Delectables @ Confiserie Sprüngli, Zurich

Last April, we were in Zurich for the first part of our epic European trip, and because I had been so busy and occupied with packing up 7.5 years of life in Hong Kong for our big move to Melbourne, hubby was in charge of the itinerary for Zurich. It was no surprise then that come lunch time, sweet-toothed hubby would lead us to Confiserie Sprüngli, a Swiss luxury confectionery manufacturer. This is the same Sprüngli as the world-famous Swiss chocolate brand Lindt (short for Lindt & Sprüngli), sharing the same founding father. This location at Paradeplatz is the confectionery company's headquarters, and upstairs is a cafe and restaurant, apparently a traditional meeting place for the elderly ladies of Zurich's upper class. It is a popular option for lunch, and hubby had the foresight to book a table in advance for us so we did not have to wait. Service was pleasant and efficient, and the menu had a nice variety of food. Our lunch experience at Confiserie Sprüngli was lovely, and even the pickiest eater in our family enjoyed the food.

On the ground level of Confiserie Sprüngli is the bakery. We had a brief walk-through, and the offerings were much the same as the branch we visited in the main train station:

The upper level is the cafe and restaurant space:

Big girl wanted pasta, so she got the kids' tagliatelle, with a separate container of cheese for her to add to her heart's content:

The boy and I shared the Club Sandwich Classic, with chicken, ham, fried egg, tomato, salad and mayonnaise:

My mum ordered the Pan-fried Halibut with tomato risotto and sauteed spring onions:

Hubby's eyes were on the Sprüngli puff pastries, and chicken was the meat filling of the day:

From the display cabinet, hubby selected two desserts: a streuselkuchen (crumb cake) with mixed berries filling...

... and a chocoladen-kuss (chocolate kiss):

Within the chocolate coating for the chocoladen-kuss, was cake with a custard-like filling:

We visited the shop branch at the main train station when we first arrived in Zurich, and bought a few things to try. There were plenty of delectable-looking delights:

A whole display cabinet filled with chocolate truffles:

The bunnies were a special edition of the traditional zopf bread. Such a nice introduction to zopf, and I became slightly obsessed with zopf, buying a loaf whenever I could even after leaving Switzerland and Austria:

The famed Luxemburgerli, Sprüngli's signature mini macarons, of various flavours and a cream filling. These are lighter than the traditional macarons, and smaller, which makes it easy to eat a few of them in one sitting!

Confiserie Sprüngli [Paradeplatz]
Bahnhofstrasse 21
8001 Zurich
Switzerland
Tel. +41 44 224 46 16

Cheesy lunch @ Raclette Factory, Zurich

Hubby was in charge of the itinerary for our first day in Zurich, and he led us to Raclette Factory for lunch. This casual diner offers the Swiss specialty of raclette in tapas-style portions at the counter, giving the opportunity to try out the different cheeses on offer. The menu was simple, offering some raclette classics, three varieties of tarte flambée and what they call 'raclette tapas' where you can choose two or more cheeses (including blue, goat, sheep and truffle) to go with your choice of sides (potatoes, bread, or mashed potatoes) and additional toppings (ham, bacon or sausage). There was also the all-you-can-eat option, which would be a great option for cheese-lovers! Raclette Factory was a good kid-friendly choice for lunch, and needless to say, the kids enjoyed the food very much.

The interior in wood and bright red is very Swiss in design:

Raclette Heidi, a classic with raclette cheese, potatoes, pickled onions and pickles:

One of the raclette specialties with sausages to appeal more to the little ones:

The Original Tarte Flambée with crème fraîche, onions and bacon:

Raclette Factory
Rindermarkt 1
8001 Zürich
Switzerland
Tel. +41 44 261 04 10

Beautiful Zurich

I'm finally sorting through my photos of our epic trip in Europe earlier this year. Still amazed that we managed to cover 12 cities and towns in 5 countries, a total of 2400km in 28 days, with 3 kids in tow! This also happened in the middle of relocating from Hong Kong to Australia, which in itself was already a huge challenge! Our first stop in Europe was Zurich, as it's the only city in Switzerland we can fly non-stop from Hong Kong. We arrived very early in the morning, and we spent the first morning walking around the town before we could check in to our accommodation. We joined a free walking tour the next day to discover more of the city. Zurich is beautiful, with plenty of gorgeous photo opportunities of the lake and the Alps. We were there only two nights before we moved on to the Swiss Alps!

The clean streets of Zurich:

I love the clean straight lines of the architecture, with St Peter's clock tower in the background. This clock tower has the largest tower clock face in Europe:

A view of Grossmunster, a Romanesque-style Protestant church:

The two towers of Grossmunster, Lake Zurich and the Alps in one view:

Even if I lived here, I would not get tired of this view of the lake and the Swiss Alps (click on image for larger view):

Fun entertainment on the streets:

Our lovely tour guide brought us to this fountain in front of a restaurant with historical significance, to inform us that all fountains in Zurich supply drinkable water. This particular fountain, on special occasions held at the restaurant, supplies wine for the guests:

The inner courtyard of the Fraumunster Church:

Beautiful wall painting at the Fraumunster:

The prominent clock tower of St Peter's is visible from many parts of downtown Zurich:

A view of the city from a high point:

Facing towards the Alps:

Stay tuned for more on Europe!