The most mouth-watering guide to ski food in the French Alps
Planning a ski holiday to the French Alps but wondering about the best ski food to eat?
The French Alps is known for its ski food and hearty style of cooking. Most alpine dishes contain heavy ingredients like cream and local cheese. You’ll often find wild game, foraged mushrooms, fresh fish, and mountain berries on the menu too.
French Alps food really sticks to your ribs and warms you up from the inside out. It mainly consists of flavourful stews, grilled meats, and creamy potato dishes that will fill you up and satisfy you. It’s just the kind of food you need when you’re spending long days out on the cold, snowy slopes.
You’re probably familiar with the most popular mountain dishes like fondue and blueberry tarts. But there are many lesser-known dishes, such as pierrade and raclette, that are equally delicious. To ensure that you don’t miss out on any of the local specialities, we’ve created this list of the best ski food and the restaurants that serve them.
Don’t leave France without trying pierrade
One of the mountain dishes you can’t miss is pierrade, or pierre chaude. To make it, chefs heat hot stones over an open fire. Then they layer fresh, local red meat on top and let the hot stones sear it to perfection. Pierrade is super juicy, tender, and flavourful. Trust us when we say it will quickly become your favourite ski food!
It’s the only ski food that you get to cook yourself!
Where to get it:
Le Monchu is a bistro with chalet-inspired decor in Chamonix. It serves Pierre Chaude, fondue and other traditional mountain dishes.
One of our favourite places to get pierrade is La Telecabine. It’s located right in the heart of the resort, nearby many of our Chamonix accommodations, and has an outdoor terrace with incredible views. In addition to pierrade, the restaurant serves classic French Alps food like fondue and roasted duck.
Order farçon at least once
The next must-try dish in our guide to ski food is farçon. It’s a bacon-wrapped potato cake that’s smothered in cream and dotted with prunes and raisins. It’s savoury, salty, and a little sweet because of the dried fruit. After you taste it, you’ll never want to go back to eating regular old roast potatoes!
Where to get it:
You can sample farçon at La Cremerie du Glacier. Located at the foot of the Les Bossons glacier in Chamonix it’s a small restaurant in a wooden cabin that serves a variety of authentic mountain dishes. It used to be a stop for hungry hikers and is now a beautiful restaurant in the Alpine forestry.
Rosti is the perfect snack
Rosti is a potato cake that’s similar to a hash brown. It’s often topped with cheese, bacon, and a fried egg to fill it out and make it into a meal.
Rosti was originally eaten by farmers in Switzerland for breakfast. Now, you can find it in resorts throughout the French Alps and enjoy it at any time of the day. We think it’s a particularly good snack that will fuel you up before you head back to the slopes.
Where to get it:
You can try rosti at L'Alpage de Balme, a restaurant right near the slopes in Chamonix. The restaurant has beautiful views of Mont Blanc and serves delicious ski food.
If you’re a cheese lover, try raclette
Raclette is a cheesy alpine dish that’s similar to fondue. You take the raclette, a type of Swiss cheese, and melt it on a grill. Once it’s bubbly and hot, you can spread it onto things like boiled potatoes and vegetables. Pickles, meat, and bread are also commonly served alongside raclette to turn it into a full meal.
Raclette is a simple dish, but it’s absolutely delicious. It’s a classic ski food that you must try before leaving the Alps.
Where to get it:
Resto des Bulles in Morzine is one of our favourite places to get raclette. The restaurant is located in a transparent bubble that has 360-degree mountain views.
The panoramas you'll see from inside Resto des Bulles are truly stunning. It’s definitely one of the best restaurants you can try if you are staying in a Morzine accommodation.
Tartiflette is a must-try ski food
Tartiflette is a type of potato gratin with bacon and gooey reblochon cheese. Reblochon is a soft local cheese made from raw cow’s milk. It has a distinct nutty taste that pairs wonderfully with potatoes and bacon.
