Random fact about me – even though I was born and raised in this amazing mountain town, I never became a skier or snowboarder. While I had friends who did it growing up, my core friend group didn’t, neither did most of my family, so it was never a big part of my life. I did go a bit when I was younger, so I could probably make it down from the top of the hill and still be in one piece!
These days, when I go up to Kicking Horse Mountain Resort (aka the hill), I’m there for one of three reasons – one, for the views, two, an event, or three, the food. There are only a couple of spots to dine at up there, depending on the time of day. The resort itself offers a couple of different options – the Eagle’s Eye Restaurant located at the top of the hill, the Whitetooth Grill located in the day lodge and the Heaven’s Door Yurt located at the base of the Stairway to Heaven chairlift (which I won’t be making it to anytime soon). They are all great spots, but the one I want to talk about today is the Double Black cafe.
While it is one of the various options to choose from at the hill, it is at least one of the great coffee options you’ll find up there. So if you’re on the search for your morning latte, this is the place. It’s a great spot to grab a coffee between laps, stop in for a bite to eat or end your day with some great après options.
We were up at the hill for an event a couple of weeks ago and, lucky me, it was right around brunch time. We walked by the sign with “Crêpes” written across the top, and I was hooked. Having attended French Immersion here in Golden, where I had the opportunity to travel to France as well as take a French foods cooking class, I have a soft spot for crêpes.
Upon walking into the cafe, you’ll see their various options for meals and drinks (coffee, tea and après specials). They have a nice variety of choices on their menu, offering breakfast, lunch and apres options for the end of the day. We were there in the morning, so we opted for the breakfast options. We opted to try the “Choco Lovers” crepes and the “Send it Breaky” paired with some warm beverages. I was pleasantly surprised to see “Chocolate Chai” as an option on their drink menu! I would highly recommend it to chai drinkers, it was a perfect balance between a hot chocolate and a chai latte.
Now, when you order something called “Choco Lovers”, you should have a certain expectation of what you’re getting. Even though I read the menu description, I was still a bit shocked when the plate arrived at our table. Here is what was included – Nutella, fresh strawberries, banana, graham cracker crumbs, marshmallows and whipped cream. It sounded delicious in my head, and it looks like a little kids dream breakfast, which delighted my inner child. While I was delighted by the unexpected multi-colour marshmallows, it was delicious. You can’t go wrong with a Nutella and fresh fruit crêpe, and I enjoyed the added whimsicalness from the whipped cream and marshmallows.
In my experience, it’s best to pair a sweet breakfast with a savoury option, which is why we also ordered the “Send it Breaky” plate – two sunny side up eggs, potatoes, maple bacon, fruit and toast, a great balanced option to start out the day! While I don’t usually enjoy sunny side up eggs, my husband would say I like my eggs “overcooked”, I enjoyed these ones! Paired with roasted potatoes (which were a definite highlight on the plate for me), bacon and fruit, it is a great option for those who like a simple and delicious breakfast.
One tip I can give for anyone wanting to head up there to try Double Black out, and you don’t plan on spending any time on the mountain, be sure to hit a busy riding time. We luckily were there when everyone was on the slopes, so there wasn’t a ton of other people in there. If you’re there at lunch time or at the end of the day, the space can fill up quite quickly!
All in all, a great dining option at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. If you’re up at the ski hill and you’re looking for a coffee or something to eat, consider checking out Double Black! They are open 8am to 5pm, seven days a week (during the winter season). I look forward to going back up to try their lunch and apres options, especially the raclette!
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