Depending on the region, Switzerland favors mountain or Mediterranean dishes, with French or Germanic traditions, rustic or elaborate styles. The advice is therefore to taste a bit of everything.
What to Eat in the Cantons
In the Canton Ticino, the main dishes are polenta with braised meat, risotto with osso buco, or stewed rabbit. The Valais boasts cheese-based specialties, now internationally famous: the fondue, a fragrant mixture of melted cheeses in a terracotta pot set over a small flame. The way to enjoy it is also characteristic: each diner dips small pieces of bread into it, using long forks. And the raclette, prepared with the cheese of the same name, always served melted.
In the Jura, dishes that reflect the most genuine humble cuisine include croquettes, a kind of mixed boiled meat, and croutes au fromage. Typical of the Canton of Schwyz is the gemsenbraten, roasted chamois; while in the Rhenish cantons, flavorful grilled roosters are popular. In the Grisons, mountain tradition offers dried meat (bunderfleisch), reminiscent of bresaola, meat and vegetable soups, abundant game, various polenta preparations, and even pizzoccheri, influenced by nearby Valtellina.
As you can understand, Swiss cuisine is a constant celebration of local products and their seasons. The abundance of lakes and rivers provides excellent fish, such as blue trout boiled and served with hot melted butter, fried small perch from Lake Geneva, and Rhine salmon served in butter-seasoned fillets accompanied by potatoes and sautéed small onions. Livestock farming guarantees milk (the base of the unmistakable chocolate), excellent meats, sublime cheeses, and many kinds of dairy products. Finally, cold cuts and sausages are omnipresent: Klopfen from Basel, Pantli from Appenzell, Bratwurst from St. Gallen, and Salsiz and Beinwurst from the Grisons.
A curious note is the existence of a real food museum, not far from the shores of Lake Geneva. It is the Alimentarium in Vevey, created thanks to the intervention of Nestlé. In three fascinating sections, dedicated respectively to the scientific, historical, and ethnological aspects of food, the museum summarizes the main themes of nutrition.
What to Drink in Switzerland
Regarding beverages, most people think that in Switzerland only beer (Cardinal from Fribourg or Feldschlosschen from Rheinfelden are internationally known), schnapps, apple juice, and mineral waters are consumed, ignoring the existence of a wine production that, although niche, boasts a consolidated tradition and a strongly protectionist legislation.
Wines in Switzerland
The wine-growing areas are in the broad Rhine and Rhone valleys, around Lake Geneva, the Ticino lakes, and the Jura. Around Montreux, prestigious white and red wines are produced, such as St. Saphorin, Dézaley, Lutry, and Chardonné. In Vevey is also the Museum of the Brotherhood of Winegrowers, which every 25 years organizes a splendid Féte des Vignerons. Not to be missed is a ride on the charming Trein des Vignes, connecting Vevey to Puidoux-Chexbres, offering during harvest time an exceptional view over grapes and vineyards.
The clay hills framing Geneva, with their particular microclimate, allow the production of a characterful white called Chasselas and a light fruity red named Gamay. Representing Valais colors are the white Féndant (excellent with raclette), the red Johannisberg, and dessert nectars such as Muscat, Glacier, Malvasie. In Canton Ticino, the king of glasses is Merlot, while in the Grisons, the mild region of Chur offers reds like Malanser or Maienfelder.
