Big Sky’s One&Only hotel invites the public to its first restaurant
By Rachel Hergett EBS COLUMNIST
Today I learned that there is a medical term for a food coma: Postprandial somnolence. Why? Because three days after being wined and dined with a family-style service at The Landing, I still feel full.
I’m that satiated.
The Landing is the first restaurant to open at One&Only Moonlight Basin, housed in the Sky Lodge that connects via gondola to Big Sky Resort’s Madison base area. Like the rest of One&Only, the decor is sleek and modern, as black steel contrasts with various wood accents to make it feel more rustic and true to place. There may be no trophy over the fireplace, but if you missed that we’re in Montana, there are bison heads printed on the plates. You probably didn’t forget though—especially here. Floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides provide sweeping views of the mountains. It’s a stunning space.
I was invited for a media dinner featuring a family-style service of eight of the courses on offer on The Landing’s regular menu. I didn’t ask questions before I arrived. I didn’t look up a menu or the incredible credentials of executive chef Matt Dahlkemper, who I now know has racked up more than 65 countries on his “culinary journey” and opened resort restaurants around the world. Sometimes, it’s nice to go into a meal with fresh eyes and taste buds.
When the first courses came, I was swayed by the promise of seafood, overlooking a slaw-like cabbage and radicchio salad. And yet, the salad was a star. It felt Thai-inspired with a heavy dose of herbaceous mint in the mix and a ginger lime dressing with a nice balance of acid and sweetness. Roasted cashews and seasoned puffed rice brought in extra crunch.
On the next salad, I want to say the chunks of perfectly cooked though rough-cut lobster were the highlight. Yet the lobster got a bit lost in the lobster salad, overcome by pickle brine. Instead, it was the reprieve from the dressing in the panko-covered fried green tomato that kept drawing me back.
Our group was served plates of the chili crab mezzaluna with the starters, though on the normal dinner menu they are included in the house made grains and pasta section. Mezzaluna is a semicircular filled pasta. Its name refers to the shape, meaning “half moon” in Italian. We may have to argue semantics here, because these “mezzaluna” were suspiciously triangular ravioli.
The pasta was al dente—perfect for Italians but maybe a bit chewy for American tastes—and stuffed with blue crab and crème fraiche. Delicious. Then the whole plate was doused in double chicken jus with a squeeze of lime and leaves of flat parsley. Like the lobster, the crab was shown up because the chicken jus was to die for. I mopped it up from the plate with some of the table bread as the group decided we would not be upset if the jus covered everything on the plate. It was that good.
I also look to table bread to mark a restaurant’s quality and this was a tender loaf, sliced thick, oiled, seasoned and toasted to perfection.
Plates kept coming. There was a creamy farro risotto mixed with English peas and topped with wild boar prosciutto and Parmesan. A calzone, also giant sized, was filled with Mountina alpine cheese, roasted mushrooms and tender rabbit, then topped with another succulent jus—rabbit this time. It felt decadent, though I was taken out of the moment by a couple bits of cartilage. And then there was the true reason for my food coma: a wagyu New York strip steak, its marbled fat rendered to near invisibility though the inside was rare enough to make this Montanan very happy. Top the perfect sear with the bite of the red chimichurri with a slight peppery heat, and I’m in heaven.
The Landing’s service is impeccable, with what seems like a server for every diner. And if you catch their eye, any will be by your side in an instant. The young man who immediately became a favorite of our team of wait staff offered coffee and espresso martinis, nodding that I wanted the martini when I hesitated. I ordered both.
Dessert is imminent. This shouldn’t be scary, but I am contemplating how to fit the beignet and custard from our tasting menu in my stomach when a plate of yellow-tinged pistachio lemon cookies arrive, crumbs dusting the plate and inviting me to dig in. The martini arrives, and comes with another treat—a church-wafer-sized earl gray shortbread. I’m thankful for the daintiness as I dip it in the drink and savor the play of the bergamot off the espresso.
What the menu says is “The Beignet,” is a crescent shaped, powdered sugar covered doughnut so large it overflows its plate. Cut a slice—or eight—and each retains just enough crisp outside to highlight the pillowy interior and subtle tang of the balsamic vinegar apparent in the baby saucepan of warmed strawberry basil jam. Big beignet, big fan.
The last to arrive—Willie’s Bourbon Custard—was inconspicuous in its rocks glass. While the custard itself was a bit over set and could have benefited from more jiggle, each bite of the dessert was a textural exploration with bits of hazelnut praline and cocoa crumble. Flake sea salt highlighted the mellow sweetness drawn from the bourbon. Forget that I was incredibly full, I had to stop myself from licking the glass.
I asked for the restaurant’s full menu after I was too stuffed, to appreciate the variety and the global flavors Chef Dahlkemper incorporates throughout. Things I missed include a spatchcocked chicken schnitzel that was impressive in service with one leg sticking in the air, and a housemade cilantro pappardelle with a green chorizo ragú. Elements of middle eastern and Mediterranean cuisine, with the focus on simplicity and fresh regional ingredients, are especially apparent.
For space, I won’t list all the Montana producers that supply the restaurant, but Dahlkemper emphasized the difference in quality is worth the time spent sourcing ingredients.
In the end, any negatives here are me nitpicking a truly fantastic—and filling—meal at The Landing.
Rachel Hergett is a foodie and cook from Montana. She is arts editor emeritus at the Bozeman Daily Chronicle and has written for publications such as Food Network Magazine and Montana Quarterly. Rachel is also the host of the Magic Monday Show on KGLT-FM and teaches at Montana State University.
