Café Diva — Restaurant in Colorado

My wife and I were enjoying a nice Labor Day weekend getaway and several people recommended this restaurant. I am so happy they did.

Forget the casual dress code; this restaurant is a fine dining experience from beginning to end.

I have been fortunate to have enjoyed some of the finest restaurants in the world and Café Diva would not be out of place among them.

The dishes are well-designed and very well-prepared.

I started out with the crab bisque. Very nice creamy tomato flavor with a hint of pepper. I would have liked a little more crab flavor to provide that bit of sweetness, maybe larger chunks of meat? I enjoyed it very much though.

For my entrée I had the halibut which was absolutely delicious. The fish itself was clearly a nice piece of fish to start. Cooked well, great flavor and texture. The lemon, salt & pepper was so simple, but complemented the flavor of the fish so nicely. This was one of the best halibut experiences I have had.

My wife had scallops and really enjoyed them. I don’t do scallops, but I tried a bit of the sauce, potatoes and corn. Delicious. The corn provided a nice sweet flavor that worked so well with the savory flavors of the rest of the dish.

For dessert I simply opted for a pour of Macallan and a scoop of vanilla gelato. I had chocolate the night before and nothing else struck my fancy. This is a simple standby and I was pleased that they had my favorite Scotch.

The service is impeccable and friendly. Their staff are clearly very well trained.

We will...

Cafe Diva is consistently the best meal we have in Steamboat. Chef Kate is a magician who takes high quality ingredients, cooked to perfection. We have been to almost all of the fine dining restaurants in town and Cafe Diva wins on taste, hands down.

Menus rotate every season but there are a few staples that are always there. Staples we enjoyed were the crab and tomato bisque and the venison loin. The venison was cooked between a rare and medium rare (chef's recommendation) and it was so, so tender. This meat had a veal Demi-glacé and was paired with mashed potatoes, green beans, and fried leeks; seemingly simple but done extremely well. In addition, we also had the smoked beet and pepita salad and I had the onion soup braised lamb shank. Apparently Chef Kate starts cooking this lamb at 6am (and then go skis a couple laps if conditions are good) and it's a creative mash up of French onion soup and braised lamb shank. The met was fall of the bone tender and so flavorful. My only compliant was it was too much food and I couldn't finish. Dessert was the classic creme brûlée with fresh berries, this rendition is a lighter texture than the usual crème brûlée and the perfect finish to the meal.

I will come here every time I'm in Steamboat. Highly recommend.

Tips: Reservations are an absolute must. Do this on Opentable in advance. Ambiance is fairly loud, but service...

As far as fine dining experiences at ski resorts go, Diva holds its own to be sure. Not too big, not too small creates a nice joint where a proper conversation can be had and not overheard.

Where the waitstaff, from the moment you arrive is as attentive, pleasant and knowledgeable as could be imagined. Almost made me think they were programmed robots as perfectly executed it all was... LOL Kidding of course, staff crushed it.

House cocktails thoughtfully designed... the paper moon was subtle and yummy.

The mushroom and Brussel sprout spring rolls flavorful and surprisingly lite. The pork belly peanut but bites are inspired, but a word to the chef…too many flavors confuses a palate. Going easier on the sauces and having more confidence in the flavor of your primary ingredients is something for you to ponder.

The special Seabass lite and flakey. The lamb shank was fall Off the bone. But again while tasty this chef is trying a little too hard! The abundance of sauces over power things and fillers like the Gruyère Cauliflower purée can be tone down. Chef..less is more, let the love you put into the main ingredients shive thru, resist the need to overcompensate and you’ll truly find ‘it’.

Lastly the Mexican Chocolate Mousse, yum.

Still despite my nuanced feedback, Cafe Diva is a Steamboat standout. We...