Chamonix Apres-Ski Report: 23rd January 2013

I know it's not strictly "apres" when it's up the mountain but I tried a new restaurant this week that was so good I have to spread the word! The recent addition to the Le Tour ski area is Les Ecuries de Charamillon, just underneath the front chairlift near the bottom of the Piste des Écuries - look out for the little stone barn where the piste splits into two. There is a small terrace for warm days and a cosy farmhouse-style dining room for when you need to warm up. The menu is very typically Savoyard; lots of salads, croûtes, omelettes, tartiflette, diots, crozets, etc but prices are reasonable and it seems that whatever you order is good (so much so that my boyfriend has been 3 times in less than a fortnight and has not yet been disappointed). We ordered the croûte au chèvre (croûte with goats cheese), the croûte aux morilles (croûte with morel mushrooms) and the beef steak, which came with a choice of sauces.

We got hungrier and hungrier as we smelt the dishes of other diners wafting past us as they were being served; anticipation was high by the time our food came, so it's a good job it lived up to our expectations. The croûtes were crispy on top with thick layers of cheesy bread underneath, heavily laced with white wine and plenty of garlic - goats cheese has a bit of a lighter texture than the usual Alpine varieties so the two together made a nice combination. My friend's croûte was generously scattered with small juicy morel mushrooms; restaurants often charge a hefty supplement for adding not very many of these tasty but ugly little morsels but Les Ecuries charged just 4€ extra for plenty of them, just as well seeing as I was compelled by journalistic duty to try a few. The steak looked good enough and got the thumbs up from my friend but it was all the trimmings that really impressed us - potatoes that had been shredded, rolled into balls and deep-fried so that they looked like big onion bhajis and a fine array of mixed vegetables. All three dishes were served with a dressed side salad. There was no room left for dessert, although the waiter assured me that they are all home made and very good so maybe next time... The bill came to just under 60€ for all three meals, a pint of beer, a half litre of white wine and 2 coffees - which isn't bad at all for a mountain restaurant, especially considering the good service we got and the high standard of the food. I'll definitely be going back; making the Piste des Écuries your first run of the day and calling in to book a table for lunch is a good plan as it is already very popular.

Le Jekyll have been having a good winter so far, their Monday comedy nights have featured Paul Foot, Phil Nichol, Abandoman and many other well known names on the UK stand-up circuit - just a tenner to see some top acts or 25€ for a pie dinner as well! This coming Monday they have a double bill of Edinburgh Festival star Steve Shanyaski and returning favourite Markus Birdman, buy tickets in advance at the bar to be sure of getting in as they often sell out. Always a good venue for live music Le Jekyll has also recently welcomed back the ever-awesome Thrill Collins as well as showcasing many talented newcomers as they gig their way round the Alps. Friday nights are the regular live music sessions, I was there last week when Hobo Chic was back in town - funky acoustic covers and a few original songs accompanied by guitar, keyboard and sax. If there are a few of you it's worth booking a table in advance and tucking into one of their hearty pub dinners, the steak & ale pie is always a winner and the burgers are immense.

My top tip of the week is to catch Super Mini Combo, a fantastic Cuban salsa funk band that are guaranteed to get you shimmying and shaking like Shakira on blue Smarties. They're playing Les Caves tonight and tomorrow from 11pm, Les Aiglons on Friday from 5-9pm and La Yaute in Argentiere on Saturday at 9:30pm - don't miss them! More live music coming up this week includes Kevin Forde tonight at South Bar, a man whose voice is so gravelly you could grit the streets with it. MOO Bar have lots of treats lined up for us this week with bands and DJs playing most evenings from 5pm and not forgetting of course the legendary apres-ski that takes place just over the road at Chambre Neuf with No Limits.

That's all for this week folks, find out all about what Chamonix has to offer on our Events Calendar.