La Poesia

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

"Each dish is a verse, each fragrance a memory of Italy"

That line, drawn from La Poesia's own kitchen philosophy, captures the spirit of what Chef Graziano Lomonte has built on Avenue du Chablais in Lausanne. A native of Gioia del Colle in Puglia, Lomonte cooks the food he grew up with — generous, sun-drenched, rooted in tradition — and transplants it, with full conviction, to the shores of Lake Geneva.

The cooking

The menu moves through the rhythms of a proper southern Italian table: delicate antipasti, slow-simmered mains, fresh handmade pasta, and desserts made in-house. Every plate, as the restaurant puts it, is shaped by the chef's childhood memories and whatever the season is offering. There is nothing contrived here — this is Apulian cuisine as it has always been eaten, honest and generous in equal measure.

At midday from Tuesday to Friday, a business menu makes the kitchen accessible without compromise: a starter and main for CHF 34, or a main alone for CHF 26. On evenings before hockey matches at the nearby Vaudoise Arena, the restaurant extends its service from 18h to accommodate the crowd — a small but telling detail about how La Poesia fits into its neighbourhood.

Recognition and welcome

Gambero Rosso awarded La Poesia 2 Forks in its 2026 guide — recognition that places this Apulian cuisine firmly among Switzerland's most credible Italian tables. The distinction reflects what regulars already know: that the cooking here is consistent, personal, and genuinely rooted in a place and a person.

The restaurant is also notably relaxed in its welcome. Pets are allowed in the dining room, a private room is available for groups, and the bar rounds out the offer for those who want to linger. Parking — both private spaces behind the building and public lots nearby — makes it easy to reach by car, while the M1 metro stop at Malley is just 100 metres away.