A seconda delle zone, in Svizzera prevalgono piatti montanari o mediterranei, di tradizione francese o teutonica, di tipo rustico o elaborato. Il consiglio è quindi quello di assaggiare un po’ di tutto.
What to eat in the cantons
In the Canton Ticino, the main dishes are polenta with braised meat, risotto with ossobuco or stewed rabbit. The Valais boasts cheese-based specialties, now internationally known: the fondue, a fragrant mixture of melted cheeses in a clay pot placed on a lit burner. Also characteristic is the way of enjoying it: each diner dips pieces of bread, using long forks. And the raclette, prepared with the eponymous cheese, always served melted.
In the Jura, the dishes testifying to the most genuine poor cuisine are croquettes, a kind of mixed boiled dish, and croutes au fromage. Typical of the Canton of Schwyz is instead the gemsenbraten, roasted chamois; while in the Rhenish cantons, delicious roasted roosters on the grill are popular. In the Grisons, the mountain tradition offers dried meat (bunderfleisch), somewhat reminiscent of bresaola, meat and vegetable soups, abundant game, polenta cooked in a thousand ways, and even pizzoccheri, influenced by the nearby Valtellina.
As you can understand, Swiss cuisine is a constant celebration of local products and the seasons. The abundance of lakes and rivers provides excellent fish, such as boiled blue trout served with hot melted butter, fried small perch fish from Lake Geneva, or Rhine salmon served in fillets flavored with butter and accompanied by potatoes and small sautéed onions. Livestock breeding guarantees milk (the base of the unmistakable chocolate), excellent meats, sublime cheeses, and many other types of dairy products. Finally, ubiquitous are also cold cuts and sausages: the Klopfen from Basel, the Pantli from Appenzell, the Bratwurst from St. Gallen, the Salsiz and Beinwurst from the Grisons.
A curious note is the existence of a true 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
On the beverage front, most people believe that in Switzerland only beer (Cardinal from Fribourg or Feldschlosschen from Rheinfelden are internationally known), brandy, apple juice, and mineral waters are consumed, ignoring the existence of a wine production that, although niche, boasts a solid tradition and strongly protectionist legislation.
Wines in Switzerland
The wine-growing areas are those of the wide Rhine valleys and the Rhône, Lac Léman, the Lakes of Ticino and the Jura. Around Montreux, high-quality whites and reds are produced, such as St. Saphorin, Dézaley, Lutry, or Chardonné. In Vevey, there is also the Museum of the Winemakers’ Brotherhood, which every 25 years organizes a magnificent Féte des Vignerons. Also not to be missed is a ride on the charming Trein des Vignes, which connects Vevey to Puidoux-Chexbres, offering, during harvest time, an exceptional view of bunches and rows.
The clayey hills that frame Geneva and their particular microclimate allow the production of a characterful white called Chasselas and a light, fruity red called Gamay. To defend the colors of Valais, there is the white Féndant (excellent with raclette), the red Johannisberg, and dessert nectars like Muscat, Glacier, Malvasie. In the canton of Ticino, the king of glasses is Merlot, while in Graubünden, the mild region of Chur offers reds such as Malanser or Maienfelder.
