New head chef at Château Gütsch

LUZERN: Christoph Bob brings Mediterranean flair to Lucerne. As the new head chef at the Lumières restaurant at the Hotel Château Gütsch, he has been delighting his guests since October. He previously worked in Italy for 18 years, where he was consistently awarded a Michelin star. He has been in Switzerland since 2022 and was most recently the interim head of catering at Chez Fritz in Kilchberg on Lake Zurich.

Château Gütsch towers high above the city of Lucerne. The view of the city of lights is gigantic. A dinner in the Lumières restaurant is the perfect way to round off a trip to the Gütsch. The restaurant has had a new chef since October. Christoph Bob is the man who lets his guests forget everyday life for a moment. The German-born chef is actually a trained businessman. But life at a desk was not for him. He trained as a chef and quickly landed in the world of Michelin-starred gastronomy. He learnt from chefs such as Heinz Beck in Rome and Alain Ducasse in Paris. Bob also earned his spurs in Switzerland: At the Dolder Grand and with Horst Petermann at "Petermann's Kunststuben". He later settled on the Sorrento Peninsula in Italy. First he was Chef de Cuisine at the "Relais Blu" in Massa Lubrense, then he ran the "Monastero Santa Rosa" in Amalfi. Both restaurants were awarded a Michelin star.

Bob has now arrived at the boutique hotel above Lucerne. "I'm really looking forward to this challenge," says the 54-year-old. Guests can expect Mediterranean cuisine at "Lumières". "I bring something from every country I've worked in," says Bob. In concrete terms, this means Italian dishes prepared with French technique and Swiss precision. You realise that the Italian side comes through a little more when it comes to the question of butter or olive oil. "I'm all Italian and prefer to use olive oil more often than butter."

Christoph Bob's signature dishes include pike-perch from Lake Neuchâtel with braised endive salad and blue potatoes as well as a risotto made from seven-year-old Aquarello rice with basil, yoghurt, beetroot and gamberi rossi. At Château Gütsch, the signs are currently pointing to autumn. On the "Lumières" menu, guests will find an autumnal vegetable variation, a mille foglie of veal with wild mushrooms and quail egg and a saddle of venison with parsnip puree and Brussels sprouts. Of course, the Gütsch also serves classics such as Châteaubriand for two.