How much money should I expect to pay for food per day in Switzerland? How much would you bring per day?

Part of the answer may depend on your food requirements.

Are you staying at a location that supplies breakfast? Do you snack at lunch, or expect a sit down meal? Do you like gastronomy for your main meal of the day or...

Hopefully by "bring" you mean "withdraw from ATM"

Yes, ATM! Breakfast comes with the hotel stay... A pretzel here and there...a beer here and there and a small lunch and a normal meal for dinner.

That is impossible to answer other than $100 more or less for two. It depends on number of meals - we generally eat only two/day when traveling. Where you eat -- one to five stars. Do you always order wine or cocktails. Get the picture -- we need some help if you want a good answer/

Don't bring much 'cause it is hard to judge what you may need. We go nearly total cash and pull about $500 every three days from an ATM somewhere.

Thanks fmpden! Two meals.. say 3 stars...a beer a day and a snack.

per person?

On our last trip, my husband and I spend about an average of 150 euros per day on food. I don't drink and he loves his wine.

My son was complaining again today about the cost of McDonald's in Zurich for his girlfriend and himself. 28CHF in 2008. And I paid for it. Don't know why it bothered him. Food does seem to be a little more expensive in Switzerland.

<How much money should I expect to pay for food per day in Switzerland?>

A lot.

Nothing in Switzerland is cheap.

Here are some examples of what we paid for food on our last trip to Switzerland in 2009:

Two bowls of soup, one beer and one hot chocolate at an alpine restaurant: 41.80 CHF

A casual meal in a 3* hotel restaurant in Kandersteg: An individual pizza - 18 CHF, a huge serving of Rosti with cheese 19 CHF.

Drinks at a pub in Wengen - 8.50 CHF for a pint of Guinness, 5 CHF for a glass of merlot.

Two bowls of barley soup, a shared a dish of apple strudel with vanilla sauce, and one drink each at a 3* hotel restaurant in Murren - 39 CHF.

Lunch in an upscale Italian restaurant in Wengen: 12 CHF for one bowl of soup and 4 CHF for a small pitcher of tap water

Two individual pizzas and one glass of wine in a 3* hotel restaurant in Zermatt: 55 CHF

Lunch at a casual restaurant in Zermatt: Rosti with ham, cheese and egg (24 CHF), small serving of raclette (8.50 CHF). Total with one beer and one gluhwein - 44.70 CHF

Salad bar for one in a Lauterbrunnen 3* hotel restaurant: 18.50 CHF

Cheese pizza for one at a stubli in Lauterbrunnen: 16 CHF

Lunch at McDonalds in the Zurich airport: 18.50 CHF (one double cheese burger, medium fries and a Happy Meal. Oh yeah, and .20 per packet of ketchup.)

Two chicken kebabs at a take-away joint in Zurich: 16 CHF

Two tall lattes at Starbucks in the Zurich airport: 13.40 CH

Two chocolate filled croissants at a bakery in the Zurich airport 5.60 CHF

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As you can tell we're not foodies. We ate pretty cheaply by Swiss standards; very little meat, mostly potatoes, cheese, soups and pizza.

I agree that things are simply expensive in Switzerland, even little sandwiches from the bakery or deli or getting prepared foods from a grocery store. I believe they are even more expensive in tourist areas, so part of the answer depends where you will be.

In the most general way I'll throw out the figure of minimum 100 CHF per day for 2 people.

Food is expensive in Switzerland, and IMO the food pretty much sucks compared to elsewhere in Europe (and Asia and Africa and .....). When I go to Switzerland I dont even plan to eat in restaurants. I go to grocery stores and street vendors and just buy small items to keep me going until I'm out of the country. It doesn't take much to keep me full- I'm tiny and can subsist on a piece of fruit, a bit of protein, and a carb or two a couple of times a day. But I never actually do a sit-down meal in a restaurant in Switzerland. The closest I come is order a beer or a coffee at a café.

Generally I agree with StCirq's perspective. But where I have had a few very nice meals in Switzerland (Vevey specifically) was the little Mom & Pop places. Usually a dozen or so tables, always a chalkboard outside with one 'workmens' daily lunch special, homecooking style, local people sitting around talking and drinking wine during the day.