VAILGuide
The Best Restaurants In Avon & Edwards, Colorado
photo credit: Donovan Sornig
Avon and Edwards are both just west of Vail. Sure, there might not be a surplus of extra cozy cabins in these towns, but these places are chiller, more convenient, and won’t force you to drop $1k a night on a merely serviceable Airbnb.
While lot of restaurants in Vail and Beaver Creek serve stuff you might find in the French and Swiss Alps, in Avon and Edwards, there’s a wider selection of things like steaming bowls of phở and loaded burritos from casual Mexican spots. Also, tables and bar seats tend to be easier to get at these restaurants, even during the busiest winter and summer months.
AVON
photo credit: Kim Fuller
If you’re looking for a spot to impress that friend who frequently uses the word “terroir,” look no further than Vin48. The bistro features lots of great bottles and more than 40 wines by the glass—yes, there’s a lot of pricey white burgundy, but they also have a lot of options for $70 and under. Grab one of the high tops in front where it’s usually pretty buzzy with small groups enjoying some post-work or après-ski time. The chicken liver mousse or the poached pear and burrata salad are perfect starters, as is the Colorado bison tartare. Always end with the orange-thyme Grand Marnier crème brûlée for dessert.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
Eagle County is probably the last place you’d expect to find great Hawaiian food, but Kai Island Grill serves some exceptional poke and meat bowls. It’s a casual, counter-service spot where you should order some raw tuna mixed with sesame oil and onions, or go for it smothered in spicy mayo. If you’re looking for something a little warmer than chilled fish, they do a great grilled flank steak that’s drizzled in Maui sauce.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
This is where you can find the best and most affordable street tacos in the Vail Valley. There are only about 20 seats in the narrow dining area, but you could eat their tender barbacoa with your head buried in the snow and still be happy. The tacos and burritos are our go-tos here, but when you walk in, you may notice a majority of people are eating burgers. The ones here are solid, specifically the Especial that comes with ham, cheese, and grilled pineapple. Add on a side of cheese fries and make liberal use of the vats of hot sauce right by the door.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
You should indeed come to this spot for a large bowl of phở. The space is super casual, and since tha tales can easily be pushed together, it works great for kids and bigger groups. Order the veggie phở and add on rare steak so you get the best of everything: crunchy carrots, mushrooms, and broccoli, large chunks of steamed tofu, and slices of ribeye. You could easily be satisfied with that savory bowl of soup, but throw in a round of crab cheese wontons for good measure.
EDWARDS
This Italian spot is a real choose-your-own-adventure kind of place. They’ve got an upstairs bar and lounge that looks over the dining room and an outdoor patio alongside a bocce court. Pick your table according to the season and the occasion: dining room for something extra special, bar and lounge for drop-ins and dates, and patio for spring and summer. Go for the brick oven-baked pizzas, like the funghi with local mushrooms, arugula, mozzarella, shaved parmesan, and truffle oil. The housemade pastas are also always on point—order both the pappardelle with veal meatballs and the rigatoni with smoked Colorado elk sausage, and pair it all with something off their mostly Italian wine list that features some standout bottles from Piedmont.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
This upscale gastropub is where you should spend Happy Hour sipping a $10 margarita at one of the many high-top tables. The space itself is pretty big and gets a ton of natural light from the windows, so it’s one of the more pleasant places in the area to drink a beer flight and eat a sandwich. The spicy Italian is a standout, not only because it’s made with bread from a local bakery, but because there’s one special ingredient you don’t see on a lot of cold-cut sandwiches: pimento cheese.
photo credit: Donovan Sornig
Across the street from Craftsman is its sister restaurant, Il Mago. But instead of burgers and IPAs, you’ll get some really excellent pizzas, Italian wines, and Fernet on tap here. These sourdough pies have a perfectly chewy and crispy crust: go for The Supernaut that’s made with crushed tomato, scamorza, pepperoni, garlic, and Calabrian chili. They also have some daily oyster specials and great snacks like garlic knots with pecorino and chili-garlic butter that you should order while you wait for more carbs.
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Juniper is an under-the-radar spot tucked into the Riverwalk shopping area and next to Eagle River. We like it best for a date night or just a drink at the long comfortable bar—they have a larger-than-usual list of wine-by-the-glass options. Share some starters like grilled octopus and braised short rib pizza with gorgonzola, but don’t miss the braised short rib with a creamy smoked gouda polenta and a fresh winter vegetable slaw. For dessert, the sticky toffee pudding cake with Myers’s rum sauce is as decadent, and delicious, as it sounds.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
Whether you want a casual lunch, a spot for Happy Hour, or just a relaxed dinner, you can rely on the Drunken Goat. Start with a meat and cheese spread and some oysters, add on the Thai beef lettuce wraps and a wedge salad, and round things out with one of their many bruschetta—the one with prosciutto, pistachios, and goat cheese is the best. The patio is a fun scene where locals hang out, recognize each other, and yell out things like, “I haven’t seen you since off-season!” Drunken Goat also happens to be across Highway 6 from the Riverwalk Theater, so it’s a great stop for a quick meal before a movie.
photo credit: Jeff Fierberg
You’ll always find locals at The Rose for lunch, Happy Hour, or before catching a movie at the Riverwalk Theater. And you should join them to celebrate not tumbling down a double black diamond ski slope for the first time in your life. Go for the avocado fries with soy aioli, a plate of elote-style vegetables, and a rich bowl of ramen with a miso bone broth. It’s worth ordering a Paper Plane cocktail, since this one actually comes with your very own paper plane as a non-edible but fully flyable garnish.
photo credit: Kim Fuller
Hovey & Harrison is doing its best impression of an Olympic athlete who signs up for all the ski events. Except instead of downhill, slalom, and alpine combine, this communal space is part market, part deli, part bakery, and part dining room. The open-faced toasts with things like smashed avocado and roasted beets are worth waiting in line for, the peach hand pies and salted chocolate chip cookies are equally good, and there are always excellent grab-and-go salads, sandwiches, and soups. You might even spot real-life alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin in here buying some pottery, organic ketchup, and Italian olive oil when she’s not in Europe collecting medals.
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This spot was originally a gas station in the 1940s, but the current owners renovated the historic log cabin in the early ‘80s. Since then, it’s been one of the best places to eat meat and seafood in town—we’re talking about stuff like buffalo ribeye, jackalope sausages, baked oysters, and crab cakes. Inside, you’ll find elk heads, expired license plates, and silver-haired locals (known in the Vail Valley as “pioneers”) that make the whole space feel like a real-life Clint Eastwood movie set.
