Families · Dining
Kid-friendly restaurants in Aspen
Where children are genuinely welcome: kids menus the restaurants publish, early dinners that work after ski school, and the nights to book ahead.
Where children are genuinely welcome: kids menus the restaurants publish, early dinners that work after ski school, and the nights to book ahead.
Aspen is easier with children than its reputation suggests. Hickory House publishes a kids menu and serves breakfast, lunch and dinner; CP Burger sits beside an outdoor skating rink in winter; Bonnie's on Aspen Mountain is the pancake stop between ski-school laps. The harder part is a 5:30 table during holiday weeks. We live in Aspen and know its restaurants and the people who run them. Tell us the nights and we'll hold the tables.
Hours below are what each restaurant publishes, checked October 2, 2026. Aspen restaurants shorten hours or close for parts of the spring and fall off-season, and set winter hours around ski-area opening day, so confirm the week you arrive. We include a kids menu only where the restaurant itself shows one.
Paul Montiel · Aspen · Updated October 2026
After ski school everyone is hungry at the same time, and so is every other family in town. We know Aspen's restaurants and the people who run them: tell us the nights and we'll ask for early tables, a booth with room for a high chair, and a driver so nobody walks home in ski boots.
Barbecue and ribs at 730 W. Main St. The restaurant publishes a kids menu alongside daily and weekend breakfast menus, lunch and dinner; listed hours are 8:00 a.m.–2:30 p.m. and 5:00–9:00 p.m. daily. In the spring and fall off-season it asks you to call for hours.
Burgers, hot dogs, truffle fries and milkshakes at 433 E. Durant Ave., steps from Aspen Mountain. In winter it sits beside Aspen's only outdoor skating rink; in summer the rink becomes a mini-golf course. Its site lists daily hours from 11 a.m., with two different closing times, so check before a late dinner.
Modern Chinese and handmade dim sum at 308 S. Hunter St.: shareable, familiar and quick. Lunch 11:30 a.m.–3 p.m., dinner 4–10 p.m. daily, with table reservations and takeout.
Downtown since 1976 at 320 S. Galena St.: muffins, cinnamon rolls and homemade ice cream and gelato. Open 6:30 a.m.–9 p.m. daily, which makes it the after-dinner treat as well as breakfast.
Lessons, rentals fitted at the house, lunches, and a quiet evening for the parents.
A birthday or anniversary at the residence: the table, the chef, the flowers and a photographer.
From the aircraft door to a warm, stocked house, with nothing to carry and nothing to chase.
A 1960s lodge mid-mountain off Tourtelotte Park, known for pancakes, white-bean chili and apple strudel. Breakfast and lunch, 9 a.m.–2:30 p.m. during the ski season. See on-mountain dining.
Most families with younger children ski Buttermilk or Snowmass; plan lunch around the ski-school pickup. See skiing in Aspen with kids.
For the special-occasion tables, see where to eat in Aspen and Aspen's Michelin restaurants.
The Little Nell's brasserie at the base of the gondola: lunch 11:30 a.m.–5 p.m., dinner 5–9 p.m., booked on Resy. Note the hotel's charge of $100 per person for cancellations inside 48 hours or no-shows.
Seafood, chowder and a Gruyère-topped burger in a warm room with a fireplace. Lunch is walk-in only (11 a.m.–3 p.m.); dinner (5–9:30 p.m.) takes reservations and walk-ins, and groups of six or more book through the events team.
Boards, sandwiches and shared plates, 11 a.m.–9 p.m. daily. First-come, first-served: no reservations, so go early with children.
A 5:00 or 5:30 table is easier to get, quieter and fits tired skiers. Holiday weeks, December 20 to January 4 and Presidents' week, fill first.
Clark's lunch, Meat & Cheese and White House Tavern don't take reservations; lunch is the easy meal out. Book the dinners.
A private chef on the busiest night, with the children fed first and a sitter after, is often the best evening of the week. See private chef and babysitters.
Hickory House (publishes a kids menu; breakfast, lunch and dinner), CP Burger beside the winter skating rink, Little Ollie's for dim sum, Paradise Bakery for breakfast and ice cream, and Bonnie's on Aspen Mountain for pancakes at lunch.
Hickory House lists a kids menu on its own site. Others may offer children's dishes; ask when you book, as menus change by season.
Yes. CP Burger, at 433 E. Durant Ave., sits beside Aspen's only outdoor skating rink in winter; in summer it becomes mini golf.
For dinner in December, around New Year and Presidents' week, yes, especially for an early table. Lunch is easier: several popular places don't take reservations at all.
Bonnie's, mid-mountain on Aspen Mountain, serves breakfast and lunch from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the ski season. Families on Buttermilk or Snowmass usually plan lunch around ski-school pickup.
Early tables held on the busy nights, a chef for the nights you stay in, a sitter so the adults get one dinner out, and a driver.
We find and brief a nanny or babysitter for the days the little ones aren't in ski school, or the evenings you go out: at the house, the same person all week if you like.
Dinner at the house, menu agreed in advance.
A car and driver on call for dinner and the night out, so nobody hunts for a taxi at midnight.
The kitchen stocked to your list before you land.
New openings and the tables to book: a short email when something worth knowing changes for families.
Written from Aspen by Paul Montiel. A few letters a season, only when something matters. Leave any time; we never share your address.Hickory House: Aspen hours and menus (breakfast, kids) · CP Burger · Little Ollie's Aspen · Paradise Bakery: information · Aspen Snowmass: Bonnie's · The Little Nell: Ajax Tavern · Clark's Oyster Bar Aspen · Meat & Cheese — checked October 2, 2026.
Tell us your dates, the children's ages and the nights that matter. We'll book early tables, a driver, a sitter and a chef for the nights you stay in.
Plan the dinners
