Signature cuisine gains altitude

There's news coming from the mountains, what with new culinary concepts, and new starred restaurants, or awarded with other important prizes. From Switzerland to South Tyrol, multi-awarded chefs and young talents conquer food lovers with a varied and experimental offer that draws from international cuisine, based on research and innovation while being respectful of tradition and seasonality, following the principles of zero waste. Most of these gourmet establishments are located inside the prestigious hotels. Here the culinary experience has turned into a new journey across international cuisines, giving you a glimpse of heaven.

The K by Mauro Colagreco, Kulm Hotel St. Moritz, Switzerland – New 1 Michelin star 

The starred cuisine of Mauro Colagreco is the result of a lifetime of travels. It now gains altitude so that you can enjoy it even at 1850 metres of altitude, at Kulm Hotel St Moritz, five-star luxury hotel, part of The Leading Hotels of the World, Virtuoso and Swiss Deluxe Hotels, in the heart of Engadin. The chef and patron of three-starred Mirazur in Menton, on the French Riviera, best gourmet restaurant according to The Fifty Best Restaurants of the World, has chosen the exclusive 160-year-old hotel for his seasonal pop restaurant, The K by Mauro Colagreco, seating a total of 30 people, which will be open until the end of March. And it didn't take long to receive the first Michelin star. Colagreco is there on selected dates, and has chosen a young promise, Paloma Boitier, as chef de cuisine. The menu includes some iconic dishes, starting with Lemon of Menton, a tribute to Menton, the city that over 25 years ago welcomed him, famous for its citrus fruits. The menu also includes Luxus beta vulgaris, a signature dish that combines simple ingredients like beetroot cooked wrapped in salt; and then Cream of Oscietra caviar, very elegant. The gourmet restaurant is open Tuesday to Saturday, from 7 pm, and at lunchtime from noon to 2 pm.

The Japanese by The Chedi Andermatt, Switzerland – New 1 Michelin star
Another brand-new Michelin star (and 14 points in the Gault Millau) for The Japanese by The Chedi Andermatt which, cradled on Mount Gütsch, at 2300 metres of altitude has revolutionised the concept of dining on the slopes. Opened at the end of December in 2019, it is directed by chef Dietmar Sawyere, who is also the executive chef in the starred twin inside 5-star luxury hotel The Chedi Andermatt, part of The Leading Hotels of The World and Swiss Deluxe Hotels. The restaurant in the mountains is strategically placed next to the new ski lift of Gütsch-Express in Andermatt-Sedrun, the largest ski resort in central Switzerland, with over 120 km of slopes. The building was designed by London architect Christina Seilern, who gave a contemporary take to the traditional architecture of the Alps giving shaping the entrance so it's full of natural light, and with large windows overlooking the Gotthard. It seats now 89 people (because of the Covid measures) split between 34 indoors and 35 on the outside terrace. Inside, charming open fireplaces warm up the atmosphere. Sawyere serves dishes that give a new take to Japanese cuisine: elegant Shidashi Bentō and Omakase Kaiseki menus, on top of classics such as sushi and tempura. The offer also includes dishes based on the finest wagyu beef, produced locally in the first Swiss farm dedicated to the precious cattle and located on the very Andermatt, so guests can also visit it. During the winter season, the restaurant is open Mondays to Sundays from 11 to 3 pm based on the weather. Next to it, a large building hosts the second gourmet restaurant, serving local cuisine and run by Markus Neff: restaurant Gütsch was awarded by the Red Guide for its local offer and traditional dishes from the Canton and from Switzerland.

