As well as the lobby, the bar and both restaurants have been re-designed and renovated. The new Parkhotel Beau Site is an open house, where not only hotel guests are invited to enjoy its wide range of gastronomic delights. Locals and guests on holiday are equally welcome in “The Grill”, the “3 Seasons”, “Bar 1907” and the “Veranda”.
With a mix of the traditional and the modern, the hotel is setting new standards in the Zermatt gastronomy scene. Head chef Christof Nienstedt focuses on local and regional sourcing, sustainability and homemade quality. For example, the local meat specialities come from the hotel’s own meat drying facility and the hotel only serves Swiss meat from sustainable sources that prioritise animals’ wellbeing.
On the ground floor, Bar 1907 is a great place to relax in front of the old fireplace. Light local dishes are served here at lunchtime. In the evening, there is a choice of refreshing aperitifs before enjoying delicious specialities cooked on the charcoal grill in the new restaurant, “The Grill”, or local dishes in the “3 Seasons” buffet restaurant. There is also now a wine boutique, which will host small events and wine tastings.
One particular challenge for interior designer Claudia Silberschmidt from the prestigious design studio “Atelier Zurich” was achieving a careful balance between the castle-like appearance of the outside and the more restrained character inside the hotel, approaching the structure with respect while still creating a bold, contemporary aesthetic. The colour palette used in the different areas creates a connection to the historic structure of the Belle Époque (the building was constructed in 1907) and to Alpine activities such as climbing and hiking. For example, the furnishings in the “Veranda” are reminiscent of “Drilch”, the fabric from which rucksacks used to be made, and even feature leather straps and rucksacks from the time the hotel was built. The colour and material concept is also strongly linked to local nature. Public rooms like the hotel entrance, reception and lobby therefore feature dark fir green and refreshing ice water. In the wine boutique “Divine”, the choice of colours calls to mind the glorious, golden needles of larches in autumn.
The bold, consistent choice of colours and their composition lend the hotel a warmly inviting atmosphere and a feeling of conviviality. The existing “red/black” colour concept in “The Grill”, for example, has been enhanced with appropriate fabrics and furnishings. Together with the old iron chandeliers from the 1960s, now painted a glorious fiery red, the ambience is one of sparkling warmth.