Vertical Bistro & Tap

Service was slow; waitress was much too chatty with the customers even sitting down at a table with a family and looked to be going through the menu item by item. Spinach salad was drowning in dressing which made it inedible. When I commented to the waitress that the salad was drenched in dressing and not palatable she asked if we wanted to box it up and that she could add more spinach. We ordered the herbivore burger which was overall good except that you could not eat it as a burger (it fell apart when I picked it up although when eaten with a fork it was very tasty) and the top half of the bun was almost frozen not heated at all not even room temperature. We will not be back.

Summertime in the mountains on a weekday is great because there’re no weekend warriors clowning around and congesting the parking lots or restaurants. We sat outside on the beautiful patio where large umbrellas shaded the tables and the views were gorgeous. Large glasses of water were brought out on this hot day. We met the GM, Marie, who was extremely pleasant and concerned for our welfare. Much more professional than the idiot working for Brickhouse 40 (Shithouse 40) in Grandby.
Our server was Jessica, a vivacious and prompt young lady transplanted from Nebraska via Florida. The lineup of beers was very impressive and I liked the wide variety from Colorado breweries. I had the Wooly Booger (my family calls it Fuzzy Snot) and it was delicious. Our appetizer of caprese salad was a beautiful presentation of tomatoes and fresh mozzarella and fresh basil chiffonade with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar reduction. Oh my! Refreshing!
Hubs had the pulled pork sandwich with amazing French fries and our daughter had the Avo-​Rado chicken sandwich also with fries. I opted for the elk chili and small harvest salad. Let me begin by saying the food looked good and fresh with lovely presentations. The elk chili was ground meat in a white person’s version of chili. Not bad, but could be much better had the chef added cumin, a bit of oregano and garlic as well as a little more chili flavor. Also, I don’t like my meat ground up in chilis as that is the lazy man’s way of cooking. Chunks of tender meat simmered in the sauce would be absolutely stellar here.
My salad was very good, but could have been great with the addition of nuts and sprouts and a stronger cheese than bland feta. A Gorgonzola or Parmesan would compliment that fabulous avocado vinaigrette salad dressing much better.
All together it was a terrific afternoon at a terrific place in the heart of Winter Park Village. I will be back soon!

My husband and I chose this as our one date night out on summer vacation and we were hoping that the review we could provide would be very different than the other reviews posted over three months ago. Unfortunately the service was just as poor as others’ noted. The girl who seated us was obviously not the hostess, didn’t say one word to us, and did not enjoy attention to personal hygiene. There were only four parties in the restaurant and yet our server could not take time away from her friends visiting on the patio to take our drink order. After ten minutes she came by apologizing for the delay and said she would be back to take our order. We sat (enjoying the weather, but really wishing for a drink) for another five minutes while she closed out another table (apparently she was the only one working).
Food-​wise, we had the Baked Brie which was phenomenal. Highlight of the night. I had strawberry infused vodka and hubby had the sangria. We could have stopped there. We had Ahi for our entrée and requested seasonal veggies for our side because neither of us love steamed spinach. It was obvious the waitress messed up our one off menu request but she blamed it on the kitchen (bad move!). The fish was ok, sauce was amazing, veggies (when we finally got them) were bland and tasted boiled.
All around we really wanted this place to be awesome (we miss Cheeky Monk!!) and all they needed to do was hire better waitstaff, play the advertised music (no ambience at all!), and perhaps offer special drinks or food on their «busy» weekend night. Prime real estate, poor restaurant.

Risotto cakes where good. However the food was pretty pricey for the quality. The happy hour menu looked fun but wasn’t an option just after 6 on a very slow day. More small plate choices would be nice. Don’t get the fries. Do sit outside.

Apres ski… NOT! Thirsty and want to relax? kiddie daycare here. KIDS SHOULD NOT SIT AT BAR!

I had the veggie sliders which were yummy however, my husband and dad had the steak tacos which were bland and nothing but fat. My mother had the elk burger which had a long hair in it. We were not charged for the burger but our waitress said, «yea, that happens a lot. I sometimes get dog hair in my food at home.» We also had to wait an hour with the restaurant half empty.
I am updating my review to state I highly respect the owner of this restaurant who contacted me to make amends for our experience.

I’m very impressed that after my previous review, the owner contacted me and wanted to know more information and if I’d be willing to give Vertical another try. Well, this time was much better, but the wait time was still lengthy. There are a few other options around if you need a quick bite, but the food was delicious and server was great, so it is definitely worth experiencing Vertical if you have the time.

Best meal we had in a week in Winter Park. Everything was amazing including the friendly service. I highly recommend the pork belly app and the short ribs.

We had a bad experience, but the owner contacted us to make it right! I removed my previous review.

