Best Dining Bets

Peter's Kunststuben (Küsnacht): Come here for the sublime cuisine of chef Horst Petermann. Since he opened this acclaimed restaurant south of Zurich, demanding diners have been heading here to partake of the constantly changing specialties. After you've sampled his herby Tuscan dove with pine nuts or his lobster with artichoke and almond oil, you'll know that this is as good as it gets in the Zurich area.

Kronenhalle (Zurich): It has a hearty, rustic alpine theme, but a glance at its menu, its clientele, and its artwork will quickly convince you that this is a supremely distinctive restaurant. Enjoy paintings by such luminaries as Kandinsky, Matisse, Klee, and Braque as you dine.

Restaurant Stucki Bruderholz (Basel): There's a garden, a collection of upscale antique furniture, a clientele speaking every conceivable European language, and some of the best cuisine in northwestern Switzerland, all based on modern interpretations of French and German recipes.

Roland Pierroz (Verbier): You'd never know that the simple chalet-style facade of this place shelters one of the most legendary restaurants in the Valais. One of the finest meals we've ever had in Switzerland was served here on a snowy night. It included a platter of sea bass with sea urchins, followed by couscous of crawfish and pigeon with truffles. Gourmets and epicures will cross any number of national borders to sample the creative cuisine of Roland Pierroz.

Hotel de Ville (Crissier): Philippe Rochat is the chef of the moment in Switzerland, having taken over from Alfred (Frédy) Girardet, who was hailed as the world's greatest chef. That was some chef's toque for Rochat to wear, but he has succeeded in retaining the international acclaim that Girardet enjoyed. Occupying a building originally designed as the town hall of a village outside Lausanne, the master continues to please the hundreds of devoted gastronomes who often travel great distances at great expense to dine here.

Le Pont de Brent (Brent): No one had even heard of Brent until this restaurant opened in a late-19th-century house in the heart of the village. Today the restaurant has put the village on the map, in part because of the excellence of such dishes as mussel-and-leek soup and roast rabbit with mustard sauce.

La Favola (Geneva): This is the best Italian restaurant in Geneva, and possibly the city's best restaurant of any kind. The chefs' tender pillows of tortellini would be hard to find this side of Bologna. The cuisine has authentic flavor, the service is skilled and smooth, and only the freshest ingredients go into the kitchen's skillets and stewpots.

Le Cygne (Geneva): When the Noga Hilton decided to open a restaurant in its lakefront hotel, neither expense nor effort was spared to make it the best in Geneva. This is no small feat, considering the tough local competition. In a plush, upholstered setting of lacquered wood and deep banquettes, attended by a well-trained army of waiters, you can enjoy a cuisine that ranks among the most sophisticated in Europe. The desserts are a triumph of the pastrymaker's art.

Le Chat-Botté (Geneva): Richly sheathed with tapestries and accented with the kind of art and accessories that would have made Louis XVI feel right at home, this restaurant attracts some of the wealthiest and most jaded clients in the world. Everything works smoothly, with nary a glitch, but you can only imagine how hard the staff labors to maintain its position as one of the best restaurants in Switzerland.

Le Béarn (Geneva): It's the best restaurant in Geneva's business and financial district, and attracts a who's who of international financiers and their clients. The food is delicious -- one of the best dishes, according to Le Béarn's many fans, is the Provence-style roast lamb.

Chesa Grischuna (Klosters): This restaurant succeeds every evening at creating a genuine sense of unpretentious, old-fashioned warmth. Over the years it has hosted such showbiz and political types of yesterday as Winston Churchill, the Aga Khan, Truman Capote, and Audrey Hepburn. The food is hearty and nourishing -- perfect for the cold-weather climate of Klosters.

Chesa Veglia (Dorf): This business is located in what's said to be the only authentic Engadine-style house -- built in 1658 -- that remains in all of St. Moritz. It contains three different dining rooms, one of which is an informal pizzeria. The other two are rustically elegant hidectixs, redolent with warmth and comfort, which cater to an international and very prosperous clientele.

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