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Well, my friends I’ve been to Nice and the Isle of Greece while I…well, you know the rest.  Forgive my Charlene moment there.  Is it New York?  Los Angeles?  London?  Dubai?  Hong Kong?  Nope.  It’s actually…in Montreux, Switzerland – a small town roughly 2 hours outside of Geneva on the shores of Lac Léman.  That’s right, nestled in Fairmont’s Le Montreux Palace Hotel, well, actually you can only access by walking out of the hotel briefly along the Grand Rue to Harry’s New York Bar.  Sometimes you just find great things in the most unlikely of places.  I love a good burger and have certainly eaten my fair share while traveling the globe.  Yet, at the same time, it is not something I actively seek out while on the road.  So how did I stumble across this one?  Well, Harry’s has always been one of my all-time favorite bars.  It has a great atmosphere and the service is second to none.  Their bartenders mix a mean cocktail and the manager cannot do enough for his patrons.

When in Montreux, my other half and I make a point of hitting Harry’s at least once (sometimes more) an evening.  It is a great spot for a relaxed drink before heading out to dinner and even better to have a nice nightcap before retiring for the evening.  If you go outside of the Jazz Festival period it is never really crowded and even when it is it works.  Over the years we have some to know some of the regulars who frequent the place and the service staff has been pretty consistent over time.  So what does all this have to do with a burger?

One late evening after hitting the Casino I decided to have a quick drink to round off the evening.  Now, my frequent readers know I am a bit of a lush so no surprise there.  My other half and I popped into Harry’s and settled into one of their comfortable booths.  We ordered our drinks but I was feeling a bit peckish (again, no newsflash there) and decided to peruse the bar menu.  The menu is really very comprehensive and has everything from Rib Eye to Spaghetti to the famous burger.  I was craving a burger so when the manager came over to attend to us, I explained my allergies and if I could have the burger sans bun and fries (possible shellfish cross contamination).  Without skipping a beat the manager could not offer me enough options to pair with my burger.  I mean, I typically just get the patty with lettuce and tomato but he felt it his duty to make sure that I felt like I was not getting the full experience.  I don’t think there was anything he would not hair offered to pair with my burger.  I settled on a fresh salad of mesclun greens lightly tossed with the house vinaigrette. 

When the burger arrived, the presentation was impeccable.  A hearty patty grilled to perfection with every possible accoutrement one could hope for – condiments, pickles, sliced tomato, onion, well you get the idea.  I have always enjoyed topping my burgers with a ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard which I keep in separate areas of the plate, almost like a painter’s palate, and paint each bit with just the perfect amount of each.  OCD?  Perhaps, but it truly makes for the most perfect of bites.

The burger itself has a consistency unlike any other you will come across.  I tend to order all of my meat charred (though this is slowly changing) but not here – medium is the perfect temperature to enjoy these burgers.  Perhaps it’s the Swiss beef (I love that the Swiss put the country of origin for meat on every menu) or perhaps it is the atmosphere or maybe a combination of both that makes this the best burger.  When you cut into it you barely need any effort and the first bite is something you will not soon forget.  It is almost creamy in texture and seasoned to perfection.  It is more akin to eating a fine pate than a greasy burger.  I have no clue what they mix into the meat but whatever it is makes for absolute burger perfection.  The spices are subtle but so well balanced that one could easily eat the burger by itself and not even notice the lack of condiments.  To me it is true burger perfection as it can stand on it’s own without bread, without cheese, without any of the traditional accompaniments – how many burgers can really do that?

So, if you find yourself walking along the Grand-Rue of Montreux, do yourself a favor and pop-in for a cocktail and perhaps a nibble.  My partner and I have enjoyed many a meal at Harry’s (outside of the famed burger) because we went for a drink and ended up tucking-in for the evening because it is just that cozy.
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So, my partner and I were entertaining a rather famous friend at the new Brasserie du Palace at Le Fairmont Montreux Palace where we were staying – our first time since it rebranded as a Fairmont from previously having been a Raffles (still part of the Fairmont chain). 

Well, this trip proved that there is something about a name.  We are talking about a five star deluxe hotel that charges a rather high premium for what was previously a truly renown level of service.  Now – not so much.  The hotel itself was still pretty much the same with the exception of a garish (and expensive) remodel.  The hotel services are still top shelf – the new design and dining options, not so much.

The gourmet restaurant and bar are now gone replaced by a miniscule lobby bar a remodeled (not for the better) Brasserie.  On this trip we were ignored by a bartender who though it more important to socialize rather than serving customers.  This would be addressed later by the duty manager who graciously apologized for the incident.

On the third night of our stay my partner sat on the bed and it collapsed, clearly having been incorrectly put together which resulted in wooden blocks propping up a corner for two nights until they could properly repair it.  Okay, not really a big deal but rather unexpected.

The piece de resistance came on our final evening while entertaining our friend.  The meal was off to a rough start as the bar could not figure out how to make a Martini.  My poor partner went through three before one was actually drinkable.  But here is where it gets interesting…we were all well into our entrees and I was savoring a rather well-prepared filet de boeuf and was nearly ¾ of the way through it having consumed all of the accoutrements that came with it but suddenly among conversation I spied something that looked a bit like a spice at first but when I looked more closely I noticed that it was…wait for it…a STAPLE.  Yes, a metal un-bent staple that clearly was cooked along with some portion of my meal, the metal having turned a nice dark charred color.  I was shaking and immediately let the manager know who quickly disappeared into the kitchen and return with the chef.  Well, multiple apologies later from a variety of staff an investigation was promised.  The chef maintained that they do not use staples in the kitchen…well, somehow from the kitchen to the table it clearly got in there and truly looked like it had been cooked having lost the shiny patina that a new, unused piece of metal would have.

Needless to say I was beside myself thinking what if I HAD chewed on that piece of metal?  Yes, I am anal about looking at my food (and expirations dates) – always have been.  Thankfully this time it all paid off because my OCD is the only reason I saw the staple prior to ingesting it.

The next morning I was the talk of the town and upon our departure the Head of Operations personally came down to apologize for the incident – which was very much appreciated and I can only hope that their investigation will find out where the foreign object came from.  I can only think perhaps a crate or something that was delivered because the ends of the staple were still straight and not like it had gone through a traditional stapler (for paper).

It was more shocking and unexpected than anything.  I did not eat it so no harm other than my nerves and the restaurant in its defense comped the entire meal which was not necessary as no harm was done and no one else’s meal had any problems.  They need not have done that and I like to believe they will look into the matter so that it will NOT happen again.  I truly hope to hear back from the hotel once their investigation into where the staple came from so that we can ensure that this not happen again in the future.