My personal highlight: It’s as simple, a traditional easy Italian Streetfood from Emilia Romagna for vegetarian and meat lover

There are some days I don’t really feel a big hunger but I know I want something tasty, half warm, fresh and somehow healthy. The Piadina Bar located in the old part of Zurich in the Niederdorf is my choice. Here I come to have my Piadina. The atmosphere is cozy, you can stay for the snack or take it to go, the food is fresh prepared and of good quality. Who has ever visited Riccione or Rimini knows, that in that part of Italy Piadina is a much appreciated street food.

What is piadina?

A Piadina is a type of traditional flatbread found in Italy/Emilia Romagna. It is stuffed with every conceivable fillings. The Piadina bread contains lard, that it what makes the dough soft and tasty! Piadina bread is easy to make at home, too. Find a recipe here!

Get your Piadina with Bresaola, Prosciutto di Parma, Salame nostrano, Parmigiano, add some Rucola, grilled veggies as eggplants, peperoni, zucchetti or even olive or artichoke cream. Comes best also with cream cheese stracchino, pecorino or gorgonzola/mascarpone. You see, there are a lot of combinations possible. Try it, let me know if you enjoyed! You can find èiadina Bar also in Basel by the way!

Address: Piadina Bar, Niederdorfstrasse 2, 8001 Zürich, Kreis 2

Opening hours: Monday – Saturday 11.30 am – 11 pm, Sunday 3 pm – 7 pm

www.piadina-bar.ch

My personal highlight: Brunch tapas you can share, hot cheese croissant, okonomiyaki waffle or a Malaysian kaya toast bread? Specialty coffee and cozy atmosphere included

The month of December was the new coffee spot discovery in Zurich for me, yes, there are a lot of coffee places in Zurich, this is one is special, because you get Asian specialities for brunch. 169West opened its doors in Zurich at Weststrasse 169, obvious and easy, the coffee shop’s name says it all. The interior is cozy, you feel like in a living room. The ambience invites to sit on a sofa, read a book and lean back.

Specialty coffee, Hot Cheese croissant, Japanese okonomiyaki waffle and Kaya Toast

Let’s start with coffee! Coffee fans get a delicious flat white or filter coffee, whatever you like best. The roast you find at 169West is from the brand The Barn from Berlin. 

What pairs best with coffee? Guess a croissant or pan au chocolat made from the baker seri Backhandwerk. I tried the hot cheese croissant which was an absolute dream.

For brunch and the okonomiyaki waffle is a must. This Japanese dish is a sort of a pancake with cabbage, carrots, eggs and a delicious homemade tasty sauce. The mayo gives the extra flavour on top. All is home made using only local ingredients. The sauce for example contains some plums from the area. This dish is seasonal, hurry up trying it as long it is on the menu! Further to recommend: the Kaya Toast, a breakfast speciality from Singapore and Malaysia. It’s a cream made of coconut milk and eggs in a toast and comes with an onsen egg. This egg is slow cooked for 1 hour at 64 degrees. The exact way to eat it? Dip the toast in the egg! The Kaya toast throw me back to Tioman Island!
Should you desire some travel insights from my Malaysia travel, get that here!

& natural wines

A passion of one of the owner are natural wines. These are wines that are free of pesticides and herbicides and often without any addition of additives. The selection is great, ask them to get introduced to this new wine world.

Address: Weststrasse 169, 8003 Zürich – Kreis 3, 5 minutes walk from Lochergut

Opening hours: Tuesday – Friday, 8 am to 10 pm,  Saturday & Sunday, 10 am to 10 pm

no reservation for brunch!

Thank you for using the Lovefoodish Coffee and food guide Zurich!

www.169west.ch

My personal highlight: Learning more about Munich’s history, the Bavarian Royals and their traditions in a modern, fancy and glorious interpreted way at 25 Hours Hotels Munich

How do you book your hotels? Which criteria do matter for your booking? How much do you know about 25Hours Hotels available in Germany, Austria and Switzerland? Let me introduce you to the new 25Hours Hotel “The Royal Bavarian” in Munich. Get more insights on other 25Hours hotels on my accommodation guide here (Zurich) or here (Hamburg)!

I experienced 25 Hours Hotels this year the first time in Hamburg. I have to admit, before traveling to a city after having had excellent experiences with them, I first check, if a 25 Hours Hotel is available.

