Silverpeak Grill — Restaurant in Aspen

My parents and I were in Aspen exploring after a day of hiking at Maroon Bells, so we were pretty hungry. I came across this restaurant and we decided to go due to its high ratings. We wanted somewhere casual but with good food that would fill us up. I'm so glad we came here; it was one of the best meals of our trip!

520 Grill is located on the lower level of an office building off East Cooper Street. There are only a handful of tables here, as well as an outdoor patio. You order and pay at the counter, they'll call out your number, and you pick up your food. Simple, fast, casual.

After perusing their menu, I knew I just had to get the bison burger ($9.60). It's served on a toasted bun with lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, cheese, and house sauce. My dad got the same thing as me, and my mom ordered the kale and quinoa salad ($8.92) and the soup of the day (chicken tortilla). It was my first time trying bison, and I have to say it was really good. It's very lean and nicely marbled. The flavor is just as satisfying as a beef burger, but it's lighter and slightly sweet. Great texture and wonderful flavors. The chicken tortilla soup was also really good, perfect for the rainy afternoon.

Staff is friendly and efficient. Prices are very reasonable. This is a great, laid-back place to...

This place completely ruined part of our Aspen trip.

We chose what looked like a casual local spot — order/pay at the counter and no table service. After eating, we left without tipping, as you typically would in a fast-casual place. But the owner came storming outside, shouting at us, saying:

“You guys don’t look rich at all, why don’t you tip?” “Was there something wrong with the service??”

I went back in to de-escalate and offer a tip — but instead of a conversation, I was mocked, yelled at, and humiliated in front of everyone. He wouldn’t stop. Sarcastic, loud, aggressive — it was shocking.

Another table told us they didn’t tip either and got no reaction. Why were we singled out? It’s hard not to wonder if race played a factor.

On top of that, the food was subpar, and the owner constantly hovered over us in a way that felt intrusive, not hospitable. For him to later claim he gave “all that service” was ridiculous.

This wasn’t a one-off. Other reviews mention racist behavior, rude outbursts, and a consistently hostile attitude.

If you value being treated with basic respect, avoid this place. There are plenty of better options in Aspen where you won’t be...

The only thing keeping this from getting a fifth star was the prices.

For what it is, this is a great place, and I'm sure for Aspen, this is very affordable, but a walk-up order counter place selling $10+ burgers with $4 sides is in the "$$" range, not "$."

Everything was delicious. If you want a good burger, you've got to check this place out.

Salad was just ok. Wouldn't get it again, especially at $13.

Be aware that there's a marijuana shop virtually engulfing this place. We brought our kids here and it promoted a conversation. We were ok to talk to them about what the store was selling, but you should know that if you have kids, there's paraphernalia everywhere and a huge painting of a guy smoking weed outside. I almost wondered if I had misread the listing and we were actually...