Zurich has one more food hotspot: the elmira restaurant combines fine dining with sustainability, comfort and charm.
Tie and high heels? You can safely leave them at home for a visit to elmira. In Zurich’s new fine-dining hot spot, you’ll feel as comfortable as at home with friends – who, admittedly, can cook really well! Right next to the Löwenbrau, chef Vilson, sommelier Nici and their crew provide a culinary experience that lingers on the palate. Managing Director Larissa Mesmer explains the concept as an “innovative and sustainable gourmet experience at star level with a chef’s table atmosphere”. Sounds good!
Nothing to do with food waste
In fact, everything at elmira works a little differently than in other restaurants. When booking, you choose your favorite seat and pay for the seven-course menu incl. Accompanying drinks even before you have taken the first step into the restaurant. This kills two birds with one stone: you can sit back and relax while you eat, and the kitchen crew knows exactly how many guests to expect on the evening in question. Food waste is therefore off the table.
Plant-based or vegan? Wine or juice?
Whether completely vegan or with animal products: You choose your menu in advance and then enjoy seasonal delicacies that are so beautiful on the plate that you’ll want to frame them. For each Grang, you can choose between wine and juice to suit your palate and stomach. Those who wish can take a peek into the kitchen between courses and talk shop with the professionals at the stove as if they were close friends.
© Mirabelle AG
We grabbed elmira’s Managing Director Larissa Mesmer and asked her the questions that were particularly on our minds:
FACES: What tipped the scales in favor of opening elmira?
Larissa Mesmer: We in the founding team agreed that the fine dining scene needed a new look. More transparency in the origin of the food, a familiar atmosphere and a kitchen crew that is within reach. We also wanted to create a place where enjoyment takes center stage. The guest does not have to think about whether or not he wants to afford the extra glass of wine. We also wanted to take the step of presenting and living the topic of sustainability more prominently in the top league alongside our sustainable catering business “Zum guten Heinrich”.
F: How would you describe the Zurich restaurant scene, and what gap in it does elmira fill?
LM: Zurich’s restaurant scene is lively, varies from district to district and has been revitalized in recent years by a wave of pop-up concepts. Rumor has it that Zurich wants to become the next Copenhagen.
With the elmira, we are taking bold, new, unconventional paths. The shortage of skilled workers is also an issue in Zurich. On the one hand, we give employees the appreciation they deserve with a four-day week, profit-sharing and above-average insurance benefits, and make the job more attractive again.
Our teams work very independently so that they can develop well.
On the other hand, we set guidelines for the sustainable concept that encourage them to adopt a new approach, especially in plant-based cuisine. In our view, this combination makes it possible to run a contemporary and sustainable gourmet restaurant.
F: Which dish from your menu do you like best and why?
LM: Definitely Act 5 “Charred Leek”. The special cooking technique gives the leeks a similar texture to asparagus and they melt in the mouth. Paired with black, fermented garlic and miso cream – heavenly!
I particularly like this dish because it shows that a simple vegetable can be transformed into a luxury product with expertise and love. This requires creativity and skill. Exactly the facets that make up the elmira team.
© Mirabelle AG
F: What measures do you take to avoid food waste in the restaurant?
LM: Our concept allows for planning security that has never been possible before. Because at elmira, the principle is: “pay once – enjoy indefinitely.” This means that our guests pay before their visit, comparable to a visit to the theater. The all-inclusive price includes a seven-course menu with accompanying drinks.
The kitchen team therefore knows before the service starts which guests have chosen a plant-based menu and which have opted for an animal-based menu. We are also aware of all allergies and intolerances and don’t just find out about them during the restaurant visit. This enables the specific purchase of food.
Furthermore, the kitchen team works exclusively seasonally and uses methods such as fermentation to bring summer into winter. Leftover vegetables, such as the charred skin of the leek, do not end up in the organic waste, but are turned into a powder that can be added to the menu. Smaller portions are also essential for us, because not all guests are equally hungry. The hungry can of course
ask for a second helping. If there is any bread left over from our popular bread course, you are welcome to take it home or our catering team will turn it into Torta die Pane (bread cake) or bread potato chips the next day.
F: Why do we have to dine with you?
LM: For us, it’s not “clothes make the man”, but “people make the thing”.
Experience”. It is possible to look over the chefs’ shoulders here, and the chef himself even serves you at the table. They provide exciting background information on their creations.
The listed Löwenbräu Silo offers a unique, urban form of fine dining with an industrial ambience. Our beverage accompaniment is perfectly matched to the current menu. The homemade juices such as kombucha or shrubs enrich the experience by immersing our guests in new worlds of taste and giving them the opportunity to enjoy unique pairings. The alcoholic beverage accompaniment is based on a selection of organic wines. There is also room for a beer or cider. The best thing about it is that you can choose which drink you want to try with each course. And at the end, don’t settle the bill, just get up and leave – like with friends.
Experience Fine Dining 2.0 and reserve your table here now!
elmira
Limmatstrasse 254
8005 Zurich
0041 44 244 80 52
elmira.zuerich
© Mirabelle AG
