The Place
Our first charming small hotel on the French shore of Lake Geneva, and a notable discovery. Anthy, a former farming community, is charming, and the auberge is a pleasing, mostly wooden building at the centre of the village, with its old hoist still preserved high under an eave. The Dubouloz family renewed their property (an inn since 1927) in 1997, with imagination and taste. Now it is owned by Claude and Catherine Dubouloz – and he is in the kitchen. Bedrooms are clean and uncluttered, simply decorated with pale paintwork, wooden floors and protruding beams that provide a dash of character. The two dining areas, one a traditional dining room and the other a more relaxed bistro where you can partake in specialities such as the cheese fondue, are large and lively.
The food is outstanding. Unusual dishes such as cabri (kid) en cocotte are regularly offered alongside mouthwatering staples such as fillets of perch fresh from the lake, sliced so thinly that they roll into shell-like parcels. The wine list displays the same imagination and care. The bar area next to the dining room is frequented by locals: as we left early on Sunday morning, in they came for their breakfast: a glass of white wine, a Gauloise, a croissant and a couple of black coffees. Walk down to the rocky pier on the lake before dinner. Very fair prices.