Why the New Ullrhof Was Built Around the Big Burn Lunch Crunch

At Snowmass, the lunch problem has always been finding a seat, more than finding food. Aspen Skiing Company counted the gap before it asked to rebuild Ullrhof. By its own estimate, the Big Burn pod was short 380 to 460 lunch seats, and the whole ski area was short 460 to 650. The building scheduled to reopen at the base of the Big Burn lift this November is sized to close most of that gap in one place.

Snowmass is scheduled to open Thursday, Nov. 26, and run through April 11, 2027, as conditions allow, according to The Aspen Times. Aspen Snowmass's own Ullrhof page still says "Under Construction" and "Reopening November 2026," and gives no exact day. That leaves about five weeks before the first chair. This winter, lunch on the Big Burn runs through a different building than the one most Snowmass skiers remember.

A Burger Stop Sized for 1969

The original Ullrhof was built in 1969. It sat at the base of the Big Burn lift, in the pod served by the Big Burn and Sheer Bliss lifts. Burgers, fries and shakes were its draw, and the redevelopment plan kept the Bloody Mary on the menu.

In its application, SkiCo described a building at the end of its useful life, with structural concerns. It also said the guest and employee experience had fallen below the standard of its other dining facilities. The seating argument mattered as much as the structural one. SkiCo pointed out that Big Burn and Sheer Bliss serve heavily used intermediate terrain, which is where a lot of Snowmass skiing happens. A busy pod with a small lodge produces exactly the crowded midday tables the seat-deficit numbers describe.

Some of the old building is still on the mountain. In September 2025, The Aspen Times photographed Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club coaches building a new airbag platform at Snowmass Ski Area from reclaimed Ullrhof wood.

What 26,115 Square Feet Buys at Lunch

Most of the money in the rebuild goes to seats. The Aspen Times reported a $42 million investment in the total rebuild. According to general contractor Shaw Construction, the new building is a multi-floor heavy timber and glulam structure designed by Bull Stockwell Allen.

Indoor seating nearly doubles, from 220 to 425. That matters most in January, when the deck is less inviting. The building adds 280 seats in total. SkiCo estimated the Big Burn pod was short 380 to 460 seats, so Ullrhof alone covers most of the gap but not all of it. The resort's tourism office describes the new building as seating "600+," which matches Shaw's figures. When the Snowmass Town Council approved the project in December 2024, the plan allowed up to 725 seats. The current plan is about 600.

Shaw says the project follows U.S. Forest Service guidelines and includes extensive landscaping to blend the building into the surrounding forest.

The menu is staying where it was. Aspen Snowmass promises a "new and improved favorite burger joint" with burgers, fries and shakes on the menu all day.

The Kitchen Runs Without a Gas Line

Ullrhof will be Aspen Snowmass's first fully electric restaurant. When the project broke ground, Aspen Skiing Co. CEO Geoff Buchheister told Aspen Public Radio that the kitchen would use neither propane nor natural gas and that SkiCo would work with Holy Cross Energy on the change.

This ties back to the seat count. A kitchen that feeds 600 seats at lunch is a large electrical load, and Ullrhof is the first time SkiCo is running that load on an all-electric kitchen in one of its restaurants. The burgers and shakes are the same food. This winter they come off electric equipment, at a lodge built for nearly twice the indoor crowd.

Two Winters of Workarounds

Ullrhof has been out of service longer than many skiers realize. Coverage of the council approval said no dining, restrooms or warming space would be available there during the 2024-25 season. The full rebuild started in summer 2025. For two winters, the Big Burn has had no sit-down lunch at its base.

SkiCo filled the gap with pieces spread around the mountain:

• The Hot Dogger at Spider Sabich. For 2025-26, the Spider Sabich Race and Picnic Area reopened with The Hot Dogger, serving gourmet hot dogs through a partnership with Los Angeles-based Sumo Dog, according to The Aspen Times. Aspen Daily News described the pop-up as a temporary stand-in while Ullrhof was rebuilt.
• A 120-seat deck at Elk Camp. The new deck was presented as a way to absorb the seating pressure expected while Ullrhof was closed, according to The Aspen Times, which also reported that Elk Camp was busy and that guests sometimes struggled to find seats there.
• More room at The Cabin. The restaurant formerly known as Lynn Britt Cabin had added about 80 seats by December 2024.

Those additions come to roughly 200 seats spread across other parts of the mountain. Ullrhof returns about 600 seats to one spot, at the base of the Big Burn lift, which serves the terrain SkiCo described as heavily used. Elk Camp and The Cabin keep their new capacity, so this winter Snowmass has more lunch seats overall than it did before the rebuild began.

The Rest of the Seating Plan

Snowmass Tourism calls the rebuild "part of a multi-year initiative to elevate guest dining experiences at Snowmass and add restaurant seating across the mountain," as The Aspen Times reported in its Sept. 29 winter preview. The rest of that initiative comes from SkiCo's Snowmass master plan, which Aspen Daily News covered in February 2023:

1. A new restaurant at Alpine Springs, seating 400
2. A facility at Gunner's View with about 100 indoor and 100 outdoor seats
3. About 50 more interior seats at Sam's, plus extensive deck seating
4. Minor improvements at Lynn Britt Cabin and Spider Sabich

The master plan called these possibilities, and not every project on the list is guaranteed to be built. Ullrhof is the one built so far, and it was first in line because SkiCo had already measured the biggest shortfall in the Big Burn pod. Alpine Springs is the next large item on the list. Until there is news of it, Ullrhof remains the largest single addition of lunch seating at Snowmass in more than five decades of the ski area's history.

Planning Around Opening Week

The schedule is less settled than the building. The resort says November. The mountain opens Nov. 26, and no specific opening day has been announced for Ullrhof. Until the resort sets a date, plan for Elk Camp, The Cabin and Spider Sabich to still be part of lunch over Thanksgiving weekend.

The mix of skiers on the mountain is also changing this season. Aspen Snowmass has joined the Ikon Base Pass for 2026-27. The pass gives five days of access, with select blackout dates, and is valid only at Snowmass, not at Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands or Buttermilk. Snowmass is the only one of the four mountains with that new pass product this year, and the new Ullrhof opens on the same mountain.

If the Big Burn and Sheer Bliss are part of your usual ski day, the base of the Big Burn lift once again has a sit-down lunch stop, with 425 seats indoors and 175 on the deck.

Much of my work in Snowmass is helping owners understand how changes on the mountain affect the homes and rentals around it, and a new lodge at the base of the Big Burn is the kind of change my clients ask about. If you would like to talk through what this winter at Snowmass means for your property or your plans, I'm glad to share what I'm seeing from Lisa Turchiarelli. Let's Connect.