Delicious food with a new order-yourself concept, but with too loud background music: Restaurant Café Europa (7. March 2024)

The Café Europa was on my to-do list for quite a while, and I finally managed to pay the place a visit. Hence, I was relatively curious what I was to expect. One thing I was able to say once I had entered the premises – you need to book your table well in advance as it was rather full. Also, one more thing – it was rather loud. I mean, they have ‘background’ music, but it’s rather ‘foreground’ music, so if you want to hold a conversation for a longer period of time, then you will need to start yelling at some point.

In any case, the concept here is a bit different compared to most restaurants – there is a QR code related to your table at your table, and you get to order everything right there and then. And you also get to pay it in the moment of the order. Which is somehow okay, and even great because you can then just leave, but it is also to that extent a bit annoying since you will have to pay several times when you are ordering several times. In any case, the speed of service is relatively good, so within about 10 minutes, you get your food, which is great. We went for the “carne cruda (beef tatar, salted butter, roasted bread)” (CHF 24.00) and “veal ravioli” (CHF 28.00), which were both good. I mean, the beef tatar wasn’t the best I’ve ever tried, but it was good – and the veal ravioli, or more specifically, especially the sauce in which they were served was delicious.

Then, we went for the “brisket sliders (pulled beef, roasted bell pepper aioli, pickled lettuce, pickles, burger)” (CHF 26.00), which were absolutely delicious! Definitely one of the dishes I would absolutely love to try again. The “pinsa mortadella e bufala (mortadella, mozzarella di buffala, pistacchio, rocket salad, salsa verde)” (CHF 26.00) was nice too, but not as nice as the ravioli or the sliders.

Last but not least, we went for a little sharing plate with “crostini with anchovies and salad” (CHF 24.00), and frankly, we shouldn’t have, as the dish was definitely far from outstanding. As good as the rest had been, this was really not something you should order – disappointing to say the least.

All in all, the Café Europa is quite nice, but there is really the downside that the background noise is way too much – at least for me. So, personally, I like the concept and the place, but won’t return here so soon, because the background music is almost deafening.

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Café Europa

Lagerstrasse 22

8004 Zürich (CH)

Homepage: http://www.cafeeuropa.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.