Tours and Activities:

The Best Fondue in Uruguay

There is a place in the District of Nueva Helvecia called Granja Hotel Suizo where visitors may taste one of the best fondue in the country. This is one of the few restaurants that still preserve the recipe that gave origin to this singular dish.

The origin of this Swiss national dish dates back to the days of the alpine shepherds, the snow-capped mountains and the hard European winters.

The legend goes that a mountain peasant could not leave his shelter due to weather conditions and the only supplies he had left were goat cheese and hard bread. He came up with the idea of heating the cheese with the last remains of firewood in order to spread the melted cheese on it.

That is how one of the most important cuisine customs in the world started and then reached other countries and was adopted as part of the culture and the knowledge of the Swiss colonists who migrated to America and brought this dish with them.

This recipe reached America and spread all around each of the young nations in the new continent. As far as Uruguay is concerned, the Swiss colonists got together and founded the City of Nueva Helvecia, thus giving life to the Uruguayan Swiss colony.

Ever since, 1862, the new city was known as the Latin American Switzerland. And this was not only evidenced in its architecture, its celebrations, customs and worships, but also in its cuisine.

The famous queso colonia (colonial cheese) was invented here and today it is one of the Uruguayan prides. But this story has a great protagonist and it is fondue.

In 1872, the first tourist hotel in the country was opened. Obviously, the conception of tourism was completely different from what we know today: in those days, the hotel was chosen by the most aristocratic families to have a rest and enjoy reading, social events and political and economic discussions, which turned out to be far more important than sunshine and the beach.

This dreamed-of place is called Granja Hotel Suizo and today it continues to provide a unique site to rest and get close to Swiss gastronomy.

Its specialty could be no other than cheese fondue, with the original recipe brought by the first colonists who populated the country. But there are also other delicacies known all throughout Uruguay, such as Swiss potatoes, smoked pork ribs with orange and plum sauce, and for dessert, the famous apple strudel and the Swiss cup.

Contact

Granja Hotel Suizo

Federico Fischer 355 - N. Helvecia a 60 km de la ciudad, (70000) , Colonia del Sacramento, Colonia

See also: Hotels in Colonia and other accommodation venues