8 Best Restaurants in Graubünden, Switzerland

Come to this formal yet welcoming restaurant, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the mountains, for an interesting mingling of regional and international ingredients with an Asian flair, such as duck from Vals with dumplings, and frozen yogurt made with local milk and Junmai sake. Chef Mitja Birlo forages wild herbs, mushrooms, and berries to use in his dishes; pair his innovative nine-course tasting menu with either wines from around the world or juices made from local ingredients such as blueberries and cherries.

This sustainability-focused eatery describes its small plates of regional Swiss products reinterpreted through an Asian lens as “tapas the other way around.” Menus emphasize local meats and seafood, as well as in-season produce such as artichokes, and the wine list includes mainly natural producers from Europe.

In a chic, minimalist Alpine space—a mix of original wood-beamed ceilings, whimsical chandeliers, and cozy throws on the chairs—about a 20-minute train ride or 15-minute drive north of Pontresina, Paolo Casanova devises modern Italian menus using unique local ingredients such as lichen, dandelions, and pine cones, depending on the season. Creative combinations may include deer venison tartare with pickled quail eggs and sage powder, or marmot tortellini with plantain wildflower and mountain pine oil, all beautifully presented and paired with Swiss wines from the fabulous wine list. Order à la carte or, if you can’t decide, you can’t go wrong with the four- or eight-course tasting menu.

Chef Sven Wassmer creates some of the most innovative Swiss dishes around, using ingredients foraged from the nearby forests, in a room that evokes the outdoors with its use of wood and stone. Choose from 6-, 9-, or 12-course menus with mainly natural (and mainly Swiss) wine pairings, while watching the young cooks work their magic in the open kitchen. As a different member of the culinary team serves you each dish, explaining the story behind it, you really feel like part of a unique experience you won’t soon forget.

In a 17th-century rustic-luxe Bauernhof (farmhouse) whose raw beams, aged wood, and native carvings have been self-consciously restored, the Chesa Veglia (run by Badrutt's Palace hotel, which is just up the street) is divided into four restaurants: an upscale grill (Grill Chafaö), which uses an original stone oven; a cozy tavern for traditional Swiss dishes (Patrizier Stuben); a pizzeria (Pizzeria Heuboden); and an intimate venue to enjoy traditional fondue (Carigiet Fondue Stübli). Menus include a good range of Continental and local cuisine—with sky-high St. Moritz prices, except for the more casual, family-friendly pizzeria (which, true to St. Moritz style, still uses premium ingredients like truffles and Grison air-dried meat in addition to the classics); the grill, open only in winter, features live piano music in the evenings, and you can people-watch over a drink at the Polo Bar before or after your meal. When Elizabeth Taylor and other legendary VIPs headed to St. Moritz, this was their favored watering hole, and it still attracts a smart and stylish crowd in season.

Classic French dishes with a contemporary touch define the three- to six-course menus at this refined restaurant within the rocksresort—or try their renowned Wiener schnitzel off the à la carte menu. Beneath wood-beamed ceilings, guests dine on seasonal specialties such as locally-raised Wagyu beef in a port-wine reduction or filet of sole with dashi butter.

For one of Graubünden's—if not Switzerland's—top food experiences, make a beeline to world-renowned chef Andreas Caminada's tasting-menu-only restaurant, within a charming castle in the mountain town of Fürstenau. Diners can choose from three- to five-course menus at lunch and dinner, all featuring seasonal, local ingredients presented in beautiful and imaginative ways; delightful wine pairings include producers from both Switzerland and neighboring countries such as Germany as well as more traditional choices. Reservations (taken up to eight months in advance) are absolutely essential. You can also stay overnight in one of nine comfortable guest rooms; the stunning grounds include an outdoor pool with lovely views.

With a focus on the highest-quality ingredients and a simplistic, Mediterranean cooking style that allows each individual taste to shine, dining here is a true culinary experience; be prepared to spend almost as much on a meal as on a hotel room, though the seven-course tasting menu is an excellent value when compared with the à la carte dining. The menu changes seasonally, but it always includes a tempting mix of fish, game, meat, and poultry dishes, with a blend of local and international ingredients. To finish off, try the chocolate mousse made with olive oil; the result is a deeply rich, unctuous dessert, which miraculously remains as light in your stomach as it was in your mouth.