23. March 2013: Restaurant Casa Ferlin
The night had a special topic “liver and kidney” and I was very surprised how tasty this can actually be. I mean, I have had quite some liver before in my life, but I have never tried kidney before. Well, as a starter we were served “Stuzzichini vari” (various appetizers). The were all fried and a nice start but not really breath-taking. What came thereafter was delicious though. The “truffled veal liver terrine on a fennel bed” was a blast. The liver was smooth, aromatic and it was great on the fennel bed.
My personal highlight was the second course: “Ravioli with veal liver stuffing”. There is only one thing to say about it: A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y delicous!
The next course was “veal liver and kidney in a whitewine sauce with mashed potatoes”. The liver and kidney were both tasty and the sauce was fine too. The mashed potatoes were mouth-watering (although I am usually not a big fan of mashed potatoes) but they were perfectly refined with butter.
My second favourite course was the “flambéed veal kidney with rice”. The kidneys were tasty but what was breath-taking was the sauce – you just wanted to dip everything in the sauce and eat it. It was truly mouth-watering.
For the main courses we had the “Riserva Monna Lisa 100% Sangiovese, Vignamaggio, Grevé” (CHF 74.00) which was rich, dark, and full-bodied. A perfect match – in my humble opinion – to the livers and kidneys. For desert, we changed to the “Vinsanto Vignamaggio 37,5CL 100% Sangiovese, Vignamaggio, Grevé” (CHF 70.00) which was definitely sweeter but fit perfectly to the “Caramelized duck liver with a bouquet of ‘forest berries'”. I must admit that duck liver for desert with the sweet element of the carmaelization was definitely something new and it was also rather interesting and tasty but on the other hand it is definitely not a dish you can have every day.
Finally, we had the chance to thank the whole kitchen and service crew and you can see that Mr. Ferlin, the owner of the restaurant, and his son are still in charge of everything. Great service – no question. A small lack of attention sometimes when it came to ordering another bottle of water but given it was 40 guests and just 4 waiters, that is pretty okay! Other than that, service was outstanding!
The Casa Ferlin is a very traditional restaurant in Zurich which exists over 100 years. The place is comfortable, nicely decorated but of course not very modern but it provides you with this feeling of welcome-ness! I can absolutely recommend the Casa Ferlin, booking a table in advance is a must though, as the food is delicious, the service is dedicated and of high quality, the prices are pretty fair (everything together accounted for CHF 99.00) and the place itself is nice and comfortable.
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Contact Details:
Restaurant Casa Ferlin
Stampfenbachstrasse 38
8006 Zurich (CH)
Tel.: +41 44 362 35 09
Tel. #2: +41 44 362 35 23
Fax: +41 44 362 35 34
E-Mail: casaferlin@bluewin.ch
Homepage: http://www.casaferlin.ch
About the Author: Sven
I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org.
Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City. 
