Though chalet holidays are the bread and butter of British skiing, not everyone likes to go for the full catered holiday experience. Though many of us love to try the local cuisine, and count down the days until our week of cheese, meat and wine in France, or sausage, potato and Jägermeister in Austria, some people still pine for the food of home on their travels.
Surely the ultimate British dish on a ski holiday has to be the Sunday roast, it's warming, filling and is stacked with carbs, protein and veg — perfect for your body and mind. So where exactly are the best Sunday roasts in the Alps? Well I took to Twitter this week and bugged our expert sales team to find out where best to recommend for rosbif and Yorkshire pud.
The Best Sunday Roasts in the Alps:
My personal favourite for a Sunday roast in the Skilodge in La Tania. They only do a roast out of peak season (so not during the New Year holidays and Feb), but they combine a great British atmosphere, good portions and the all important lunch-time kick-off of Premiership football or Six Nations rugby. They also do a cracking Christmas Day roast, if you can get a table!
Another restaurant to get a few mentions in the Courchevel Valley is La Marmotte Rouge in Bozel. The venue was opened last winter by a British couple and is already developing a great reputation for their roast dinners with the locals, so much so, people will happily get the bus ride from Courchevel!
Evolution in Meribel, just across from the Chaudanne has also been getting a few tweets for their Sunday fare. The great thing about Evo, apart from the friendly staff and Jez's dog, is the food and location. Having not eaten in Evo for a couple years now, it's great to hear they are still getting rave reviews for their food and being just across from the slopes it makes for a great lunchtime or evening stop to indulge in a good old Sunday roast.
Another Courchevel restaurant that the Twittersphere recommended is l'Oeil de Boeuf, in Courchevel 1550 — I see a Three Valleys theme developing here! The restaurant is quite quaint, with a sun terrace at the bottom of the Tovets piste. The name says it all really, this is where a serving of rosbif will surely be at it's best.
Finally it is time to leave the Three Valleys and head to Tignes and the Clin d'Oeil. Rumour has it this place would have a Michelin star, but for not being open enough days of the year, and having eaten here, the food is exquisite. The restaurant is near to the Aeroski lift and the Tourist office and only has about 8 tables, offering an intimate experience to go with the fabulous food and attentive service.
Moving over to Les Arcs' village of Peisey Vallandry and the Bar Mont Blanc gets a shout from Crispin, one of our new ski experts. The roast usually consist of a choice of chicken or beef and if they don't take your fancy, they also do a mean burger. The ski in/out location and the great views across the valley all add to this stunning spot for a mountainside Sunday lunch.
Our last spot for France is Les Deux Alpes' renowned Tex-Mex bar, Smokey Joes. Robin, another of our ski tea, recommends this place due to its location, at the base of the Jandari Express and White Egg lifts, as well as the awesome food. I wonder if they do a roast dinner burrito?
Last, but by no means least is another Planetski recommendation, with the Clin d'Oeil being the first, the Chez Vrony in Zermatt. According to the friendly ski news specialist, the sun terrace has great views of the Matterhorn, as well as a decent Sunday roast.
So, here a few recommendations from Iglu and our Twitter followers, but I'm sure there are plenty of goose fat roast potatoes, perfect cooked pieces or meat and ample servings of veggies and gravy that we've yet to discover, so feel free to fill us in with anywhere we've missed at @igluski.