Hostaria in Cortina, Hotel Ancora, Cortina d’Ampezzo - A news for the 2020/2021 winter season 
The news of the season (opened on the 5th of December) is Hosteria in Cortina by the Alajmos. The winter temporary restaurant of the group is located inside the historic Hotel Ancora in Corso Italia in Cortina d’Ampezzo. Dating back to 1826, it's the most ancient hotel in town and was recently bought by Renzo Rosso, patron at Diesel, who gave life to the renovations in view of the Olympic games in 2026. The format of the restaurant bets on a simple cuisine, paired with a varied list of wines and cocktails, to be enjoyed while music is playing in the background. The idea, born in under two months during the lockdown, which has made it possible to give a job to 25 collaborators (the team includes some 200 employees), was to give life to a nice and casual place, with the claim “food, wines, cocktails, music and smiles”. All this with the same philosophy of the summer temporary restaurant Hostaria in Certosa, on the island of Certosa, in the Venice Lagoon - 24 hectares north-west of Venice, which was reborn after a long period of neglect thanks to a project supported by Vento in Venice. Now at work in Cortina, the 25 employees working last summer in Certosa avoided furlough, while Venice finds it hard to recover, and the Alajmos are already present with Gran Caffè Quadri in Piazza San Marco and at Fondaco dei Tedeschi with AMO, under the Bridge of Rialto, a collaboration with Philippe Starck. On the ground floor of the hotel in Cortina, the spaces are lit up by Davide Groppi, the culinary offer follows different themes: the restaurant; Bar Terrazza con Veranda, serving coffee, pastries and cold snacks, where you can taste a sandwich of musetto and lentils, wild smoked salmon from Massimiliano or Erminio's steak tartare. There's also the online shop where you can order dishes from the Alajmos all for take away. Classics like Fried scampi rolls with steak tartare and white truffle; Hare risotto, amarone and white truffle. And then historic dishes from Mamma Rita like Beetroot gnocchi in gorgonzola sauce or Roasted suckling pig, mustard and coffee.

7Summit Slow Food, Falkensteiner Hotel Kronplatz, South Tyrol – Opened in December 2020
7Summit Slow Food is an innovative gourmet concept. The restaurant is located in the brand new Falkensteiner Hotel Kronplatz, five-star hotel opened on the 17th December near the ski lifts of Plan de Corones. The hotel was designed by architect Matteo Thun. The main protagonist is the cuisine of South Tyrol and the most significant recipes and ingredients from the 7 geographical areas of the planet with the highest mountain tops, that is to say, on top of South Tyrol, Japan, Argentina, Tibet, Peru, Alaska and Tanzania. Hence the menu changes monthly, and speaks for recipes from all around the word, starting from the concept of food sharing. This leads to an offer that is always rich, new and varied, and always including some traditional homemade bread, and carefully selected cheeses and wines. International chefs from the tallest kitchens of the world come as guests each month, working with the team guided by executive chef Reinhard Daverda, previously at Feldmilla in Campo Tures and at hotel Winkler in Brunico. When staying at the hotel, try also the creative cocktails of the barman from On The Rocks Bar, which in winter are served next to an elegant crackling fireplace.

Ristorante SanBrite, Cortina d’Ampezzo – new Michelin star and Lagazuoi Winning Ideas Mountain Awards 2021 award

SanBrite, the mountain farm in Cortina, in the heart of the Eastern Dolomites, which has also recently received a Michelin star, was awarded with the Lagazuoi Winning Ideas Mountain Awards 2021. Young chef Riccardo Gaspari (35) serves “the aromas of his woods” and promotes an invigorating and circular peasant cuisine, dedicated to fighting food waste: though it is deeply rooted in the mountains, it thus pursues a concept of innovation, research and development. All this while starting from this family history, of which he is an heir and ambassador: “the silence of my land is evocative, the sounds, the colours and the aromas of the woods are my source of inspiration”, he says. So the ingredients, his feelings, and his beloved mountain turn into dishes that portray a world. His wife Ludovica Rubbini helps him by running dairy farm Piccolo Brite, which also has a shop. In the menu, traditional dishes are made lighter. You can choose from the trout tartare and a selection of canederli, for instance. And then Marinated salmerino, with dulce de siero; black lentils and broth of smoked trout roe; Spaghetti Monograno Felicetti, cooked in chicken broth, mixed with oil with pino mugo (his famous signature dish); Corn germ gelato, with cream of whey and broth of liquorice. Seventy percent of the ingredients come from their farm. The rest from small local producers whom the chef knows personally.

Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso