Atop the Ameyalli Resort & Spa Residence Club rooftop, Michelin-star chef and James Beard award winner Charlie Palmer laid the table with his first meal at the resort.
As Palmer spoke on the rooftop patio, he was surrounded not only by the Heber Valley landscape, Mt. Timpanogos and Wasatch Back foothills, but also by a group of people who had a stake in Ameyalli Resort’s development. A mellow breeze coasted through the patio as the sun set, and visitors had a view of Ameyalli’s landscape, soon to be built out with amenities and even more residences.
Palmer said the first dinner, held on Friday, was a celebration. It was not only a recognition of what Ameyalli Resort has planned for the future, with residence sales already underway, but also a nod to the partnership between Ameyalli Resort and Appellation — a hospitality group Palmer co-founded.
Palmer and Four Seasons President of the Americas Christopher Hunsberger first came together when Palmer was brought on as a celebrity chef partner. Appellation currently manages Appellation Healdsburg and Appellation Lodi, with other projects underway.
Appellation Healdsburg in Sonoma County, California, is one example Palmer said shows his dedication to developing outstanding spaces with wellness and culinary excellence as a backbone.
“Appellation is about being a very special destination,” Palmer said. “A place that I think is really special, that we can do something special.”
Palmer’s new book, “Wineland: Celebrating the heart of Sonoma,” published in June and shows exactly what drew him to cooking and creating new spaces in Sonoma County. He said projects like Appellation Healdsburg were “a dream come true.”
Now, Palmer brings that dream to Midway.
First on the menu was something simple.
Juicy heirloom tomatoes with a basil pesto was served with peaches topped with a different basil-mint pesto and reduced balsamic.
A creamy burrata and fresh greens complemented the light, summer flavors. On the side: Ballerina Farm biscuits spread with cultured butter and sprinkled with sea salt — another local tribute. Palmer paired the course with a crisp 2024 Sancerre.
The ingredients, he said, are what make the meal special. Start with the simplest, local products and add what makes those ingredients pop. Palmer also worked with Midway Mercantile chef and owner John Platt. Palmer said the first dish, and the two courses to follow, were indicative of what he and Platt do best.
As Palmer discussed the second and main course, the chef explained that great meals are also a partnership. Platt and Palmer worked together to create the meal, each bringing their own ideas to the table. Platt had vowed that he would never leave the building once he was set up in Midway. That is, unless Palmer called. Platt fell back on his nearly two decades of experience catering and got to work.
Filet mignon with wild mushroom beurre rouge was cooked medium rare or medium well. That was straightforward enough for Palmer and Platt. It was the black truffle potato gratin that took more conversation, Palmer said.
Platt hoped to make a “funeral potato” style dish that brought back feelings of home for Utahns. It’s a dish well known to those from Utah or the Midwest and is often a creamy, casserole-style potato. Palmer put his spin on it with a taste of black truffle.
Working as a pair, the two were able to put together a hearty second course that felt “like home,” they said. The meat-and-potato course was then served with a 2021 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon from California.
Platt explained where each portion of the meal came from, including nearby Velvet Acres Farms, Rustling Aspen Farms and Tagge’s Famous Fruit and Veggie Farm.
“What could be wrong?” Platt said about the food.
Palmer and Platt’s final course was another nod to fresh, seasonal food with a strawberry-rhubarb crisp. Spice from a rhubarb-ginger jam was paired with the creaminess of vanilla ice cream. The dessert course came with a glass of Cascina Montagnola Sornoine — a late-harvest sauvignon blanc.
Chefs cook for different reasons, Palmer said. For him, born and raised on a dairy farm in New York, cooking is about everything that’s local. It’s about what makes that specific place special.
In Midway, what’s special is obvious to Palmer. When he was first introduced to the project, he said he recognized the value of the land, the surrounding mountains and the opportunities such a spot presented.
Ameyalli, Palmer said, begins with wellbeing. For both Heath and Palmer, it’s obvious that there is a strong connection between wellbeing and food. Throughout the project, Palmer said he reminds himself of a few things:
“Be yourself. Be genuine. Take care of people,” Palmer said.
Before the dessert course, Ameyalli founder and developer Charles “Chuck” Heath said Palmer and Appellation’s involvement in the resort is a recognition that the “whole goal” is to promote good living for everyone.
“I want to accomplish that every day at our resort,” Heath said. “We’re about community, enjoying what we have.”
Ameyalli’s future wellbeing programs are based on that philosophy. Heath said the water in the area is one of the promising factors of Ameyalli’s development. Midway is known for its Swiss themes and local charm, but also for the hot springs in the surrounding area. Heath said using that natural spring water connects the development to the land and landscape.
“It’s not your typical development. We want to do it right,” Heath said. “We’re not here to put up a 10-story Marriott.”
Heath said the wait was worth it. He wants it “done right” for everybody, “not just us.”