Italian and French Alpes Trip Report

Italian and French Alpes Trip Report:
Let me start by stating how much we love border areas. It is a great and fun way to experience different cultures and cuisines without having to travel too far. I chose to visit the Italian and French Alpes for our 20th wedding anniversary.

We flew into Geneva and made our way to the car rental location. We were continually asked if we were going to the French side or the Swiss side. I had no clue what side I was supposed to be going to and since we were immediately heading for Italy I said the Swiss side, which wound up being correct. I must say when returning your car, you must return to the same side you originally rented from or face some type charge.
Getting out of airport and on the road to Italy was easy. Returning was a bit more difficult. Finding airport was simple but finding rental location posed a bit more of a challenge for us. My wife spotted a rental car shuttle at the last minute and we just followed it back to the location. Thankfully there was a nice family that helped us with return due to office not being opened when we arrived.

We left Geneva, Switzerland and drove through the Mont Blanc tunnel, if you plan on returning in a relatively short period, I think a week, you can purchase a round trip ticket which does save you a little money. The weather on the French side of Mont Blanc on the approach to the tunnel was overcast. We could only imagine what scenery we were missing. The tunnel has very strict road laws that you must adhere to!!!

Once we went through the tunnel entering in France and exiting in Italy it was like being in a whole other country (smile), the sky was clear and the views were breath taking. We stayed in the lovely town of Courmayeur for two nights and checked into the hotel Villa Novecento: Dear Cavaliere Family, My wife and I had a wonderful if not to short of a stay at your hotel last week. I cannot find words to describe the level of hospitality we received. Everything was perfect!!! Your staff go out of their way to make sure everyone is happy and needs are met. From my first email, to walking in the lobby, to hugs good bye, everything was perfectly, fantastically wonderful.

Now, for the one issue I have with your hotel; your associate Carmine has to be without any doubts the nicest, most sincere person we have ever met on our travels. He is actually NUTS!!! He is warm, caring and so eager to please. When we checked out, it felt like we were leaving a friend!! You are very lucky to have such a great employee, many places would be very happy to have someone like Carmine working for them…I will now judge all hotel staff by his level of service..Like I said, words cannot describe the care we received from everyone and most notably Carmine!!

I also want to make note that we were meeting friends that we have not seen in over a year. They drove a good distance to meet us and agreed to meet at your hotel before going out for the evening. Your staff went out of their way to make them and us comfortable. This is the letter I wrote upon returning home. All the great reviews are spot on. Just a few minute walk from pedestrian zone, spotlessly clean and the most caring staff you could find anywhere!!!

We spent our time window shopping and walking the beautiful pedestrian zone taking in the sights, sounds and views of the mountains at every turn. The first full day there we decided to take the cable car to the top of Mont Blanc, what a worthwhile experience. Words cannot describe the beauty and the grandeur of it all. It was about 70F when we got on and as we went up and continually changed cable cars to go higher and higher, the weather got colder and colder to the point it began to snow like crazy…wow, speechless. Our only problem was that we were a little unprepared for weather conditions regarding clothing. One of the pure highlights of our vacation.

We had dinner two nights in Courmayeur, Italy and both were outstanding. Al Vecchio Torchio: I found this restaurant that opened in January 2010. I emailed to receive the phone number and then called and spoke to a lovely woman named Giorgia, she and her husband Simone own the restaurant. We exchanged greetings and Giorgia talked to me about the restaurant and menu. They don’t have a typed menu and don’t cook items typically found in every other restaurant in town she explained. This was just fine by me! They cook several items a night, just what is fresh and in season and will accommodate almost any special needs or requests. We arrived around 8 pm with a party of four and were treated to warm hospitality and plenty of charm.

Each course was carefully prepared by Simone and paired with a glass of wine personally selected for us by Giorgia who is a certified sommelier. BTW, Simone does make a killer lasagna! We ate, laughed with our friends and interacted with our hosts. We had a fabulous evening and rolled out of the restaurant extremely pleased with our choice. The restaurant is small and on the main road which is easy to find. Prices are very reasonable and the owners are most charming. Please go, you won’t be disappointed. Please tell them the guy with the Hershey Kisses sent you!

