Off the cuff

Aspen checklist: Where to shop, dine, drink & dance in Colorado's glitziestgetaway

It may look empty now, but this cozy living room at The Little Nell is filled tothe brim during apres ski hours.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
My husband and I cannot resist a trip to Matsuhisa. On the menu: Yellow tailsashimi with jalapeno
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Hunt for buried treasure at vintage hot spot The Little Bird. My absolutefavorite! (There's a Houston location of the store, too.)
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
MAX is a high-end contemporary boutique that carries Rick Owens, YSL and ProenzaSchouler.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Taking to the slopes around Aspen.
Photo by Paul Morrison
My obsession at MAX: An embossed and colorful Proenza Schouler PS1
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
I can't resist the winter sale at the Aspen Ralph Lauren store.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Tiny, yet well selected Nuages boutique has a unique assortment of Alaia.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Hip lunch spot: Try a pizza or the warm tomato basil soup.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Hit Gorsuch LTD for a variety of Bogner and fox fur boots.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Private club or tasty Italian cuisine, take your pick at Casa Tua.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Known by many as the best restaurant in town, Cache Cache is known for its finecuisine and exclusive clientele.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Boogie's hosts a killer denim selection downstairs and a '50s diner upstairs.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy
Shop chic home decor at Amen Wardy.
Photo by Lindley Arnoldy

Each year during ski season, the glitterati from fabulous cities around the world migrate to Aspen to strap on skis, swaddle themselves in fur coats and boots and sip après ski cocktails at The Little Nell. The crowd is chic, the restaurants are full and the town is a picturesque snow scene. At the height of ski season, Aspen is peppered with celebs (I sipped my Starbucks next to Lyle Lovett and danced next to Paris Hilton at the Caribou Club) and the roster of good restaurants and chic shopping is long.

Having spent some time perusing the scene and eating, drinking and snowboarding my way into the New Year, I have compiled a list of all of the must-do’s for a great ski vacation in Aspen:

Where to Eat

For the crème de la crème, dine at Cache Cache. My lobster tagliatelle appetizer was more than memorable. Make sure to book far in advance and befriend owner Jodi – she is very loyal to her clientele.

Don’t miss Chef Nobu’s Aspen experience at Matsuhisa. For the optimal experience, go for the tasting menu.

Dine downstairs with the “public” at Italian hot spot Casa Tua, or purchase a long or short term membership for the private club experience upstairs. The space, a former Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, feels homey yet chic with white ceilings and gray walls scattered with rotating photographs (currently of Marilyn Monroe). Don’t miss the white truffle menu.

For lunch, warm up with some tomato basil soup from Mezzaluna or earn your calories by skiing down Aspen Mountain and treating yourself to the Ajax Tavern double patty cheeseburger. Substitute your side of regular fries for truffle fries for the ultimate Ajax experience. I’m not much of a carnivore, but I can’t pass up an Ajax burger.

Other notable Aspen eateries include The Wild Fig (get the fish in a bag), Gisella, L’Hostaria and Ellina.

Where to drink and dance

For the see-and-be-seen, have an après ski cocktail at The Little Nell. This is a must-do during ski season.

Ski Highlands and stop off at Cloud Nine for a fondu and dance party experience. Expect loud music, hot wine and champagne. Ski down at your own risk.

Reserve a table at Escobar for a full-on club experience. Enjoy a loungy scene infused with electronic and swing music. Dance the night away.

Enjoy dinner, drinks, dancing and serious people-watching with a long or short term membership at Aspen staple Caribou Club. Known by locals as “The Bou."

For a slightly more low key experience, hit the brand spanking new Irish Pub Finbarr’s. Our group ducked in here to avoid New Year's Eve mayhem and ended up dancing the night away. Cozy up on a couch by the fireplace.

Boogie down at Belly Up – Aspen’s live music venue. This calendar is chock-full of everything from from Jane’s Addiction to Lyle Lovett.

Where to shop:

Pop into Pitkin County Dry Goods for everything from an array of contemporary designers like Tucker to a killer shearling and leather assortment.

Don’t miss the stellar selection of denim at Boogie’s. Head up the stairs for a '50s diner experience.

Rummage through a closet of treasures in vintage spot The Little Bird. My purchases have included everything from an Etro belt to dresses by YSL and Alaia. I’m on call for a red Chanel blazer. Ask for Carrie. Now open in Houston.

For the epitome of Aspen-style, hit the Ralph Lauren store. Pop in after Christmas for a killer sale. This year, I nabbed this perfectly poufy vest.

Choose from an amazing selection of Chloe, Roberto Cavalli and Bogner at Gorsuch LTD. Forget to bring sunscreen or shampoo? Pick from a full selection of Kiehl's products. A pair of Gorsuch foxy boots are on my list for next year.

The recently downsized Amen Wardy still hosts the chicest home décor. My hubby and I nabbed a set of amazing Venetian Mask napkin rings. Bring home their peanut butter filled pretzels to snack on.

For a chic selection of Alaia, among other interesting designers, hit Nuages boutique.

Walk down the street to hip boutique Max. I had to stop and drool over the selection of Rick Owens and this amazing croc embossed and colorful PS1.

Lindley Arnoldy writes the fashion and style blog, The Flip Side.

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HISTORY CORRECTED

Houston documentary maker helps correct biased Texas historical marker

Photo by Virginia Diaz-Laughlin

Medrano stands in front of the Karankawa marker while filming 'Truly Texas Mexican.'

It's not often that a film has an impact past the box office, but one documentary has helped tell the truth about the Texas Gulf Coast's long-disparaged Karankawa people.

For years, the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas have fought for a corrected Texas Historical Commission marker in Corpus Christi. Houstonian Adán Medrano’s 2021 film, Truly Texas Mexican, helped finalize a push that will lead to a long-due correction on July 25.

The old marker was plainly offensive. Not only did it say the Karankawa people had "gained a reputation for savagery," but it repeated the long-discredited claim that they practiced cannibalism — a contention born out of the colonial need to justify violence against the tribe.

Medrano, a San Antonio native who currently lives in Houston, became part of the fight when he stood in front of the marker and made a direct appeal to correct the sign.

"I call upon the historians who live in Texas to come up and stand up and say, 'Take this down. This is a lie,'" he said during a scene in Truly Texas Mexican.

Two of them heard the call. Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi history professor Dr. Peter Moore and historian Dr. Tim Seiter of the University of Texas at Tyler joined the years-long Indigenous effort following the film's release. Led by the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas, the academics helped research and draft a replacement that honors them as one of Texas' first peoples.

The marker not only replaces racist mythmaking with scholarship and tribal knowledge, it presents the fact that Karankawa descendants aren't a historical footnote but a living community still present in South Texas today.

Medrano's advocacy here continues his work with the T exas Indigenous Food Project, a nonprofit dedicated to celebrating the Indigenous foodways of Texas and the Americas. But in many ways it is a continuation of a career devoted to amplifying voices rarely heard in popular culture. In 1976, he founded San Antonio's CineFestival, now the nation's longest-running Latine film festival.

At 10 am on July 25, representatives of the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas will unveil the corrected marker, joined by Medrano. Visitors can find it at 6001 Ennis Joslin Rd.

adan medrano film indigenous history history