My personal highlight: I always find some new red Spanish Redwines. I absolutely love their soft and crispy croquetas

Spanish tapas

My favorite tapas bar is in Wiedikon close to Idaplatz at Ämtlerstrasse 86.

The tapas are just delicious.  The tapas I like most are crispy soft fried croquetas or an outstanding avocado tatar. Order some real good Spanish red wine. Or try some of their local Spanish craft beers. So no need traveling to Spain for celebrating a tapas night!
Book Tapas & Friends for a catering or attend one of their cooking classes.

www.tapasandfriends.ch

My personal highlight: Pasta with salsiccia, it’s like being down at the bottom of the heel

This is a restaurant to eat excellent pasta or typical traditional Italian food from the southern region of Italy. My favorite pasta there is the pasta rigatoni with salsiccia.

In the main sala called “sala rosa” the restaurant has an enomat. Here you can select out of a variety of wines from Italy and Switzerland. It’s kind of fancy to hold your glass under a machine and fill it by yourself. Salute!

Make your own choice. The place is at Zeughausstrasse 61.

www.ristorante-italia.ch

My personal highlight: 14 Gault Millau points and a majestic view over the Zurich Lake

When it comes to restaurants overlooking Zurich lake and the alps the choice is limited, this is why I highly recommend this secret gem! Visit Belvoir Restaurant & Grill where head Chef Pascal Kleber and the absolute warm and friendly staff spoil their guests in a wonderfully relaxed ambience only about 10 min. from Zurich. Its cuisine focuses on local products from the surrounding areas as well as international dishes. The menu is healthy and creative and represents an absolutely high-quality fine dining concept. Be prepared to enjoy colourful plates with pleasure for the eyes and palate.

Our menu at a glance

Starters: St. Pierre Ceviche – Mirabelle – Jasmin rice – Lemon balm & Chicken terrine potatoes – Mango – fresh herbs

First courses: Oranges – Rosmarin tortellini, Cima di Rapa – onions – Parmesan &  roasted scallops, carrots – coconut – cauliflower

Second Courses: Mey Selections – Rib Eye from the grill & Black Angus Beef filet from the grill paired with Truffle risotto – mushrooms – Chimichurri

Dessert: Pina Colada 2.0,  spiced pineapple – iced coconut mousse – mint sponge & Fig with berries, fig mousse – oatmeal cookie – raspberry sorbet

Our wine: an excellent red drop from Portugal-Alicante: Carlos Reynolds, Bousschet, Aragonez, Alfrocheiro, Tricadeira

Address:

Hotel Belvoir, Säumerstrasse 37, 8803 Zurich/Rüschlikon – Phone: +41 44 723 83 83, INFO@HOTEL-BELVOIR.CH – www.hotel-belvoir.ch

A special thank you goes to Matej that joined my dinner and created the fantastic pictures to best present you with an idea of the experience!
Get in touch with Matej Serer @matejerer@gmail.com, if you like to know more about his photography projects!

Find more Lovefoodish recommendations here.

My personal highlight: Choose by your own the piece of meat that comes on the charcoal grill and join Manager Dominik in the wine cellar to get the wine of your choice!

What if you get access to the kitchen and have the unique opportunity to taste the menu with the staff before it is officially available for the guests? I said yes and joined the team at Restaurant Coco Grill & Bar on a rainy Monday in Zurich close to Paradeplatz!
What makes this place special is the direct interaction between the staff and the Chef. You choose directly the wine and piece of meat you’d like to have prepared!

The menu changes ever week at Coco’s and is rich of fresh seasonal ingredients and stays a surprise until it is served on your plate!

The ambience at Coco’s reminds me of an ancient idyllic boat, decorated with lovely maritime items all over the restaurant.

