The Western Kitchen

At Montana's Chico Hot Springs Resort, their mission is to turn guests into friends and friends into family. For more than a century visitors have soaked in their legendary waters and Chico has been hosting parties and entertaining guests from all over the world, whether they are cowhands or celebrities. The surrounding majesty of the mountains, the free flowing Yellowstone River and the vastness of the valley where it sits, nestled in the shadow of 11,000-foot Emigrant Peak, make this historic and rustic resort unique. And the food keeps the visitors coming back. From their famous brunch, featuring bread puddings, quiches, smoked duck, and coffee cakes, to the bison ravioli appetizers and flaming orange desserts that bookend their fantastic dinners, the dining room at Chico is legendary. The combination of culinary expertise, a chef's garden and greenhouse, regional ingredients and the subtle elegance of Chico Hot Springs' dining room brings people together to share in celebrations, festive gatherings, traditions and simple meals. Chico's chefs stay true to mountain cuisine, relying on the freshest ingredients to make very dish from scratch. They find the best meats and trout from local Montana farms and ranches, and their most important source for ingredients is in their backyard, where two geothermal greenhouses provide the freshest produce available for half the year. The specialty menus and one hundred recipes included in this cookbook will serve as a reminder of the good times, good company and good food in Montana.