Aifach in Arosa is a Show Kitchen for the Masses

The streets of Arosa are snow covered on this Friday night. Our dinner reservation is at Aifach, an innovative restaurant just a short walk from the main street.

We feel welcome from the minute we step in, and the infectuous energy from the staff takes us in.

The concept of Aifach is based on transparency. Flo is one of the co-founders who opened this "show kitchen for the masses" here in Arosa: "Eating at Aifach is all about experiencing our energy and observing the manual skills that go into the preparation. In its most simple form, we want to show you where your food is from and how it is prepared."

Since there is a single four course menu per day, we feel like being part of a bigger experience. Everyone in here tonight is going through the same culinary experience. The meals are inspired by seasonal products, such as pumpkin or wild boar during fall. The key phrase here is "inspired", as you have likely never tasted pumpkin the way the chefs at Aifach would fix it...

Unlike in most restaurants, the menu board is hidden on one side of the kitchen. Honestly, we do not even bother checking it. We re part of an experience, trying to anticipate the next course by closely watching the action in the open kitchen.

The daily surprise menu is the product of a collaboration. The chefs are inspired by the seasonality, availability and their mood that day. In short: You never know what you are going to get, but it is certainly going to be fresh and prepared from scratch. If you stay until closing time, you might have a chance to chat with chefs Flo, Mark, Roc, Volker or Matt.

The only constant at Aifach is the price: Their four course meal comes at a flat 58 francs.

Our pole position seats at the bar are next to the charming espresso maker. It has obviously been in the coffee business for ages, processing some of the best beans to be found in Switzerland from Adrianos Café & Bar in Bern.

(Our advice: Make a reservation for table #1, or for seats directly at the bar.)

A few minutes past midnight, we are finally swept onto the snow covered street - along with a bunch of locals. From the time we got up, it had taken us an entire hour to leave!

There, we are reminded of the tagline of Aifach: "Dining with friends."