A new chapter at Grünsee: the Casile family takes over the Mountain Lodge

The succession for the tranquil Mountain Lodge on Lake Grünsee has been decided: After seven years, Kurt and Stefanie Lauber-Mayor are handing over the management of the former ‘Mountain Lodge Ze Seewjinu’ to Tamara (44) and Giuseppe (45) Casile. From this

summer season, they will be the new hosts of the ‘Grünsee Mountain Lodge’ in Zermatt with a new name.

 

‘The name suits us very well - it is simple, authentic and conveys an Alpine atmosphere,’ says Tamara Casile The Dutch-born couple have lived in Zermatt for many years. They met in 2001 during a winter season together at Le Gitan in Zermatt. They now live in their adopted home with their three children Iris (12), Letizia (11) and Roan (9).

 

Giuseppe has extensive experience as a chef: He has already worked as head chef at the lodge for seven years. Tamara is also very familiar with the business. ‘We were there seven years ago when Kurt and Steffi took over the Mountain Lodge and now we are taking over the management,’ says Giuseppe Casile.

 

The two of them already have a lot of experience, as they previously ran their own restaurant in Belgium for 8 years. However, this is now in a different league. The restaurant with a total of 150 seats outside and 100 seats inside as well as five guest rooms and a dormitory in the centre of the internationally renowned skiing and hiking area in Zermatt also brings with it a number of hurdles.

 

As they only received the final confirmation as the new operations managers two months ago, they had little time to prepare - from finding staff to administrative tasks and developing new concepts for the start of the season on 19 June 2025.

 

Nevertheless, they were very much looking forward to taking on this challenge with their partly new, twelve-strong team. ‘Taking the risk and accepting such a great challenge is what makes it so special for us,’ they say.

 

In summer, the Grünsee Mountain Lodge is located directly on the popular 5-Lakes Trail as well as on various bike trails and in winter in the middle of the Zermatt-Cervinia ski area with 360 kilometres of slopes - a highlight for hiking, biking and winter sports fans.