Need good hotel and a good resturant for my SO's 1st trip to Switzerland. Will be intransit from Paris to Aviginon.

Haven't been to Zurich myself, but when I am in situations like this, I go to TripAdvisor.

There are many good restaurants in Zurich, personal favorites include the traditional fondue house Le Dezaley which is close to the river and the Grossmunster church, and the Bierhalle Kropf which is just of the Banhofstrasse and is a giant old building that has many many different specialty sausages and tons of beers all served with rosti (basically hash browns) and mustards; not exactly a wine place though, if thats what you're looking for. A must is checking out Sprungli in the Paradplatz which has the most amazing chocolate, as well as light lunch food, that you'll ever find.

Hotels in Zurich are notoriously expensive, but if cost is no concern there are a few very nice hotels at the end of the banhofstrasse where it meets Lake Zurich. Couldn't speak of those with personal experience, as I'm a college student who would rather spend my money most of the time on food and wine (got some nice pictures with the girlfriend in front of them though). I've been to Zurich many times though and its a beautiful place.

One last thing, last winter I found a very interesting little scotch shop run by a nice woman. The shop was in an old poets house and the Scotch tasting was wonderful. It was a unique experience and the house was located in the Niederdorf near the small university up there. Worth wandering around for. Have an amazing time; I'm jealous!

You are going from Paris to Avignon by way of Zurich?

I usually stay at the Sorell Hotel in the Seefeld district. It's a great area to be in by the lake and you can walk to most of the downtown restaurants.

There is a wine shop at 299 Seefeldstrasse. I don't remember its name but it has a great selection of French and Italian wines as well as port. (It's about a 10-15 minute walk from the hotel.) The wine prices seemed good here compared to many other shops in the city and here at home. The last time I was there, they had a great selection of wines from Brancaia, Petrolo, as well as many high-end CdPs at very favourable prices.

For restaurants, the ones I can recommend are:

Lindenhofkeller - Excellent food and service, great location in the old part of town. Good prices for some hard-to-find wines.

Restaurant Riesbaechli - has one of the best wine lists to be found and good food, but prices are on the high side.

Zunfhaus zur Waag - One of the old traditional Restaurants serving Swiss Specialties in a very nice setting. A bit formal.

Everything in Zurich is expensive, so relax and get out your credit card. The first two restaurants I listed above have web sites where you can check out their menus and wine offerings.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: on the wine,

quote:

You are going from Paris to Avignon by way of Zurich?

A few others stops on the way Milan, Turin, Nice, Marseille

That makes more sense.
In Avignon, I would recommend eating at La Fourchette (I think I have the name right).

Many years ago I was at Kronehalle. is it still good??

Looked at Tripadvisor. Wild site. Ratings all over the map on the same inn. Just like wine, some like it others don't

If you want an eye-popping experience, go to the food hall in Globus (in the basement) and shop the produce section. It makes Whole Foods seem like a Walmart experience. Then go up to the top floor where they sell wine and various wine paraphernalia.

This place gives a new meaning to 'mass merchandising'.

Oh and did I mention to bring a big wallet?