Indulge in Craft Comfort at The Warming Hut

On the way into The Warming Hut, I passed the “open” sign, which reads a cheeky “nope” if you happen to walk by during closed hours.

Once I entered, warmth greeted me – both from the central heating and the staff.

The Warming Hut is a fitting name for this cozy corner of Mammoth Lakes.

Alisa Mokler Harper, along with her husband Paul, are founders and co-owners of this self-proclaimed “elevated diner.”

Regarding the title, Alisa explains, “It’s the go-to in-between place, like in between a pizza joint and a steakhouse. You can have a burger and fries or you can have a rib eye.”

It’s hard to miss the sheer size of the menu – all four pages of it. With a kitchen that doesn’t quite match the size of the dining room, Alisa got creative with the menu structure.

“We try to utilize the same ingredients throughout breakfast, lunch and dinner. So the menu seems big, but it’s actually pared down and very deliberate,” she explains.

Patronizing a typical American diner means selecting from a number of large, dare I say oversized, plates, leading to plenty of food waste. The carefully-crafted Warming Hut menu results in saving many of their delectable buttermilk pancakes from ending up in the trash.

“We decided to create a section of our menu called the DIY section. If you want a piece of bacon and an egg and a piece of toast you can get that…our waste is really minimal compared to other restaurants,” says Alisa.

The restaurant’s name nods to the original Warming Hut, the predecessor of Mammoth Mountain Main Lodge. Beyond the name, the owners play an active role in the Mammoth community.

Once a month, doors open for “Not Your Grandma’s Bingo,” which benefits a different local organization every month – everything from Mammoth Mountain ski patrol to Rhiannon’s kids, which offers financial support to children who need out-of-area medical care.

It’s not all serious – you can tell by the name; “It’s called ‘Not Your Grandma’s Bingo because it gets a little wild and the place is absolutely packed – standing room only,” laughs Alisa.

Buttermilk pancakes

“We’re moderately famous for them,” Alisa jokes.

These are not your typical dry, chewy diner pancakes. They’re fresh, spongy, and moist with an almost sourdough-like tang. There’s no need to drown it in butter either, but you might feel differently about the syrup.

Jake’s Family Maple sets the standard for maple syrup; it’s harvested from a family farm in Vermont, then transported back to Mammoth Lakes for bottling.

It’s not my first experience with this syrup, and I can’t imagine using any other sweetener.

Pork sausage

Once again, throw out your preconceptions about dry, flavorless sausage patties. Warming Hut makes their own pork sausages in-house, cooked with fennel, parsley, and sherry for a touch of sweetness.

It’s a little sweet, a little savory, and the perfect accompaniment to your DIY breakfast.

Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles are a staple Mexican breakfast food, traditionally made with tortilla chips simmered in a spicy sauce.

At Warming Hut, the chef has his own special recipe. Fresh salsa, eggs, avocado, sour cream, queso fresco, and pico de gallo are generously heaped over fresh chips. The housemade salsa is more tangy than spicy, so don’t let spice keep you from trying it.

Corned Beef and The Reuben

Corned beef is a Warming Hut staple, featured in dishes such as The Mountain Cuban, hashes, and The Reuben – “I’ve been told it’s the best this side of the Mississippi,” jokes Alisa.

Like many ingredients in the Warming Hut kitchen, the corned beef is made in-house, drawing inspiration from Alisa’s childhood and Irish heritage. It’s slow-cooked in none other than Guinness beer, resulting in moist, flavorful slices of meat.

Their signature Reuben features that corned beef, sauerkraut and gruyere swiss cheese with hand-cooked french fries. After the first bite, I truly understood what Alisa means by “craft comfort food”: the meat is moist, flavorful, and piled high on tangy, crisp kraut. Melted gruyere cheese adds just the right amount of complexity to the overall flavor.

Hashes

For vegans and meat-lovers alike, there’s a hash for everyone – in fact, there are eight of them.

The traditional hash is made “the way Papa and Nana make it.” It features yet more house-made corned beef, diced red potatoes, onions, peppers, and two eggs on top. It fills that meat-and-potatoes breakfast desire, with perfectly cooked and seasoned ingredients.

If you’re looking for a plant-based alternative, or aren’t quite hungry enough for the full traditional, The Veg Head is the ideal choice. You can even substitute eggs for avocado and make it fully vegan.