The iconic 14,110-foot (4,301 m) Pikes Peak and the 90-year-old Pikes Peak International Hill Climb — a car-and-motorcycle race up the famous mountain each July — were the inspirations for The Broadmoor resort’s new Summit restaurant.

So says the restaurant’s renowned designer, Adam Tihany. He likens being in the 98-seat dining room to sitting in a car with everything going by very quickly. The carpet design hints at the movement of car gears; the ceiling suggests a racetrack; and the glass-enclosed 14-foot (4.3 m) wine turret with moving racks could be likened to the gears of a racecar.

A 14-foot wine turret with moving racks is an eye-catcher in The Summit’s bar.

“However, none of these details are evident. They are only suggestions, hints and metaphors,” says Tihany, whose design flair has been a major force in transforming Las Vegas into an international gourmet capital. (He was the designer of Aureole, with its wine tower at the Mandalay Bay, Cravings buffet at The Mirage, and Le Cirque and Osteria del Circo at Bellagio.)

OK, Mr. Tihany, whatever you say.

One thing, though, is evident: The brash, sassy, $5 million Summit, which opened in January, 2006, kicks up the dining tempo a notch at the 88-year-old esteemed Italian Renaissance–style resort hotel. The world-class, 3,000-acre (12.1 km²), 700-room Colorado Springs landmark is the country’s longest-running consecutive winner of the Mobil five-star rating and the AAA five-diamond award (since the 1958 inception for Mobil and since 1976 for AAA).

The Summit’s moderately priced menu is American brasserie–style, with subtle French touches. Appetizers run from $6 to $17 and main courses from $17 to $26. Half the menu stays the same and the other half changes with the seasons. Suggested attire is “smart casual to business.”

Year-round appetizers include six Pacific oysters on the half shell ($9) and six warm crispy oysters with a honey, ginger and soy dipping sauce ($9), while seasonal appetizers feature apple chestnut soup with sautéed chestnuts ($6) and seared Sonoma foie gras tartine with apple butter and country bread ($17).

Entrees for all seasons include pan-seared Maine diver scallops with wild mushroom risotto and a Parmigiano-reggiano crisp ($24), and monkfish served osso bucco style ($22). Seasonal main courses feature sweet potato raviolis with chestnuts, cipollini onions and sage cream ($17), black pepper– crusted ahi tuna ($26) and cassoulet with duck confit, lamb, sausage, pork and white beans ($21).

“The Summit is a unique dining experience to not only The Broadmoor, but to the hotel industry,” says Stephen Bartolin Jr., the resort’s president and CEO. “It is trend setting for a grand, historic resort to have a restaurant like this. We have to be very respectful of the history of The Broadmoor. Putting Summit across the street from the main complex as a free-standing restaurant allowed us to do something different. It is a big wow factor for the guests. They don’t feel like they’re in a hotel restaurant.”