Dominik the manager welcomes me to the restaurant with fresh homemade apple aperitivo and introduces me to the staff that is hungry waiting to taste the menu of the week. Chef Patrick Frischknecht (before at Eleven Madison Park, New York) explains to me the week’s menu consisting of 5 courses including a Swiss Fish (Belper Quellwasser) or juicy cuts of beef or veal, some seasonal vegetables such as for example beetroot or celery hand made “Schupfnudeln” and waffles as a dessert. Coco Grill is famous for its charcoal grill, so watch out for their meat or fish!

The garden outside invites you to have a gorgeous tasty plate and a glass of wine for example with homemade spreads such as hummus or grilled veggies and meat!

Say yes if Dominik invites you to discover their wine cellar!

Find different wines from Switzerland, Spain, Italy or France for example that pair well with your menu! Choose it by yourself in the cellar located in the sous-soul of the restaurant. The cellar can be rented for private small events! Get more here.

Visit Coco for your lunch break, business dinner or a friend’s night! The food is the Mediterranean with a personal touch from Chef Patrick!

Address: Coco Grill & Bar, Bleicherweg 1A, am Paradeplatz, 8001 Zürich, Telefon: +41 44 211 98 98

Opening hours: Monday – Friday 11.00 – 15.00 and 17.00 – 24.00 Uhr
Saturday 17.30 – 00.30

In the mood for more food inspiration? Get them on my food guide!

http://www.restaurant-coco.ch

My personal highlight: A firework of flavors on the top of Pizza Vesuvio Gold made from the Pizza Champion 2018 Capuozzo

Once you start looking for good food there is no way out. Gladly my friends support me in the research of new spots in town, that is how I came across this new Pizzeria & Restaurant called Na081 located at Konradstrasse 71 between Mainstation and Limmatplatz. If you never made it to Napoli, never mind, now you find a precious slice of this mediterranean pearl in Zurich.

A pizzeria where you feel the real Neapolitan food and life culture

Entering the door I followed the beautiful soul vibes from the unique Neapolitan Singer Pino Daniele. His words throw me back to my summer holidays in Italy. You need to check his songs! Pino has a high and soft voice unique of its kind and he plays wonderful guitar!

The smiling and singing staff with the authentic easygoing and hearty Italian way invites to take a seat and start the culinary experience!

My first question to the owner Paolo: what means NA081?
NA is the car registration no. for Napoli, 081 the phone prefix of Napoli.

The ambience at the restaurant is easy and relaxed. Find carefully selected, regional ingredients and selected premium products from Italian delicacy factories. Here you get original Bufala Mozzarella, warm and cold appetizers from the region, seafood and of course the traditional Napoli Pizza made by the Pizza World Champion named Capuozzo.

I suggest to also try the variety of dishes they offer for lunch. Following NA081 on facebook makes you super hungry every time you log in.

My culinary experience – signature dishes to recommend

We got to try starters typically from the Campania region as Polpette al Sugo as nonna used to make them. Millefoglie di Melanzana or Freselle Primavera with fresh ricotta cheese mousse and grilled vegetables. It’s hardly to find these appetizer somewhere else in town!

As mains: Cozze and Vongole with a perfectly prepared boiled Polipo on top, Purple Potato Gnocchi with eggplants and calamari also a delight for the eyes. The dishes came paired with delicious wines from the Vesuvio region.

Pizza Vesuvio Gold – Campione del mondo 2018

This Pizza lead Capuozzo to win the Pizza World Championship in the category “pizza classica” this year.

Vesuvio Gold comes with sweet sour yellow cherry tomatoes, ricotta di bufala, provala affumicata, grana padano, pancetta and some tarallo sbriciolato! If you prefer a classical pizza, go for the marinara pizza with only fresh tomato sauce that is prepared à la minute.

Sitting in the restaurant you can observe on a giant screen how the pizza is prepared live.

