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Morzine Apres Ski Report: 6th January 2012

First apres-ski report of the new year

featured in Nightlife reviews Author Tom Freeman & Victoria Mills, Updated

After a great Christmas in town and finally getting over the festive hangovers it was soon time for the New Year’s celebrations to start. There was much deliberation over where to spend the evening, but we finally decided to head to Dixie Bar with a few friends and our family who are staying in town. With the open fire in full force the bar soon filled up and the pints of Mutzig and “Hell” were flowing thick and fast.

As we approached the countdown to 2012 the staff did the rounds offering up free party hats, streamers, whistles and some rather funny pea-shooter blowing devices! Naturally we all fully participated in the festivities, with party hats being worn in inappropriate positions and other wonderfully childish frivolities. When the clock stuck midnight we all joined arms and celebrated the start of another glorious year…then got to do it all over again an hour later when the English New Year was upon us. The music was good and atmosphere even better so we were sure we’d made the right decision on the venue. As always, the night was over way too quickly and it was time to stumble, climb and fall back up to our apartment.

Numerous drunken promises were made to meet on the slopes the next day for some New Year’s skiing and lunch. However, this was somewhat hindered by the fact that “the fall” on the walk home ended with Tom badly bruising some ribs after falling on a tree stump hidden under some snow. This resulted in a 5 hour wait at the doctors and a few days chalet rest, boohoo!
Ribs and skiing aside, with our priorities in order, we still made it out for a nice dinner on Tuesday night and decided to try the cosy looking Le Grillon. It is located along Route de la Plagne near the Super Morzine bubble and like many of the restaurants in town they serve typical Savoyard cuisine and also some amazing looking pizzas. It’s a welcoming restaurant and definitely a good place for larger groups with its long tables and reasonable prices. We were seated upstairs in the eaves of the building, surrounded by wooden beams and the delicious aromas from the kitchen, which was especially nice. Two strong recommendations are the Tartiflette with mushrooms, which was the best we have had so far in Morzine and also the Vacherin, similar to a large baked Camembert served with cured meats and potatoes or chips….needless to say it was amazing.
With the sleety snow falling heavily in town on Thursday, we took refuge in Le Coup de Coeur de la Chamade. This bar, situated along Route de la Plagne and backing onto the outdoor ice rink, specialises in wine and has the most extensive selection we’ve seen around town so far. They also do good coffee and hot chocolate and there are a variety of pizzas and snacks on offer including waffles, oysters, sharing platters and ice cream. Definitely worth a try is the rather amazing Savoyard pizza, generously topped with lashings of cheese, bacon and cream!
The bar has a large covered seating area at the back complete with heaters, sheepskin chair covers and blankets for those winter afternoons. Inside , the wines are displayed along the walls and there are comfy armchairs and numerous books scattered around for all to peruse. But perhaps the most unique and quirky feature of this bar is found when you lean your head back and look up to the ceiling. Chalk graffiti lovingly drawn by previous patrons cover most of the ceiling and where there is an empty space you are free to leave your own mark, just ask for chalk at the bar. On discovering this, one by one we stood on our table and drew cartoon faces then signed our art…even inspiring the table next to us to follow suit too. This was great fun and we would highly recommend this place for a relaxed afternoon chill out with friends or family, especially after managing to spend over 4 hours in there ourselves!
So, having just waved goodbye to our family we are needless to say feeling a little sad, but there is plenty going on around town to pick up our spirits in the coming week.
Tonight the Sherpa bar, located along Route de la Plagne, has its weekly ‘You’ve Been Framed’ night on from 7pm. Although we haven’t been to this yet, we are quite intrigued as to what this involves! On Tuesday from 7pm they host their rather dangerous ‘Create Your Own Shots’ night and for all those missing a taste of home, from 7pm on Wednesday it’s the all you can eat ‘Sherpa Curry Night’ for €15.
The ever popular and extremely conveniently located Tremplin, at the base of the Pleney slopes, has Live Groove Lounge Music from 4pm on Sunday.
Also worth checking out is the weekly Open Mic night at the Rhodos on Monday from 5pm, situated along Rue de Bourg. Then they have live acoustic music on Tuesday at 5pm.
The latest news on the new swimming pool complex at the Palais du Sport is that this will finally be opened at the end of January, fingers crossed! We will give you some more information on this nearer the time but don’t forget you can still enjoy some ice skating here, whether that is participating yourself or as a spectator watching the mighty Morzine-Avoriaz Penguins!
The Indoor Ice Rink is open to the public at the following times: Monday, Wednesday, Friday 2.15pm-5.15pm. Tuesday and Thursday 2.15pm-5.15pm and again from 9pm-11pm. Closed Saturday and Sunday. Note that on an ice hockey match night, the night-opening will be put back. Prices for admission plus rental range from €3.50 - €8.00 depending on age and the time of the day.
The next Penguins match is on tonight at 8.30pm where they will be taking on Briancon. As always, tickets available on the door or in advance from the Tourist office (Adult 15€, Child 10€).
That’s all from us for another week, we’re now looking forward to some more great skiing after the snow dump we’ve just had and maybe even a little mild detoxing following the rather excessive amounts of alcohol and rich food over Christmas! Have a great week and as always…
Bon Après