This place hooked me with the relaxed Mastatqe and old European chanson they DJ on old LPs. But…read morethey keep me with the amazing food. On Mondays they have guest chefs and a broader menu but always have almost a dozen classic Sicilian standards through the week. The kitchen status open quite late. We regularly come for dinner after 10, ebben 11 at night. The polpette al sugo is an explosion of flavour. Tender meatballs with flavours of raisin and thyme, four big ones will fill you, covered in a fresh tomato sauce. By far my favorite dish. Pasta and gnocchi also amazing. Salvia butter sauce or tomato. Ideal for couples or very small groups given the intimate setting.

Vineria Centrale is that cozy and authentic Italian place you want to visit in Zurich. On one of…read morethe hippest streets - Neugasse - Vineria Centrale is a small and intimate place to enjoy a glass of wine, some antipasti and a conversation with friends. Watch out for their wine and dine events published on their Facebook page. They also do all you can eat antipasti on select Mondays.

Maybe not the cosiest place in town, but I like the house wines for three Franks. Changing every…read morenow and then. Additionally they offer a high quality selection of bottled wine for reasonable prices. Maybe the best ones in Zurich. Vivid bar scenery and changing exhibitions of erotic art, more or less inspiring, depending on your preferences or curiosity.

Fantastic place. Cheapest wine in town in a crazy funky setting (not for prudes, there's lots of…read moreporn images on the walls). Interesting mix of clientele, low income locals, arty and hippy types and youngsters. Nice outside area for the summer.

Even if on their website they say "we are not a Spanish restaurant", they are :-) according to my…read morefriend who comes from Ibiza. This restaurant is specialized with wine and tapas. I have to say that the wine selection is great. We had a wine from Portugal (which is funny for a Spanish place). We actually had more then one bottle, and we loved it ( please note that the alcohol didn't influenced us). One of my friend who's a wine "connaisseur" simply fell in love with it. The variety of Tapas is also very good. We basically ordered, with our eyes, which was more then what we could really eat! It was really good. The meat balls were a bit dry according to my Spanish friend but the rest was excellent. The good thing is, if you just want a small snack you can. If you want full dinner you also can! Basically "yes we can" ;-) Please if you like Tapas, give this restaurant a try. The service is good and the food as well. Price wise it's not cheap but I think it's worth it.

Loved this place! Raif, one of the hosts, was about as friendly and accommodating as one could hope…read morefor. Speaks perfect English, among other languages, and made some great recommendations. I highly recommend this place as the food in Zurich is hit or miss. I'd definitely go back. Thanks Raif!

We had a great dinner here during an overnight at the Townhouse Hotel across the street. Good wine,…read moreexcellent food, great service. Highly recommended. Reservations suggested for dinner, especially in the winter when you don't want to sit outside.

Great wine bar, cozy environment close to the train station. Has tables outside as well as a…read morelounge area in the back. Also has appetizers and entrées

I just visited this establishment this evening and couldn't be more repulsed at the horrible…read moreservice provided here. As soon as my husband and I walked in looking for a drink after our dinner, I felt a 'locals only' vibe and we got looks from everyone in the bar. It almost felt as if they had already closed, based on the look I was getting from the two women behind the bar, so I asked - they said they were closing at 10 pm (45 minutes later) and are no longer serving dinner. I told them we didn't need food, but asked if they had a menu for the wine, to which they looked at me like I was crazy and then pointed to 4 bottles sitting on the top of the bar with no prices, no description of the bottles they were poring. They also pointed to the wall as well. That was it - nothing else, no explanation further. Why on earth would I spend my money here? We immediately left and went to Drinx Bar up the street, with which we were very pleased. Such an awful representation of the kind service we've received elsewhere in Zurich.

5 stars?? Jaaaa, genau! Not only does this place have great…read morefood, but it also has the "cool factor." What is that, exactly? They are only open for lunch. They only serve water or wine. They only have two options each day. When you dine in, they ask you if you want a second serving...! When you dive out, the price goes down...! The price is much lower than the competition, (competition being every other random Italian restaurant in Zurich) and the interior decor has a rugged-chic feel. I love it. The first time I ate there I had a pasta with mushroom, beef, random veggies, and cream. It was nothing I would normally go for and it was uh-mazing. The second time I got my food to-go which cost me 3 francs less and it was a penne with bolognese. :) Bolognese is hands down my favorite food ever and this wasn't any different, absolutely amazing. I don't even know what else to say. Love it. Go try it. Boopideebapee! (that is the extent of my italian)

Four of us came for a weeknight dinner. We shared two starter salads and ordered four pastas and…read morefour glasses of wine. The total for the dinner was 180 CHF. I cite this figure in order to give potential diners some idea of what a dinner at MASI will cost. (The price is actually more or less average for this area of Zürich; things don't come cheap in this town.) We spoke mostly English (and some German) to our server and had little problem with communication. Dinner was okay but we had more fun at Più, which is cheaper and more informal.

