I’m on my way to the Swiss Alps for vacation. I’m taking a bit of a detour, which I’ll come to in my next post.

My first stop is Chur in Canton Graubünden, which is eighty minutes away from Zürich by train. There are regular direct trains. The train ride is lovely and first takes you down past the south coast of lake Zürich and then later on past the Walensee.

As a side note, Basel (where I live) is about 260m above sea level, Zürich is 410 m, and Chur is at 592 m. So I’m steadily gaining altitude.

In Chur I’m staying at the hotel Stern, which is quite old but well maintained and very clean. On the ground floor is a restaurant that specializes in typical dishes from the region. Personally, I think Graubünden has some of the best food Switzerland has to offer – total comfort food.

The decor of the restaurant is very traditional, with wood panelling on the walls and wood furniture.The rooms are in the same style.

The Swiss are a nation of bread lovers. And the quality and variety of breads is quite impressive. As ususal in Switzerland, we’re brought some complimentary bread with freshly whipped butter and Alpine salt before we’ve even ordered drinks.

For the amuse bouche we have a thin slice of smoked bacon with a fig praline on a mango salsa. The tart sweetness of the fruit is nicely paired with the salty bacon.

For the starter, I have a Bündner Gerstensuppe, which is a hearty soup made of barley, route vegetables and with plenty of chunks of various smoked meats. The soup is served with a small bun with aniseed, which is used liberally in the local cuisine.

As though that weren’t already hearty enough, for the main course I order the Bündner Trilogie, which is served on a wood platter and comprises of three staple dishes from the area.

The first one is Maluns, which is shredded potatoes that are tossed in flour and then cooked in butter. Maluns are served with apple purée and mountain cheese. It’s tasty and surprisingly chewy.

Next come the pizzocheri, which are difficult to describe. They’re pasta, probably closest in appearance to tagliatelle – but broader and not quite so flat. They’re made with buckwheat flour, so they a grayish colour. A bit like what would happen if an Italian tagliatelle and a Japanese soba decided to get frisky together.

They’re served with vegetables and melted cheese.

I leave the best for last. Which in this case is the capuns. Capuns are small rolls of cabbage filled with a kind of spätzli dough and saliz sausage. They are boiled in a mixture of bouillon, milk and water, and served with cheese and cream or milk.

As you may have guessed, the food is quite heavy. So by the time we’re done, I really can’t face dessert anymore. Luckily, Chur is a gorgeous town, so I think I’ll go for a digestive walk.

I enjoyed this meal very much. First, because the dishes were not what you would normally expect to find on the menu in other places in Switzerland. And second, because I found that staff at the Hotel Stern very friendly and welcoming. I wouldn’t mind going back one of these days.