Considering the prices in some of Zermatt’s hundred-plus restaurants, opting for picnic fare from the Co-op supermarket opposite the train station is a prudent move if you’re on a tight budget. There are plenty of places where you can get diner-style fast food for under Fr.15: the Hotel Post is the best, incorporating a Spaghetti Factory and the Broken pizzeria, while also on the main street is the Big Shop takeaway. The popular North Wall bar, on the other side of the river south of the Bristol, has pizzas from Fr.10 and big beers for Fr.4.50. There are a few equally inexpensive cafés beyond the church – best is the peaceful and pleasant Café du Pont on a nice corner. Z’Alt Hirschi, down in Hinterdorf, is another, although it’s more of a quiet place to savour a beer than anything else. Elsie’s Place, opposite the church, is an unexpectedly cosy little nook, although a little over-glitzy in season; at least it offers light snacks to help your cocktail go down.

Moving up the scale, the Antares, on the other side of the river, serves quality fish dishes in its plush carved-wood dining room for around Fr.25. The Rothornstube in the Hotel Perren is another comfortable place where you can select from a range of different menus, from Fr.25 to Fr.60 or more. Needless to say, the atmosphere in the Buffet Royal at the Zermatterhof Hotel, or the glorious Edwardian-style Whymperstube in the central Hotel Monte Rosa, is formal and restrained, but if you can afford the three-figure sums required, a meal at either of these places is likely to be at least as memorable as your ride to the Gornergrat.