Fondue in Switzerland

I stamped my foot and watched a spectacular spray of water fly from my waterlogged hiking shoes just as the bus in Stechelberg pulled up, right on schedule. I passed over a handful of Swiss franc coins, received a nod from the driver, and we were off, finding our seats as the bus surged forward.
Thoroughly soaked and shivering from the cold, we rattled through the little town and across the connecting road. Still nearly giddy that we had traversed so far.

We staggered off the bus near enough to our hotel that making a run for it in the rain might have been an option, just not after thirteen miles of hiking the Alps with too few snacks.

Our legs vetoed the running part of that plan. We trudged through the rain instead, appetites growing with every slightly inclined step, until the lobby’s warmth wrapped around us. Upstairs, we changed into dry clothes, my waterlogged hiking shoes traded for mercifully dry flats, and my travel dress pulled from the suitcase for just this sort of occasion. Then we headed straight for the elegant restaurant attached to our hotel.

“Do you have space for two?” I asked with a sheepish smile. This wasn’t the first time we had appeared, unannounced, at the half-empty dining room.

A low hum came from the hostess, not unkind, but carrying the faintest trace of you should have known to book ahead. Even with that hint of disapproval, she led us through the room to one of the nicer tables available, the one that had started to feel like it might secretly be left open just for us.

It sat in what they called the winter garden, a glass-walled patio overlooking the town and, more prominently, the Alps just beyond the train station. Rain pattered softly against the glass as the sky darkened and the mountains’ snow began to glow faintly in the dim light.

When our waitress turned her attention to us, before we had even opened the menu, I was ready. I had known what I wanted since the chill had settled in hours earlier. It felt like fondue weather in Switzerland at last.

Fondue, and a glass of the house wine for each of us. Swiss lore dictates that wine helps digest fondue. I am not one to argue with lore.

Our waitress from the night before was at another table, performing polite bafflement as a mother and daughter tried to order a single dessert with two spoons. She tilted her head, repeating the request as if it were an unfamiliar phrase, until they abandoned the plan entirely.
I knew the feeling. She had once fixed me with that same raised eyebrow when I could not finish a pizza I was apparently meant to eat alone. I would earn that look again tonight.

The wines arrived, followed by potatoes, bread, and cheese galore. Perfectly cooked mini potatoes, bread soft inside with a crust worth eating on its own, all destined for the pot of cheese kept creamy by the flame. The taste was  comforting, decadent, and just sharp enough to demand another bite.

We had earned every gram of that indulgence after a day spent hiking far longer than planned. The rain still pattered against the mountains outside, the same storm that had chased us down the trail. Portions for two felt more like portions for three hungry hikers, and in the end, I had to close the flame, leaving a few potatoes, a few cubes of bread, and a few spoonfuls of cheese behind.
I think I would risk another alpine incline before I could take another bite of cheese.

“Oh… hmm… you are done?” Our waitress appeared, and spoke as if she had had caught me committing a small act of vandalism.
Yes, I was done and perfectly content with my feet sore, belly full, second glass of wine on the way, This day had been had been spent hiking deep into a Swiss alpine valley and the evening being warmed by fondue where it is meant to be.

And I have a confession.  I ordered dessert. My mom and I shared it.
The beauty, luxury, and awkwardness of this meal are what I have come to expect from this hotel. Welcoming, stunningly beautiful, and just a touch judgmental.

If asked about this place, “would stay again, will be judged”

Someday soon I will write more about all the funny little moments that made this hotel both endearing and intimidating in equal measure.

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