Transfer to Alps: The Essential European Ski Resort Guide
Oct 13, 2026 · 22 min · 9 segments
Skiing at 2,300 metres burns thousands of calories, and luckily, Val Thorens is a world-class culinary capital in the clouds. In Episode 4 of Transfer to Alps, hosts Liam and Chloe take a…
And we have to start right at the top with Les Explorateurs, inside the five-star Hotel Pashmina.
This restaurant holds a prestigious Michelin star, and the dining concept here is just fascinating.
Chef Jocelyn Jean-Blanc has designed the entire menu around the theme of historic high-altitude expeditions, drawing inspiration from early explorers tackling the Himalayas, the Andes, and the polar ice caps.
The execution is incredible.
Jean Blanc takes classical French culinary technique, blends it with rare alpine herbs foraged from the local high pastures during summer, and introduces subtle, exotic spices from around the world.
You sit in this intimate, beautifully styled dining room, and you're eating dishes like slow-cooked sweetbreads infused with juniper wood smoke, or wild line-caught sea bass paired with citrus reduction and mountain sorrel.
It is pure artistry on a plate.
But if your idea of luxury is a bit more earthy, dark and deeply aromatic, you need to book a table at Le Diamant Noir inside Hotel Le Coïnord.
Ah, the black diamond.
The kitchen here is run by chef Eric Samson, and during the winter months, Samson has one massive, glorious obsession, the black Perigord truffle.
He weaves black truffles into almost every single course on his signature tasting menus.
Oh, the smell in that dining room when the covers are lifted is just intoxicating.
He does this velvety Jerusalem artichoke soup with black truffle shavings that is like a warm hug from heaven, followed by local venison loin with a rich truffle-infused jus.
And because Koh-i-Noor sits right at the summit of the resort, you are eating this world-class truffle feast while looking out through massive glass walls at the entire village illuminated by snowlights below.
It's an extraordinary room.
But if you prefer your fine dining wrapped in classic bourgeois French tradition, you head down to the Place de Caron and take a seat in the dining room at Hotel Le Fitz Roy.
Le Fitz Roy is all about refined, understated elegance.
Managed by the Beaumier Group, the restaurant feels like a grand private salon in Paris, but with a roaring stone fireplace and views of the snowfront.
Dishes like roasted breast chicken with morel cream sauce and delicate pike quenelles in a rich crayfish reduction.
The service there is completely flawless without ever feeling stiff or intimidating.
But what if you want high-end gastronomic precision applied to the ultimate mountain comfort food? Cheese! That is when you visit La Letterie inside Hotel Alta Pura.
Now this is a cheese lover's dream! La Letterie is a dedicated gastronomic fondue bar, but they didn't just throw standard supermarket cheese into a pot.
They collaborated with a master cheesemaker who holds the coveted Meilleur Ouvrier de France title to design bespoke aged fondue blends.
The results are unbelievable.
And we have to start right at the top with Les Explorateurs, inside the five-star Hotel Pashmina.
This restaurant holds a prestigious Michelin star, and the dining concept here is just fascinating.
Chef Jocelyn Jean-Blanc has designed the entire menu around the theme of historic high-altitude expeditions, drawing inspiration from early explorers tackling the Himalayas, the Andes, and the polar ice caps.
The execution is incredible.
Jean Blanc takes classical French culinary technique, blends it with rare alpine herbs foraged from the local high pastures during summer, and introduces subtle, exotic spices from around the world.
You sit in this intimate, beautifully styled dining room, and you're eating dishes like slow-cooked sweetbreads infused with juniper wood smoke, or wild line-caught sea bass paired with citrus reduction and mountain sorrel.
It is pure artistry on a plate.
But if your idea of luxury is a bit more earthy, dark and deeply aromatic, you need to book a table at Le Diamant Noir inside Hotel Le Coïnord.
Ah, the black diamond.
The kitchen here is run by chef Eric Samson, and during the winter months, Samson has one massive, glorious obsession, the black Perigord truffle.
He weaves black truffles into almost every single course on his signature tasting menus.
Oh, the smell in that dining room when the covers are lifted is just intoxicating.
He does this velvety Jerusalem artichoke soup with black truffle shavings that is like a warm hug from heaven, followed by local venison loin with a rich truffle-infused jus.
And because Koh-i-Noor sits right at the summit of the resort, you are eating this world-class truffle feast while looking out through massive glass walls at the entire village illuminated by snowlights below.
It's an extraordinary room.
But if you prefer your fine dining wrapped in classic bourgeois French tradition, you head down to the Place de Caron and take a seat in the dining room at Hotel Le Fitz Roy.
Le Fitz Roy is all about refined, understated elegance.
Managed by the Beaumier Group, the restaurant feels like a grand private salon in Paris, but with a roaring stone fireplace and views of the snowfront.
Dishes like roasted breast chicken with morel cream sauce and delicate pike quenelles in a rich crayfish reduction.
The service there is completely flawless without ever feeling stiff or intimidating.
But what if you want high-end gastronomic precision applied to the ultimate mountain comfort food? Cheese! That is when you visit La Letterie inside Hotel Alta Pura.
Now this is a cheese lover's dream! La Letterie is a dedicated gastronomic fondue bar, but they didn't just throw standard supermarket cheese into a pot.
They collaborated with a master cheesemaker who holds the coveted Meilleur Ouvrier de France title to design bespoke aged fondue blends.
The results are unbelievable.
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