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Chalet Euthalia: the chalet in Piedmont where you can discover the flavors of the forest

Gian Michele Galliano’s cuisine has always been a destination to find. A bit like the herbs he uses in his dishes, he had to be sought out and found before, when he was in a small and somewhat hidden restaurant in Mondovì, on the road to the sea, as well as now, after moving to San Giacomo di Roburent , in that area of ​​the Cuneo area covered in woods that already looks like a mountain. Only now, finally, Gian Michele Galliano’s cuisine has a place that represents it, which welcomes it, which enhances it. In fact, recently the chef with a passion for high altitude flavours, wild herbs and autumn scents moved to a beautiful chalet on a human scale, with five bedrooms, two apartments and its first gourmet restaurant worthy of the name.

Here, in the heart of a park of about 9,000 square meters, the chef continues to work using the fruits of the woods, wild herbs, researching alpine products from margaritas, or organic crops from small farmers. A cuisine that tastes like walks in the high mountainsas shown by the names of the two proposed tasting itineraries, «Quattro Passi» and «La Gita», which bring to mind precisely that idea of ​​wandering freely, getting lost among the scents of nature.

The restaurant

The ascent along places that seem forgotten by modernity leads to a magnificent view, which seems almost decontextualized from the surrounding environment. The Euthalia chalet is there, all wood and greenery, waiting for those who want to find it to discover the chef’s cuisine. A predominantly vegetable cuisine, made of seasonal vegetables, self-produced wild and aromatic herbs that are mixed with game meat and freshwater fish. «The use of native products is not a limitation», says the chef, «but rather a precise desire to be sustainable in an authentic and complete way: first of all, environmental sustainability, given that we respect the seasons, local production, the rhythms of nature, without ever wasting anything that comes from the earth».

Thus, freshwater fish is presented in a simple and clean way, accompanied by the right herbs capable of enhancing its flavours, and beetroot, on the other hand, goes well with wild boar liver, in a highly potent amuse-bouche. And then there’s the game: that of ravioli, which are served in a strip still to be cut with the use of the wheel, as the master pasta makers of the past did. Or the capunet, a typical Piedmontese roll of cabbage and minced meat, which takes on a new consistency and taste in the hands of Gian Michele Galliano.

A gastronomic experience that embraces one of the modern trends of international cuisine, one that is linked to the wildest nature, without however becoming fashionable, but letting everything flow in a very natural and somehow familiar way.

Last but not least, sustainability is also in the menu prices which – probably helped by not being exactly a passing place – are certainly interesting. The «Quattro Passi» (with two different options, fish or meat, consisting of three courses each) is offered at 40 euros, while «La Gita», with an extra course, costs 55 euros per person. You can opt for different wine pairings, including those of the territory (two glasses for 14 euros, three for 21 euros) or natural and organic ones (three glasses for 24 euros). Or play with the great local wines, in a combination of four glasses for 30 euros.

The hotel

Compared to the previous site, Euthalia adds a series of small rooms to the proposal for those who want to complete the mountain experience. Wood throughout, stone fireplaces, alpine decor and two glasses of wine and a bottle of red wine for a romantic evening touch for two.

The suite, on the other hand, is perfect for families who want to walk in the woods, which develops on double height and is designed as a small country apartment with a living area, with sofa, fireplace and TV, and a wooden staircase connected to the mezzanine floor where three of the five beds available to guests are located. Then there is also «La Grangia», a room whose name derives from the huts where the peasants slept when they went to the mountain pastures, characterized by a private external access and a small garden for exclusive use. Breakfast is also dedicated to mountain flavours, which revolutionizes the idea of ​​hotel breakfast in a small way: no buffet but small preparations signed by the chef, as would happen in a beautiful family-run country house: homemade cakes, biscuits and of course the savory part, with local cold cuts and cheeses. A different experience, where everything is designed to warm guests’ hearts and lead them to discover a fascinating territory, one of the most touristically virgin in Piedmont.

More stories from Vanity Fair that may interest you:

La Bursch: the home in the Biella countryside where you can go on a tour of the ancient world

Room with wood: 14 resorts where you can immerse yourself in the benefits of forest bathing just got out of bed

South Tyrol: the most beautiful hotels for mountain holidays

Source: Vanity Fair

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