The Royal Bavarian opened its doors just recently and is brand new in Munich. It’s located 2 minutes from the train station and offers all high level standards and services known from other 25Hours Hotels.

What makes The Royal Bavarian Hotel in Munich special?

Anne one of the hotel staff members guides me through the house and explains to me significant details that were used to create this Bavarian surrounding. I see myriads of ironic and iconographic allusions to Bavarian history and its royal legacy. I love the story, that the Managers and the architect went for a guided sightseeing tour through Munich, to best grab and understand relevant details of its history. The goal was to transmit them into the design concept and interior to make the place authentic and real. Special elements as the ancient sledge, the swan chair or the furniture in the Boilerman Bar feature selected, materials. They create affectionate nods allover the place. This is the signature experience of this hotels.

The hotel is situated in a ancient building from the year 1800 ca. a former Imperial Post and Telegraph Office on the forecourt of the Central Station. That is why for example you find some ancient original typing machines in the hotel alley. Hotel guests have the opportunity to type their own letter, feel thrown back in time, and mail it to the wished address afterwards.

The catchy topic of the hotel is the Royal Bavarian History. I notice lots of Swan and Elefant elements all over the hotel. These were favorite animals of farmer royals. King Ludwig II of Bavaria, also known as the “Fairytale King was one of them, he lived in the castle called Neuschwanstein. Neuschwanstein literally means “New Swan Castle” referencing of “the Swan Knight” one of the Wagner’s characters.”. King Ludwig was a great admirer and supporter of Richard Wagner, the world-renowned composer.

This is 25 Hours Hotel The Royal Bavarian in a glimpse

• 165 rooms in 6 room categories on 4 floors
• Price start as of 150 Euros
• meeting space for up to 20 people in the “Muschelkammer”
• NENI Restaurant with eclectic east Mediterranean meze inspired by Chef Haya Molcho
• Boilerman bar with fancy Highball drinks
• Sauna
• ue boom bluetooth speakers
• free of charge mini car and bike rental (bikes from Schindelhauer)
• a hearty and service oriented staff that makes you feel home away from home

Accommodation

Find 165 modern and stylish designed rooms. Every category has its own theme and design. It starts with the Single-Box-room, than the “Chambers” and the Grand-Chambers. There are two suites available, one is the Swan-Suite the other the Peacock-Suite. Natural materials as wood and fabrics are combined with warm colors and stylish, functional furniture. Find all details for booking a room here.

Food & Drinks

As in every 25Hours Hotel the NENI Restaurant spoils its guest also in Munich with the food philosophy of Haya Molcho and her 4 sons. Find an eclectic east Mediterranean cuisine inspired by a Street food style from Telaviv and the world. Get a variety of light and flavorful lunch and dinner menus.
Try the Balagan style, which means that you order several plates and share them together! Enjoy the open space or the tranquil private room. Enjoy some hand made sandwiches or other food to take a way at the NENI Deli.

The house bar Boilerman offers a sociable and cozy atmosphere. It’s an inviting place to linger and relax. Find delicious highballs – precisely mixed short drinks that are stirred and not shaken.

Thank you for using the Lovefoodish food and travel guide.

I had the great pleasure to cooperate with the Australian Magazine Threepence to create a personal story about my passion for food blogging. Britta is the publisher/Editor of the magazine that discovers stories of people with passions around the world.

In this article you will learn a lot about how I came to my blogging and how traditional home made tomato sauce is made! I thank Britta for the story!

SwiTalian: Discovering my identity

Italians speak with the heart and the hands. They are temperamental and proud when they talk about their culture and habits. They forever seek to pass on their passion. I realise now that growing up in Switzerland as a child in a south Italian immigrant family gave me the ideal cultural mix in life.

From the Swiss side, there is humility and an honest attitude. Swiss people may not show their hearty character from the beginning, but they are the most open-minded and respectful people I have ever met. They care about their neighbours and love to create surrounds that are welcoming and comfortable.

It is so akin to me when I reflect on the special combination of a reliable and humble Swiss attitude mingled with a temperamental, creative and enjoyable Italian Dolce Vita style. I am SwiTalian, as someone once described me!

Following the unknown

Calabria is a beautiful region located at the toe point of the Italian boot surrounded by the splendid crystal blue Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas. It’s a land of strong and intense emotions.

