New restaurant at Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail focuses on Northern Italian flavors
Four Seasons Vail opens new flagship restaurant in partnership with Michelin-rated Frasca Hospitality Group
Townsend Bessent/Courtesy photo
Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail was happy to reveal a new flagship restaurant this holiday season. Tavernetta Vail opened up earlier this month and offers fine Northern Italian cuisine and an extensive Italian wine list.
Tavernetta replaced Flame Steakhouse on the third floor of the property and is an extension of the award-winning Frasca Hospitality Group. This Denver-based company is behind James Beard Foundation Award-winning and Michelin-starred Frasca Food and Wine, Osteria Alberico, Pizzeria Alberico, Sunday Vinyl and Michelin Bib Gourmand Tavernetta Denver.
At a ribbon cutting ceremony for the restaurant on Dec. 17, Four Seasons Vail general manager Jerome Arribas expressed gratitude to the team for pulling this collaboration together so quickly and welcomed the new partners.
“It takes a village to build something like this in six months. Nobody believed it, including me,” Arribas said of the quick turnaround and remodeling the space. “So, it’s kind of a miracle, and I have too many people to thank, but I’d like to mention the construction team, the project management, the architects, the designers, they also put all their heart and skills and energy in this project and that’s the reason why we can enjoy it tonight.”
The ribbon was cut, and the doors were opened to reveal a 150-seat space with a new bar and lounge added and cozy booth seating. The large windows show off the runs on the front side of Vail Mountain and the vantage point will be a fun place for apr猫s ski once that starts on Jan. 9 and breakfast is scheduled to begin on Jan. 17.
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“I came from a mountain community 30 years ago when I was the wine director at the Little Nell in Aspen, so I love mountain communities,” Bobby Stucky, co-founder of Frasca Hospitality Group and master sommelier said. “People have been asking me for the last two decades, ‘When are you going to do a restaurant in the mountains?’ and I’m so humbled and honored that we got to bring Tavernetta Vail to the Four Seasons Vail.”
Look for some of the signature dishes from Tavernetta Denver on the menu like the rigatoni with the lamb ragu and pecorino romano. Chef de cuisine Ethan Diamant is excited to share his Alpine-inspired Italian cuisine with diners.
“One of the dishes I can’t wait for people to try is the canederli di speck. It is from the Alto Adige region and it’s a bread dumpling served with a prosciutto and Parmesan brodo, very thinly sliced speck on top and then a beautiful shaved smoked ricotta,” Diamant said.
Tavernetta Vail will also showcase an Italian-focused wine and spirits program.
“The goal of Tavernetta Vail is to represent the country of Italy and the 20 sub-regions within it in the truest way that we can. The food is one way to do it and the other piece of the equation is everything in this wine room,” said Rylan Bonaccorsi, lead sommelier at Tavernetta Vail.
The wine cellar is a beautifully and functionally designed space that allows the guests to peer inside and be amazed at the extensive labels that are carried, although, keen connoisseurs will notice the bubbles don’t come from Italy.
“Italy is the second biggest consumer of Champagne outside of France. It’s an integral part of Italian culture, so we’re doing our best to represent the way the Italians eat and drink and Champagne is a crucial piece of that puzzle,” Bonaccorsi said.
The ambiance is courtesy of Studio Collective of Venice, California and Denver-based OZ Architects and features a hand-painted wood-beamed ceiling and custom glass entryway and other delicate details. The craftsmanship is meant to give a nod to renowned Italian architect, Gio Ponti.
“We wanted it to have a connection to Tavernetta Denver, of course, but it needed to fit into this setting, where people are looking right up at the mountain,” Stucky said. “Another special thing I want to mention is the Vail community. We’ve been up here this month doing training and we just feel so humbled and honored to be part of this community and we want to thank you so much for your support.”
Tavernetta Vail is open for dinner nightly at 5 p.m. Reservations are available on or for more information, please visit聽.
