I have to admit that although over time I have consumed many bottles Evian water, I never really thought about where exactly it came from. For the past week I was lucky enough to stay in the beautiful small town where it is bottled….Evian, France on the Southern shore of Lake Geneva. I won a trip to the Evian Royal Resort through Bravo when I won the show and really had no idea what to expect. Being my first trip to Europe, I was just excited to get over the Atlantic.

We arrived in Geneva, on the other side of the lake, and had a nice scenic drive to the resort. Nestled on top of a hill, overlooking the lake, the location was beautiful. Secluded, yes, which was a good thing. I am a city girl for certain but every once in a while a little time in the middle of nowhere is necessary.

Most of our time was spent relaxing, eating, exercising and getting treatments at the spa. I am not typically a spa lover, but I can see the draw. You get to wander around in a robe and pamper yourself. Nothing wrong with that, and a couple days is really all you need to feel refreshed.

We did take a couple of fun day trips. First we hopped on a boat over to Lausanne, Switzerland, which is just across the lake. Being a huge fan of the Olympics, I was happy to learn that the Olympic Museum is located in Lausanne and houses paraphernalia from the Olympic games dating back to ancient Greece as well as all of the Olympic torches. Not necessarily a reason to fly across the ocean, but if you find yourself in the area it is worth a look.

We decided to treat ourselves to lunch at Rochat which is regarded as the best restaurant in Switzerland and is located in a very small town just outside of Lausanne. Walking in I felt as though I was at the Swiss version of the French Laundry. It is quaint and peaceful and entirely dedicated to exceptional food, wine and service. No music of course, it is all about the dining experience. A detail that will always stand out was that Chef Rochat stepped out of the kitchen to greet and afterwards thank all of the guests; a very nice and unexpected touch.

After a bit of translation issues with the menu (my French seems a bit rusty in my old age), we had a great meal. I started with the foie gras torchon which came layered with pistachios and berries and topped with a berry gellee. My friend Sue got the salad which if course was not just a salad. The plate was decorated like an art deco painting with many different brightly colored vinaigrettes, and there were a number of small dollops of radish mousse, each wearing a little radish chapeau. A little over the top on the plate design for my style, but I have much respect for the amount of work that went into each plate that came out. For my main course, I had veal sweet breads with black truffle potato puree. Nicely prepared with a nice veal demi sauce and you could tell that whoever prepared the potatoes had the pleasure of passing them through a chinoix. Though we were too full for dessert, a large selection of petit fours was sent out to finish the meal. Everything from pistachio mousses to coconut and lemon macaroon to orange gelee, and of course the simple piece of chocolate with “Rouchat” written in gold. I can not afford to eat like this for lunch every day, but once in a while it is fun to splurge.

Back at the resort we spent some time with Chef Michel Lentz who has been at the resort for 25 years. During his time there, he has trademarked his own version of spa cuisine, ‘Cuisine Synergique’ which focuses on regeneration, reduction of excess weight, and optimization of balanced energy. He does not believe you should put anything in the body that will not benefit you in some way. We had a short cooking lesson with him during which he made his vegetable tea for us to sip on (a vegetable stock made from the peelings of vegetables and a bit of herbal tea as well as herbs from their own garden) and seared scallops with a nettle emulsion which he finishes with a bit of rice vinegar to add a nice acidity. His food is lovely and he is quite the character. He does not speak much English but was still able to crack some jokes and show his energy and love of food.

We ventured out once again on our last day, but this time by helicopter. It was amazing. We flew over the Alps, seeing little towns and ski lodges along the way. Mont Blanc is the tallest mountain in the area and borders Italy. The snow almost looked like frosting on a cake and looking back on my pictures it almost looks fake it is so beautiful. The helicopter touched down on one of the lower mountains and we were told this was where we were having lunch. All you could see nearby were a few houses barely peeping out of the snow and cross country ski tracks all over. We walked in to what looked like a little country farmhouse, straight out of a movie. After we were there for a bit a group of the cross country skiers arrived and lunch was on for all. Very simple fried potato cakes with salad and house smoked meats. Then of course the cheese tray with one of the best blue cheeses I have had. Finished with a fruit tart and a floating island dessert. Simple and delicious.

I have a lot of other places to see before I start repeating vacations, but I will certainly come back to this area at some point. I think a couple days at the spa and then a little cabin on the mountain to do some skiing is the way to go.

Off to Barcelona….guessing this might be a bit of a different experience.