Thursday, 18-July-2024, through Wednesday, 24-July, 2024
Zermatt was glorious and I loved it.
Simple and to the point. End blog post, we’re done here.
Not really, of course. I mean, there’s food to talk about and show pictures of, exploration of the town itself to describe… all that fun stuff!
We’ll start with the town – an absolutely gorgeous Swiss chalet, overrun with tourists and adventurers. I saw more hiking and mountaineering equipment here than I’ve seen in recent memory… and probably more than anywhere outside of an REI in Portland. I saw watches that cost more than a reasonably-priced used car, and saw the same exact souvenier shot glass priced anywhere from €26 to €85 depending on how elitist the shop was.
Seriously – I considered if there was some way I could buy low and return high, but in the end passed up on the opportunity in favor of more hiking.
The food was lovely, and absolutely excellent – I had one less than optimal sandwich at one point, but everything else was absolutely lovely:
- Zermama Bistro – My first breakfast in Zermatt, and it was an absolutely lovely buffet.
- Fuchs – It means “Fox”, you dirty-minded reader. Also, there were like 10 of these places throughout Zermatt. All of them were good bakeries.
- Grizzley’s bar and bistro – your standard issue American bar and grill. Normal prices for Portland, but smaller portions… which wasn’t a bad thing, since the portion was still more than enough for me
- Petit Royal – Meh… not a great breakfast, truth be told. Solidly acceptable fuel for my hike, but I wasn’t remotely interested in going back
- Tufternalp Restaurant – this was halfway up a mountain on a hiking trail. Welcome to Switzerland; if you’re on a hike into the wilderness, there’s probably a small chateau nearby with coffee and cocoa.
- Ze Seewjinu – Another spot halfway up the mountain (on the other side), in the middle of nowhere. Excellent late lunch, glorious coffee… what more could an adventurer want?
- GramPi’s – A lovely Italian restaurant. Good spaghetti and meatballs, good wine… nothing standout, but it was decidedly acceptable after a long day of hiking
- Zermatt Kitchen Brücke – Solid breakfast of eggs benedict and coffee… simple and solid fuel before my adventure of the day
- Restaurant Pinte – Fondue! Fondue for one, which was surprisingly hard to find! Delicious fondue, excellent coffee, and a glorious warm rest stop on a cool and rainy day.
- Swiss Chalet – my first exposure to “Rosti”, which is sort of halfway between a Latke and hashbrowns? It was interesting, with good steak and good wine.
- Restaurant Z’Mutt – Another hiking day, and another restaurant on the side of a mountain. This one was part of the small “town”, made up of five buildings, of Zmutt… definitely a grand coffee stop on a long hike
- Grill Le Cervin – The fanciest spot I went to in Zermatt, and ironically the cheapest for it’s quality… my full meal was probably €80, with steak and wine and complimentary starter and dessert. Price comparable to similar restaurants in the States, I’d say, but service being far above the norm
- Edwards – a solid hotel breakfast with a solid latte and solid eggs benedict. Not great, but safe and tasty and filling
- Ice Buffet – High up, at 9,600ft, was the Ice Buffet. I was woozy, out of it, and thankfully the staff realized that and helped me find something to eat and drink to get my feet back under me.
The fact that almost all the food was great was really appreciated, since Switzerland lived up to its reputation as an expensive country… I’d say it was probably the most expensive country I’ve visited so far, though time will tell what the actual per-day expenditure tallied out to be.
Interestingly, though, it was a sort of “expense by average” – normal breakfasts and dinners were much more expensive than other countries, but high-end meals were actually quite reasonable… about the same price as other European countries, and noticeably less than their United States counterparts.
Ohh… what else about Zermatt?
It was amazing. I adored being able to just walk out my door and start a hike. I adored the tiny little utility vehicles and mini-busses that were the only vehicles allowed in town (from what I could tell), and I appreciated how everyone biked everywhere. The grocery stores were quick and efficient, and there were amazing views literally everywhere I went.
If you have a chance, definitely come visit.