we called the restaurant to see what other alternative we had. They recommended calling transportation on their website, which we already called and they could not help. After speaking with the front desk, who is apparently the reservations manager, the situation got even worse. The manager did not help us with alternative transportation, she then went into an elaborate, unproductive dialogue about how reservations are confirmed two days in advance, via text and call, etc. Fully aware, we confirmed each time!!!! They offered no help, and had no manager on staff to resolve the issue. In face, their suggestion was for us to go rent a car and drive up the mountain. Not only is that incredibly dangerous given that only professional drivers drive up this mountain road to the restaurant in the winter, but it's a fixed menu with wine pairings, so they are basically encouraging drunk driving on a winter road, let alone finding a place to rent a car for a reservation in 2 hours is quite a joke of a suggestion. I would HIGHLY recommend for no one to reserve this restaurant, unless apparently you have a snow cat to arrive. They mentioned multiple times this is how they get their food and staff to the restaurant. I guess that's the only option. Now the restaurant is trying to charge us $800 for a meal we never got to enjoy. Apparently this must happen a lot, because the restaurant explained their full process for dispiriting charges, their success rate disputing charges, etc. very weird. Unless you want to waste time disputing credit card charges, do not reserve with this restaurant. They need to be investigated by the better business bureau for false charges. 1 star, don't even deal!!! read more

Our family looks forward to our annual PCC lunch for our son's birthday! The walk up the road leads us to the warm greetings by staff, inside & out. We love running into Aspen locals, and our Colorado Rocky Mountain School friends, classmates and teachers! The food and beverages are excellent! It's the most wonderful time of the year! read more

Fake Friendly Hostess Greeted us at the door asking for the reservation name. When I asked "we may just be having a beverage can we use the restroom first?" Her response was constipated... she told us there were restrooms down at the Ashcroft ghost town, but she guessed we could use the restaurant's. How did welcoming us turn into treating us like 3rd class citizens??? She wanted to send my Alzheimer's patient 1.5 mile walk to the outhouse. My Alzheimer's patient and I used the restroom and decided it wasn't worth spending anymore time there and walked back to my car at the ghost town. I won't bring my family back in the winter as we like to cross country ski to the cookhouse. If you are not open to the public than advertise as such. Or hire a more mature hostess instead of the child in the prom dress acting like she's an Aspen socialite. read more

The setting is beautiful but the food is awful and therefore makes the experience not worth the price point. I'd recommend going to Ashcroft to snowshoe, or cross country ski and then going back into Aspen for lunch/dinner where the food is delicious! read more

Four nonalcoholic beverages and four sandwiches for $300. Tip is automatically included. Food was average. Ice tea was average. The views are fine but the views in Aspen/Snownass are fine everywhere. Do not waste your time and money. Drive up look around and leave. What a waste. Should be ashamed of myself for paying for this. You've been warned. read more

We recently had dinner here, the sleigh ride at night was amazing. We've never seen the stars so clearly. The food and service were great! read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - Arriving to the Pine Creek Cookhouse. The sleigh ride in was amazing under the stars! DRESS WARM! Shoutout to Cowboy Nate! - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado

Food is nasty the only thing that was nice was the horse sled ride . Paid over 800.00 dollars and food was just disgusting. Had the trout and literally had to dump salt and pepper and 3 lemons just to get any taste. Would not recommend this place for food. read more

Always among my favorites. I ride my bike from Aspen to the Cookhouse a few times each summer, and usually snowshoe there a couple of times each winter. It's an amazing experience. The food is wonderful, the drinks excellent, the service stellar, but for me it's all about the location. The scenery is literally breathtaking. The bike ride up is challenging but worth the effort, and the descent down Castle Creek is Just stunning, especially in mid summer. Winter is fabulous too, with groomed cross country ski or snowshoe trails, and a chance to burn some calories before a fabulous meal. read more

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sticking with 4 stars because this is one of my favorite places and i recommend it to everyone. just wish they still did their old school menu instead of the fixe price (5 stars for how they used to be, 2 for current sitch- went with above average because i still love it). but you can get there when they open and try to snag a chair at the bar where you can still order apps and drinks. snowshoe or ski in- have a bloody. It's magic. read more

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Went up for a sleigh ride lunch. Sleigh ride was cool and was advertise for $250. I got an elk hotdog and girlfriend got a chicken sandwich. It's was okay. Service was rushed so we could make it back on the sleigh. $250+service charge +tip +drinks = $450 for a ten minute sleigh ride, hotdog, and a chicken sandwich. I just don't see the value. It was a unique experience but not worth the hefty price tag. ‍ read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - Sleigh ride - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado

The most memorable thing about the evening was the sleigh ride to and from the restaurant. It was definitely cold, and the thin wool blankets were not quite large enough nor warm enough. However, it was wonderful to ride in the open air under a full moon, with the shadowy outlines of the mountains around us. As for the dinner..... The food was good (although not remarkable), and portions were generous. The service was lackluster. When asked about some of the menu items, we got a regurgitation of what the menu said. Our cutlery was removed after the first course and not replaced. One of the wait staff told us about dessert and 30 seconds later someone else came to the table to give us the same information. Does that fact that a 20% service fee is included in the bill impact service? The interior of the restaurant is upscale rustic. read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - Appetizers - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado

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We ate lunch at Pine Creek and were incredibly disappointed in the food. The experience of the sleigh and the cross country were fantastic (our group did both). Both were idyllic and we loved every minute. The food as mentioned above wasn't good. The brat was very dry with some mayonnaise gunk on top. The steak sandwiches were not good; just big. The hot toddies were watery and a huge disappointment. The trout main course was rather fishy. Overall we were absolutely underwhelmed and are sad the food doesn't match the experience. We won't be going back for a long time. I'm not sure anyone will care, however, since it seems to be a factory where people just keep coming. Sad. Our waitress was super nice and we of course loved the view. read more

We love the Pine Creek Cook House. The wait staff was so welcoming and horseback riding with Kelly before dinner was a phenomenal experience. Highly recommend the Elk chop for dinner. I don't think there's a restaurant with a better view. Such a great time! read more

The food is excellent and fresh and heathy. The staff is friendly and the coffees are really nice. So why 3 stars?? The service is PAINFULLY slow in the morning. Expect 30 a minute wait to get your food. And the portion sizes are laughably small. Doesn't come close to filling people up before a day of skiing. read more

TERRIBLE! I'm so disappointed because this place has always been iconic and it has always been worth the drive. The view is the best part and you can get that for free! My daughter and I had THE WORST EXPERIENCE this evening. Last night, when we ate at our favorite restaurant Parc, that is one block away from us, we had so much extra food that we had to bring some home when we shared an appetizer and an entrée, and I left a 25% tip because the service was so amazing. I also left a 25% tip after lunch at Tempranillo in basalt today - fabulous experience as usual. I like to tip well based on good service. Imagine my shock when Pinecreek automatically added 20% to my bill after I had the worst experience ever. First of all, no one greeted us. The person who poured our water was apparently also our waiter, even though he never introduced himself and seemed completely disinterested & looking away when he was mentioning the specials, which I could not even hear. Here is the most ridiculous part: the bread was stale! When I told him the bread was stale, the apparent owner (I found out later) was snarky and said I can bake some more but it will take a while. They then brought over even MORE STALE bread! Literally like cardboard, I can't imagine serving that to anyone ever! I have never experienced this ever. How hard is it to serve at least decent bread? We could drive 35 minutes from Aspen but they can't drive in to get bread? They said "their purveyors not only did not bring bread, but they could not get cloth and napkins," which is why we had crappy paper napkins at our expensive dinner tonight. I am so upset. Leaving the restaurant, coming home and heating up leftovers from the night before, my daughter and I read through recent reviews and if I thought I was going far by disputing my charge with American Express, someone else wrote that they are filing motion and small claims court. What a WASTE OF TIME. Oh, and when I mentioned to the hostess, who was just as disinterested as the rest, that we had stale bread, crappy napkins, and why couldn't they play any music, she tried to tell me that there was music. So neither my 26 year-old daughter nor myself could hear any music, but they were playing it ? I now see why there was hardly anyone there, and hopefully if people read recent reviews before they go, Pinecreek Cookhouse won't have any business at all because they (sadly) don't deserve it. read more

Wish I could say I love this place, but I can't. Let's start out at the end of the night when we were the last people to be served food, offered desert and after dinner drinks, then told we need to leave quickly because the last horse sleigh is waiting.. Well then why did you offer us dessert and after dinner drinks? We spent $1500 for four people, and the food was average at best. Definitely don't try the elk as you will be chewing on a tough piece of meat without taste. Oh and when we got outside after dinner one of the other guests yelled at me for keeping him waiting in the cold. I can't recommend this place. read more

We need a no star for this restaurant! 1. Food was WAY over priced and tasteless. 2. Food was very simple and not worth $40 per person for a burger and 1/2 chicken from their 2 course meal, then they charge you $6 for an ice tea or coke, then they refilled with some other drink than what we originally ordered and they never came back to check in, but made sure we got the bill. 3. Everyone we spoke to including the manager at the restaurant was very RUDE, unfriendly and service was slow, they made us feel like we putting them out. Plus they made sure we knew there was a wedding there later in the day so we would get out. 4. Service was slow and their were only a few customers in the restaurant. I would never recommend this place. Save your money and get better food and service at any burger join as this place is terrible. I will though return to their parking lot with take-out and enjoy the view from my parked vehicle and give myself great service with great food from any restaurant in the world is better than this so called restaurant. read more

We'd eaten there before and it was a magical evening. This time the dinner was OK not great. The dinner was a little too rushed even though it didn't seem that anyone was waiting for our table. the boar was a little over cooked. the vegetables were paltry on the entree plate on the fish The food was good but it was not amazing. Not inclined to return. Why add the gratuity? That is a little presumtous to add the amount. That practice doesn't incent wait staff to really offer excellent service. read more

Amazing views and even better food. All of the staff is delightful and the service is excellent! We did the evening horse ride and it was spectacular. Thank you! read more

Pine Creek Cookhouse - New American Near Me - Aspen, Colorado