Just as a point of interest, there's no such thing as Canadian Bourbon. Such whiskies as Canadian Club and Crown Royal are properly called "Canadian Whisky", but in Canada are universally known as "rye", even though they are made from a mixture of rye, corn and barley. Bourbon whiskey is made predominantly from corn, although it also has a mixture of other grains.

Bourbon whiskey and Canadian whisky (note the difference is spelling) are quite distinctive in taste from each other.

Plus the fact that Bourbon is almost entirely made in what used to be a single county in Kentucky (not quite a legal distinction, like Champagne or something, but traditional), and is definitely an American drink. Not knocking Canadian whisky (or Scotch or Irish whiskey or whatever), just differences.

Schuler
"I've been following your posts with a bit of frustration. I'm glad you chose Switzerland and you'll love Merlischachen. But remember, you are in Switzerland. Be daring and try our products. Most Americans actually prefer the Swiss beer over the US beer. And as for liquor, try the Cafe Schnapps (apple/pear brandy), Cafe Zwetschgen (prune brandy) or Cafe Kirsch (cherry brandy). They are great coffees."

You have missed the best cafe from Lucern - Cafe Trash. I've never found Trash except in Lucern. It's a terrible taste but it's cheap. Certainly it's cheaper than a beer. Good drink for cold days.

Blackduff

laverendrye: I'm with you. I think I know what Bourbon tastes like -- though it's one of the few tipples I eschew -- and I have never tasted anything remotely like it among Canadian rye whiskies.

Whitney: Can you give us a brand name, as a guide?

While delicious, you might want to avoid the fondue, rachlette and roesti in June and July unless you want to really scream out that you are a tourist...it would be like ordering turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings in August in the US. Unless you are in the mountains on a cold/rainy summer day, this food is really not eaten in Switzerland after about mid-May and then again not until October unless you are a tourist...it is winter food. Most restaurants don't even serve it in these months unless they cater to tourists. Stick with the great summer vegetables that will be on offer, of course bratwurst goes all the time, try it for breakfast with your beer!!

McDonalds by the way is very expensive, so you are good to avoid it. Go in and take a look at the prices just to get a shock. It will be crowded with locals anyway, so you don't want to waste time waiting in line for the fries that cost a fortune in any case....

WOW!!! I didn't realize that I was opening up such a "can of worms"!!!!

laverendrye - I stand corrected. You are correct, what I'm calling Canadian Bourbon is actually Canadian Whisky (I looked on hubby's bottle gt.

blackduff - I'm not sure I'd want to drink anything called "trash". gt;

tedgale - Canadian Club is what hubby orders in restaurants and then Crown Royal if they don't have CC. However, the cheaper brand that he drinks at home is called "LTD". Aren't "rye whiskies" Scotch? If so, he can't stand scotch.

cicerone - Are you serious!!!!????? I'm so disappointed!! We will actually be there the last week of September. Is that close enough to October that we'll be able to get some fondue, rachlette and roesti? I sure hope so - or I just may have to look like a tourist and order it anyway. gt; Where would a touristy place be that would serve it? That's a good idea - check out McD's for the price shock.

whitneykt
This is called "Trash" because it's made from all of the leftover fruits. As an example, there's not a bunch of cheeries but it's worth cookin it to the pot. Maybe some apples are around too. Sometimes the plums would go into the pot too. So, each batch they come out a bit different.

The traditional method of preparing a Coffee Trash it starts with a whiskey sour glass. Put a half-franc coin into the glass. Pour coffee over the coin until it's dissapeared. Then pour "Trash" over the coin until it becomes visible. Top this up with a bit of steam from the coffee machine.

This is coffee is also in the same way with the other liquors.

This is a great drink for a cold rainy Swiss afternoon. It will give you a smile.

Blackduff

Well - that sounds different. May have to try it.

laverendrye - glad to hear your explanation. I didn't know what Canadian Bourbon was from the OP, and being Canadian, I was wondering if I should have!!

Cicerone is correct in that most widely known traditional Swiss dishes are acutally winter dishes. As for tourist places where you can can it in September. In Luzern, there are a group of restaurants along the river near the wooden bridge where I often see people with Fondue and cameras on their table in the summer.

That area is quite scenic with the wooden bridge, water tower, river and mountain view, hence lots of tourists, hence restaurants catering to them.

In my experience, we have gone to restaurants with visiting guests during the summer and asked them if they could make the trad winter meals even though it may not be on the menu. They haven't yet said No.

I agree that any of those tourist restaurants along the river in Lucerne will most likely offer fondue and raclette at any time of year.

But whitneykit, as you are renting a house, you can save yourself some embarssment and MAKE YOUR OWN fondue, roesti and possibly raclette. Fondue is a cinch and if the house comes with a raclette maker, that is even easier. For fondue you just need equal parts Emmenthaler and Gruyere cheese (about 250 grams each grated), about one cup white wine, 3 tablespoons Kirsch. Rub the pot with garlic, put in the wine and kirsch, let it simmer, slowly add in the cheese to let it melt. and voila! dinner is ready. Some people add 2-3 tbl of flour or cornstarch with the liquid as well to thicken. Bread or boiled new potatoes are for dipping.

If the house comes with a raclette maker, then you just buy raclette cheese, slice it and melt it in the machine (it can get hot doing this, another reason this is a winter food). Boiled potatoes and thinly sliced meats like prosciutto, parma ham or dried beef, I also make a kind of grilled cheese with it.