The second night we ate at Cadran Solaire. Before leaving home I did some research on restaurants in Courmayeur. I was looking for a special place to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. Knowing that it would be a Saturday night I had the staff of our hotel call for reservation. Since the restaurant had great reviews my expectations were high. Well, we were not disappointed. The great staff of Villa Novecento called to let them know of our anniversary, we were seated at the best table in the restaurant. Once we settled in, the staff of the restaurant came to our table and presented my wife with a small bouquet of roses and a card wishing us a happy anniversary.. Then a bottle of champagne was sent to us from the staff of our hotel!

So can it get any better? Yes, the women working the dining room were amazing, showed us dishes as they went by and introduced us to the dessert cart prior to dinner. They could not have been more gracious and charming. What about the food, well just simply delicious. Well cared for ingredients and well prepared by the chef. It was porcini season so I had homemade paste with porcini’s and my wife had the baked polenta. Our starters were equally as good and dessert was perfect; a stuffed fresh poached peach with homemade ice cream..yummy! The room was beautifully warm and quaint, just at the end of the pedestrian zone. Service was great, food was amazing. From the moment we walked in to the moment we left the entire experience was unbelievable and supported its number 1 rating with easy.

After a few days in Northern Italy, we went back through the tunnel using our prepaid return voucher and headed for Chamonix, France. This is just 15 miles through the mountains from Italy. We arrived in Chamonix to a standing ovation from the snow capped mountains, kind of left us speechless again and had to keep reminding each other just where we were. We checked into the Grand Hotel des Alpes, I corresponded with Natalia & Guia prior to arrival and both were most charming. Staff was warm and helpful and location was perfectly in the heart of Chamonix. The front of the hotel is right on the pedestrian zone and the rear overlooks the mountains and a lovely little river.

Hotel was clean, staff was friendly and location was perfect. After several days of walking, I could not find one better! We drove around the block a few times before spotting the parking lot in rear of hotel. We pulled up to a gate and rang the buzzer, within a moment Natalia was outside to meet us! Great hotel, great people and great little town! Chamonix has many streets with plenty of shopping and restaurants, more than enough to keep one busy for several days.

We crossed the river one day and went to a summer luge park. It was great fun after I got done talking my wife into trying it. It begins with a pleasant chair lift up the green mountain. Once at the top you grab a luge and chose your course and down you go, we had so much fun and laughed, I know my wife is happy she did it. Not forgetting that you are constantly looking at spectacular views at every turn.

Two great dinners in Chamonix the first was L’Impossible. I was looking for something off the main street and tucked away, that had great food and atmosphere. I found the perfect place. The hotel made reservations for us and the restaurant was about a 10 minute walk away. When we arrived we just loved the looks from the outside and I could see into the kitchen that looked spotlessly clean. The building is a chalet and inside has a wonderfully warm atmosphere.

The whole operation seems to be family, in fact we even got to hold one of the family members baby. Of course I got yelled at twice for being the fun uncle type. We enjoyed the personal family attention and had so much fun with the staff. The food stands on its own. Very creative, with clean fresh flavors and everything is organic when possible and homemade, even down to the breadsticks, just delicious! Prices were reasonable with several preset menus to please even the vegetarian in the group. Service was excellent and we enjoyed our evening tremendously.

The second was Le Chaudron. We traveled to Courmayeur, Annecy and Chamonix were we stayed in three different hotels and had dinner out every night. Le Chaudron was without any hesitation the most fun, best tasting dining experience of our trip. First of all, it is off the main street that holds tons of mediocre restaurants (one day we spent E40.00 for 2 poor soups and a bottle of water) but I am on vacation and need more to satisfy me. I need great food, great atmosphere and friendly service, I found all of that here and the best of the best.

So just off the main street in what we were told by the hotel is an historic building and cute room with a warm alpine feel, is Le Chaudron. A true family operation with father and son in the open kitchen cooking and mama waiting on tables…she is the only server so relax and enjoy your time there. They had a few specials on the black board, one of which was fresh sautéed mushrooms, which I ordered and my wife had a salad with pastry wrapped goat cheese…oh yea you heard that before but none that tasted like this, she still raves about it. Being able to watch the chefs every move, I decided to bring my empty plate of mushrooms to him to brag how good it was, he smiled and I went back to my table. A few minutes later mom brought me another little dish of mushrooms since I liked them so much…wow, how nice.

