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Since the mid-1990s, Zürich's restaurant trade has boomed. The new establishments, both Swiss and international, tend to favor lighter, leaner meals served in bright spaces that often open out to the street. The traditional cuisine, no longer ubiquitous but still easily found, is called nach Zürcher Art, meaning "cooked in the Zürich style." Think meat, mushrooms, potatoes, butter, cream—an extremely rich cuisine, perfectly suited to the leaded-glass and burnished-oak guildhalls.
In exploring Zürich's core, you will want to enter at least one of these famous medieval "union clubhouses" scattered along the riverfront neighborhoods; the best way is to dine in one, as all but the Zunfthaus zur Meisen, the Zunfthaus zur Saffran, and the Zunfthaus zur Schmide have restaurants open to the public. On your way to the restroom, sneak a peek into their other dining rooms—they are, for the most part, museum-perfect in their leaded-glass and Gothic-wood detail.
Zürich's signature dish, which you'll encounter throughout both French and German Switzerland, is Geschnetzeltes Kalbfleisch, or in French émincé de veau, bite-size slices of milky veal (and sometimes veal kidneys) sautéed in butter and swimming in a rich brown sauce thick with cream, white wine, shallots, and mushrooms. Its closest cousin is Geschnetzeltes Kalbsleber (calf's liver), served much the same way. You may also find Rösti, a kind of hash-brown potatoes, and Spätzle, egg noodles that are either pressed through a sieve or snipped, gnocchi-style, and served in butter.
Another culinary must is Zürich's favorite portable food, sausage and Bürli (a crunchy roll), eaten separately, two-fisted style. The best are to be had at Bellevue at the Sternen Grill; Kalbsbratwurst (veal) is mild, the smaller Cervelat (pork) saltier. Join the locals and munch away while waiting for a tram.
Zürichers also have a definite sweet tooth: refined cafés draw crowds for afternoon pastries, and chocolate shops vie for the unofficial honor of making the best chocolate truffles in town.
Restaurants in Zürich have been smoke-free by law since 2010. Some offer smokers' lounges; otherwise expect smoking at outdoor tables, where it is still allowed.
This fun, alfresco beiz (canteen) located in an upmarket lakefront campground is a sweet summer alternative to the city’s sunset terraces, which can be crowded and overpriced. Throw a sweater around your shoulders, grab a glass of rosé, and park yourself at a picnic table for vegetable crudité, bowls of truffled pommes frites, and crunchy fried fish like pike, char, perch, and trout, all line-caught in Swiss lakes.
This bustling and spacious all-day brasserie with pinstripe room dividers and a sunny terrace has been a go-to since 1910 when it opened in Helvetiaplatz. It's versatile enough for any occasion, from a birthday party to a quiet Sunday supper. The menu is heavy on Swiss comfort classics—beef tartare with buttered toast and crispy cordon bleu oozing melted Emmental cheese, for example. Seasonal fare is never overlooked: the fall menu might include chestnut penne with mushroom cream and pumpkin risotto with port fig. Several plant-based options such as warm lentil salad with parsley roots ensure vegans won’t be stuck with pasta again.
Under painted vaults and wood-paneled walls that climb to restored century-old murals depicting gallivanting cherubs, businesspeople, workers, and shoppers share crowded tables around a stucco marble pillar to feast on generous hot dishes and a great selection of sausages. The Leberknödl (liver dumplings) are tasty, and the perch, a local specialty, is breaded and baked and comes with tartar sauce and steamed potatoes. The Öpfelküchli (fried apple slices rolled in cinnamon and sugar) are tender and sweet. The bustle and clatter provide a lively, sociable experience, and you'll more than likely get to know your neighbor.
It doesn't get more Swiss than this: the ingredients, the recipes, the wines, and the decor are all Helvetian (and though traditional, there's a youthful vibe). Enjoy seasonal dishes such as veal meat loaf with mushroom cream sauce, or organic trout with herbs and garlic; the owners' devotion to local ingredients means the menu often changes. The interior is elegantly casual, with wainscoting and etched-glass windows, linen tablecloths, a mounted chamois head, and paintings of the Matterhorn and other well-known landmarks.