The prices are in super relation for what you get. Starters as of 9.50 CHF, Pizza as of 19.50 CHF

Opening hours: Monday – Friday: 11:00 – 14:00 / 18:00 – 00:00, Saturday: 18:00 – 00:00, Sunday: 18:00 – 00:00

Address:  NA081, Konradstrasse 71, CH-8005 Zürich

www.na081.ch

My personal highlight: Throwback to my roots and traditions from Calabria discovering a cozy place in Kreis 4, Zurich

The food discoveries in Zurich continue covering restaurants that offer Italian Cuisine from the south. After traditional food from Puglia in May it’s time to move more south towards the heel of the Italian boot. Calabria!

This is the region where I was born, here is where my heart gets emotional.

What food specialities is Calabria famous for?

Extra-virgin olive oil, wines, bergamot liqueurs, peperoncino and jams from Calabria are incomparable. One world famous delicacy is the red onion called Cipolla rossa di Tropea which is mild and a bit sweeter than other varieties. Another speciality is the Nduja. A paste consisting of noble pork meat, fresh cream of red hot chili pepper and extra virgin olive oil.

Chianalea is a place in Reggio Calabria. A pearl where the beaches are turquoise and small fisher houses make you feel remote from the world. Enrico is the owner of the Ristorante Chianalea in Kreis 4. He ist the perfect Calabrian host and cook when it comes to make your soul and belly happy. The ingredients are simple with a genuine taste. All is hand made, so the sweet sour peperoncino jam on the bruschetta or the eggplant pickles.

Experience food & entertainment at Chianalea. The music is on, the staff moves dynamic from table to table. Find a uncomplicated and homy ambience. The path of Enrico’s journey since he came to Zurich is displayed everywhere in the restaurant on beautiful pictures and articles. His love for food & Italy is obvious.

The only restaurant in Zurich where the owner shouts through the megaphone to tell you to lower the voice and enjoy the silence for a moment

Enrico doesn’t shy to remind you by shouting into his megaphone to slow down and relax. He loves to communicate with his guests. Making jokes is an easy way to remind that life is simple! I fall in love with the story he shared driving with his fiancé on a Vespa from Zurich to Sicily!

Signature dishes at Chianalea Restaurant

Enjoy a traditional antipasto plate to share. It’s the best way to get introduced to the culture of Calabria. As a second plate try their pasta with tomato sauce and pork salsiccia. The daily menu varies. Find fish or meat with side dishes as grilled seasonal vegetables. The wine selection is from Calabria, too. Absolutely to recommend is the fruity bit dry red wine called Scilla IGT rosso from criserà.

The pizza is worth trying, too! To end your dinner order a typical digestif called Vecchio amaro del Calabro. This is the moment when you finally should fee a bit Calabrese! It’s a must! Curious to experience it by yourself? Make a reservation here.

The prices are in super relation for what you get. Starters as of 8.50 CHF, main dishes with pasta as of 24 Chf.

Address: 

Chianalea, Brauerstrasse 87, 8004 Zürich

Opening hours: 

Monday – Friday: 11.30-14.00 & 18.00-24.00 Saturday: 18.00-24.00

www.chianalea.ch

My personal highlight: Traditional Neapolitan Pizza – I am happy I have found you crispy & wood fired

Living in Zurich is absolutely a privilege. The choice of international food is diverse, you don’t get annoyed so fast. Nevertheless, it took me a while to find a pizza place, that makes the pizza according to my desire and demand.

How a pizza should be if you ask my opinion

The pizza bottom thin and crispy, but slightly chewy on top, the tomato sauce fresh, ideally with San Marzano tomatoes grown in the rich volcanic soil. The cheese only premium Italian Quality Fior di Latte. It’s a second variant of mozzarella created using fresh cow’s milk. The alternative that can be used is Mozzarella di Bufala from the Campania region. This is made by using the fresh milk of water buffalos. Other cheeses do not belong on top of a pizza!

How to recognize the difference: the mozzarella melts and the Fior di Latte forms a string,

I have found a pizza following my requirements at Ristorante Più located at Kasernenstrasse 95 / Europaallee in the old Sihlpost. The restaurant belongs to the well-known family Bindella offering traditional Italian cuisine in several restaurant in Switzerland.