The risotto, shrimp perfectly cook and fresh, everything was well prepared and presented. At the end of the meal the chef came to our table and I asked what dessert he recommended “French Toast” he suggested so that it what we ordered…cinnamony, soft velvet toast with homemade ice cream and a caramel sauce…more please! I think the chef noticed me licking the caramel sauce off the plate and walked over with a little bowl of sauce with a spoon for me to have more..Everyone in the restaurant was laughing and everyone there seem to be enjoying their meal…

The family could not have treated us any better if they were a Michelin 3 star restaurant and I don’t think I could have been made any happier. I do have one negative about Le Chaudron and that is the fact it is so far away from my house!! The best meal of the trip and would go back in a minute! If you go, tell them you read this review, I am sure they will take special care of you.

Our last stop of our vacation and not very far from Chamonix and in close proximity to Geneva for our flight home was Annecy. Considered by some to be the Venice of France. Just a beautiful old town sitting on a network of flowered adorned cannels. Our first day there was a Tuesday and we were informed by hotel staff that it was market day. Hundreds of vendors selling meats, cheese, olives and flowers etc... We spent hours walking the streets sampling eats when ever offered, a perfect introduction to our third and final stop. I was a bit disappointed not having an apartment or someplace where I could have taken advantage of the food shopping.

Annecy is also on a very large and beautiful lake surrounded by mountains. The weather in late September was perfect with day time temperatures in the low 70’s. We spent time by the lake and it the park followed peaceful strolls through old town. Our hotel The Splendid was just a block away. The hotel is very clean and right across from a beautiful park and lake. Yes, it was a bit noisy at night for sleeping due to road noise but didn’t bother us. There is a charge for breakfast which we chose not to partake in…we’re in France!!! So, out to the streets and find a bakery for croissants and coffee for us. Service seemed limited but the staff members we encountered were very friendly. It is an excellent base to see the town, just a block from old town and plenty to keep you busy for a few days.

We also had two dinners in Annecy but did not bat 1000 like our previous two stops. The first was L'Etage this wasn’t one of my originally planned out choices but was recommend by the staff of our hotel. So they made reservations for us and off we went. Upon arrival we discovered that if not dinning outside you had to go up to the first floor. So walking up I became apprehensive of the choice but once inside the beautiful dining room with grand fireplace in the center I was much relieved.

The service was really friendly; there were just two servers so you were not rushed at all. The food was excellently prepared and we enjoyed everything we ate. We did not try but everyone in the restaurant was having raclette, every table! Pretty room, very friendly service and well prepared food made this an excellent evening. You will find it hard to fault anything here.

The second dinner and last night was not a happy experience for us. I think I am very easy to please, give me a grilled cheese sandwich and a cup of soup and I am happy IF, it is made with fresh cared for ingredients. We dined at La Cuisine des Amis, I should have known something was wrong when no one else was eating at the restaurant, now there are slow nights but others next door had many people in them.

So, I travel a lot and try to be humble, especially speaking only one language and even that one not very well. Our server made no effort to try to communicate with me, even when I pointed to something on the menu, she would just shrug her shoulders. I don’t like restaurants with multi language menus, I have experienced people speaking many languages and when I do, I try my best to understand them, you know there is the universal language of food but the women did not try. I guess I feel bad writing this, she really just might not have been able to understand gestures. Ok but then she started smoking a cigarette right next to our table…ok, that’s enough on that.

The first course was ok, a little bulky and not much finesse. But when my wife’s shrimp came, the heads were black and smelled bad. My scallops didn’t taste very good either, kind of like they were kept a day to long…not to cause any fuss, we pushed things around our plates and then asked for the check to leave…Every place has an off night and this just might have been one of them. I challenge you to find any negative review that I write. I would rather just not review if I cannot rave but this was really disappointing and with it being our last night of our vacation it hurt double.

In the morning we checked out very early and headed back to Geneva for a return trip home. Spectacular vacation and after being in Wengen in the Swiss Aples, it was wonderful to see the Italian and French. I hope this gives you a little insight to our trip. If you go, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.