DOC POW
SILVER STAR, BC — It’s not your usual taxi you’d take to dinner; this one is solely unique to Silver Star Mountain Resort. The particular taxi I am talking about is the 12-passenger snow-cat machine, Paradise Express.
Running every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, the Paradise Express leaves the colourful village of the resort behind and heads up and into the back country for a real gourmet dining experience in a rustic setting.
Paradise Camp is located at the top of the Powder Gulch Express Quad Chair – the gateway to Silver Star’s Putnam Creek area, known so some as the Dark Side, and is filled with plenty of great powder stashes and excellent tree skiing. But you won’t be able to scope any of those by night, it’s pitch dark up here providing some stellar opportunities to work on the astronomy.
An impressive menu
Breakfast at Paradise Camp features an excellent assortment of delights, including Crab Cake Benny and for lunch, I suggest the club sandwich and pickled beet salad. By night though, this, your cat’s final destination, converts into a deluxe restaurant with a menu that sure to please anyone.
The candle light menu varies from bacon-wrapped steaks served with blue cheese, to Salmon Wellington wrapped in a Phyllo pastry. For an appetizer, try the Portobello mushroom with goat’s cheese for a taste sensation that is truly amazing.
Matched with a solid wine list featuring many local offerings from the famed wine region of the Okanagan Valley, and it adds up for a dining experience that you’ll be writing home about.
When it comes time for chow here at “the Star” as the locals call it, no visitor will go hungry. Be sure to stop in for breakfast or a snack at Bugaboo’s Bakery in the village and say hello to Frank Berkers, who is a transplant from Holland.
Berkers and his fine staff have served up some delicious fare for many years. Don’t take a miss on the ham and cheese croissant, and then there is the banana, pineapple almond cake – all I have to say about either is WOW.
Owner goes skiing when it’s slow
"I have owned this shop for 12 years and just love it – every single day is fantastic. Look at this view. My old shop was in the middle of a big city with no option to click in and head for a ski when things were slow for a bit," said Berkers.
He has an alpine glow and when you see him, you can just tell by looking at him, here is a man who is living out his dreams.
Over at the Saloon, which converts to a great dance spot by night with live music, the menu features the daily Skier’s Special – served in 20 minutes or less – just enough to give you a quick re-fuel before charging back on the slopes.
John Earle has been a Silver Star resident for 26 years, eight years owning and operating Long John’s Silver Mine, the locals’ après spot on mountain.
“The resort is small enough that you remember all the faces. Silver Star is compact and tight and really well laid out,” said Earle.
“You gotta have a Long John’s Burger while you are here, it is seriously the best burger I have ever had,” said Brian Johnson, one of Silver Star’s ski instructors.
Dutch hospitality
The Bulldog Hotel Silver Star, another transplant from Holland of sorts – features some classy and character-filled accommodations – and it’s pet-friendly, very pet friendly as your favourite four-legged fur ball gets to stay for free. The Bulldog’s famous for its roots in Amsterdam but now has expanded to locations around the globe with the Silver Star location as its flagship slope-side venue.
In addition to the accommodations and Moguls, a funky sports bar with a great menu, the Bulldog has the best patio in the village. It’s here where you’ll get sun right through the afternoon.
An impressive menu of fusion featuring Asian/European with some Canadian favourites is perfect for an afternoon snack or possible dinner options.
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