Despite its beauty and picturesque lifestyle, many south Italian regions experienced economic stagnation for many years. Hence, my parents immigrated from Calabria to the Swiss canton Baselland in the 70’s to find luck, love and a better future for their children. They heard about Switzerland offering work and support for families and business alike. They decided to take a risk and follow an unknown path in search of a better future.

My mother and father taught me much about life and food, about never giving up and following my dreams. I admire the fact they left their home for the unknown with only a few coins in their pocket. They may have been penniless, but they held a rich history of heritage and tradition.

My father worked many years as a mason then later as an operation employee in an industrial company. My mother took care about us kids.

My food and travel journey

I have always been thirsty to discover the world, to travel and discover different cultures. This passion keeps me enthusiastic about life every day. It flows in my blood. Thanks to my parents, growing up in Switzerland with a solid education in marketing  & communication offered the perfect base to realize my dreams. I worked as Marketing & Communications Manager in the healthcare area. So, I was fortunate enough to be part of a challenging and interesting working field.

Why traveling captures my heart

Venturing through unknown places allowed me to intimately experience and understand the food and culture, and how these bind people together no matter where from. I may not know the local or native language in a country, but this is no barrier when you share food and life by your gut instinct.

Today I communicate with the language of love and appreciation, usually through the currency of food, smiles, hospitality and hugs.

These experiences led to my blog, Lovefoodish. It makes me ultimately happy to have the chance to share my food and life stories with a curious community throughout the world. Blogging opens the door to local and international places. I encounter lovely people full of passion. They motivate me by sharing their knowledge, and listening to their personal stories fills me with joy.

Gifted with sharing cultural heritage

Although I traverse the world in search of great food and culture, it is my family roots that I cherish the most. I often think back to the time where I would accompany my father to the local Swiss farmer to buy fresh vegetables, fruits or meat. My father’s German was a bit sketchy so he would also gesture with his hands and feet to communicate, which was very entertaining! Having learnt German at a Swiss school it wasn’t long before I was very fluent in German and I helped my parents learn to adopt the language more comfortably.

What makes Calabria special?

My father transferred to me the view to always question the origin of food and how to select quality products, and to really appreciate food from the land.

A tomato isn’t just a tomato.

He loved to explain to me what makes Calabria special. I still feel pride for him when he reminisces. But he also taught me how to appreciate delicious Swiss ingredients, such as potatoes or seasonal juicy apples and cherries. Living in a small village in the countryside gave us close accessibility to the farmer. This made him feel more at home and serene, since in Calabria he also lived on a farm.

The extra-virgin olive oil, wines, bergamot liqueurs, liquorice, citron, herbs, honey and jams from Calabria are incomparable. They also offer a famous red onion called Cipolla rossa di Tropea which is mild and a bit sweeter than other varieties. There are special types of homemade pasta, one is called maccaruni, still made today using the traditional methods.
Maccaruni are made using a thin long squared wire. The technique used goes back to my grandmother, and beyond. Another one is gnocchi. Calabrians celebrate food that is made as a family and there are some classic meats, cheeses and breads amongst the fresh produce.

Italian immigrants in Switzerland

A typical thing that immigrants have here in Switzerland are rented gardens allotments where they spend much of their summer days and evenings planting and tending to vegetables. My father was no exception. He planted his edible garden to replicate the farm where he grew up in Italy. It gave him the “freedom” to be in nature and do something he loved.

What about Italians loving Swiss food?

When my parents visit me in Zurich they crave a Zürcher Geschnetzletes. It’s a veal steak cut in little slices with potato Röschti and a champignon cream sauce. We love to go for lunch at the Restaurant Kronenhalle. The place is historic and famous for serving this dish since 1924. Artists like Picasso, Strauss and Coco Chanel used to come here for a drink and food. This history somehow makes it so much more enjoyable.

Zurich has a lot to offer besides traditional Suisse Cuisine. You can find good quality, creative and multicultural food in every corner of the city. These multicultural vibes give me the feeling of traveling whilst still in my hometown. I invite you to stroll through my blog and get a picture of the culinary offerings in Zurich.

