Schloss Schauenstein looks as a though it has come straight from the pages of a picture book backed by the Alpes in the middle of Swiss. When a setting is this good, it comes with a responsibility to look after it and Andreas Caminada is a head chef who takes this responsibility very seriously indeed. So much so that his restaurant achieved a record 94% score in the 2019 assessment by Food Made Good Global.

The ’Schloss’ – Swiss-German for ‘castle’ – is a sprawling estate that features orchards, woods and land for hunting. As much produce as possible is sourced from within the castle grounds and in excess of 30% (even more in the summer) of the vegetables, fruits and herbs used here are grown and harvested by the team in their three greenhouses and sprawling gardens. The chef also works closely with organic farmer Marcel Foffa, whose vegetable farm and greenhouses are just a mile from the restaurant.

But the sustainability doesn’t stop at the pass. The restaurant roasts its own coffee, having built a small roastery next to the castle, and the restaurant bakes its own organic bread in the new wood-fired bakery at Casa Caminada in the castle grounds.

In terms of power, the restaurant uses 100% renewable energy making use of hydro energy and hydroelectricity to power every element of the restaurant and its hotel rooms. All local produce arrives in reusable packaging (baskets and glass) and all the remaining packing is collected by a local firm who convert it into renewable energy.

Caminada’s restaurant is the perfect example of a progressive kitchen of the future. In an isolated location that could be deemed nigh-on impossible to produce a restaurant with such sustainability credentials, the Schloss Schauenstein team have achieved a restaurant that leads the way in every element of environmental credentials and is a worthy winner of the Sustainable Restaurant Award 2019.

Schloss Schauenstein
Schlossgasse 77 CH-7414, Fürstenau
+41 81 632 10 80
schauenstein.ch