Café Diva

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Twenty-Seven Years at the Table

What began on December 1, 1998 as a wine bar serving appetizers has grown, over twenty-seven years, into what many consider the pinnacle of dining in Colorado's Northern Rockies. Café Diva opened with four tables at Ski Time Square in Steamboat Springs and has never lost the intimacy that defined it from the start. The philosophy hasn't shifted either: "Dining is more than simply eating and drinking. Rather the perception of flavor, the uniqueness of the moment, the true joy of dining are made by those with whom the moment is shared."

Chef Kate Rench

The kitchen is shaped entirely by Executive Chef and partner Kate Van Rensselaer Rench, whose path to Steamboat was anything but direct. She began with a BFA in sculpture and ceramics, then discovered cooking while supporting herself at the Mountain Sun Pub and Brewery in Boulder. That spark led her to the French Culinary Institute in New York City, where she graduated in 1998 with the Jacques Pépin Award. She went straight to Jean-Georges Vongerichten's four-star Manhattan restaurant, working her way up to Chef de Partie of Garde Manger — an environment she credits with shaping her technically precise, flavor-forward approach. After a stint as executive chef at Hayday Country Market/Balduccis in Westport, Connecticut, the mountains called her back. Within six months of joining Café Diva, she was offered the executive chef position, and eventually a partnership.

Today, Chef Kate creates a new menu for each season of the year, built around premium naturally raised meats, sustainably sourced seafood, and produce from small family farms. Her American cuisine earns top marks locally and nationally — recognition that the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence (2025) reflects as much in the glass as on the plate.

The Wine Program

The cellar holds over 300 selections drawn from the world's great vineyards, and three sommeliers are on hand to pair to your taste, meal, and budget. That depth of commitment to the bottle is precisely what earned Café Diva its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, a distinction that sits naturally alongside Chef Kate's seasonally driven American cuisine. The cocktail program is equally considered — original drinks like the Parmesan Rind Washed Gin "Garden & Graze" and the Chamomile Infused Rye "Rye of Sunshine" signal a kitchen and bar working in the same creative register.

The Room and Its People

A veteran front-of-house team brings a personal touch that regulars have come to rely on. The restaurant pays quiet tribute to Daryl Newcom, a long-time server voted "Best Waiter" in Steamboat's Best of the Boat awards every year since the category was created, who passed away in April 2021. A cocktail in his name continues to raise funds for the Yampa Valley Breast Cancer Awareness Project and SOS Outreach — a small detail that says a great deal about how this place operates.

Warm mountain contemporary décor, a dining room that seats guests from 5:00 pm nightly, and a team that treats every table as a reason to do their best work: that combination has kept Café Diva at the center of Steamboat Springs dining for more than a quarter century.