The humble tomato – making Passata 

There is nothing like producing tomato sauce from scratch, particularly when it is shared as a family tradition. Handmade and flavoursome, one of the tastiest things you will ever try. It is the highlight of our summers, when the family comes together spending hours sorting, peeling, and boiling tomatoes while chatting. Once you understand that good food is about simple, basic quality ingredients you won’t hesitate one minute to invest time in preparing it yourself.

How to prepare your own passata

My mother talks to friends and parents to find the best tomato supplier at a decent price. We use around 100-150 KG of tomatoes which produces sauce for up to a year and is shared amongst my brother, parents and myself.

Despite the volume, home is where our tomato sauce is produced. Once the tomatoes are ordered, we drive at least 2-3 times to get all of the boxed tomatoes back home. Today mostly it’s my brother, his wife and some aunts and uncles that all produce the sauce together. 

The tomatoes are carefully washed. My parents are perfectly equipped with all the material and instruments needed as big pans, manual mincer/sifter, Plenty of empty jars with a matching lid, big pans, cookers (gas).
After we wash the tomatoes they are cut into half pieces. The seeds, spotted or blotted pieces are removed. Than we add water in the pan and they cook for several hours (covered up) in a huge container over the gas until they are mushy. Once they are cooked, we leave them to cool. After cooling  a sifter is used to eliminate the tomato skin and the seeds. 

Now the beautiful red liquid is filled into the washed and pre-prepared jars. As a nest step the jars are sterilized for few hours on the fire in a huge aluminum pan. And of course before everybody leaves, the highlight of the day is to eat pasta with the fresh made sauce all together.

Recipe of a traditional Italian Tomato Sauce (makes 4 serves)

500 ml pot of tomato passata 1 red onion, chopped 1-2 spoons of olive oil handful basil leaves salt/pepper

Preparation

Roast the onions with the oil, add the tomato passata, bring to boiling add salt and basil, let boil on little temperature for 30 min. ca. Adjust it with salt/pepper to your desire.

The marvel of life’s pantry staples

Alongside taking care of the administrative tasks, my mother is an excellent pasta maker. On occasion she loves to spoil us with homemade maccaruni, tagliatelle or gnocchi. It’s a skill passed down from my grandmother.

On a classic Sunday in my family’s home the family comes together to enjoy food and energetic discussion. It’s not a cliché, we really do speak very loudly to each other. It’s how we express our emotions and feelings.

For this occasion, we often make pasta from scratch. It is a way of playing with ingredients, getting the feeling on how texture and shapes are created. While writing this post I shared this tradition with my niece and nephew. There is no other experience like eating homemade gnocchi with home-produced tomato sauce. It is no doubt the cherry on the cake, except it’s tomato sauce and pasta.

Recipe for gnocchi (makes 4 serves)

General rule of thumb:
1 medium-sized potato per serving or person. For every potato, use approximately 1/2 cup of flour.

1 Kg of potatoes, 1 egg, 300 g of flour,  salt

To serve : Grated parmesan cheese Basil Leafs

Making the gnocchi

• Boil the potatoes in a large pot for 20 minutes until fork tender, put just enough water to cover them, leave the potatoes’ skin on. The skin helps the potato not too absorb access water. Over-boiling will cause potatoes to become mushy and too wet. 
• Drain potatoes well, remove them from the pot. Allow them to cool. 
• Peel potatoes 
• Rice the potatoes by using a potato ricer or simply a fork, this is how my grandmother did. 
• Mound riced potato on the middle of a clean, dry countertop, create a little vulcano and top with flour. 
• Add salt 
• Add the egg, break the egg into the centre of the well. Beat the egg with a fork.
• Incorporate all ingredients by using the fork.
  Start to pull in flour and potato to mix ingredients. Use your hands to combine all the ingredients. Start to form the dough. 
• Knead the dough until it has a smooth surface. Be careful not to over-knead. Be aware of adding flour at this point, careful: too much flour will give you hard gnocchi. 
• Shape dough into a long, wide rectangle for cutting. 
• Cut the dough into several pieces. 
• From this piece, you start to roll the dough into ropes. Make an evenly-distributed rope. 
• Cut little cubes out of the robe and start forming the gnocchi either with a fork or a wood gnocchi roller or even by using the tip of your trigger and middle finger. 
• To prevent the gnocchi sticking, keep gnocchi in a cool area and tip them with flour.

