Durango's fine dining is a Main Avenue story. Six dinner rooms between 600 and 1100 Main do most of the work: 636 Main Ave, Seasons of Durango, Chimayo Stone Fired Kitchen, El Moro Spirits & Tavern, Eolus Bar & Dining and the Mahogany Grille inside the Strater Hotel. A seventh, Serafina's Steakhouse, sits on E 9th Street, just off the avenue.
Where is the best fine dining in Durango?
Pick by the night you are planning. Each room below is described in its own words, with the hours it posts.
636 Main Ave is the dependable anniversary pick. It serves dinner seven nights a week with steakhouse fare, fresh seafood and house-made pasta, plus an extensive wine list, a full-time pastry chef and a separate digestifs menu. Dinner runs 5 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 4:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday.
Seasons of Durango, 764 Main Ave, describes open-fire steaks, seafood and an award-winning wine list in a historic downtown space. Private dining is available. Its site would not load for us, so call (970) 382-9790 for hours and the current menu.
Chimayo Stone Fired Kitchen, 862 Main Ave, pairs a stone-fired kitchen with a Southwest accent, from queso fundido to roasted green chiles. Dinner starts at 4 p.m. daily, Sunday brunch runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and happy hour is 4 to 5:30 p.m. every day. The current dinner menu lists a 16-ounce hand-cut ribeye at $55, cedar plank salmon at $45 and a stuffed poblano at $36.
The Mahogany Grille is in the Strater Hotel, 699 Main Ave. The hotel's own words: modern flavors, Victorian charm, small plates through traditional favorites like Peppered Steak Herbert. It says it is open every day for dinner. The hotel's restaurants stop food service at 9 p.m., so do not plan a late seating.
El Moro Spirits & Tavern, 945 Main Ave, calls its style modern casual fine dining, in a building that was once an early-1900s saloon. Expect elevated small plates, house-made pastas, steaks and seafood, plus a deep whiskey and mezcal shelf. Dinner is Monday through Thursday 4 to 10 p.m., Friday 4 to 11 p.m., and weekend brunch from 9 a.m.
Eolus Bar & Dining, 919 Main Ave, books through Resy and hosts events on its rooftop. Its site posts menus but not a readable hours table, so check Resy for open times. The phone is (970) 259-2898.
Serafina's Steakhouse, 144 E 9th St, Unit 1, pitches steak and seafood, handcrafted cocktails and live piano on Friday and Sunday evenings from 5 to 8 p.m. Reserve ahead: the dining room fills.
Which fine dining restaurants are closed on Monday?
Fewer than you might think, but check before you book. Serafina's posts Wednesday through Sunday only, from 4 p.m. to close, so it is dark Monday and Tuesday. Primi Pasta & Wine Bar at 1201 Main Ave calls itself a casual neighborhood eatery, built on handmade pasta, and it posts Tuesday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. That leaves it closed Sunday and Monday. Who is open, then? On Mondays you can sit down for dinner at 636 Main Ave, Chimayo, El Moro or the Mahogany Grille. El Moro even posts $15 burgers that night, so the old saloon room costs less than you would think.
How much does fine dining cost in Durango?
Only one of these rooms gave us a priced dinner menu we could read today, so here is what we know. At Chimayo, main plates run $35 to $55. That covers a $38 bone-in pork chop, $35 mushroom truffle fettuccine, $44 beef medallions and the $55 ribeye. Starters run roughly $6.50 to $17, and its pizzas sit between $20 and $28.50.
We could not read priced menus for the others, so confirm before you book. Wine and cocktails add real money. El Moro's Wednesday offer, 50 percent off full bottles of wine, is the best price break we found, and it applies to full-sized bottles only, with no splits. El Moro also posts a happy hour of 4 to 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close, Monday through Friday, with 20 percent off beer, wine by the glass and appetizers.
Do you need a reservation for fine dining in Durango?
Book ahead. Several rooms say so in plain words, and each takes bookings a little differently.
- Serafina's: reservations are highly recommended for the dining room. The bar is first come, first served. Parties larger than six call to book the private dining room, which seats 10.
- Mahogany Grille: reservations are encouraged, at (970) 375-7170.
- Chimayo: reservations are highly recommended.
- El Moro: reserve through its website.
- Eolus: book on Resy.
- Primi: walk-ins and reservations are both welcome, and it asks you to phone before 3 p.m. to reserve, at (970) 764-4138.
Where should you go for a birthday or a bigger group?
Serafina's private room seats 10 and has a projector, which makes it a fair pick for a team dinner. Seasons lists private dining. Eolus rents its rooftop. Jean Pierre Bakery & Wine Bar advertises private event space and a separate wine room that can be reserved for a party, and it has a patio for a daytime gathering.
Bringing a child? Chimayo is the one room here with a posted kids menu: buttered pasta at $7.50, a margherita pizzette at $12.50, a cheese quesadilla at $8.50.
Is there a romantic dinner that is not a splurge?
Oye Oysters and Small Plates, 1017 Main Ave, is worth a look. The Downtown Durango Business Improvement District says it serves oysters flown in from Hama Hama Oyster Company in Washington, plus shareable plates and what it calls affordable cocktails, beer and wine. Check its current hours before you go. Small places like this one change their week more often than the big dining rooms do.
What is parking like for dinner downtown?
Good news for the evening crowd. Meters downtown must be paid Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., per the Downtown Durango Business Improvement District, and they are free after 6 p.m. and all weekend. City lots are free after 5 p.m. on weekdays. A 7 p.m. reservation on Main Avenue means no quarters.
For the wider map, see the best restaurants in Durango guide and the where locals eat guide. Looking for the meat-focused picks? Our BBQ and steakhouse guide covers that. Visiting rather than living here? traveldurango.com has a restaurant guide for visitors.