Chamonix Apres-Ski Report: 13th February 2013

For what feels like quite a posh restaurant (and a good Valentine's option - fancy crockery, vases of roses everywhere, romantic lighting, etc) Le Moustache actually has a very relaxed vibe and reasonably priced set menus with 3 courses for either 25€ or 29€. We all opted for the 29€ menu; 2 of us started with smoked salmon served with warm crusty bread and a green salad, while the other 2 opted for French onion soup served with grated cheese. Simple dishes but delicious and generous.

It seems that when it came to the main course everyone was wary of food envy as 3 out of 4 went for the duck confit, whilst I devoured an enormous vegetarian burger. The duck was a big hit, one of my friends even proclaimed it to be "maybe the best I've ever had", again it was very simply prepared and served with green beans and a creamy potato gratin but it was so perfectly cooked that it didn't need to be fancy. My burger consisted of layers of slightly smoky grilled vegetables such as aubergines and peppers held together with melted cheese and served in a large bun with salad, great flavours that really went well together.

I've heard many times that the homemade desserts at this restaurant are fantastic but I've never yet been able to manage one... until now. The final hurdle was to choose from the selection on offer, despite being very tempted by the chocolate fondant none of us really felt that we had the stamina to tackle it so we went for the "lighter" options of the crème brûlée and the Mont Blanc Meringue. The crème brûlée passed the teaspoon test of crunchiness and went down a treat, while the Mont Blanc Meringue turned out to be a lovely sticky pile of hazelnut ice cream served with warm chocolate sauce, whipped cream and a couple of crunchy chewy meringues.

We considered the set menu to be such good value that we blew the budget on a posh bottle of wine which the staff were very helpful in advising us on, even to the extend of letting my friend have a poke around the cellar and taste a few options before settling on his choice. Beautiful surroundings, delicious food, friendly staff and great company - Le Moustache, you are my new favourite restaurant!

Not that I'm suggesting you take anyone on a cheap date this Valentine's Day but if you are on a bit of a budget you should check out the early bird deals at Hotel Eden in Les Praz, they are offering special prices every Wednesday and Thursday from 18:00-19:30. I've eaten here a few times in the past and always enjoyed it; modern European cuisine that provides a nice change to the usual Savoyard cheese feasts, the chefs know their stuff and the menu choices are often quite interesting.

If you'd rather spend Valentine's night gazing at your loved one over a flaming sambuca than a candlelit meal then maybe you should head to La Terrace for live rock/pop music from Atomic Panda, with Chamonix's very own rock star James on guitar and sexy soul lady Mollie on vocals.

All other upcoming events, on and off the hill, can be found on our What's On Calendar.