Pic au Beau-Rivage Palace — Restaurant in Lausanne

Overall it was a disappointing experience, especially after our previous visits to her restaurants in both London and Paris. We had a full course since it was our first time. Despite our already noted down allergy requirements, the restaurant refused to meet some of them due to their style of cooking (waiters choice of words). They made some changes which somewhat worked until we go to the fish and meat part. It was extremely salty and both poultry and lamb was as rough and tough as they can be. Fish felt over cooked and once again extremely salty. Staff replaced the fish dishes when asked but alas the taste didn’t improve. When we asked on the meat, staff insisted it was cooked well and the meat were fresh despite our contest. Experience with these two main dishes unfortunately killed other parts of the course which were visually colourful and somewhat unique. Staff are cordial but somewhat robotic and felt like they wanted to be somewhere else but at the restaurant working - sense of hurry could be felt in their movement as well as the speed of the service. I started wine pairing which felt rushed with continuous rounds of wine that didn’t seem to match the food. Rather you could feel that they were moving based of formulae of providing wine at their own speed of sales rather than the preference of a diner who may or may not be an experience wine drinker. Cheese wasn’t even offered which I thought was interesting despite our request at the beginning of lunch, then again many staff were also couldn’t be found towards the end of the lunch. Lunch finished after 4 hours and majority of staff couldn’t be found when we were about to leave. Whoever was left seemed he couldn’t be bothered to stay on. We had to ask for our clothes as we left rather than offered. Quite rude I thought.

Lausanne Palace is a beautiful property and the restaurant certainly has that but unnecessary stiffness as well as the inflexibility that can be felt in the environment desires to be fixed. Unfortunately I cannot recommend this restaurant to anyone who is looking for that unique Ann Sophie Pic experience. I hope the restaurant and the hotel will improvise (and modernise!) somewhat and perhaps look forward to...

We had an incredible dinner at Anne-Sophie Pic. When we arrived, we were offered to sit out on the terrace for an aperitif, which was delightful. We were offered champagne and a few small bites to go along with it. It was so pleasant sitting outside looking at the beautiful view to start our evening.

We did the tasting menu and wine pairing and everything was exceptional. We started with the tomato dish. Everything was fresh, and the burrata ice cream was a nice touch. Next were the vegetal berlingots, a mushroom dish that's a signature on all of Anne-Sophie Pic's menus. I can see why - it was a delicious bowl of umami with each component contributing to the complexity of the dish. For the next course, we really enjoyed the sole. A perfect piece of fish. Next up was the venison. It was well cooked and well executed. It also came with a tart of ground venison on the side. The cheese course was an interesting one, with one of the cheeses being served as a mousse. It was a nice play on a traditional cheese course. Finally, for dessert we had the chocolate and the white peach options. Both were a lovely way to finish the meal.

The beverage program was very creative. For example, to go along with the cheese course, they served beer. Given wine and cheese is such a classic pairing, they are clearly innovating and trying to go beyond simply what people expect. One of the standout wines was a Riesling. While Riesling is typically too sweet for our taste, this version from Germany was balanced and tasty.

The service was great. Very attentive but never overbearing.

Highly recommend dining at this restaurant. You'll be in...

This is my third or fourth visit, and I had a generally positive experience, but this time there were a few issues that detracted from the overall enjoyment. Firstly, the staff brought out an assortment of bread (three types) and a special butter without explaining anything. I had to ask another server to identify the bread, and even then, the taste was underwhelming. When I selected the full menu, I was offered the option to substitute my monkfish with the famous sea bass with caviar. Although I accepted the offer, the staff did not inform me of the additional cost, which I only found out when I received the final bill. While I declined to have my menu paired with wine, I ordered two glasses of wine from the sommelier, trusting that they would recommend reasonably priced options as it came from "open bottles". However, the cost was absurd. Overall, the menu was acceptable but it did not exceed my expectations. While I understand that Pic enjoys experimenting with contrasting flavors, some dishes did not seem to balance well with the various ingredients. Lastly, I was grateful to receive a delightful little cake in honor of my birthday, which was a...