Five Best: Restaurants on the slopes

Danielle Demetriou discovers where fine-dining reaches great heights

Saturday 30 December 2006 01:00 GMT
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Flocons de Sel, Mégève

Flocons de Sel is the proud owner of two of the eight Michelin stars that are distributed across picturesque Mégève. Food lovers have been known to drive across France just for dinner at this 19th-century farmhouse in the upper village. The style of the food is reflected in the rustic decor. The chef and owner Emmanuel Renaut is credited with elevating simple dishes to a new level: from sea urchin in coffee and manioc to lake-caught perch in green tea sabayon.

Flocons de Sel, 75 rue St François, Mégève, France (00 33 450 21 49 99; www.floconsdesel.com). Dinner for two with wine costs around €150 (£107); a nine-course tasting menu costs €110 (£74) per person

Top Mountain Star, Hochgurgl

A sparkling steel-and-glass structure set against a deep blue sky, the new Top Mountain Star restaurant reflects the jagged peaks that surround it. Set high on the ski-slopes at 3,080m, a large wrap-around terrace offers a 360-degree panorama of the Otztal Alps. Inside the restaurant, which opened in November, the modern decor comprises mostly glass and sparkling Swarovski crystals. Taking centre-stage is the Star Bar, complete with 12 zodiac signs that flicker when a glass is placed on its surface. Ski lifts or snowcats are the preferred means of getting to the restaurant, which serves classic regional dishes and is owned by the nearby Relais & Châteaux property, Top Hotel.

Top Mountain Star, Hochgurgl, Austria (00 43 5256 6265; www.tophotelhochgurgl.com). Dinner for two with wine is around €47 (£34)

Le Bateau Ivre, Courchevel

Gourmet skiers are spoilt for choice in Courchevel 1850: the chic resort has two double-Michelin-starred restaurants - one of which is Le Bateau Ivre. Situated on the top floor of the striking glass-and-timber La Pomme de Pin hotel, the views compete for attention with the food. Chef Jean-Pierre Jacob prepares French cuisine with a twist: oysters on a broccoli mousse, roasted veal with fennel and pineapple ravioli. Le Bateau Ivre, La Pomme de Pin, Courchevel 1850, France (00 33 4 79 00 11 71; www.pommedepin.com)

Dinner for two with wine is around €140 (£100)

By Dalsass, Gstaad

Housed in the oldest chalet in Gstaad is the newest kid on the restaurant block. By Dalsass, run and owned by the award-winning chef Martin Dalsass, opened this season. The setting is the 18th-century Le Chlösterli, a stylish conversion by the designer Patrick Jouin, which also houses a more traditional restaurant, a bar and a nightclub. The chef, from South Tirol in Italy, is famous for his passion for olive oil and Med-style specialities, including risotto and poultry dishes. And the nightclub is the perfect place to dance off dinner.

By Dalsass, Le Chlösterli, 3783 Grund Bei, Gstaad, Switzerland (00 41 33 748 79 79; www.chlosterli.com). Dinner for two with wine costs around SFr300 (£125)

Tivoli, Cortina d'Ampezzo

Skiing is low on the agenda in Cortina. The resort has carved out a reputation as the culinary hotspot of the Dolomites with more than 80 restaurants. Cream of the crop is Tivoli, an intimate Michelin-starred restaurant famed for its creative take on wild game and mountain dishes. Under chef Graziano Prest, dishes range from lamb braised with mint to jugged pork in mustard sauce. The setting may be low key - copper pans on walls and a wood-burning stove - but its clientele is often starry, from Italian politicians to actors. Skiing, what skiing?

Tivoli, Via Lacedel 34, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy (00 39 0436 866 400; www.ristorantetivoli.it). Dinner for two with wine around €160 (£114)

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