The cooking:

• Shake away any superfluous flour.
• Place the finished gnocchi in a large pot of salted boiling water.
• Cook the gnocchi until they float to the top. Usually 2-4 minutes. Gently remove them with a slotted spoon.
• Drain them well.
• Toss them in the tomato sauce pan and cook together for about 2 minutes.
• Put your grated parmesan cheese and basil leaves on top. 

In the mood of a good Italian restaurant in town where to find home made pasta? Check my online food guide here.

My personal highlight: An inspiring co-work space with a cool industrial ambience where to get regularly changing Specialty Coffee &  vegetarian mezze as the Shakshuka with sweet potato & pecorino cheese

Welcome to Kraftwerk Café located at the shores of the Sihl river. A cozy, urban and spacious coffee and co-working space in town that converts to a lovely restaurant in the evening. Thank you City of Zurich and Impact hub for giving us this unique place!

I am fascinated about the interior on one hand reflecting different small living room spots with lovely decoration, on the other hand there is the modern and trendy influence of these huge containers used as conference or workshop rooms. I do also love very much the coffee wall where you get explained what a real cappuccino is!

The phenomenal La Marzocco coffee machine caught a lot of my attention. The experienced barista Dario knows best how to use this wonderful machine to create my flat white. He is further in charge of the coffee selection for all coffee places within the impact hub co-work spaces. You may know him from Auer Co. close to Limmatplatz, the other coffee and co-work space managed by Impact hub.

Try the Zurich roast and a monthly changing guest coffee roast

What I love about the coffee here is that they support local Zurich Coffee from the roaster “Miro“. I had a roast with a bit of a (red) fruity, chocolate and nut taste called Serra Negra. One of my favorite ones
An other unique thing you find here: nearly every month the selection of coffee changes, so you get the chance to try a variety of guest coffee brands. This makes a coffee lover best understand the diversity of specialty coffee used around the world. You can ask Dario everything about coffee, he is happy to suggest you which coffee suites best your desire.

Not only co-work space but also a spot for lunch or dinner

The team of  Sandro Zinggeler, you may know him from Restaurant Mesa or as Sous-Chef at Restaurant Münsterhof spoiled me with excellent vegetarian mezze with a slight Asian touch. Dario Veggi is the man that prepares the dishes with his staff at Kraftwerk. He revealed to me, that he is very much inspired by Japanese cuisine. That is why my daily special came with a super fresh papaya-veggie sushi roll.

Choose out of different plates to share with your friends. My absolute favorite ones are the Shakshuka with a purée of sweet potato on the bottom and some pecorino cheese on top. I found it the perfect combination with the sweet & salty taste! Absolute to recommend, too, is the hummus made with little tahini and a delicate green vegetarian sauce called Chug.

The paprika powder comes on top and not in the hummus, I found that a good hint from Dario. Will use it next time when preparing it at home!

What else to say, try it for lunch or dinner and don’t miss space in your belly for one of their home made desserts. The cheese cake has a dependency factor 10!

Thank you for using the Lovefoodish Coffee and Food guide Zurich! Get inspired about more specialty coffee here.

Opening hours for November

Monday to Friday, 8 am until 12 pm

http://www.kraftwerk.host

My personal highlight: Watching John Baker’s staff at Stadelhofen producing my favorite chocolate croissant from scratch – all hand made and with pure love

This Zurich Foodblog story has been initiated due to my curiosity of wanting to know where products in town originate from. One morning I was having breakfast at my favorite spot Cafe Grande at Limmatquai and I saw this delicious croissant. From the outside you don’t see what expects you inside this soft and tasty pastry. A core of best Swiss Chocolate wrapped of different layers of chocolate. A real breakfast dream for me. I needed to know, who is the inventor of this delicacy! This brought me all the way to Zurich Stadelhofen, where John Baker Ltd. has its bakery shop.

Who is John Baker?

A staff of dedicated people that believe in old traditions and genuine hand made bread. They knead and shape the bread with a contagious passion and an unbeatable tempo! Jimmy and Yves are the managers of the shops. Jens Jung alias Jimmy comes from a baker’s family (Bakery Jung). He has an immense knowledge on how to make quality bread and it seems that he perfectly transferred all of this knowledge to his staff.  At Stadelhofen you get most different sorts of bread, croissants and sweet and salty baked goods as sandwiches. Another John Baker shop is at Helvetiaplatz. Here you find delicious pastries and cakes and a coffee shop to enjoy the food.

