With a name that is derived from the Spanish word bosque, which means forest, it should come as no surprise that chef and owner C. Barclay Dodge’s Aspen eatery combines what can be found and foraged locally with international influences
Dodge’s resume is pretty impressive. It starts out pretty routinely with some kitchen experience and then formal training, in his case at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Dodge stayed in the city for a while, working at a number of different restaurants, but eventually something called out to him from across the Atlantic and he found himself touring around Europe and North Africa, specifically Italy, France, Spain, and Morocco.
In what would be a turning point for him (and in fact would be for any chef), while in Spain Dodge spent time working at the legendary El Bulli where Ferran Adria was changing the food world. After a stint at another restaurant in Spain, this time at the two-star restaurant Can Caig in Barcelona, he decided to return to Colorado and Aspen where he would work under Charles Dale at Renaissance. He would go from cook to chef de cuisine in his three years there. Eventually, Dodge opened Restaurant Mogador which, like Bosq, was so named in honor of his international exploits, this one being the Portuguese name for the Moroccan city of Essaouira. Next was R Cuisine, and then four years ago Dodge and wife Molly opened Bosq on Mill Street.
It’s hard to pigeonhole Bosq, which is a good thing, especially, we would imagine for Dodge, and that is surely down to his extensive experience in kitchens around the world as well simply being exposed to myriad cultural influences on his travels.
Peking Duck is a Bosq specialty, and on a recent menu the dish was joined by a dish of Mayan pesto chicken. As exotic as both dishes sound, Dodge seems to be just as at home tramping through the woods nearby to a secret spot looking for porcinis as he is in a market in Marrakesh.
Dodge is a forager at heart, which means the menu at Bosq on any given night or in any given week can be greatly influenced by what he finds on a jaunt or what he gets brought to him. A recent social media post showed a mouthwatering dish of venison studded with puffed grains and pine with wild watercress, while another recent dish of porcini dumplings in a forest broth alludes to both Dodge’s international culinary travels and his love for utilizing what is nearby.
Bosq closes for the shoulder season. Call for exact dates.
To make a reservation visit bosqaspen.com/reservations
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