For roesti, you can cheat very easily and buy pre-cut pre-made roesti in foil packages at Mirgro and Coop. It is very very good, cook it up with a fried egg and have a little heart attack on a plate. Dr Atkins would love Switzerland, all the meat and cheese you can eat.

Do your self a favor when you go to Migros or Coop and buy a REAL fondue pot, not one of those little crappy metal ones. The real ones are ceramic and are large, they are as wide at the top as at the bottom (not like the metal ones that are narrower at the top). At most Migros and Coop grocery stores you can buy these with stands and sterno burners for like US$15 (don't buy them in souvenir shops like Schweizer Heimatwerk where they cost a fortune even if they do have those cute little cows on them). Bring it back to the US with you and you will always have the right pot for fondue. I have bought numerous ones back as gifts over the years.

The best chocolate fondue in the world (although Swiss people really don't eat it, you will not see this on restaurant menus unless you really are on a tour bus tour) is to melt 3 medium Toblerone bars with a cup of Baileys or just plain light cream or half and half (the Baileys version is better). Dip in fruit or pound cake. This is unbelievably good and easy.

Oh Cicerone,
My mouth is watering!

whitneykt: A little more about whiskies. Scotch whisky is definitely not "rye". Malt Scotch whisky is made from malted barley, and blended Scotch (brands such as Teachers, J&B, Dewar's etc) is a blend of malt whisky and grain whisky (mostly wheat and corn).

LTD is a Canadian whisky, made by McGuinness (part of the same conglomerate that makes Canadian Club), and bottled for export only.

Real rye whiskey (i.e. made with more than 50% rye) is now made by only a very few distillers in the U.S., and is a rarity.

> REAL fondue pot, not one of those little crappy metal ones. The real ones are ceramic and are large, they are as wide at the top as at the bottom (not like the metal ones that are narrower at the top).

I'm not sure what she meant by above but smaller metalic ones are usually for Fondue Bourguignonne (oil/meat) and large ones with big opening is for Cheese Fondue. You don't want to do Fondue Bourguignonne (though I've see some do) with large ones because of occasional oil splash. Ones with smaller opening is therefore better for Fondue Bourguignonne. Each has its own purpose. Perhaps she meant by "crappy" ones, some made/sold somewhere else (USA?), I cannot tell.

Touristic place like Hotel des Alpes by the river/Kapel Bridge should serve cheese fondue all through the year. It does not matter summer or winer. As a visitor you can be there only when you can. Also if you eat it at outside terrace, that won't be too hot.

There's a good restaurant along the river. It's across from the old section and it's near to the smaller covered bridge. The restaurant is called something like the "Green Latern" although it's in German.

This restaurant offers 28 versions of Röstii and it's quite good. It's a fulling meal, so bring your appetite.

Blackduff

The large ceramic pot used for cheese fondue is known as a "caquelon".

"While delicious, you might want to avoid the fondue, rachlette and roesti in June and July unless you want to really scream out that you are a tourist."

Well, we ARE tourists? So what if we stand out a tiny bit more when we order fondue/raclette "out of season"? It's not as if we wouldn't be spotted as an Auslander anyway.

I admit that fondue/raclette in the heat of summer is awfully heavy, but if that's what you can't get at home and you want to have it where it's the best, then who cares. We had a conversation with a Swiss shop owner in Luzern and were talking about that very thing. Her comment? that her husband loved fondue and raclette throughout the year and it didn't matter to them that it was out of season.

cicerone - two things 1) why would I want to make something myself in Switzerland if I'm going to try traditional food there? gt; Maybe when I get home. Which brings me to 2) If you watch the Samantha Brown show on the travel channel she told some locals, while eating fondue, something that just made me die laughing because it's so true. She said, "We have a tradition in the US that when someone gets married, you give them a fondue pot. They may use it once then it sits in a cabinet for at 10-15 years. Then it's sold at a garage sale for about $5.00". Sad but true. I've owned two in my life and I've used them maybe once each. Therefore, I doubt that I'll be buying one to bring home. gt;

That chocolate fondue sounds wonderful tho!!! I love chocolate and bailey's. YUMMM!!

laverendrye - okay, now I know much more about whiskey, whisky and scotch than I ever planned on. Thanks gt;

blackduff - we'll have to check it out.

JN - Exactly - we are tourists!!

Somewhere someone made a comment about what I asked about taking a flask into the restaurant. They asked if we could do that here. No we can't. But, this last post about "we ARE tourists" made me thing of another comment about that. Not only do we not have twin beds in our hotels, we don't have items that are only served during certain parts of the year. Well, except for Turkey & dressing for the holidays. But, I guess what surprised me the most is that on almost every swiss site that I've gotten onto has mentioned that you must try the Raceletts and Roesti with no mention that they are seasonal dishes. I think I will make a separate post on this site to let other know that's the case.

Thanks for all the great info.

whitneykt- The information someone gave you is incorrecgt, they do not sell liquor or cigaretts at the Migros grocery stores.

suze - thanks. I was directed to go to www.migros.ch. When I did, I was redirected (by the web address) to www.le-shop.ch. On the website, you can buy liquor, cigs, beer, jewelry, some clothing, and more. So that's what I was going by. But, have since found out that the actual stores don't have anything but groceries. Sorry for the confusion.

heck, it's not confusing to me because I stay with a friend on Montreux quite often.

I was clarifying to make sure you had figured it out.

She gets food/groceries/household goods at the Migros. She has wine delivered to her apartment from Le Shop. She also buys liquor, wine, cigarettes, cigars from PicNPay.