16 Art Bar Restaurant
Set in a 300-year-old Gstaad bell foundry, this relaxed bar-restaurant serves vegetarian dishes and cocktails amid mountain views and Swiss-chalet warmth.
Gstaad’s dining scene leans toward rich fondue and Alpine tradition, which makes 16 Art Bar Restaurant a welcome counterpoint.
The building itself is the first talking point: a 300-year-old former bell foundry whose stone walls and low timbers provide the kind of patina that no amount of interior design budget can manufacture. The kitchen’s most famous production is its raclette (the Gstaad speciality, done correctly), but the menu casts a considerably wider net than most visitors expect.
Vegetarians are well served here: the homemade vegetarian burger and yellow sweet potato curry on jasmine rice are both worth ordering. Vegan alternatives supplement the international offerings across the card. Cocktails and aperitifs follow the mountain approach to hospitality: generous, warming, and taken seriously.
An outdoor terrace with mountain views provides the ideal backdrop for a long lunch when the Gstaad weather cooperates. When it does not, the elaborate mural ceilings and carved wooden details inside create a room worth staying in. The cozy fireplace does what Swiss fireplaces should.
16 Art Bar is the sort of place that begins to feel like a regular haunt after a single visit. For travellers who want to eat well without excessive formality while in Gstaad, this former bell foundry is one of the most satisfying options on the mountain.
