At The Tree Room, a preserved trunk of a towering pine still rises through the center of the dining room, anchoring one of the Wasatch Back’s most storied restaurant spaces. The signature restaurant at Sundance Mountain Resort, built in 1970, has recently completed a refresh aimed at modernizi ng the space while preserving the rustic, art-centered character that founder Robert Redford established. Resort leaders said the “face lift” is more about subtle upgrades, and longtime regulars can rest assured that they’ve still kept the atmosphere, Native art and, of course, the tree intact.  “Honestly, from a chef perspective, I don’t think any chef out there is going to be upset when they hear that their dining room is getting a refresh,” said Executive Chef Alex Izatt. “It’s always been a very beautiful restaurant, but there were some elements that needed to be brought into a more modern timeframe.” From the beginning, the restaurant was intended as a physical expression of Sundance’s philosophy, blending art, architecture and the natural environment. In a promotional video, Redford himself recalls its origins:  “We built The Tree Room restaurant early on, centered around a 65-foot pine tree, and I wanted the interior to resemble something modern with sort of an artistic look,” he says. Redford noted that inspiration came in part from Taliesin West, the desert complex created by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, whose layered stonework influenced the restaurant’s fireplace and surrounding masonry. In an effort to bring “more tree to The Tree Room,” live-edge wood tables are part of the redesign, doing away with the former tablecloth service. Credit: Photo courtesy of Sundance Mountain Resort While the original living pine at the center of the room died within the first year, the preserved trunk remains, a symbol of the conservation-minded approach Redford described when he explained he could not bring himself to cut the tree down, choosing instead to build around it. That nature-centric mindset guided the recent refresh, according to General Manager Steven Trevett, who emphasized that the art collection and interior identity remain unchanged. Among the most noticeable updates are newly installed dining tables made from wood sourced from a fallen tree in the Uinta Mountains, turned into live-edge tables that replaced the former linen tablecloth service. The result, Trevett said, brings “more tree into The Tree Room.” The project also includes new banquettes, leather seating, chairs, dishware, silverware and glassware, all selected to maintain what Trevett described as Sundance’s balance of “rustic elegance.” It’s a slightly casual feel, couches and pillows more prevalent seating now, but still in a high-end sort of way, he said. “We want to help walk that line where it’s inclusive and everyone feels welcome but also be something unique in that it’s worth coming up just for dinner,” he said. While regulars should notice the change, the black-and-white pictures, the central display of Kachina dolls collected by Redford, plus Native handwoven rugs and baskets — all those details remain the same, Trevett said.  While new banquettes and tables were added to The Tree Room, none of the pictures or Native art were changed. Credit: Photo courtesy of Sundance Mountain Resort Because it’s important to honor the restaurant’s history as one of the first spaces built when Redford bought the land, Trevett said, it’s a space that holds many memories, like a now-legendary visit from Willie Nelson. “Literally, right here, Willie Nelson was hanging out and playing guitar,” Trevett said, gesturing to the fireplace and recounting the often-told tale. “Bob’s in the back corner, hanging out, the restaurant’s closed. Everybody’s counting cash — because it’s back in the day, they’re closing the books and doing their admin work — and Willie Nelson just comes out and just starts playing guitar.” It’s that history that they continue to build on, and so far, Trevett said they’ve had great feedback from decades-long regulars. In the kitchen, leadership said the dining room refresh aligns with a gradual evolution of the menu rather than a reinvention.  Longtime favorites such as the pepper steak, the Sundance salad and the berries-and-custard dessert remain, while new dishes are introduced selectively, including a recently added shareable rack of lamb designed to be more of a hands-on experience. Chef de Cuisine Diane Davidson, who leads The Tree Room kitchen, described her culinary approach as intentionally flexible while centering seasonal ingredients.  A wagyu cheek appetizer is served with butternut squash risotto, a winter menu item featuring the classic slow-roasted meat. Credit: Jonathan Herrera/Park RecordA duck entree incorporates an Asian-like dumpling shape, made of a crepe stuffed with duck confit. Chef Davidson said her team likes to incorporate their backgrounds with French techniques for dishes. Credit: Jonathan Herrera/Park RecordThe berries and custard dessert at The Tree Room is a longtime favorite, a menu item that won’t go anywhere, the chef said. Credit: Jonathan Herrera/Park Record “Instead of doing hard seasonal changes … we kind of have a more fluid menu, where, as we get excited or inspired by something, myself and my sous chef will add things to the menu or take things off,” she said. She said the food still remains grounded in regional mountain cuisine, emphasizing meats such as duck, elk, bison and rabbit. But, along with Sous Chef Matt Nakpansue, Davidson incorporates ingredients and dishes that reflect the kitchen’s cultural backgrounds.  “My sous chef, he’s from Thailand, and I have Mexican heritage, and so we both like taking part of our heritage and infusing it into more French classic technique,” she said. “We like to take our culture of our team and really put it into our dishes.” Resort Food and Beverage Director Manny Rozehnal pointed to that strategy as an example of Sundance’s “storytelling” approach. Ingredients like ginger tamarind sauce, mole, gochujang or mango chutney are listed on a recent menu, both reflecting the lives and approaches of the culinary team — like a rabbit dish Davidson ate growing up — but also creating a conversation piece, Rozehnal said. Winter menus, per usual, tend toward heavier braised preparations while warmer months bring brighter, lighter dishes, Davidson said, and already they’re researching how to weave in new flavors as spring arrives in the next few months.  As part of the renovation, the team also got to design a light-bites menu for the new Library Lounge, a change to the former private dining space. Rozehnal said the goal with the new, intimate venue was to give visitors another casual spot, whether to stand alone or as a pre- or post-dinner stop.  The Library Lounge is a new feature of The Tree Room’s design refresh, which converts the former private dining room into a separate lounge serving light bites. Credit: Photo courtesy of Sundance Mountain Resort “It’s more small-plates focused and really trying to create a more casual bar experience, lounge experience, where instead of going to Owl Bar where it’s a party, it’s a little bit more sophisticated and a little bit more intimate in The Tree Room Library,” Rozehnal said. The Library menu has savory options like pomme frites, wagyu sliders and lentil croquettes, as well as sweet desserts like a mousse flight or affogato. Izatt, who oversees all the resort’s restaurants, said having the renovated dining room raises the bar in the kitchen.  “We want to be able to put food on the table that is just as beautiful, or in some way adds to that experience,” he said. “Everything we want to put out on the table is going to have a really striking visual aspect to it. We want the guests to feel like, ‘Wow, the setting is beautiful. The food is beautiful.’”  He added, “Every chef knows that the saying is that you eat with your eyes first. That’s 100% true.” One of the top cocktails at The Tree Room is The Gunslinger, an old-fashioned-like drink served with an espresso ice cube and a dome of applewood smoke as a table-side experience. Credit: Photo courtesy of Sundance Mountain Resort The post The Tree Room ‘face lift’ sets a higher bar for culinary team appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less