Hello lovelies, as promised, here's the second part of our ski weekend in the Zillertal (you can find the first part here). I'd like to tell you about our Hotel "Neue Post" in Mayrhofen* and about my little peek behind the scenes — into the hotel kitchen, to be precise.
*Picture from the homepage www.neue-post.at
The hotel is very centrally located in Mayrhofen, consisting of a main building and an annex, the two connected by an underground passage. The hotel is run by several generations of the Pfister family, and that's also what makes its warmth. Starting with the welcome at reception, the daily personal greeting at dinner, and the tireless service throughout the entire stay.
We were accommodated in the "Berglust" house (in the new part of the hotel), in a family suite with 2 rooms, and we were more than thrilled with it. Generously and brightly designed, with loving details. We especially liked the wonderful, impressive mountain pictures that were integrated into the room and give it a very special look. One of the rooms is equipped with an infrared cabin, perfect after a day of skiing.
This was our parents' room:
And the children's room, both connected to each other by a passage:
I always find it very nice, and appreciate it too, when a hotel pays attention to lots of little details. Such small touches make that certain something that makes me happily think back on a hotel. They can be things like a bottle of water, a plate of fruit, children's bathrobes, or when the children's bed is lovingly made up during cleaning. That not only gives a personal touch, but makes me feel especially at home in a hotel. That's exactly the feeling I had at the Neue Post.
And this was the wonderful view from the balcony:
The hotel offers great infrastructure for relaxed holidays in both summer and winter. A bike and ski room are available. There's also a cozy spa area with a heated pool, sauna, and plenty of loungers — I found the warm waterbeds especially lovely, I could have spent hours there. And for anyone who needs more fitness after a ski day (definitely not me :-)), there's a gym with plenty of equipment.
Breakfast is served as a buffet, and the big juicer was definitely great there, letting us press fresh juices every morning. And otherwise too there's surely something for everyone — the selection ranges from fresh egg dishes and waffles, cheese and cold cuts, to muesli and of course fresh pastries from the in-house patisserie, fresh fruit, and regional products. I'd have wished for even more healthy alternatives, but I also had the chance to talk with chef Willi Pfister during our shared cooking, and there are already plans to redesign the entire dining room and then expand the offering further too.
We got to enjoy dinner as a set menu. Every evening there's a big salad buffet, a choice of soups, and a 5-course menu with regional and seasonal products. But you can also choose other dishes from the menu. For the children there's a special children's menu and a choice from the 5-course menu too. I was treated to a special vegan menu, and that was a delicious surprise every evening. I was so happy about the varied dishes and they tasted wonderful to me. Every evening a cheese and ice cream buffet is set out, but there's also a dessert in the menu, so you have the choice. The menu is rounded off with delicious aperitifs and regional wines.
A special highlight of our stay was chef Willi Pfister's invitation to cook with him in the hotel kitchen, which I very happily accepted. First, you don't always get the chance to look over a hotel chef's shoulder, and besides I was of course curious and excited about what he had in mind for some shared vegan cooking. And of course, as always, I had lots of questions too — anyone who knows me knows that I always have to know everything in great detail :-).
We then prepared a somewhat different kind of "burger" from grilled kohlrabi, tomatoes, fresh herbs, avocado, and bread — very delicious. Also a vegetable pan with lots of fresh vegetables and herbs — exactly the kind of things I like too. And it was very exciting to see and hear how things run in the hotel kitchen, how elaborate the preparations for an evening menu are, and how precisely everything has to be planned.
We really had a very lovely stay at the Hotel Neue Post, we got to thoroughly enjoy the days, and we thank the Pfister family for their hospitality and warmth. We'll surely be happy to come back. And here is the way to our report about our ski adventure.
Love, the Freis.
**Disclaimer: We were invited by the Zillertal region to spend 3 days there, but the blog post reflects our own opinion. *
