This week’s foodie overview

I spend a lot of time reading, researching and tweeting about food and restaurants these days, so I thought I’d jot down my tweets from the last few days. These are from both The Rambling Epicure and Swiss Foodies and should give you an overview of what’s going on in the foodie world this week, in Switzerland and around the world.

These tweets are often focused on Switzerland, but also include a lot of links to Swiss, French, German, British, American, Canadian and other research on food.

Sometimes I couldn’t resist writing about the snow and skiing conditions, because that determines how a lot of us in Switzerland plan our weekends, and therefore what restaurants we go to or what recipes we cook up. And of course occasionally, watches and wine . . . and this week, the Vancouver Winter Olympics and those cute wooly pigs you see in the photo.

Read more…

Le Vertig’O: free WiFi and low-calorie nice-price menus

This well located, ultra contemporary restaurant is handy for upscale lunches near Cornavain train station, particularly for those who need WiFi access, which is free in the entire hotel. It is located in the Hôtel de la Paix on the Quai du Mont Blanc, right on the lake and near the jet d’eau.

Chef Jérôme Manifacier was recently awarded his first Michelin start and a 16/20 in the GaultMillau restaurant guide for Switzerland. He turns out a light, modern cuisine, with variations on Swiss, French and Mediterranean classics.

The winter menu includes original dishes such as roasted pineapple with Sechuan pepper in puff pastry with piña colada sauce and duet of warm and cold foie gras with beetroot emulsion served with homemade gingerbread.

Set menus goes for CHF 95 and 135, but are hefty, so you’d better be hungry. There is also a special 3-course menu under 800 calories which changes with the seasons.

The lunch special goes for CHF 55 for 3 courses, which is not bad for a grand hotel. It changes every day.

There is a good selection of local and well as other wines available by the glass, and an even wider selection if you want a bottle.

Take the Venice Simplon Orient-Express at the Café du Simplon in Lausanne

If you’ve always dreamed of taking the Orient Express but don’t have the time or budget, the Café du Simplon in Lausanne might be the next best thing. The name of the café comes from the street where it is found, the rue du Simplon, and from the Venice Simplon Orient-Express connecting London to Istanbul.

The menu reflects the various culinary influences found along the way, with an emphasis on simple cooking using fresh, good quality ingredients and a Mediteranean touch. Fish is delivered daily, and the reputable Boucherie Simon, which neighbors the café, provides the meat. Vegetarian dishes are given a special place on the menu.

Fun as well as good food are to be had by all. Take a look at their website for the film, music, theatre, and literary event program. It is WiFi-equipped, so it is a good place to meet for business meetings.

From time to time, we all need to meet business associates or clients in a public spot, and this often requires Internet access.

The Geneva Tourism tourist office has published a list of cybercafés located in different neighborhoods all over Geneva. Even though they fall under the heading cybercafé, it is advisable to check out the location or at least call before making an appointment with someone.

Arcanium
Rue Liotard 58
1202 Genève
Tel. +41 (0)22 344 92 50
Email: arcanium@bluewin.ch

Café-Net
Bd Carl-Vogt 34
1205 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 321 34 86

Charly’s Multimedia Check Point
Rue de Fribourg 7
1201 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 901 13 13
Email: charles@charlys.com

Cyber-Café 3000
Rue Henri-Christiné 2
Angle Bd du Pont-d’Arve
1205 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 320 74 55

Cyber-Café 3000
Rue de Genève 122
1226 Thônex
Tel. +41 (0)22 860 94 83

Cyber-Café Genève
IFAGE
Place des Augustins 19
1205 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 807 30 87

F6
Rue du Conseil-Général 18
1205 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 800 33 60

Ispot Center
Rue Pictet-de-Book 3
1205 Genève
Tel. +41 (0)22 548 06 36
Ispot are present in more than 15 places in Geneva, for more information: :www.ispot-communications.com

Las Vegas Mont-Blanc Cyberland
Rue du Mont-Blanc 26
1201 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 738 57 44

Laundrenet
Salon-lavoir & coin internet
Rue de la Servette 83
1202 Geneva
Tel. +41 (0)22 733 83 83
Web: www.laundrenet.ch

Nath-Soft
Carrefour du Bouchet 1
1219 Châtelaine
Tel. +41 (0)22 797 26 04
Web: www.nath-soft.com

Open Vidéo (near Cornavin, still listed on their site, but it is now closed)

Salon Lavoir
Salon-lavoir & spot wi-fi gratuit
Route de Meyrin 4
1202 Genève
Tel. +41 (0)22 910 01 01
Web: www.salonlavoir-ge.ch

Some of them are actual cafés, in the traditional sense of the word, while some are more upscale WiFi-equipped offices that can be rented, and include all the ancillary services that go with office facilities. One is even a laundromat with WiFi capability!

Ellen Wallace’s post of 22 June 2009, which introduced Boréal Coffee in the financial district, could also be added to this list.

The Cybercafé Search Engine is also quite helpful in finding cybercafés near the location of your meeting.

Lakefront, Lausanne

The city of Lausanne is now offering free WiFi in seven of the city’s main squares - Flon, Palud, Riponne, St-François, Montbenon, Navigation, Port, Service des Automobiles and Aéroport de la Blécherette. It is also available in some lakeside locations. This free Internet access is available to residents and visitors alike and is referred to as “FreeSpot”.

The Lausanne Tourisme site gives detailed maps showing the locations where WiFi can be picked up.

This facilitates business meetings in cafés and restaurants that are near the FreeSpots. It is, however, advisable to call the restaurant or café where you make your appointment to make sure that the WiFi actually picks up the network.

Filters have been installed so that minors cannot access inappropriate sites and content.

Ellen Wallace’s Among the vines blog introduces a new coffee shop on the rue du Stand in Geneva, right in the heart of the banking quarter. It is fully equipped with Wifi, which makes it perfect for your business meetings.