Vail Resorts Goes All In on Dining With Largest Food Investment to Date

This winter, Vail Resorts says it’s going all in on food, making its largest dining investment to date with improvements across 15 resorts. 

According to a release, the company that owns numerous ski resorts around the world is “elevating its most popular quick-service menu items”—that’s typical lodge fare like burgers and pizza—with “higher-quality ingredients and refined presentation.”

One example is the “Steakhouse Burger, a butcher’s blend burger with melted New School American Cheese, shredded lettuce, and Summit Sauce on a butter-toasted brioche bun,” the release noted.

Along with the tweaks to the menu items that it said make up a majority of food purchases, Vail said it will “introduce new, unique dining and après experiences that reflect the energy, culture and character of each resort.”

The company added that the changes don’t come with a price increase beyond normal inflation, and that Epic Pass Holders receive 20% off dining. 

The boost applies to marquee ski resorts in the Vail Resorts group, such as Whistler Blackcomb, Vail Mountain, Park City Mountain Resort, and Breckenridge. 

Some of those resorts will see the opening of new places to eat and bars. Whistler Blackcomb is debuting On The Rocks, an ice bar; Park City is opening a Kodiak Cakes Waffle Shack; and Keystone has more treats coming with the Sweet Shack. 

The announcement fits into a strategy already touted by Vail Resorts’ relatively new CEO, Rob Katz (he previously served as CEO from 2006 to 2021 before taking over again in 2025), who said earlier this year that the company’s focus going forward is on the mountain experience.

Selling more passes and buying more ski resorts was “not the end goal,” he previously said. “The next chapter of growth for Vail Resorts is about delivering a guest experience that undeniably leads the ski industry and is best in class in the travel sector.”

In practice, that apparently includes a willingness to go toe-to-toe with Deer Valley, Utah, the neighbor of Vail Resorts’Park City Mountain and one of the highest-end ski resorts on the continent, known for its top-tier food and attentive employees, all at a premium price. 

“We’re absolutely targeting [going] above Deer Valley and above any of our current resorts,” Katz previously told TheSalt Lake Tribune. “Because what we’re talking about is adding services and components to the experience that don’texist today in the ski industry.”

Beyond the food, the thrust—called the “Epic Experience” by Vail—also includes improved rentals, lessons, app technology, and staff investments, according to the company.

Vail’s flagship pass, the Epic Pass, increases in price after November 15. It currently costs $1,169 for adults and $929 for young adults.

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