Even if you’ve had gratin before, you should still order tartiflette. The reblochon cheese really elevates this dish and turns it into something special.
Where to get it:
If you want to taste the best tartiflette in the Alps, we recommend heading to Les Copeaux in Les Gets. The restaurant serves classic Savoyard mountain dishes with a modern twist.
Croziflette is another mountain favourite
Another variation of tartiflette that you should try is croziflette. The potatoes are swapped for buckwheat pasta shells, turning the dish into a big cheesy pasta bake. Pair it with a crisp white wine from the Savoy region, such as Apremont. The bright acidity from the wine will help balance out the rich, creamy cheese.
Where to get it:
La Grange is a charming bistro in the resort town of Chambery, France. It serves delicious, hearty ski food like croziflette, diots, and blueberry tarts.
You won’t regret ordering diots
Diots are Savoyard pork sausages spiced with nutmeg. Sometimes they’re smoked or filled with extra ingredients like cheese and cabbage. They’re usually grilled or sauteed with onions and white wine, and served over potatoes or polenta.
Diots are super hearty and satisfying, so they’re the perfect ski food to enjoy after a full day on the slopes.
Where to get it:
You can get diots at one of our favourite restaurants in this complete guide to ski food, Les Chevrelles. This restaurant in Les Gets is as cosy as our Les Gets accommodations!
Fondue is the most popular ski food
Fondue is probably the most well-known dish in this guide to ski food. Most people outside of France have tried it or at least heard of it, unlike diots or farçon.
One of the reasons fondue has caught on in other countries is because it’s so delicious. There’s nothing quite like dipping a piece of crusty bread into piping hot cheese. And eating fondue prepared by experienced French chefs takes the experience to a whole new level.
In the French Alps, fondue is made by melting local cheeses like reblochon and gruyere together in a big pot. For extra flavour, chefs usually add fresh garlic, herbs, and a splash of alcohol like white wine or kirsch.
The recipe may be simple but it creates a mouthwatering result. It’s the perfect dip for bread, vegetables, and cured meats.
Where to get it:
Because fondue is such a popular ski food, you can find it in almost every restaurant in the French Alps. Our favourite place to get it, though, is the Village Igloo. This giant igloo is located right on the slopes of Avoriaz. It has beautiful decor and ice sculptures inside, but it does get a little chilly!
Every Wednesday and Saturday night, the igloo opens up for a charcuterie and fondue dinner. The three-cheese fondue is velvety smooth and will warm you up on a cold night.
Tarte aux myrtilles is the perfect finish to a meal
Tarte aux myrtilles, or blueberry tart, is one of the most popular desserts in the French Alps. You can find it on almost every restaurant menu, especially when berries are in season. Sometimes it’s served with genepy ice cream, made with a local herbal liqueur that tastes like chamomile. Either way, tarte aux myrtilles is the perfect way to top off a great ski food meal.
Where to get it:
We love the blueberry tart at La Ferme de la Frutiere, an elegant French restaurant in Morzine. The tart is bursting with ripe, juicy berries, and is always plated beautifully.
Gateau de Savoie is a sweet ski treat
Gateau de Savoie is a light and airy cake that’s made using flour, corn, sugar, and eggs. The eggs are beaten at a high speed until they form fluffy peaks, which gives the cake its light, moist texture.
It’s usually served with a sprinkle of icing sugar and a dollop of apple jam. It’s the perfect ski food to enjoy by the fire after a tiring day on the piste.
Where to get it:
The recipe for Gateau de Savoie was invented in the 14th century by a patissier in Chambery. The town still has lots of bakeries that make it, so head there if you want to try a slice.
Plan your trip
Writing about all of this amazing food has made us want to hop on a plane to the French Alps! Are you ready to plan your ski holiday too?
Book your Chamonix accommodation
Book your Morzine accommodation
Book your Les Gets accommodation
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