Thursday, January 31, 2013

Verbier, Switzerland - Final Day in the Swiss Alps





On our last day in Verbier we only had time for lunch before heading to the airport, so we went to a restaurant called Le Carrefour, which came very highly recommended.  This is another restaurant that you can reach from the slopes if you are skiing during the day. 


Le Carrefour specializes in mountain cuisine, with an emphasis on cheese and meats as well as marinated mushrooms (which you can also buy by the jar) and rostis. Rostis are a typical Swiss peasant dish from Bern and are made of grated and roasted potatoes with diced bacon and onions. I ordered one with typical Swiss cheeses from the region (shown below).



Also not to be missed are the various fondues and the deer filet, which you grill yourself on the hot stone they provide with sprigs of rosemary (shown below):



The view from our table at Le Carrefour:






After lunch, we started the journey back to the Geneva airport and I snapped these pictures from the car ride down from Verbier:




We all thoroughly enjoyed our long weekend in Verbier and would definitely make a return visit. Its a quaint little skiing village with breathtaking scenery and fabulous cuisine with an active nightlife. What more could you ask for? 

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Verbier, Switzerland - Day Two in the Swiss Alps



Day two in Verbier entailed a forty five minute vertical hike up the mountain for lunch. We thought this would be good exercise in lieu of paying for a lift pass just to go to a restaurant. Not sure if it was the altitude or my lack of cardio fitness, but it was touch and go there for a minute and I started pondering if I would make it to the top before collapsing. Luckily, I arrived still breathing.



We got an outdoor table in the sunshine at Chez Dany (Chemin de Clambin, 1936), which is a ski in - ski out restaurant on the slopes at an altitude of about 6,000ft and with a stunning view of the valley below. Chez Dany serves typical Swiss mountain food, including cheese fondue (and a lot of dishes based on cheese), various meats, salads and pastas.




















After resting and refueling at Chez Dany, we started the trek back down the mountain. The descent was so much easier than the grueling climb!



We stopped at Le Rouge for some apres ski drinks. This is another hopping spot where skiers descend from about 4pm in the afternoon onwards. They also grill sausages and make fresh crepes outside in this party atmosphere. 





After a lay down and an outfit change, we all went back to Le Rouge for dinner. Here is some of what we ate: 
Sea Bream ceviche, coconut milk, tomato and lime
Home made foie gras, quince cream with Earl Grey, country loaf toast
Pumpkin, fennel and parsnip soup, crème fraiche and croutons
Langoustine conchiglie, bisque of shellfish and fresh herbs
Mushroom risotto, parsley emulsion

Sole Meunière, buttery green cabbage and Grenailles potatoes
We ended the evening by dancing again at both Farinet and then onto the Farm Club (see previous post). But by 2am, all of that hiking and fresh mountain air had us longing to collapse into bed.