Best Restaurants in Grindelwald

The best cafés and restaurants in Grindelwald, plus tips for families with children.

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Grindelwald, Switzerland

Anyone who has watched the classic Clint Eastwood film, The Eiger Sanction, will be somewhat familiar with the famous Eiger mountain that dominates Grindelwald.

Grindelwald is a stunning skiing village located in the Bernese Alps, about 2 hours from Zurich. It sits about 1,000 m above sea level and is a popular destination for skiers in winter and hikers in summer.

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c und m restaurant

Cafés in Grindelwald

Like most popular ski resorts in Switzerland, Grindelwald boasts many good restaurants featuring local fare and hearty cheese dishes to replenish your energy levels after a day in the snow.

One of our favourite places is the Bäckerei-Konditorei-Café Ringgenberg, a casual eatery which we frequent often for a late breakfast, lunch or sometimes even afternoon tea.

The café is attached to a bakery which produces a sumptuous array of breads and pastries to satisfy a good continental breakfast, and their lunch menu is appetising to those seeking either a light meal or something more substantial.

They serve a very delicious and hearty goulash soup – it was so good that I forgot to take a photo on the three separate occasions that I ordered it for lunch, greed taking priority over publishing.

And their toast sandwiches are also delightful. Perhaps my foodie standards are slipping somewhat if I am suddenly critiquing toast sandwiches, but when something simple is made so well, it’s hard to be snobby. And just look at how cute they are …

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Grindelwald Restaurants

One thing we like about Grindelwald is the close concentration of cafés and restaurants along the main street of Dorfstrasse, as well as the excellent choice of food. There are restaurants to suit all budgets and, due to the popularity with tourists, there are dishes to suit all taste buds.

Here are some of our favourite restaurants in Grindelwald:

Bäckerei-Konditorei-Café Ringgenberg

Dorfstrasse 123, 3818 Grindelwald
www.grindelwald-bakery.ch
Our favourite casual café for coffee and pastries baked on site, plus a nice menu for lunch. On offer are toasted sandwiches, soups, pasta dishes and even cheese fondue. High-chairs are available for little children, as well as a little corner with books and colouring pencils. May I suggest one of their giant chocolate-chip sablé cookies?

Onkel Tom’s Hütte

Dorfstrasse 194, 3818 Grindelwald
www.onkel-toms.ch
If you’re in the mood for the best ever wood-fired pizza and don’t mind a bit of queuing, this tiny and bustling hut is the place to visit. Their reservation system is a bit complicated, i.e. you can’t call ahead and make a booking, but you can show up at the restaurant and place your name on a waiting list if no tables are available at that time. The locals sing high praises for this pizzeria; everything is made fresh to order, and the pizzas have a light but crispy base. My favourite is the Alla Diavola, but be warned that it is super spicy!

Bistro Memory

Dorfstrasse 133, 3818 Grindelwald
www.eiger-grindelwald.ch/en/food-drinks/memory
A casual restaurant with lots of rustic charm. Definitely the place to go for delicious burgers and fries, as well as their varied options for a traditional Swiss Rösti (potato cakes or hash browns). They also serve a delicious Swiss macaroni & cheese with a traditional applesauce on the side. A childrens’ menu is available for the little ones.

Restaurant Barry’s

Dorfstrasse 133, 3818 Grindelwald
www.eiger-grindelwald.ch/en/food-drinks/barrys
Although this restaurant is located in the city centre, the interior could fool you into believing you were in some cosy ski chalet, albeit a fairly large and modern one. Try their varied options for Cordon Bleu or perhaps something from their “light” menu if all the cheese is giving you too much speed on the slopes. We always order a cheese fondue during one of our visits (try the special cheese mixture from the local Molkerei Gertsch), and their desserts always hit the spot. The restaurant is very welcoming towards families with children and they offer a special kids’ menu. There is even a small kids’ playroom with books and toys where older kids can amuse themselves or younger children can play with some supervision. The great food and friendly service will have you wanting to return to the restaurant again and again.

Central Hotel Wolter

Dorfstrasse 93, 3818 Grindelwald
www.central-wolter.ch/en
This centrally located hotel boasts a modern restaurant with rustic chalet charm, as well as a great lunch and dinner menu. A changing daily lunch menu is offered at special prices, and their regular menu features popular pasta and salad dishes, a grill menu and Swiss classics such as the fondue chinoise. Their apple fritters with vanilla ice-cream is hard to go past for dessert. The restaurant is child-friendly and they offer a special kids’ menu.

C & M Café Bar Restaurant

Almisgässli 1, 3818 Grindelwald
www.cundm-grindelwald.ch/en
This cute little chalet is a great place to visit for afternoon tea, although their breakfast, lunch and dinner menu is also worth trying. There is always a great selection of cakes and pastries on offer, and which can be comfortably enjoyed if you can grab one of their cosy sofas upstairs. There is a special menu available for little ones, as well as pencils and crayons to distract them while you enjoy a warming glass of Glühwein or Apfelpunsch.

