Shopping and Dining in Park City’s Historic Downtown

To be brutally frank, none of The Vacation Gals is a true shopaholic. We typically prefer doing at a new-to-us destination, not browsing it. (To wit: our fun ski day at Park City Mountain Resort). But with an entire morning free during our long weekend in Park City and our fabulous boutique hotel The Sky Lodge just steps from historic downtown’s Main Street, it made perfect sense for us to relax over a leisurely breakfast followed by a stroll around town.

Posing with Franz the Bear in downtown Park City, Utah.

And what a fun morning we had! How often do you make the time to just chill with girlfriends with no huge agenda in mind — except to be aimless for a while? Since the only real morning objective we had was picking up souvenirs for the kids back home, the three of us took time to just chat (and chat and chat), peek in the local boutiques, snap photos of the century-old storefronts and admire the surrounding snowcapped mountains.

Here’s a peek at just a few of the highlights we discovered in Park City:

The Eating Establishment: We fueled our day with omelets, potatoes and plenty of caffeine at this casual restaurant at the “top” of Main Street. A landmark in Park City, the eatery serving breakfast, lunch and dinner been around since 1972. I give it huge thumbs’ up for it’s open and airy atrium with plenty of seating, plus its hearty portions. Note, however, that when one of us (who shall remain nameless) tried to order a mimosa, we were told that liquor isn’t served there until noon. It is Utah, after all…

The mining town of Park City incorporated in 1884.

Village Keepsakes: There are plenty of gift shops in town, but this one stands out for its funny gear: “SL,UT” T-shirts and goofy “Danger: Women Cocktailing” martini glasses made us giggle. The store has a huge array of Del Sol gift items: T-shirts, flip-flops, jewelry and hair accessories that change colors in the sunlight. This is just the tip of the iceberg of miscellaneous souvenirs here.

Mary Jane’s: This darling, girly boutique sells women’s clothing, shoes and accessories. I thought it was named after its owner, but rather takes its moniker from the feminine shoe style (that I adore — giving me yet another reason to love this store). Prices here aren’t necessarily bargain basement, but TwinCitiesGal found a cute hat and I picked up sassy and lacy, um, undergarment off the clearance table!

From left, that's The Diva, Breakfast at Tiffany's and Black N White - well worth every calorie!

Sugar Buzz: If you’ve got a sweet tooth, do not miss this candy boutique just one street over from Main at 651 Park Avenue. Kids love picking out their own “penny candy” from the clear jars lining the shelves. We couldn’t resist the $3 gourmet cupcakes. Owned by a mother-daughter team, this shop also sells retro goodies (can you still get Sugar Babies or a Sugar Daddy in the local grocery store?), cookies, truffles,  and espresso coffee drinks.

High West Distillery: You can’t leave Park City without at least poking your head in this historic house and livery turned distillery and restaurant. A block from Sugar Buzz, it’s Utah’s first legal distillery since the 1870′s and claims to be the “world’s only ski-in gastro distillery.” I just call it really cool. You can take a tour of the distilling operation to understand the purpose of a gorgeous 250-gallon copper pot (on display behind a floor-to-ceiling  glass window) and how the whole process works. The High West whiskey still needs to age, but right now it’s offering three different ryes from other distillers, as well as vodka made from locally grown oats and a Utah Peach Vodka. We sampled items off the apres-ski afternoon menu (like yummy French Onion Soup) and some of the signature cocktails, including refreshing High West Lemonade with Rendezvous Rye and mint. Tasty!

Kids walk from the slopes to this popular pizza place in Park City's downtown.

Davanza’s: Across the street from Sugar Buzz, and a stone’s throw from the in-town chair lift, Davanza’s, we’re told, is the place for kids go to for lunch during their ski day. Indeed, judging by the number of skis and snowboards parked outside at about 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, we’d have to agree. In fact, with tweens and teens spilling outside of the restaurant to sit with their pizza on the porch steps and sidewalk, we didn’t even want to go inside (hey, we were child-free — no need to go seek out the local kids). But if we ever return with our families to Park City, we’ll surely bring them to this popular pizza joint.

Thanks to Park City Mountain Resort for hosting The Vacation Gals on our incredibly fun girlfriend getaway!