Café des Amis

Our Cosmos tour group spent two nights at the Novotel Bussigny Hotel Lausanne during the Grand Tour of Switzerland. The first evening meal was included at the hotel. On our second night, everyone was free to choose where to dine. Bussigny is a very small, very charming village located 8 km from Lausanne. We had a choice of dining again in the hotel, or in one of only two restaurants located in Bussigny. One featured Chinese cuisine, the other offered local fare. We chose the local fare. The restaurant is located at Chemin de Villars 1, 1030 Bussigny p/Lausanne. Telephone: 021 612 85 84. It has no web site. The village is only a ten-minute walk from the Novotel. When my spouse and I located this restaurant, we could not determine whether it was open or not. Nevertheless, we entered around 6pm and found a man setting the tables in a tiny dining room that could hold 15-20 people at most. Communication was difficult since he spoke only French; we spoke only English. After several trying moments, he eventually showed us to a table and offered us a menu. From this French menu, my husband ordered an Italian dish we recognized: Pasta Carbonara (17.50 CHF); I chose the Pasta Primavera (17.00 CHF), both with penne pasta. Servings were very generous, and superb. I accompanied my meal with a small carafe of merlot wine for 7.00 CHF. My spouse had a Desperados beer from Belgium (6.50 CHF) infused with Tequila. He had not had this beer since we visited friends in Sydney, Australia, who import the beer every year from a local liquor store. And we found this beer in Bussigny! Amazing!! My husband was thrilled. The man setting the table turned out to be the owner, chef, and only waiter (Azevedo Antonio). While we could not really communicate in a common language, he was delightful; and we warmed to each other after those first few awkward moments. Another couple from our tour group entered after we were seated, and raved about their meal. The wife dined on salmon penne pasta; the husband on grilled horse, a medallion of which he offered to my spouse. Both men declared the meat delicious. One never knows..... Toward the end of our meal the owner's children and grandchildren came in to eat, totally filling the rest of the tables. It was superb food, and great fun eating here. We would not have missed this evening for anything!!!!

This is a small café-cum-restaurant with limited seating and it is advisable to make a reservation. The owner, a Portuguese gentleman, serves as well as attends to the kitchen and one must be a bit patient. It is worth the wait because the food comes freshly cooked with good ingredients. The wine list is limited and it is best to go by the owner’s recommendation. We got an excellent Spanish wine. If you are looking for a quiet place away from the crowd, this is it.

This is a small café-cum-restaurant with limited seating and it is advisable to make a reservation. The owner, a Portuguese gentleman, serves as well as attends to the kitchen and one must be a bit patient. It is worth the wait because the food comes...More