Jonell Galloway
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.
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.
This week was the countdown to Valentine’s Day, so I listed oodles of Valentine’s dinners, weekend packages at hotels and chocolate shops. You can find the Valentine’s venues I tweeted last week in the 20 Valentine venues, posted earlier this week.
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 Alinghi . . .
Remember, these are just tweets
Remember these are just tweets, so they are short and sweet. They are not particularly orderly; I just tweeted the information as I found it.
I suggest you skim over the headings, and if you’re interested, just click on any of the links that interest you in order to read the detailed article.
Who knows, this might even tempt you to start tweeting yourself!
This week’s tweet list
Valentine’s
20 Valentine venues: restaurants, chocolate and hotel packages for the “big day”!
Valentine’s events in La Gruyère.
Valentine’s package at Bernard Ravet, CHF500, hotel, champagne, 9-course dinner, breakfast for two, Relais & Châteaux.
Restaurants in French-speaking Switzerland w/ Valentine’s specials; just click on your canton! NOT TESTED BY THE RAMBLING EPICURE.
GenevaLunch: Lake Geneva Valentine’s cruise.
Ramada Geneva offering Valentine’s Day brunch as well as candelit dinner.
Hôtel des Armures in Geneva: special Valentine’s package, rooms, champagne, breakfast and chocolate.
Valentine’s package at Hotel Royal Geneva. Le Duo, chic delish restaurant & brasserie, chef trained by Bernard Loiseau.
Jamie Oliver’s Valentine’s Day menu, along with recipes and tips for a romantic feast.
GenevaLunch: Valentine’s for the “older” crowd.
Jonell Galloway
Migros’s home delivery service is perfect during this period of icy, snowy streets
Since I live in the old town in Geneva, I walk everywhere. A few years ago, I had shoulder and wrist injuries from carrying too many heavy shopping bags, and ever since, I’ve had to do my heavy grocery and household shopping with a trolley. A couple of years ago, after regularly hearing the leshop.ch ads on WRS (formerly WRG), I decided to try and avoid pulling my heavy trolley, filled with milk, detergents, and other heavy products, up the hill from the Coop 2000 and the Boulevard Helvétique market to the Russian Church, so I tried leshop.ch. With the ice and snow on the streets over the last few weeks, home delivery can definitely be a godsend.
Online supermarket shopping, a luxury that fits every pocked
Although the leshop site is not the most user-friendly and not everything is translated into English, it is still quite functional for a non-French-speaker. The process is simple. Start by opening an account. This allows you to have a shopping cart, which you can use just like a shopping list that you put on the front of the refrigerator, adding things as you run out of them (I just leave my leshop.ch shopping cart open on the screen and add things as needed). When you are ready to order, send it in before midnight, and it will arrive on your doorstep between 5 and 8 p.m. the next day.
Jonell Galloway
Betty Bossi’s The Swiss Cookbook
The cookbook of the famous but fictional Betty Bossi, the equivalent of Betty Crocker in the U.S., came out in English in August. It makes a great Christmas gift, and is handy to have in the house, whether you’re a gourmet cook or just an occasional one.
The recipes are organized by region. In a land with four languages and such cultural diversity, this is a necessity. There is a brief description of each region and its cuisine, along with attractive photos. Each recipe is accompanied by a photo.
The ring binding and glossy pages make it practical to use. The Swiss Cookbook is appropriate for Swiss people as well as for expatriates, because it gives a good overview of traditional Swiss cuisine and contemporary cuisine using Swiss ingredients.
It is an attractive gift for most anyone interested in food.
It can be ordered online from My Switzerland or at the Betty Bossi online shop, and is also available in many supermarkets.
Jonell Galloway
It’s still not too late to order last-minute Christmas items from the BritShop in Root-Längenbold.
Their selection goes from Christmas crackers to mince pie filling or Christmas puddings, and includes handmade British Christmas cards.
Items are shipped by post, according to the weight. Last orders for delivery before Christmas: Sunday, 20 December 2009.
Jonell Galloway
British Cheese Centre of Switzerland: online shopping
The British Cheese Centre of Switzerland offers many of their products online, including Christmas tasting packages.
Delivery all over Switzerland
They have a regular stall at the Zürich HB market on Wednesday, but deliver all over Switzerland, via priority post. Even if you’re in the most remote corner of Switzerland, it’s still not too late to get your Stilton for Christmas!
In addition to British farmhouse cheese, the “centre” stocks ale, McVicars English-style back bacon and sausages made in Switzerland, a selection of homemade pies, and a large range of quality chutneys and crackers. Other British products include tea, cakes and biscuits and for Christmas, Christmas puddings and mince pies. They eventually hope to stock homemade chocolates.
Those who live in the Zurich area will be interested to know that they hold regular tastings, and special events or receptions can also be organized.
They will be offering samples of their wares at the Rapperswil Christmas Market from 11 to 13 December on Lake Zurich, as well as the Rappi Bier Factory on 12th December, the Luzern International Christmas Market from 17 to 20 December, and the Moevenpick Wein Keller Zug. Free Port & Stilton tasting on 19 December.
Tel. +41 081 733 3006Jonell Galloway
Label One offers home delivery of lots of hard-to-find goodies, including Gillardeau oysters (same as those served at the Brasserie Lipp), lobsters and crabs for holidays or special occasions, as well as rib-eye and sirloin steaks, wild fish, and other more common fare.
You can order online and if you order before 15:00 H, it will be delivered the next morning before 9:00 A.M. Delivery is free as of CHF 200, via ExpressPost or air. (My experience of food delivery by the Swiss ExpressPost system, using cold blocks, has always been problem-free.)
Products are packed in insulated bags, along with a cold block that maintains the temperature below 5° C/41° F.
Label One also offers catering of holiday meals, and such favorites as barbecue ribs and pancakes and maple syrup, as well as gift package delivery.
Their toll free number is 0800 LABEL 1 (0800 52235 1).
Jonell Galloway
The Intermarché Mousquetaires and Ecomarché supermarket chain now offers home delivery in certain locations.
Unfortunately, the choice is more limited than that of leshop.ch in Switzerland, and it is not in English, but the photos are easy to follow, even if you don’t speak much French. You won’t find as much variety as at the supermarket, but it can still come in handy when you’re in a pinch.
You can also do your shopping online in locations where delivery is not available, and then pick it up at the store, or if you’re traveling, you can order it and have it delivered so it will be there on your arrival. This service can also come in handy when you or your children are sick and can’t go out to shop, and for senior citizens who might have problems of mobility.
Payment is either by credit card or check.
To find out if the service is available in your region, simply go to the ExpressMarché site and type in your postal code either in France or Switzerland. If it is available in your area, a timetable will be displayed showing the days and hours the service is available (this varies widely from one location to another, so check it out carefully).