Restaurant Kreuz and Challistübli

Dorfstrasse 85, 3818 Grindelwald
www.kreuz-post.ch/en/gastronomy/restaurants
Both of the these restaurants are located within the same hotel situated opposite the train station serving more or less the same menu of Swiss classics. The former is a pleasant traditional restaurant, whilst the latter is more rustic and cosy. Hubby declared their Älplermagronen to be the best pasta dish he’s ever eaten, while I was pretty taken by their Wienerschnitzel. Both places are great for families with children with high-chairs available.

Hotel Bodmi

Terrassenweg 104, 3818 Grindelwald
www.bodmi.ch/gastronomie
While I don’t think one would go out of their way to dine at Hotel Bodmi (unless you are staying close by), I thought it was worth including it in this list as we have dined there on many occasions. If you or your children plan to take skiing lessons on the beginners’ slope at Bodmi – an area about 15 minutes by bus away from the Grindelwald city centre – it’s helpful to know that there is a restaurant on-site where you can have delicious hot meals and drinks. Adults taking full-day skiing lessons at Bodmi will usually have lunch at this restaurant with their ski instructors. And anyone travelling with children will know that, oftentimes, children will change their minds about being in the snow, so it’s good to have a warm place to escape to where you and the children can grab a warm drink or snack. The menu is typically Swiss, meaning you can find the usual Pearl Barley Soup, Goulash Soup, Corden Bleu, Rösti, and a few salad and pasta dishes. The kids’ menu is also great – our children loved the fish fingers with boiled potatoes. It goes without saying that it is a very family-friendly restaurant, and baby-changing facilities are available.

Supermarkets in Grindelwald

Eating out in Switzerland can be expensive, and especially in ski resorts. Or sometimes you just simply want to eat in, particularly if you have been out the whole day skiing or hiking.

If your accommodation has kitchen facilities, cooking some simple meals at home can be cost-effective and sometimes even healthier than eating out all the time.

There are two very good supermarkets on the main street, Dorfstrasse, Grindelwald.

Coop

The Coop supermarket is located in the relatively new Eiger+ shopping centre in the heart of the village. It is a fairly large supermarket and stocks a similar range of products to a suburban supermarket, including fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and poultry, beer and wine, toiletries and cleaning products.

On a recent visit, I was surprised to find herbs like coriander (cilantro) and lemongrass, which meant I could make a simple vegetable curry using a ready-made curry paste – it was a welcome change to eating schnitzel with French fries!

VOI

VOI is affiliated with the Migros chain of supermarkets in Switzerland. The VOI branch in Grindelwald is located on the main street, conveniently outside a bus stop. It is a much smaller supermarket to the Coop down the street, but it still stocks nearly everything you need, including a surprisingly large range of Asian ingredients and instant noodles.

UPDATE

This post was updated on 14 August 2018.

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24 comments

  1. Liz Headon 8 January 2013

    The view and the food are sooo tempting ! I haven’t been to Grindelwald, or in fact to anywhere in Switzerland, since I was in my teens, and that’s rather a long time ago, but I do hope to get there again one of these days…

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 9 January 2013

      If you’re ever in the neighbourhood, please let me know 😉 We’re hoping to have more holidays in Switzerland this year so hopefully I will have more Swiss posts for my blog.

      Reply
  2. Caroline 8 January 2013

    Happy new year!! What a great idea to head to beautiful Grindelwald during the holidays and escape the gray weather down here! We actually spent Christmas day in loud, colorful, exciting, delicious Ho Chi Minh City so after that, our New Year here in Zürich in the gray weather was a bit of a let down 🙂 We should have headed to the Alps too.
    Those toast sandwiches make me drool and I am not even a big sandwich fan (well except for the banh mis of course!) 🙂 Thanks for your addresses in Grindelwald, I hope to be able to check them out this winter.

    Reply
    • Caroline 8 January 2013

      Oops forgot to answer your question! My culinary resolutions are to cook more often from my cookbooks, to make my own flour tortillas, to cook fish and seafood more often (we eat too much meat i think), to try Yemeni food (hopefully I will find a restaurant somewhere because I have no Yemeni recipes!), and to cook for friends more often.

      Reply
      • eat, little bird 9 January 2013

        I hope you had a fantastic time in Vietnam in December! I’m so envious of all of the delicious food you would have eaten – yum!!

        It was nice for us to be in the mountains over New Years, just for a change of scenery. Luckily, Grindelwald is such a beautiful area with great restaurants that we really enjoyed our time there.

        Your culinary resolutions sound very intriguing! I tried making flour tortillas last year, using a recipe from The Little Paris Kitchen. They turned out to be too thick but it felt good, nonetheless, to make them myself. I’ve also felt the same way about eating more seafood but I still have to get around to familiarising myself with the fish on this side of the world.

        With all of the great cookbooks that you have, I’m sure your friends are dying to try out your cooking more!

        Reply
  3. Melange 8 January 2013

    Loved reading you Thanh.happy that you enjoy this motherhood.Relax and yes,this is that time to enjoy and appreciate ‘the man in your life’ for such blessings..Enjoy to the fullest and come back with a bang !

    I read about this king’s cake somewhere and that’s such tempting clicks you put there..And the sandwiches,I think these are made to sit back and enjoy..Get a comfy chair,nice book,few sandwiches like that,I will make it my day !

