Wednesday, October 26, 7:00 pm
Member $90, guests $115

Only in Colorado can you find top restaurants encouraging their most valued employees to risk their lives by doubling as downhill ski racers. During the annual Beaver Creek Culinary Festival and Celebrity Chef Ski Race, area chefs compete to prove their prowess on the mountain—and in the kitchen. Leading the pack with its Wild West cuisine and unparalleled private collection of Western American artifacts is SaddleRidge at Beaver Creek, where chef Geordy Ogden turns out what he terms “a sort of Mexican-Asian fusion with American sensibilities.” Originally designed as an exclusive retreat for clients and executives of the Shearson-Lehman Corporation, SaddleRidge lays claim to a singular setting where, in the words of Sarah Dixon of the Vail Daily, “elegance meets rustic tradition, where grandeur and warmth find a common ground.”

It’s not surprising that this adventurous chef has an interesting story. Before embarking on his culinary career, Ogden received a degree in petroleum engineering from the Colorado School of Mines. Upon his graduation in 1992, jobs were few and far between in his line of work, so Ogden headed to Vail to take a position as a line cook at Two Elk. He never looked back. After a four-year spell at Terra Bistro, where he climbed the ranks to sous-chef, he moved to SaddleRidge to work as executive sous-chef under David Corbin, taking over as executive chef in 2000. At this post, Ogden creates his popular eclectic menu by seeking out authentic and unusual ingredients—think Peruvian asparagus and galangal—to enhance local products.

With its themed décor—a variety of taxidermed animals and some of Annie Oakley’s rifles are prominent features—SaddleRidge could easily be mistaken for favoring kitsch over quality. Ogden has garnered enough praise, however, to reassure even the most skeptical critics. Ryan Slabaugh of the Vail Daily was just as impressed by the tried-and-true dishes as by the more unusual ones, particularly praising the steak with tamales and mushroom mole as well as a chocolate cake that “nearly dripped off the fork.” We have no idea how he skis, but in the kitchen, Geordy Ogden is definitely a contender.