Currying Favour with Vegetables

Serving vegetarian cuisine for more than a century, Hiltl has become Zurich’s iconic dining destination for locals and travellers alike

- By TEJA LELE

(Above) Patrons enjoying food at Hiltl; (below) food at Hiltl

The first sight that greets you at Hiltl is the buffet. Long counters gleam under soft lights, laden with a dazzling spectrum of colours and scents. Guests move along the line in quiet awe, trays in hand, eyes darting between the familiar and the unexpected.

There’s no hierarchy here, and quinoa and curry, hummus and risotto, all coexist. “Our buffet is Zurich’s passport to the world,” says Sabrina Baumer, a server. “People come from everywhere, and still find something that reminds them of home.”

A pair of Swiss businessmen exchange quiet conversations over white wine. A young family settles by the window with heaping plates. Near the salad bar, Luca Schmid, a regular, sums up the sentiment: “You don’t come here just to eat. You come for the energy — it’s like being part of a story that’s been unfolding for more than a hundred years.”