2 Best Restaurants in Vaud, Switzerland

Chef Franck Giovannini is winning hearts—and stomachs—with his fresh twist on haute cuisine. The three-Michelin-star restaurant has seen a string of legendary chefs at its helm, but Giovannini is propelling it to even higher accolades and upholding the restaurant's well-earned reputation as one of the best in Switzerland. It's a quick drive west from Lausanne to this understated manse. The service is spectacular, the staff is friendly, and the food is absolutely stellar. Giovannini creates imaginative combinations of flavors plus stunningly refined presentations. For these finely orchestrated prix-fixe menus the ingredients are key—lamb raised in the Pyrenees, cardoons (an artichokelike vegetable) grown in the village. Pace yourself, making sure to leave time and room for selections from the immense cheese cart or celestial desserts. Reserve as far ahead as possible—lunch may be your only option.

This elegant, intimate restaurant in a restored home in the wine village of Chardonne offers a view of the lake (from part of the dining room) that is worthy of a champagne toast. Traditional French and Swiss cuisines are combined in two fixed multicourse menus that change weekly. A well-composed wine list of Swiss and international selections offers breadth to match. Those who like a stroll before or after dinner can take the mostly flat five-minute walk to the funicular, an easy way to access these upper reaches.