Set On The Side Of Idaho's Bald Mountain Is A Wintry Restaurant You Can Only Reach Via Gondola

If you want to experience lunch or dinner at Sun Valley, Idaho's Roundhouse Restaurant, you're going to have to get on a ski lift. The gondola-style lifts are completely enclosed, protecting you from the wintry weather but still providing majestic views of the surrounding mountains. The climb takes about eight minutes and at the top, you'll find yourself at 7,700 feet above sea level. From there, you'll climb a short flight of stairs to the entrance of The Roundhouse Restaurant.

When it comes to atmosphere at the lodge-style restaurant, cozy is the name of the game. The octagonal-shaped space boasts 46 floor-to-ceiling windows, a four-sided fireplace in the center, wood beams, and rustic antler chandeliers. There is also an expansive outdoor deck, which is presumably used more in the summertime, but when you stand outside looking at the stunning views around you, you might swear you were in the center of the Italian Alps. In the summer, it's endlessly green, and visitors come to the area to golf, hike, fish, canoe, and hike. But winter is the prime season for this oasis, and the vista is a delicious mix of trees, sunlight, and snow that goes on forever.

The Roundhouse Restaurant opened in 1939 and is perched on Bald Mountain, one of Sun Valley's premier mountains for skiing. The menu here definitely fits the mood of the outdoor activities, featuring the classic après ski treat of warm fondue as well as an array of wonderful New American cuisine.

According to The Roundhouse Restaurant's website, reservations for both lunch and dinner are a must. For lunch, you'll have to secure a lift ticket for the gondola that will take you up the mountain, but when you reserve your spot for dinner, a lift ticket is included. The menu is an interesting blend of options: In addition to the aforementioned fondue, there are some choices in the vein of classic Scandinavian cuisine, like a smorgasbord appetizer and fiskesuppe, which is a type of Norwegian fish chowder. This also crosses over to the main courses, where you'll see pickled mustard seeds and lingonberry jam on the restaurant's lamb burger and elk Swedish meatballs.

The dinner menu features dishes that undoubtedly draw on Idaho's local resources, like king salmon (also called Chinook) and lamb. There are also comforting classics like bison chili, truffle fries, Croque Monsieur (which is different from Croque Madame), and wild mushroom ravioli. If you're in Sun Valley or the surrounding area, a trip to Roundhouse Restaurant is a beautiful and unique experience, seeing as you can't walk or drive there. You'll definitely want to stay a while, so get there early, order a cocktail, maybe step out on the deck (it'll keep your martini cold in the winter), and definitely order the fondue (not to be confused with raclette) to warm you back up.