I have to say, we had a brilliant dinner at the Masi last Friday. The evening began with a very…read morefriendly welcome - as if we were visiting good friends or family. Italianità at its best. Then... dinner: Someone is putting a lot of love and care into their work in the kitchen. We had a buttery smooth and delicate tartar of beef with truffle shavings, which matched perfectly. Then I had pappardelle al ragù, with a beautifully flavourful sauce and obviously freshly-made pasta (cooked just right), and my wife had scampi on a risotto base. Both total conversation-stoppers, as we both concentrated on enjoying the dishes. The main was a fish dish for my wife (which she said was also excellent) and a fantastic tournedos-style beef fillet for me, cooked exactly as I asked.(which seldom happens). We both shared risotto which managed to hit the sweet spot between the individual grains still having a lovely texture and still be light and creamy, without feeling at all heavy. Damn - I wish my risotto would work out like that! Dessert was just a fabulous. I read Andrea's review (in German), and I have to say, things have changed. Andrea: Give Masi's another try. You won't be disappointed. I know I have a new favourite restaurant in Zurich. And Masi's has a new fan.

If you're staying in Old Town Zürich you'll immediately see a massive divide in price from very…read morereasonable to astronomically high for luxury - this is a moment to lean towards the thrifty side. EVERYTHING in Zurich is very nice including the discount hotels. For three nights we spent, in total, 403 CHF or ($446 USD) and the LOCATION was steps away from every restaurant, shop, and historical church you wanted to peruse. In addition to the great location, the hotel was charming, the room was clean, the windows had a view, and the heat worked - maybe a little too we'll, but more about that later. So, unless you have business in Zurich and your sole purpose is to tour around this charming; luxurious city, stay at the Hotel Hirschen where next door you can eat buckets of cheese to your hearts content, and then some, and in 3 days leave with your monogrammed Victorinox and appreciation for millennia old monasteries feeling confident anything more would be repetitive. And, hopefully, you kept an extra 100+ CHF per night in your pocket by staying at this hotel where the sole reason I'm not giving a 5th star is the shower will scald you if a neighboring room decides to flush their toilet but a quick morning exercise in reflexes for over 100 CHF is a game I'll play every chance I am offered!

We had a last minute change of plans and my original hotel in Zurich had no availability for the…read morenew dates. Hirschen was the only one that seemed acceptable by location and I hoped that it would turn out to be better than the 7 rating on the booking sites. Well the moment you arrive you understand why it's not rated any higher. Another reviewer described it as shabby and that's the most fitting one word description of this place. From the entrance (hard to find) to the lobby (non existent) to the room (tiny and dark) I kept thinking, is this place really charging me close to $300 a night? Unfortunately yes. No elevator from street entrance to reception so if you have heavy luggage be forewarned. Dark and shabby reception area. Room is clean enough but tiny without much lighting and shortage of wall outlets. No aircon just a table fan - which is good and must be used or you'll suffocate in the July heat. Except then you won't be able to plug in the fridge because there aren't enough outlets. Bed is very soft - you'll get a backache if staying more than one night. Shower is the size of one person with a wraparound curtain which will keep being stuck on you while showering. The only thing going for the hotel of course is the perfect location. It's right in old town, and about a half km from the train station, surrounded by restaurants and walkable to everywhere. The cold breakfast (optional whether included in the room) in the only bright room next to the reception is adequate with cereal, cheese, cold cuts, some veggies/fruits and pastries. You can also boil your own eggs to preference in the boiler which is a plus. Hotels in Zurich are supposed to provide a free transportation card for guests for the trams etc but this place doesn't.

Some of the best pasta we've had in Europe outside Italy. My SO said it was better than the pasta…read morewe've had many times in Milano which I don't know if I'd agree with but it's def very very good. The antipasti looked ok, consisting of a page of calamari salad, pulpo, Aubergine baked in tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, and so on. We opted to split 3 pastas and the classic cacio e Pepe was great--perfectly al dente with lots of cheese and pepper. The rigatoni was my favorite with a kick and delicious crispy small strips of pancetta. The tonarelli carbonara with truffles was good but we were so full at that point, we couldn't eat more than a couple bites, which was shocking given that the portions aren't enormous. Each pasta dish is 25-29 CHF but that's Zurich prices...they didn't have a wine list which was a bit confusing. The gracious waiter explained the wines by the glass and what bottles they had available depending on your preferences. We chose a 2012 Montepulciano that was bold and delicious. A neighboring guest ordered steak which looked amazing and we were too full for dessert or coffee but ok sure they are tasty. They have a restaurant in Rome and Milan, and an Italian colleague of ours who's from Rome recommended this restaurant to us. The whole wait staff was Italian and very sweet and attentive without being overbearing. We saw Mrs. Luciana who I believe is the head chef and owner. But there were other staff (family?) members and friends hanging around the side of the outdoor seating or by the entrance in plain clothes but we didn't mind because they were quiet/respectful. All the guests there were dining outside because it was still warm at even 8-9pm and they have great outdoor seating. The neighborhood is pretty barren, mostly residential, so very quiet but nice. Overall a reliable upscale dinner that would be considered extremely nice in NYC based on prices and decor but this is Zurich, Switzerland so you know the drill! You can make a reservation on their website: http://www.restaurantcacioepepe.ch/restaurant

The customer service is impeccable. Everything is delicious, it's worth it. Excellent foodread more

Fantastic meal! In the old town but slightly off the main tourist zone, and they have some unique…read moreand delicious dishes. We had the Gazpacho with Scallops, the Tofu Cutlets, and the "South Tyrolean Schlutzkrapfe" -- every bite was thoroughly enjoyed and it was a good break from the usual potato & cheese swiss dishes we've been having for most of our trip. Service was excellent too, highly recommended!