EAT Magazine Vogue Entertaining & Travel Colorado Golf Magazine DiRoNa Award Recipient Hemispheres Magazine Wine Spectator Award of Excellence Mangia Art Culinaire Ski Magazine Wine Spectator Award of Excellence Wine Spectator Ski Magazine Jan 2001 "Perhaps it's due to the friendly staff, who will pour you a pepper-infused vodka, tuck you into a private banquette or describe with zeal the evening's offerings. "On the other hand, it could be the origami hummingbirds that flock an entire wall, the subtle Italian lighting or the casual alder wood decor. Most likely, it's the appeal of the open kitchen and the 4,000-bottle, glass-enclosed wine room. 'I want people to be involved in the entire dining experience,' Salamunovich says. While Larkspur is the first restaurant that Salamunovich has owned, it benefits from his experience: in San Francisco with Wolfgang Puck at Postrio and Jeremiah Tower at Stars, and in France at Paul Bocuse and Lucas Carton. Before opening Larkspur, he was executive chef at Vail's Sweet Basil and Zino. "Salamunovich dazzles diners with duck pulled from the smoker, chopped Asian-style and served with an orange bigarade sauce and wild rice-pistachio strudel. Huge volcano lamb shanks are offered with sweet potato gnocchi. Ahi tuna is crusted with anchovies and capers, accented with a veal demi-glace and salsa verde and set atop a warm frisée-and-pumpkin polenta Napoleon. Warm apple and pear crepes complete the meal. "As if running a high-volume resort restaurant weren't enough, Salamunovich also oversees an attached gourmet market. 'It's high-intensity around here,' he says. 'But it's not like New York or L.A. Off-season comes around and we get to relax a little.'" - Linda Hayes, Ski Magazine, Jan 2001