Talking to one of their Managers Davide Di Salvo made me immediately understand, that important ingredients are passion and care in the selection of every single ingredient. He shares with me the secret of the Fior di Latte used on their pizza. I prefer Fior di Latte on the pizza, since it is less fat than typical mozzarella and makes my stomach not fill full after the meal. The dough they prepare at Più gets enough time to rest, at least 48 hours, this makes the dough ideal to digest.

Did you know, that the art of Neapolitan pizza making has joined UNESCO’s list of “intangible heritage”?

The Pizzaiolo team is from South Italy of course, I feel home sharing stories about food and observing them creating the magic that comes in a approx. 400 degrees heated wood fired oven. After only 3 minutes the pizza is crispy and ready for me. The ambience at Più is typical Italian. The building is spacious, stylish and with true Italian vibes. I feel happy here!

Choose between two basic pizza and create your individual one!

In the mood to choose by yourself what comes on your pizza? Try this concept at Più: order between the Marinara pizza (tomato sauce, garlic, oregano) and the Margherita (tomato sauce, fior di latte, basil) as the base. Get toppings to share with your friends. Grilled vegetables, parmesan cheese slices, bresaola, fresh tuna or rucola for example.

Try their antipasto with the burrata and the pane carasau. It is a unique, very thin crispy bread you would only get 1000 Km far away on a Sardinian Island! An absolute must. The matching aperitivo is the Apertas, it has some Aperol, lime juice and a cortese cedrata made of a very special Italian Lemon sort.

Do you like to enjoy a quality pizza to go, try their area next to the main restaurant. The pizza is smaller of course, costs start as of 9 CHF (marinara). In the main restaurant Pizza start as of 22 CHF (Pizza dello Chef with ham and champignons)

Soon I will be exploring their other branch at Schiffbau that has been recommended to me to be a unique place for other true Italian dishes.

Address: Kasernenstrasse 95, 8004 Zürich

Opening hours: Monday – Thursday:  11.30–14.30 / 17.30–23.30 uhr , Friday: 11.30–14.30 / 17.30–24 .00,  Saturday: 11.30–24.00, Sunday: 11.30–23.00

In the mood of more restaurants in Zurich? Get inspiration on my food guide here.

www.piu-ristorante.ch

My personal highlight: The serving staff is there to make you feel home – don’t be surprised if Mamma Pina sits next to you for a chat after the meal

Welcome to Puglia in Zurich. Here is the place to enjoy fresh and handmade pasta, pesce, carne & dolci.

Caffè e Ristorante Mandarino is located at the train station Stadelhofen. Bindella created a temporary space for lovers of the Puglia Cuisine. A typical sort of pasta served are orecchiette (means little ears). This pasta comes best with veggies, either broccoli or cime di rapa. Find Meat and Fish made after traditional recipes, too. I had some delicious stuffed calamares with bread, red wine and black olives!

The interior of the restaurant is simple and arranged with much love. The porcelain used to serve the meals has been hand selected in a little village in Puglia from the Bindella Manager Davide and perfectly reflects the tradition of eating pasta with the family. A wonderful antique hand-painted portrait from the 1800 showing a madonna from Puglia gives a special touch to the living room ambience.

Where the mamma chats to you and food is served with passion

Don’t be surprised if the food is served directly from the pot into your plate, or if the Mama sits next to you for a lovely chat. The uncomplicated and very family like ambience here makes this place adorable and very unique.

Enjoy a lunch menu or dinner with best wines from Puglia. Maybe you prefer a piece of hand made cake with a coffee! Convince yourself! Make a reservation here.

Address: mandarino, Kreuzbühlstrasse 1, 8008 Zürich

Opening hours:
Caffè: Mo – Fr,  07.00 – 23.00 Uhr,  Sa – So   09.00 – 23.00 Uhr
Ristorante: Mo – So   11.30 – 14.00 Uhr / 18.00 – 23.00 Uhr

www.mandarino-zurigo.ch

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: 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