Ski & Food: 3 Austrian Winter Resorts for Gourmets
From the slopes to the foodie hotspot: These Austrian winter regions combine ski and food adventures.
Skiing and good food often go hand in hand. Who doesn’t love a Tyrolean Gröstl or Kaiserschmarren after a morning on the slopes after all? And then, of course, there’s dinner. After a long day of outdoorsy workouts, there’s nothing better than some hearty meal to top up your energy levels again.
Luckily, Austria makes the perfect destination for winter sports fans with a soft spot for foodie adventures! Cosy traditional hut, lunch with a view at a mountain peak of fancy gourmet temple for a special occasion, you name it, our winter resorts have it all. And while every ski region features plenty of mountain huts, restaurants, and local dishes, some are especially well known as foodie destinations.
Let us introduce you to three winter regions elevating culinary pit stops the Austrian way to a new level!
KITZBÜHEL: HEARTY TRADITIONAL FOOD AND INTERNATIONAL HAUT CUISINE
Fancy or casual? In Kitzbühel the choice is entirely yours! The popular ski resort is home to over 60 mountain huts and restaurants, welcoming winter sports fans with a mix of traditional Tyrolean dishes and award-winning international gourmet cuisine. Head to the mountain huts and inns just off the slopes for hearty Tiroler Gröstl and your Kaiserschmarren fix at lunchtime and impress your significant other with a candlelight dinner at an elegant foodie temple at night. Some of the most popular huts include Hahnenkammstüberl (Lisi, the owner, is a local legend!), Seidlalm (warm up with hot egg not witch cream) and Hornköpfelhütte (try their signature dumpling soup), while Berggericht (4 toques, Austrian haute cuisine with an international touch), Chizzo (upscale Tyrolean-Italian fusion food) and Lois Stern (2 toques, European-Asian food) rank among Kitzbühel’s most famous gourmet hotspots.
ARLBERG: TYROLEAN HUTS AND ONE OF EUROPE'S HIGHEST GOURMET RESTAURANT
Arlberg, often dubbed the “cradle of alpine skiing” is a winter sports and jetset destination, as well as a gourmet hotspot. The region is home to more than 30 Gault-Millau award-winning restaurants, many of them awaiting with equally famous wine cellars. A must-try is Rote Wand, Chef’s Table, housed in a former school, where award-winning chef Julian Stieger treats his guests to ever-changing culinary delights –prepared right in front of their eyes! Gault-Millau-awarded Verwallstube in St. Anton, one of the highest gourmet restaurants in Europe (at 2,085 m) is another local favourite, serving high-end Austrian cuisine. Arlberg Thaja in St. Christoph, right at slope no. 64, makes a more casual affair. The mountain hut serves all the famous Tyrolean delights, best enjoyed on their XXL sun terrace. And then there’s Sennhütte, a long-term crowd pleaser equally beloved for its hearty dishes and home-made schnapps and gin.
ZILLERTAL: GRÖSTL, PLANT-BASED DELIGHTS AND ZILLERTAL BEER
Tirol’s Zillertal is a long-term favourite among skiers with a weak spot for great food. The winter sports region awaits with no less than 80 mountain huts close to the ski pistes and an equal number of restaurants and inns in the villages, with many of them having won gourmet awards – holidaymakers can look forward to new culinary
adventures every day of their stay! Some of Zillertal’s highlights include Granatalm hut in Mayerhofen (hearty Tyrolean and Austrian dishes), Englhof in Zellberg (enjoy traditional Tyrolean cuisine, then treat yourself to a cocktail at the award-winning bar in the same hotel), and Zillertal’s first fully vegetarian restaurant Guat’z Essen in Stumm (“Best newcomer in 2024” according to Gault-Millau). The ski resort also has its very own Zillertal Beer which has been brewed by a local family for more than 500 years – the brewery is currently run by the 16th generation.
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