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 9 January 2013

      Thank you 🙂 I am really enjoying motherhood so far, although I wasn’t quite prepared for the sleep deprivation! But all in all, it is a really special time for us.

      All the best for you and your cooking also this year!

      Reply
  4. They have such fabulous hiking there! I lived a short 30 minute train ride from there for 2 summers and loved checking out all of the amazing trails. You’re so lucky! I’ve never seen it in winter.

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 9 January 2013

      How lucky you were to live in this area! I have heard that Grindelwald is also really lovely in summer. My husband is a keen hiker so I hope we will return to the area soon. I have a feeling that we might be back again before the winter is over 🙂

      Reply
  5. Paula 8 January 2013

    Happy New Year!! 🙂 🙂
    It sounds really nice how you welcomed 2013 😉

    I know Dreikönigskuchen, but never taste it. Have to try!!
    Here in Spain, with Epiphany, we eat Roscón de Reyes, that is also similar to brioche 😉
    We hide a little figurine, and who find it is the King; but we also hide a bean, and who find it will pay next year Roscón.

    I haven’t make any culinary resolution for this year, but I should!! 😛

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 16 January 2013

      Happy New Year, Paula!

      The Roscón de Reyes sounds quite similar to the Dreikönigskuchen, and I like the sound of someone paying for it next year!

      Reply
  6. manu 9 January 2013

    These pics are stunning.
    Happy New Year to you too.
    xox

    Reply
  7. anita menon 10 January 2013

    Wishing you and your beautiful family a Happy new year. A vacation during the early days of having a baby seems likea swell idea. The food looks scrumptious!!

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 16 January 2013

      Happy New Year to you also, Anita! I hope you and your family have been well.

      Reply
  8. nicola 11 January 2013

    Happy New Year to you and your family Thanh 🙂 Looking at these pictures make me long to visit Switzerland even more! Maybe one day I will 🙂 My culinary resolutions for 2013? Bake more bread and try the more complex recipes I’ve been afraid to try. I’m also going to try and stop buying so many cookery books and concentrate on the ones I already have. This was one of my 2012 resolutions but I failed miserably! X

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 16 January 2013

      Happy New Year, Nicola! I think my resolutions might be similar to yours. Since hubby has been doing most of the cooking lately, he’s put me to shame with all of the complex recipes he has attempted, making me feel that I ought to make more of an effort in the kitchen! First I need to muster up the energy to do some proper cooking again soon – the motivation is there, but the energy is not!

      Reply
  9. Rushi 14 January 2013

    Happy New Year to you, your hubby and your new baby boy! Hope this year brings you lots of happiness! You’re spot on, those sandwiches look so cute and now I’m dying to try out the Dreikönigskuchen.

    As for my culinary resolutions would be to cook more healthy food and bake more often. Also to add a couple more new cookbooks to my collection (I figured that trying to curb my spending on cookbooks wouldn’t work) 🙂

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 16 January 2013

      Happy New Year, Rushi!

      Ah you are smart … if you are likely to be adding cookbooks to your collection, may as well make it part of your resolutions 😉 I like that!

      Reply
  10. The Patterned Plate 15 February 2013

    A bit late with this one, but Happy New Year hahahaah!!! I’ve only had time this afternoon to stop for a bit and do some well deserved catching up and your blog is always such a visual treat 😉

    That opening shot is breathtaking…how utterly spell binding! I would love to be there, for the food, to be honest, more than the skiing. I adore the fact that you guys lounged around in the cafe that breakfast moved seamlessly to lunch. I love that kind of ease, it speaks of such a relaxed time. Which, with a tootie to take care of, is desperately needed. 😉

    All the best for the rest of the year Thanh 🙂

    Reply
    • eat, little bird 17 February 2013

      Thanks, Carrie! Hope you’ve had a good start to the year also 🙂

      I do enjoy skiing (although I’m not very good at it!) but it was nice to just be in the mountains, relaxing with good food and a cup of coffee nearby. It was during this trip that we discovered that our Little One sleeps very well with the background noise in cafés and restaurants – how very convenient for us 😉

      Reply
  11. Kelly | A Pair of Passports 20 February 2017

    Grindelwald looks absolutely beautiful! Our resort of choice is Zermatt, and we have a family place out there which kind of discourages us from visiting other ski areas in Switzerland. However I’ve seen so many photos recently that make me want to try out all of the skiing possible! I’m definitely adding Grindelwald to our list

    Reply
  12. Kim 6 March 2020

    Hi, I have a question… do the supermarkets in Grindelwald sell rotisserie chicken or hot deli meats?

    Reply
    • Eat, Little Bird 6 March 2020

      Hi Kim,
      The Coop supermarket in Grindelwald sometimes sells rotisserie chicken and other hot food in a small section near the fruit & veg. I’m not sure what “hot deli meats” are, but both the Coop and Migros/Voi supermarket sell a large selection of sliced ham and sausages in the refrigerated section. But the Coop supermarket is a very large one and you should be able to find most things there. I hope this helps!

      Reply