by SUZ A N NE HOFFM A N
PEOPLE & PL ACES
CHEF’S TASTEFUL JOURNEY
FOOD & WINE
Davis Turner, left, and Quintin Wicks get ready for another night on the line. Below: David Walford, the chef-owner of Splendido at the Chateau, has been cooking professionally for decades.
DAVID WALFORD HAS BEEN ON A CRUSADE AGAINST INFERIOR CUISINE AND SERVICE FOR 20-PLUS YEARS
S
PLENDID IS A WORD
that evokes superlatives. To diners in Beaver Creek, its Italian translation, splendido, conjures memories of superb views, wonderful aromas and sumptuous food. Such are the words to describe a transcendent dining experience at Splendido at the Chateau. Since opening in 1994, Splendido quickly evolved into a premier Beaver Creek dining venue with its own unique, consistently refined style. Executive chef and owner David Walford describes his menu
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theme as one that “feels right for the Rocky Mountains.” After a day enjoying the recreational delights this mountain resort offers, nothing feels better than a hearty Mediterraneaninfluenced — but very much Colorado Rocky Mountain — dinner at Splendido. Walford loves aviation and is a pilot. But a high school dishwashing job planted the culinary seeds. He tried college, but soon discovered his future was in a kitchen, not a classroom, thereby grounding an aviation career. New
aspirations of a culinary vocation launched Walford on an ascent into the stratosphere of his profession through years of hard work. He believes his success today is the result of on-the-job training, honing his skills under the guidance of a variety of talented chefs. The Colorado native experienced fine dining in Vail, then San Francisco and Napa where he worked first as an apprentice, then a cook,
with renowned chefs such as Masa Kobayashi at Auberge du Soleil and Udo Neschutneys at Miramonte in St. Helena. It was this latter stint that inspired chef Walford to head to France, where he spent a year working in several provinces, including Paris, under a number of noted chefs. Upon his return to Vail, Walford served as Sweet Basil’s executive chef for nine years before experiencing a “career-defining moment.” In 1994, the builder of the Chateau approached Walford to create a “defining” restaurant in Beaver Creek. All the years of hard work, training under other chefs in Europe and America, brought Walford to the moment when he became Splendido’s executive chef and co-owner. After a milliondollar renovation of Splendido’s kitchen in 2007, Walford took over as the iconic restaurant’s sole owner. Now, 30 years into his culinary career, Walford has never looked back, although his passion for aviation still burns. The famed chefs Walford worked under and admired inspired the work ethic he lives by today and is passing along to the next generation of chefs. That ethic is in full view in Splendido’s spotless, state-of-the art kitchen, easily seen through a wall of glass that divides it from prized seats in the dining room. As such, Splendido’s kitchen has become a valued learning
P H OTO G R A P H Y BY D O M I N I Q U E TAY LO R