I went to Vertical Bistro & Tap with my business partner for Dinner this weekend. It was Busy and that’s expected when you «Eat out at a Ski Resort» So we had a few drinks at the Bar. Great Service, Thanks to Doug! We had great App’s and our meal was Delicious, we ordered the Chicken Roulade & Braised Short Rib. We both agreed, Great Flavor & Good Choice for Dinner! We enjoyed it so much, we stopped on the way out of town for a quick snack, Must Try the Chicken Tenderloins… «Those were Great!»

This place was recommended to us as a new alternative in Winter Park. We came here around 7:30 for a nice meal to celebrate a new home. We were greeted and seated promptly by the hostess even though they seemed pretty busy. Our waitress was great from the start! We ordered the broken meatball toast to start and I loved the marinara! I had the elk chili and my wife had the Smoked salmon pasta. I really loved this chili and the portion was huge! Very flavourful with a good medium heat. I would recommend serving some bread with the chili. I dig the staff and atmosphere. A welcome addition to the base of the mountain!

I called Marie (general manager) on fairly short notice and told her that I was planning an impromptu wedding and dinner and wanted to come to vertical. She responded immediately that she really wanted to be a part of it. I cannot express in enough detail how excellent every aspect of our evening was because of the vertical bistro. The service was exceptional the food was amazing all of the staff were friendly, Marie clearly went above and beyond to make sure that we had a spectacular night. She is so service-​oriented it’s fantastic.
We really enjoyed our night at the vertical bistro. Again the food the atmosphere the attitude service everything about the night was super special thanks to Marie and her staff.

This review is only for the bar service. Stopped by here for après ski after a terrific day on the mountain at Winter Park. Yes it’s a little pricey, but everything on the mountain is pricey! Our bartender was super friendly and knew a lot about the beer. Speaking of beer great tap selection.

Didn’t try food, but did try the booze and service. It was super busy, considering it was a Saturday. We had a short wait, but Bill, our server, was great. Very attentive. The hostess, however, had attitude and was clearly overworked. I’d go back if I was there, but it didn’t really leave an impression.

We’ve eaten at Vertical multiple times since it’s opened. Food is awesome. We’ve had the lamb, short ribs, steak and tuna. You have the try the Salty Pig and the Bloody Mary. We love this place and the wait staff is great. Highly recommend this restaurant.

Vertical Bistro is like nothing else at the base! If you’re looking for a warm atmosphere, thoughtful food, and local hospitality, GO HERE! The owner is very passionate and put the entire restaurant together in 9 weeks! They have a great wine selection and a variety of food for different tastes. The vibe was very relaxed and not stuffy. Vertical is a fantastic spot for great food and a laid back pace. Perfect for after a day on the slopes!

I’m guessing that the 5-​star reviews on this place are written by people who haven’t had to live through the service and food here. There were about 15 people in the place when we came in. After waiting 30 minutes, we told the waiter we weren’t happy with the wait. His excuse was that a «big table» had just come in. There were 7 people at that table.
After another 10 minutes, the food came. The steak we ordered rare was medium well, and the $ 10 plate of truffle fries had about 30 fries on it. We called the manager and offered to pay for what we ate– she explained that this just isn’t a «fast» restaurant. Sigh.
I would only go to this place for a beer– hard even for this crew to get that wrong.

Horrible Horrible Service!!!
Particularly the hostesses. Had name on list for over an hour and hostesses had no control over who they allowed to take tables.

Dont go! Dont go!
Overpriced tasteless food !
Staff was ok just didn’t put the order in correctly
The food has NO SOUL

Worst restaurant ever. We arrived at 6 pm. We had a great waiter, for whom we felt sorry give the incompetence of management and the kitchen. They took our orders without telling us they did not have the ingredients to fill them. Then they just brought us stuff. After nearly two hours the entrée’s finally showed up. They were cold. The food was undercooked. It was a disaster. As but one example, I ordered a steak medium, no potatoes, and broccolini for my vegetable. I got a steak barely warm, potatoes, and overcooked carrots and asparagus. My wife ordered the tuna, which came out cold and with vastly undercooked rice. We ordered green salads and they brought us spinach salads, saying «oh well, we do not have the ability to make the salads you’d ordered.» The manager was a jerk and gave an insincere apology as I was walking out. I was shocked, frankly
Finally, if you are foolish enough to eat dinner here I encourage you to bring your own silverware as they do not know how to provide utensils to eat your awful meal that you will wait two hours to get.
My tired and hungry family left to go to another restaurant to get dinner. I paid the bill for the drinks and left. They did not charge for the dinners., which was the only good thing I can say about the two hour waste of time. If I could give zero stars I would.