On the cold and snowy February day when we visited, however, everyone was taking refuge indoors where the welcoming whiff of melted cheese is complemented by chunky wood tables, clumps of dried flowers and a couple of curled-up cats in a basket.
Sipping a champagne aperitif and nibbling an amuse bouche of tuna-tinged mayonnaise with crunchy bread, it wasn’t long before the blood began to return to my toes. And I felt even warmer at the prospect of the tasty-sounding Savoyard specialities on the menu.
Of course Monsieur Gourmand went for something sinful – a dish of melted cheese (with potatoes and cured meat). Our friend Maighread, an Auberge regular, opted for entrecôte while I followed her advice and went for steak tartare, a daringly spicy mound of meat offset by chunky chips and green salad. Mark the mountain guide (www.markseaton.com), meanwhile, was rather more virtuous, ordering a modest yet delicious-looking goat’s cheese salad; I can’t blame him – if I lunched like this every day I would be the size of a house. Other than an intrusive photographer sticking his long lens where it wasn’t wanted – ruddy cheeked with frozen strands of hair, wolfing down fiendish food is not an image I want immortalised – and slightly clumsy staff, we had a wonderful lunch at this deservedly popular haunt.
A slither of apricot tarte and a quickly-consumed schnapps were all I needed to banish my sweet tooth before returning to the slopes, which by this time were bathed in glorious afternoon sunshine.
Auberge du Christomet, route du Jaillet, 74120 Megève
(halfway down the Christomet chairlift) +33 (0)450 211134
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