Meat is the name of the game at this deli-inspired restaurant with private booths and terrazzo floors, where grass-fed game is sourced directly from Swiss butchers and farmers. Classics include leberkäese (meat loaf), homemade pâtés, gelatinous terrines, aspics, air-cured mountain meat, and steak pies. Vegans can always expect one or two dishes on the rotating menu to keep the whole table happy.
The coats of arms of old Spanish provinces and garlands of onions and garlic line the dark-paneled interior of this upstairs Niederdorf restaurant, specializing in big steaks, seafood, omelets, and paella. Be sure to sample the excellent house Rioja (Zurich's oldest Spanish wine specialty shop adjoins, so the choice is extensive). The lively downstairs bar serves amazing tapas, great for lunch. Many of the waiters come from the old country, so they know what they're talking about.
This restaurant offers fresh, top-quality, unpretentious food including authentic Sardinian specialties (owner and chef Antonello Mancosu is Sardinian). Try the ravioli alla Sanlurese, filled with fresh ricotta, basil, and Parmesan, or inquire about the catch of the day. End the evening with a typical Sardinian seadas dessert (a honey and cheese puff pastry) and a glass of Mirto.
This is a favorite haunt of theatergoers heading for the Schauspielhaus Schiffbauhalle—it conveniently shares the same building, where a glass, steel, and concrete interior mixes well with brick elements from the original factory building. Beneath an enormous Murano-glass chandelier, elegantly dressed patrons enjoy wines from a hefty list and delicate dishes that might feature black tiger prawns, langoustines, or beef fillet, all with innovative sauces.
An old warehouse space in Zürich West has not so much been renovated as cleaned up and then highlighted with an eclectic mix of antiques and 1950s collectibles, all of which are for sale. Tapas and Mediterranean dishes, including their famous moules frites (mussels and fries) and a range of organic options are available to order at the counter. In summer, snag a table on the multitier veranda out front.
Dating from 1801, and once the haunt of Zürich's beloved writer Gottfried Keller, this lively restaurant serves traditional meat dishes—Geschnetzeltes Kalbfleisch—lightened up with fresh seasonal vegetables and a champagne sauce. One section is a dark and heavily graffitied wine bar, with sagging timbers and slanting floors; there are also two welcoming little dining rooms with coffered ceilings and plenty of carved oak and damask—choose the cozy, charming Gaststube (not the more staid Stübli). It's always packed, and service can be slow, so stake out a table and plan to spend the evening. Guests who succeed in swinging around the room's famous wooden rafters three times win free wine for their table. You'd be amazed at the number of diners who make the attempt.
This European-inclined restaurant in a quiet corner of the Niederdorf is part of the trend towards portions that don't overflow your plate, with lighter, seasonal takes on traditional Swiss fare. You might try bacon dumpling salad with balsamic onions, or pork breast with honey and chanterelles, then finish with apple fritters and vanilla ice cream. Wainscoting and dark parquet floors paired with a monochrome palette make for a comfortable dining room; an outside courtyard is open in summer.
Right on the Niederdorf's main square, Hirschenplatz, this squeaky-clean Swiss-kitsch restaurant has an airy, modern decor, with Alpine-rustic chairs. It serves good home-cooked national specialties: Zürcher Geschnetzeltes, Rösti, Leberli, bratwurst, schnitzel, and battered fish with French fries and tartar sauce—the gang's all here. An added attraction if you're visiting in summer: fondue and raclette (melted cheese served with small potatoes in their skins, pickled pearl onions, and gherkins), usually winter dishes, are served year-round, and are available to eat indoors too. Excellent lunch menus are rock-bottom cheap and served double quick. There's outdoor seating on the cobblestone pedestrian square in warm weather.
Built as an arsenal in 1487, this enormous stone-and-beam hall offers hearty meat platters and a variety of beers and wines in comfortable Germanic chaos. The waitstaff is harried and brisk, especially at lunchtime, when crowds are thick. Unlike the shabbier beer halls in Niederdorf, this one is clean and bourgeois, reflecting its Paradeplatz location. They're not unaccustomed to tourists—menus are posted in English, Japanese, and at least 10 other languages—but locals consider this their home away from home.
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