Foodstuff: Snow Lodge summertime suppers

The Snow Lodge has imbued a bit more chef-driven variety into their dinner menus this summer with the introduction of a Summer Chef Series. The series started just before the July 4 holiday and will run until the first of September. It features a rotating roster of nationally-acclaimed chefs over consecutive weekends — all offering a different multi-course, prix fixe option for dinner in their styles of cooking.

According to Peyton Jansma from the Snow Lodge team, “Everyone knows The Snow Lodge for their amazing après ski events, concerts, and fun supper club, but this is a chance to slow down the pace a little bit and focus solely on the incredible food options being offered.”

I was able to dine early in the season on a menu presented by Nobu Indian Wells Chef Clayton Ehrlich, who will return to the Snow Lodge later in August. I was expecting the seven-course meal to be heavy on sushi, given his background, and while it did feature pristine raw fish, there were several surprises served up by our attentive and eager server Jasmine, including a couple of off-menu tastes showcasing the chef’s commitment to local ingredients and a whimsical style, like an amuse bouche of apple, carved into a sphere and soaked in hibiscus to resemble a cherry.

But first things first: The meal kicked off with the “Smoked Cherry Bouquet,” consisting of locally-foraged greens in a creamy citrus champagne vinaigrette. Arresting on the plate but a little tricky to eat, it whet our appetites for what was to come. This salad course was followed by a Baja shrimp ceviche with local tomatoes, a yellowtail tostada (our favorite of the bunch), a raw Kokanee River salmon dish adorned with edible wildflowers and a ponzu sauce, a cold smoked ribeye tartare with “egg gel,” “onion gel” crème fraiche and wild chive, a wildflower wagyu raviolo with handmade pasta, braised short rib, and shitake duxelles in a vegetable broth and charred leek cream topped with carrot blossoms, and a choice of dessert. I had the Asian pear phyllo mille-feuille, while my plus-one went with the local candied cherries and a whipped citrus mascarpone topped with a house-made shortbread crumble. We agreed my dessert was the winner and wrapped up the evening happy and full.

Remaining dining dates and chefs include:

• Aug. 8-10: Chef/owner Joe Frillman of Daisies, a James Beard award winner, also awarded Michelin green star and Michelin bib gourmand
• Aug. 15-17: Private chef and locally-loved ramen mastermind behind King & Cook, David Wang 
• Aug. 22-24: the return of Chef Clayton Ehrlich from Nobu Indian Wells
• Aug. 29-Sept. 1: the team from Nixta Taqueria, a James Beard award-winning restaurant, voted best in Austin three years in a row.

Dinners have ample courses and cost anywhere from $275-$350 per person, not including beverages, tax, and tip. Reservations are available via Resy.

Katherine Roberts is a mid-Valley based writer and marketing professional who has traded in sitting at her non-air-conditioned dining table at home for the cool confines of our delicious (and temperature-controlled) local restaurants. She can be reached via her marketing and communications firm, Carington Creative, at katherine@caringtoncreative.com.