Rates, Reality, and Revelations

The recent pronouncements from Travel + Leisure regarding Park City’s lodging costs are, predictably, theatrical. $1,621 a night? Ludicrous, though not entirely unexpected. The Chamber’s figure of $931, while more grounded, still permits a certain degree of ostentation. I observed this firsthand last week at Glendower, where a bottle of Château Lafite Rothschild ’82 was casually requested with the amuse-bouche. The service, while impeccably discreet, suffered from a minor delay in procuring the proper ice – a near-catastrophe, naturally. One expects seamlessness at that price point. The composition of the crowd remains, as ever, a delicate balance of inherited wealth and… aspiration. The new Bottega Veneta boutique on Main Street is predictably swarming with the latter. It lacks the established 'stickiness' of a place like Flanagan’s, which, while hardly haute cuisine, consistently delivers a perfectly acceptable lobster bisque. Securing a booth by the window requires a preemptive strike, usually involving a generous contribution to the Park City Film Series. Should one find oneself there, request Table Seven; the light is most flattering. And, without fail, order the Dover sole—prepared simply, of course.