How does John Baker make the difference?

On one hand the company stands for fair paid employees and suppliers. They make no compromises when it comes to quality. The suppliers of their ingredients are all regional mostly following Demeter quality.

What means Demeter quality? It’s a production in biodynamic agriculture. This method of farming is the most sustainable of all agricultural cultivation methods. It is based on the knowledge that soil, plants, animals and humans interact in an agricultural cycle.

John Baker gets produced his own bio flour. Good quality has its price, that is why maybe paying 2.50 CHF for a croissant seems high, but I promise, the taste is worth every cent and it is following the most sustainable cycle available.
The lever (pre-dough) is set traditionally the day before and ensures a particularly pronounced, mild aroma and a good freshness in the bread. Breads at John Baker do not contain additives.

What I love is the variegated bread range. Bread with dried fruits (an unicum in whole Zurich of its kind), seasonal breads for example with speck (November special) and various whole grain, black or white breads.

Very innovative is the open working space where while buying your bakery you can see the staff acting in the bakery. Enjoy a delicious takeaway coffee from Stoll with your bread!

John delivers bread, too. If you are interested in a catering or office order, give them a call at 044 281 92 92 or drop them an john@johnbaker.ch

Last but not least: Thank you to all the John Baker staff for your amazing products. Thank you Jens, Florian, Diego and Patricia for making this happen and sharing your time with me.

SPECIAL: John Baker surprise for my community!

Christmas is coming so I think it is a lovely time to gift my community. I have a surprise for you. John Baker is holding different baking classes for bread baking, making ginger bread or christmas cookies. You can win one entrance for a class of your choice (Value 100 CHF) taking place from 25.11 -16.12.17.

What do you have to do?

• Follow me on Instagram
• Answer the following question: Which is my favorite John Baker product:
  A) Chocolate croissant
  B) Fruit bread
  C) Brownie

Send an email: marina@lovefoodish.com with the correct answer and your coordinates by November 26, 2017.

My personal highlights: Understanding that Social Media is getting more importance in the whole gastronomic branch in Switzerland (Read below why) – Tasting probably the best “Cremè Schnitte” ever prepared by the Swiss World Pastry Chef Rolf Mürner

This event is of high importance for many gastronomes in Switzerland. The Champions League of Swiss Gastronomy comes together to celebrate the winners and enjoy a relaxed ceremonious atmosphere. It’s the 14th time, that the Swiss a jury and the audience selects “Best of Swiss Gastro” winners in eight different categories and one Master category. The jury reviewed over 50’000 applications over a period of 3 months.

During the ceremony it has been pointed out several times from the jury, that offering a modern and excellent functioning website as well as active social media presence are crucial to obtain this prestigious award. I am happy to hear, that all the work we do in social media is rewarded and appreciated. People go with the trend, checking the internet before making a reservation is a common attitude nowadays.

144 gastro companies applied for the awards in the following categories:

Activity (gastronomic facilities that offer more than food abut also leisure & Sports, Bar & Lounge, Classic (typical Swiss Cuisine), Coffee, Fine Dining, International , On the move (Takeaway and self-service), Trend (innovative food concepts)

The award trophy is the famous wooden cross. This year the award night took place at Hall 622 in Zurich. Nik Hartmann, the well known and silver-tongued moderator of the Swiss Radio SRF lead just perfect through the evening. The culinary highlight for me was the dessert created by the Swiss World Pastry Chef Rolf Mürner. A dream of a vanilla cream melted on my tongue on a thin and perfectly shaped millefeuille, in between a delicious drop of strawberry jam. The dessert came accompanied by an admirable live played version of purple rain.

Who are the winners of the 8 awarded categories and who is the Master?

Every year there is a category that awards a Master. Only one nominated can reach out for this award. The “Master 2018” went to the Ristorante da Enzo in Ponte Brolla in the beautiful Ticino this year. The evening gave me chance to get an overview about many new and existing spots to discover. I absolutely want to try a truffle Kebab very soon at Ayverdis in Zurich and surely make a trip to Berne to the ice cream heroes called Eiswerkstatt.

