Our 'fancy' dinner while we stayed in Montreux was at Le Pont de Brent. It is situated up in the hills over Montreux, and while there are a few parking spots that seemed available across the street, I would highly recommend biting your tongue and paying to take a cab up here (even if you have a car, as we did). Once we arrived, we were escorted into what felt like a very homey dining room, where there were about 6 or 7 other couples seated (I think there is one other dining room that has similar capacity as well). We were definitely the only English speakers dining there, and the menu is only available in French - so for those who aren't equipped with some knowledge of French (even though ours is really rusty), it may end up being a more stressful experience. The servers had a fairly limited knowledge of English as well, so we went the path of least resistance and didn't ask too many questions on top of our food. We went with the local wines by the glass that were served - decent overall (I actually liked both better than the wines I had in Geneva) - and if you care, there is a big wine list to look at as well.
You can order the food a la carte or by various tasting menus here; we decided that we might as well go big and experience the seasonal tasting menu that was available. The 9-course menu started with a small amuse-bouche but otherwise adhered strictly to the menu. The amuse-bouche was 5 small bites to share; my favorite was the nougat-like bite that had a bit of corn in it and was quite summery, while there was a smoked salmon bite that was okay but a bit dense, as the whole wheat bread/cracker really overwhelmed the light flavor from the fish. I did really enjoy the arancini-like bites that we had to finish off the start - it was basically a less cheesy, more herb-centric risotto bite. Then it was off to the main meal, which really embraced the summer flavors in a bright, innovative way. Our first course was a beef tartare, with twist being that the carrot was diced and presented as the tartare usually would be, with some (very) lightly-cooked cylinders of tender, delicious beef topped the orange 'tartare'. Next up were two very seasonally-appropriate dishes: first, a crayfish served with a whole bunch of different-colored tomatoes - light and excellent; and second, perhaps my favorite bite of the meal - a trout caught from Lac Leman, grilled very lightly and served under a 'bed' of thinly-sliced fingerling potatoes (basically like potato chips) in a tarragon-infused oil, alongside the same potatoes topped with caviar. The tarragon was perfectly-balanced; it can be really heavy in cream, but served with some olive oil here, it was just right with the fish.
Next up was a very unique course - a mushroom-centric 'starter', with boletus mushrooms served 3 ways: fried, in a spring roll-like wrapper; plainly-sliced and available to dip in a summer truffle-infused cream sauce; and cooked in a fragrant marinade. All 3 were excellent, even the uncooked slices, which had a nutty flavor to it and a rich sauce to offset the inherent dryness of most mushrooms. Next up were frog's legs, which was served in a soup alongside chanterelle mushrooms and with a dash of a soy sauce-infused 'flan' at the bottom. I have to say - the frogs' legs cooked here in Europe are definitely more of a delicacy, and the flavor stands out a bit more, relative to those I have had in the U.S. The mushrooms were also a perfect complement, texturally, to the legs. Our last main was a perfectly-cooked cut of lamb, with a savory crisp done perfectly on the outside and a nice, light zucchini tart paired with it on the plate.
Dessert started off with the cheese course; because we were already a bit full, we only went with a few cuts. This is where the language barrier hurt a bit, as we had to rely a bit on our (lesser-educated) senses as to what to have. That said, I really enjoyed the stinky, melt-in-your-mouth Swiss bleu that I had, and the harder, gruyere-like cheese was solid as well. The first dessert was a phenomenal strawberry and raspberry dessert, with the fruits encircled in a crispy, candy-like 'wrapper' of the same fruits and served alongside a sorbet of the same flavors. It's not as good or unique as the pavlova I had a couple nights before in Geneva, but it was still excellent. The last dessert was an apricot tart, which I did enjoy more than the previous versions I had elsewhere, as the apricot was sweeter and the overall dessert was lighter than the others.
While this restaurant perhaps felt less 'accessible' relative to other places we had eaten of this caliber, there's no doubt that the cooking and the presentation here was phenomenal. The price tag is high (you are eating Michelin-starred food, and in Switzerland to boot), but it's worth it IMO. Any foodies passing through Lausanne, Montreux, or any of the nearby areas should make a stop here for dinner. read more
