2020 was a huge surprise for all of us and nobody would have imagined in the beginning of the year all the changes that we were about to face and the drastic turn that our life was about to take. As a flight attendant I had probably suffered the most, when my unpredictable life style had transformed overnight into a total rutine: the overwhelming schedule was reduced to 1-2 flights per month and every layover was spent by force in a hotel room. All the glamour of the job was fading away right under my nose and there was nothing that I could do to stop it.

Zurich flight had come as a desperate gasp of fresh air in the middle of the chaos. With almost the entire world under complete lockdown, Switzerland was one of the few countries that seemed to successfully avoid the pandemic and carry on with the life as per normal. But more important… one of the only three destinations where as a flight attendants we weren’t force to stay locked inside the hotel room.

Without wasting any second of my precious moment of freedome, I put on some casual clothes, wandering the streets paved with cobblestones of Zurich, searching for the famous swiss dish: cheese fondu.

A bit pricey (like everything else in the country) the cheese fondu is not a dish that can be easily found but I am decided not to give up on my search. After more than an hour of going in and out of restaurants and terraces around the city center asking for the famous dish, my effort is finally rewarded with a well deserved pan filled with melted cheese.

The dish is simple but complex in the same time, the very few ingredients being blend with artistry to create a texture so creamy and tasty that will stay in your memory forever. I picked up from the menu a mix of 4 different cheeses simmered with white wine and small pieces of bacon for a smoked flavor and it was absolutely the best choice.

I had no idea about the portion size and I found myself in front of a huge pot filled with flavors that sadly I was unable to finish, even after dipping the entire bread cubes that were served with it. The best part about the dish is the serving method, in a caquelon or fondu pot installed on top of a portable stove that is continuously heated by a small candle placed on the bottom side. An unique culinary experience that shouldn’t be missed while in Switzerland.

Be careful if you are dinning on the same table with the locals as the accidental drop of your bread from the fork inside the caquelon can be penalized by buying the next round of drinks, singing a song or even worse…running naked in the snow. Brrr

Fortunately for myself, I haven’t lost any of my bread cubes and even if I would have done so, the only place to be running naked in a torrid day of summer would have been the Lake Zurich located just few steps away.