Nestled amongst the towering peaks of the Rocky Mountains, the Town of Vail extends a welcoming embrace to tourists from around the globe. At its heart is Sweet Basil, a cherished local restaurant that has been warming bellies for nearly 50 years. Few restaurants have stood the test of time as Sweet Basil has.
In the alpine sanctuary of Vail, Sweet Basil was born nearly half a century ago in 1977 by Kevin Clair, a local Coloradan chef who previously trained at former Three MICHELIN Star restaurants in France.
Current owner Matt Morgan joined ten years later, first by bussing tables at the restaurant. He says, “I didn't really know what I wanted to do, except I wanted to drink beer and ski. The idea of living in a ski community was always a dream, and Vail just kind of fell in my lap.”
36 years in, reflecting on his time at Sweet Basil, Morgan says, “I'm passionate about people, the hospitality. We're in a resort community. It may sound corny, but we really do have the opportunity to impact people's experience.” Chef Paul Anders has made those experiences magical. Joining 17 years ago, he says, “We've had some amazing times, some amazing guests. My best satisfaction comes from when a guest tells me, ‘that was one of the best meals I've ever had.’”
Contributing to those memorable meals is the Crispy Shrimp & Calamari, which has been served for decades. Chef Anders explains, “It's a play off your traditional kind of fritto misto fried calamari but done a little more modern. It’s actually a rice flour base, crispy shrimp and calamari and then a lot of vegetables.” For dessert, the Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake is iconic. “People base their vacations in Vail around coming to Sweet Basil and having the hot sticky toffee pudding.”
One emerging classic is the whipped feta. “[It] has a black olive fermented garlic honey drizzled on the whipped feta with rosemary powder.” Paired with a thin carta di musica cracker puffed up into a hollow sphere, guests use a spoon to crack the sphere into cracker shards.
To make meals even more delectable, Sweet Basil embraces seasonality and sources locally. Chef Anders says, “It should feel like you're in the mountains. It should feel reflective of the seasons. We try to be local. We have several local purveyors here in Eagle County that are growing lettuce. We're passionate about Colorado lamb, and all the local tomatoes and peaches. Because Colorado's growing season is so short, we really relish in the actual fresh local produce when we've got it.”
Adding to that, Sweet Basil sources vegetables grown by aquaponics and cares deeply about recycling. Chef Anders explains, “It's part of who we are. It's part of what we believe in. We were part of the pilot program in Vail to start recycling and get that going on a larger scale. We currently compost quite a bit.”
Their close-knit team has been very important to the restaurant’s success. Chef Anders explains, “We work as a team, first and foremost. We push each other, we taste each other's food, we critique. If that all goes well, then it ends up on the menu.” With this supportive team culture, Sweet Basil’s website even lists new restaurant openings by former employees.
Community not only exists within their kitchen, but extends heartfully throughout the community of Vail. Morgan emphasizes, “One of our driving principles is we take care of our community.” Chef Anders’ favorite is raising money for Roundup River Ranch. He explains, “[It] provides summer camp opportunities for children with disabilities. On site, they have amazing facilities that would enable a child that is maybe bound to a wheelchair to be able to go on a zipline. It's really, really cool. And it's been out on the Colorado River, an amazing location.”
A Colorado native, Morgan couldn’t imagine life any other way. “I've never lived anywhere else, and frankly, never had the desire to. There's four seasons, but even in the winter, we get 300 days of sunshine. I love the winter when it comes, love to go outdoors skiing and snowshoeing. And then summertime, there's so many things you can do, whether it's fish, hike, bike, golf. Take a gondola ride, get over to the amphitheater. No bugs, cool nights, warm days, and then you start all over again.”
Chef Anders feels similarly, taking his culinary skills from Denver to Colorado Springs to Vail. He says, “People come for one winter, and they end up staying for twenty. It hooks you. We definitely got hooked in that way. I'm the skiing, snowboarding, [snowmobiling] guy, certainly in the winter. In the summertime, I'm a huge water guy. I love being on the river. I love fishing.”
With the MICHELIN Guide now in Colorado, the Sweet Basil team is excited for the state’s culinary future. Chef Anders says, “Vail in particular, we have travelers that are coming from all over the world. They eat and dine and stay and experience the best mountain resorts. They're well versed in MICHELIN-level dining. We hope we live up to that standard. You should feel like you're in the mountains, a little different from Denver. Maybe there's a little Alpine bend to it, maybe you're sitting by the window, and the beautiful snowflakes are falling. And then on top of that, you tap into some really hardy Alpine foods to build the calories for the next day of skiing.”
Throughout it all, Sweet Basil maintains a sense of timeless elegance for generations of adventurers. Morgan reminisces, “We're literally on our second or third generation of people that have been coming maybe the same week, and we're a real part of their families.”
What’s next for Sweet Basil? Morgan says, “Lunch service today. As they say, we're only as good as our last meal served.”
