S K I F O O D
A L T A B A D I A
0 6 4
THE BRIT ABROAD
JOHN BURTON RACE
He may be a high profile, one-time
multi-Michelin-starred chef with a
nice sideline in TV, but even Burton
Race was smitten on his first visit
to Alta Badia. “Coming in to work at
7
am on a snowmobile, then spending
the morning in a kitchen with a
view like this – it’s surreal,” says the
55-
year-old, indicating the panorama
of craggy peaks and snowy slopes
speckled with skiers. His creation has
something of the British to it too: “It’s
a kind of pasty with a difference –
something you can eat hot here at the
hut, or wrap up and take with you to
eat on the slopes.”
Pork fat makes for a rich, yellowy
pastry, while the filling is local beef
marinated in apple and horseradish.
The result, satisfying and full of
flavour, is matched perfectly by the
chosen wine, a full-bodied Lagrein
with intense blackberry tones. “The
ingredients here really are second to
none. Everything tastes exactly as it
should taste – fabulous,” he says.
He’s also bowled over by the
hospitality of the Vittur family and their
Piz Arlara mountain hut (pizarlara.it).
Its Tyrolean-style interior incorporates
wood from a 200-year old farmhouse
down in the valley and there’s a
separate apple-themed bar with
wood-burning stove. “I wish I could
stay longer and learn how to ski,” he
says. “It’s just so beautiful.”
