When you talk about Switzerland, most of the time it's about heavenly skiing on the snow-capped Alps, wood burning in the fireplace and talking to a stranger while sampling Swiss cheese. Since I can't ski, it's normally the food that I'm after. Well, you may well be able to do that if you have a thick wallet and are willing to fight jetlag. As for the review crew and I, we just skied ourselves to Chalet, Equatorial Hotel for some fine Swiss cuisine that is just as good.
With so many ties to Germany, France and Italy, the Swiss have adopted and adapted much from those cuisines. Whereas a large number of Swiss meat dishes are much the same as German meat dishes, the cheese dishes are really unique. For starters, try the Raclette Valaisanne which is melted Swiss cheese with baby potatoes and homemade pickles. Traditionally, you would have a Raclette Stove burning and cook yourself a thin slice of Raclette Cheese on the stove. When a thin layer of cheese has melted, it is scraped directly with a knife onto a plate and straight to the tastebuds. At Chalet, they melt the cheese for you but serve it warm. Still yummy. The baby potatoes and pickled cucumber was superb.
The other great starters you should look into are the soup selections. The Cream of Wild Forest Mushrooms was uniquely served in a giant roll. The big round roll had it's top cut, insides scooped out and filled in with creamy mushroom soup. The soup itself is wonderfully creamy accompanied by generous helpings of minced mushroom and it also comes recommended by us.
"Swiss cheese, melt it, dip it and eat it"
For the main meal, you will never go wrong with either the Prime Rib or the Steam-Roast Fillet of Australian Cod with Garlic Soya Crust. The Cod was wonderfully prepared, flaky with just the right amount of garlic soya dabbed on top of the cod that you enjoy the meal without the overpowering taste of garlic. For that 'extra mile', a slight squeeze of fresh lime should do it.
The cut of Prime Ribs come with baked Idaho potatoes and fresh vegetables. The cut was sufficiently tender, moist and well complimented with the wonderful gravy. It is also worth mentioning the well prepared Yorkshire Pudding which came with the dish. It is wonderful what a bit of well made pastry and beef can do to the tastebuds. The Prime Ribs could be classified as a conversation stopper as one of our crew only started to speak again after the last of the cuts disappeared from her plate.
We thought that we'd finished our meal when the dessert tray came conveniently close to our table. We knew what to do. The apple pie was delicious with chunky apple and splendid pastry. You should try it. The bread pudding was another sin disguised under a blanket of custard cream. We finished our meal with once again superb coffee probably sharing the same beans with Equatorial's Etoile Bistro downstairs. There's nothing like a good coffee after a great meal and at Chalet, you get it.
Anyway, Equatorial has done up the place nicely. It has a cosy ambience ideally suited for business luncheons, small gatherings and private conversations. One more piece of good news...if you're yearning for good Swiss cuisine at value prices, Chalet also offers very affordable lunch sets.
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