#31 | Kronenhalle, Zurich, Switzerland
Last Visit: December 2023
100 years. An entire century. Let that sink in. In 1924, Lenin died at the beginning of the year, Hoover became director of the FBI and later in the year, the first (multi-leg) round-the-world flight of an airplane ended successfully in Seattle. And in the midst of all this, Hulda and her husband Gottlieb Zumsteg acquired the run-down Hôtel de la Couronne on Zurich's Bellevue and opened a restaurant in the location that same year, down-to-earth but always of high quality.
This was followed in 1965 by the classic American Bar, which we are talking about today, and about which similar things can be said. Both became absolute Zurich institutions in their own right and were known far beyond the country's borders, with correspondingly illustrious guests. Yves Saint Laurent, James Joyce or Friedrich Dürrenmatt, the list goes on and on.
In such time-honored bars, with their classic ambience — which we will come back to — an up-to-date bar nerd could quickly become worried that something crusty and old-fashioned awaits. That the ingredient ratios or brands used might have seemed right a decade or two ago, but not today. That's why I had set my expectations low in advance and was simply looking forward to the interior. But I can already tell you: Boy, was I wrong.
But first I had to find the correct door. 3 of them to choose from. First one to the restaurant separately, a larger one that looks like a normal house entrance to a block of flats from the outside (and basically is), then a theoretical one (as it is closed during the day) to the bar separately. Let's just say I managed to try the 2 wrong ones and one of them almost a second time, as I still thought “No, but this is the way into the apartments” …
Once inside, you walk past a staircase and recessed display cases with the history and memorabilia of the restaurant and bar to suddenly find yourself walking through a passageway on the left. You emerge from the rather coarse stone entrance room of the building and step into another world. As if with a snap, no more cold stones, but a small transitional space in finely crafted dark wood, a checkroom, you feel you have arrived at your destination and ask yourself “What's next?”. And what comes next is quite simply one of the most aesthetically beautiful, classic yet timeless bars I have ever entered. The unique shade of brown, the geometric shapes that overlap everywhere. Sometimes angular and large, sometimes delicately rounded, the intense yet elegantly matte green, the veined stone tables and almost gothic, hanging chandeliers in other places, the Art Nouveau style of the table lamps. Real Picassos and Mirós on the wall in between. Real ones. Picassos and Mirós. Shall I repeat it one more time?
I can only say, even if the photos are already impressive, that it feels completely different when you experience the immersion on site, more removed from any age and more up-close. You notice details from time to time, and you realize why you find it so ingenious, for example, that the back bar is not just a shelf, but is practically embedded in the wall. Even crazier, as I've never seen something like this before, was the display of tablecloths as a base for the mixing area, as you can see in the cocktail photos below. Mixing with your shaker on fine, white clot, a detail that immediately exudes a certain quality, tradition and luxury.
Copyright: Instagram Martyn Bullard
The menu, classically bound and compact, is divided into changing seasonal drinks, followed by three non-alcoholic cocktails (interesting that these are placed almost in the middle and not simply at the end as is often the case), then the “Classics of the Kronenhalle” and finally a page with basically Classics and Modern Classics, elegantly described here as “Timeless Trouvailles”. Yes, I had to google that one too.
Two things that particularly caught my eye: I always think it's great to find a small selection of the bar's “signature classics” on the menu, or at least to have some ready. There's nothing more appealing as a temporary guest in the city than having the opportunity to try the all-time favorites of a well-known bar from the last decade or more. Secondly, the selection of those (modern) classics afterward, Brandy Crusta, Jasmine, French Connection (oh, yes), Nuclear Daiquiri, etc., too frequently the same drinks are always found in such categories, here you got some interesting choices. What's more, the boundaries are blurred when it comes to original creations, as the Bamboo and Adonis (again, what damn good picks) on the page are even interpreted as somewhat unique riffs. Cashew brandy on the one hand and Mirabelle plum brandy on the other are used.
Of course, this is followed by top-class champagne, a small but very fine selection of open wines (in the restaurant, of course, you will find the complete lineup), an appropriate selection of spirits, as well as around 10 dishes from the kitchen. Among the spirits, some special items also stand out, for example excellent eau-de-vie, among others Rochelt, one of the best in the world, is the most frequently represented, 20- and 30-year-old port wine from different houses, as well as 15-year-old and even vintage Pineau de Charentes (more of this in bars, please. Thank you).
Lost in Berlin
| Vermouth
| Amaro
| Quince
Amaro (one of my great loves), exciting combination of just a few ingredients, interesting name, ordered! One of my favorite apéritif drinks in recent times awaited me. The Italian bitter liqueur is Montenegro, quince refers to an eau-de-vie and the vermouth is even German, the brand Merwut! Silky, smooth, very elegant and yet full of flavors, there is no better way to start a cocktail day. Notes of grapes, slight acidity from the vermouth, dried fruit, orange peel, Mediterranean and other herbs and spices, plus a hint of quince fruitiness. Every bar should simply have a handful of apéritif drinks, stirred with fortified wines or Amaros. Just throw out a bunch of long drinks with a similar overall ABV. But unfortunately, these other bars don't listen to me … It wasn't the last time I was given an ingredient to try neat on the house because of my enthusiasm, in this case the Merwut. A big recommendation as far as this one is concerned, complex, think Martini Speciale Ambrato, i.e., a Bianco with slightly more spicy notes, but at the same time it retains its beautiful liveliness.
Nussknacker (= the German name for a traditional nutcracker figure out of wood)
| Cashew Brandy
| Whiskey
| Sherry
| Verjus
| Pimento
| Vanilla
I had also quickly identified the second drink of the visit, as I had coincidentally read about a cashew brandy for the first time a few weeks earlier, found it very exciting and suspected that this maybe was the one. This was indeed the case, it is the MIM Cashew Brandy shown below, which incidentally is also in a drink in the No Idea Bar, so a double quality seal. I was also allowed to try it neat and was delighted. The quality is really like a fine eau-de-vie from Austria or Germany, wonderfully nutty, authentic, with almost no burn in the finish. But back to the drink, sherry here means P.X. (from Lustau), whiskey is Knob Creek, which I love anyway, and definitely premium for everyday bar use, plus pimento dram, homemade vanilla syrup and just a touch of verjus. The latter means that you are not immediately overwhelmed by hearty, nutty aromas, but rather that there is a certain freshness and lightness at play, and the clean body of the brandy also leads to another elegant affair. Nuts, light raisins, fresh oak, allspice and restrained acidity result in a top-notch creation.
The Kronenhalle really impressed me and made my fears of something “too old fashioned and stuck in time” look completely silly. Sure, you won't find progressive concept-based rotovap and fermentation menus here, but there is definitely a lot of creativity in the menu and the craftsmanship is beyond any doubt, as is the selection of perfect ingredients. The service is elegant, slightly on the more serious side, but certainly open and warm. Remember the two, free spirit tastings as a new guest, tips about bars were exchanged in both directions, etc. You never feel as if you have to take everything too seriously, simply because it's a very important place, on the contrary. Once again, the comment about a bar in Zurich is: If I hadn't had so much on my (bar) plan, I would have loved to try out (a lot) more.