Here all winners and category at a glance

• Activity (gastronomic facilities that offer more than food abut also leisure & Sports)
  1. Chäsalp, Zürich
  2. Restaurant Alpenblick, Arosa
  3. Restaurant Eichberg, Seengen
• Bar & Lounge
  1. Atelier Classic Bar, Thun
  2. Bar Ciani Lugano, Lugano
  3. my senses, Dübendorf
• Classic (typical Swiss Cuisine)
  1. Wilder Mann, Zürich
  2. Hirschen Stammheim, Oberstammheim
  3. Landgasthof Wartegg, Wigoltingen/Hasli
  
• Coffee
  1. Milchbar, das Gaumenfreudenhaus, Zürich
  2. Beckeria, Zürich
  3. Einstein au Jardin, Bern
• Fine Dining
  1. Ristorante da Enzo, Ponte Brolla
  2. GUSTAV, Zürich
  3. Restaurant „parkhuus“, Zürich
• International
  1. OOKI JAPANESE IZAKAYA, Zürich
  2. Portofino, Thalwil
  3. Gourmet Restaurant USAGIYAMA, Widen
• On the move (Takeaway and self-service)
  1. Eiswerkstatt, Bern
  2. Geschmacksträger, St. Gallen
  3. Zapote, Californian Burritos & Salads, Zürich
• Trend (innovative food concepts)
  1. SMITH and de LUMA, Zürich
  2. Zur Werkstatt, Luzern
  3. AYVERDI’S, Zürich

Congratulations to all the winners. I am happy to have new food places in Switzerland to discover soon and add them on the Lovefoodish foodguide.

Food Matters, where and why?

In this story my goal is to give you an overview of sustainable food projects going on in the city of Zurich. Do you know a project to share? Drop me a line !

Cuisine sans frontières – Kitchen battle for a good aim!

I found about this project just by case. I participated as a volunteer the first time in 2014 and I am back here this year. The idea to support a humanitarian project by filming Swiss Chefs live on a stage fascinated me immediately when I heard about kitchenbattle.

Who stands behind Kitchen battle?
This gastro event organized by the association “Cuisine sans Frontière” is the food event highlight in autumn. Chefs bring their whole team on the stage to cook with the aim to have fun and gather donations to support a humanitarian project.

For example the refugee camp of Burj el Barajneh is situated south of the Lebanese capital of Beirut. Cuisine sans frontières offers simple gastronomic training to groups of women refugees. They learn about work in a gastronomic environment, preserving foodstuffs, preparing a balanced menu plan as well as the basics of business administration. More information about the actual projects CSF are available here.

What happens at Kitchen battle ?

A selected group of best local restaurants prepare a 4 course menu live on the stage 3 days in a row. The event takes place in Basel, Bern, Lucerne and Zurich. The teams get a defined seasonal box of fresh food following a topic (Nose to tail, Farm to table for example) They don’t know before what expects them. Their creativity has no limits to prepare dishes that get judged by a jury and the attending guests. In order to attend the event as a guest it’s best to get a member, you have privileged registration possibilities to the event. Find all information here.
The winner of the cooking series is rewarded with the Kitchen Battle trophy. The ambience at this event is very entertaining and relaxed. It’s fascinating to see the Chefs rushing from one plate to the other.

Get involved with Cuisine sans Frontière

Cooking and eating together improves quality of life: conversations take place, relationships are built and problems approached. These everyday experiences are the base of Cuisine sans Frontières activities.
Convinced? Join one of the events next year!

Ässbar in Zurich, St. Gallen and Bern – Foodwaste was yesterday, here we get fresh bakery from yesterday, because Food matters!

We are all striving for a healthy living and we consider choices to make sure that our environment gets protected.
Did you know that 1/3 of all Swiss food lands in the waste? This was reason enough for a group of food-conscious people to create the project called Ässbar.

In cooperation with various local bakeries, products and patisseries are sold at a very discounted price at their own shops or by a food truck. For big events they offer home delivery! Try it! The one in Zurich is located in the Niederdorf.

www.aess-bar.ch

Eat in, a meetup table for foodies in Zurich organized by the association Slow Food Youth Schweiz

Mark every first Wednesday of the month big in your calendar! This is when all the foodies meet on a big round table to eat together. Location varies from time to time. Since foodies care about what they eat at the event you recognize the emphasis is put on bringing something self prepared or even a rarity that cannot be found in every shop. What comes together here is enchanting and delicious! The conversations inspiring, variety of food and lots of actual food themes. The association always reports about ongoing projects and offer ways to contribute or support the association.

