Food porn and highlights after the jump.
This Bavarian platter came from Pepi's, 231 East Gore Creek Drive, and featured medium-rare elk tenderloin dusted lightly with puff pastry batter and bathed in porcini gravy. That was served alongside rich, eggy spaetzl and tart, pickled cabbage. And though we're sad to say goodbye to warm nights on patios and summer produce, this dish made us excited for winter, and we began plotting our ski season return. La Tour , 122 East Meadow Drive, calls itself a contemporary French restaurant, but this flank steak slider decidedly drew from Asian roots. The meat was finely chopped and topped with crisp, spicy jalapeños, firm, shredded carrots and a hefty pinch of zippy cilantro. Big Bear Bistro, 297 Hanson Ranch Road, normally serves up sandwiches, but the restaurant twisted the bread and filling concept for this weekend's festival and created bruschetti. Our favorite matched tart Granny Smith apples with smoked bacon and pungent blue cheese on a crunchy slice of toast. The short rib on this sandwich was so tender it melted in our mouths, causing us to quickly declare the dish our favorite in the entire show. The delightful morsel came topped with caramelized onions and arugula and was served up by Larkspur, 458 Vail Valley Drive, a fine-dining spot from which we'd expect nothing less. Sweet Basil, 193 Gore Creek Drive, has been a mainstay in the Vail Village since the '70s. To wow the Labor Day crowds, the spot proffered savory lamb sliders, topped with a tangy sauce and a couple of housemade bread-and-butter pickles. The final stop in our tour of Vail's bite-sized gastronomy was Blu's Restaurant, 193 East Gore Creek Drive, where we found this mountain of shaved pork doused in zesty dressing and mounted with sour pickles.