Rock Island Oyster Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Snowmass Village

I had heard about this place but hadn’t tried it yet. I met a group of friends and walked in without any idea what was on the menu (except the obvious - oysters, which I don’t eat). We arrived during Happy Hour and ordered some Pinot Noir along with the French Onion dip. I was hesitant to order the dip because some onion dips can be overwhelmingly onion-y. That wasn’t the case here. It was delicious with the chips as well as with the fresh veggies. I hadn’t eaten all day, so also ordered the cheeseburger with Gruyère cheese. I rarely eat burgers and when I do order one, I don’t think I’ve ever eaten more than half. That also wasn’t the case here - I devoured the whole thing because it was so tasty and perfectly cooked. I also got the opportunity to try the Linguini alla Pesto one of my friends ordered and it was incredibly flavorful, with perfectly cooked pasta.

Then came dessert. We ordered the Warm Sticky Toffee Pudding, Crème Brûlée, and Key Lime Pie for the table. All I can really say is it took every bit of self control I could muster not to fight for every last bite. All three were sinfully delicious.

I’m really looking forward to watching this casual, unassuming restaurant with delicious food created by an amazing up-and-coming chef rise to the top in Snowmass. I strongly recommend...

Kindof disappointed given all the great reviews. But this is Aspen….. We started with the homemade chips - they’re pretty good but quite a few of them were SUPER soggy and soft. The Wedge was OK - not great. A wedge should have blue cheese dressing (theirs has Green Goddess with a funky herb/spice in it), and the bacon was virtually invisible. The fries were just OK. The Sticky Toffee Pudding had a distinct, and off putting burnt taste. The burger was great, but everything else was just average. Service was good, but i doubt we’ll return for...

The utensil I got is not clean. The fork I got clearly has some remaining stuff on the tip. Although the waiter changed the fork for me after I showed him the fork.

However, what’s went lower than my expectation on an avg level of service is that, I still don’t get my bill 20 minutes after my request. And when I get the bill, it charges a 18% tip for a large party meanwhile we are a merely 4 people group. It’s actually clearly stated on their menu that group beyond 5 is a large party. I’m wondering how often they make...