Who is Slowfood Youth ?

An association of an international network of young people setting themselves the goal of paying attention to the origin of food. In addition, the organization wants to sensitize people to a better food future. Slow Food Youth operates predominantly on a regional level. There are cantonal or international projects, too. Show-up and enjoy! The main table is accessible to all, you can register on an e-mailing list, then you always get news on events.

www.slowfoodyouth.ch

My personal highlight: Feeling Princess for a day in a magical surrounding – discovering how premium coffee is perfectly combined in haut cuisine at Dolder Grand

Sometimes little dreams get closer faster than you think. It’s not everyone’s budget to have dinner or lunch at the famous “The Restaurant” located in the The Dolder Grand in Zurich. But as we know, absolute superb class has its price!

Thanks to the very special gourmet series of Nespresso called “Nespresso Gourmet Weeks” in cooperation with 25 Haut Cuisine Chefs preparing delicacies all over Switzerland. You can enjoy extraordinary food for lunch (70 CHF excl. drinks) or dinner (120 CHF excl. drinks). Coffee is included of course. The Gourmet Week has is its fifth anniversary this year. They are going on from Oct. 29 until November 19, 2017. Get more information here.

A challenge accepted by all Chefs, a promise of originality, precision and exquisite presentation true to each individual establishment.

Food is art: What Heiko Nieder Chef at “The Restaurant” at The Dolder Grand presented to us

We start with a series of various little appetizers. Its presentation is just wonderful. Many tiny little perfectly arranged bites that prepare your stomach to the next course. We get seasonal veggies as pumpkin in a mini wrap  with an explosion of different flavors. I absolutely loved the salty cone with truffle mozzarella.

• The first course is a Seafood-Bouillon with Grand Cru Indriya from India, Banana and Rucola.
  Indriya is a coffee with a spicy and aromatic aroma. Taste some pepper and nutmeg notes and a touch of ginger and curcuma out of it.
• We continue with the second course, a Veal with Grand Cru Livanto, a classical coffee blend. This veal is super tender and probably slow cooked for a while. It comes with a nice bed of carrots and home made bread with lemon and mustard butter. The aroma of the blend Livanto reminds me some caramelized notes.
• A grand sweet finale: A coconut-namelaka with Grand Cru Cosi. A bed of exotic fruits, herbs and flowers make this dessert delicate, refreshing and so much enjoyable.
  The aroma of the blend Cosi is a light roast and has some fruity notes.

We could not end our lunch without getting served a dream of chocolate and biscuits all hand made paired with a delicious espresso.

Thank you nespresso and The Dolder grand for this unforgettable experience!

My personal highlight: Understanding that Japanese Curry is a real traditional food cooked at home, it brings the family together at one table

I am glad I found this cute little Japanese Takeaway in Zurich. It is located at Stauffacherstrasse 101 very close to Langstrasse. The place is a real Japanese bijou. Stepping inside the typical fancy Japanese Design stands out. Their charactere named “putput” is a cute chick in the manga style. You can admire it all around the shop. There are fancy putput objects as home made mugs or bags to purchase, too.

The owner Nao Shirato explains to me, that the food they serve is inspired by the recipes of her grandmother. That’s Japanese cuisine her family used to eat at home.

The curry base is a home made paste. Its taste is not comparable to a spicy Indian curry with coconut milk. I found this curry mild, thicker in the consistency.  The Potato inside where fingerlicking, a real value to my curry experience.

The choice of menu is simple. Different menus are available for vegetarians and non.

Try the super tasty home made Japanese Curry (veggie or chicken), the Gyudon bowl with beef, the Onigri (rice sandwich with meat, fish or veggie) or different buns filled with veggies, meat or azuki (sweet beans).  The home made ice tea is recommendable, too.
The miso soup tastes very authentic and comes with the main dish if you like. Choose the salad instead if this doesn’t match your choice.

Menu are available for 11.5o – 15.50 CHF. Get a bun for 6 CHF,  Gyudon 13.50-15.50 CHF, Onigiri 5.50 CHF

Opening hours

Monday 11:30 — 14:00
Tuesday — Friday 11:30 — 21:00
Saturday 14:00 — 21:00

http://putput.ch/