Clouds, Prime Tower, Zurich

Calamares-Carpaccio mit kurz gebratenen Jakobsmuscheln und Chorizo

Maisveloute mit Salz-Caramel-Popcorn und Kapaunbrust

Raviolone mit Büffelricotta und Eigelb auf Blattspinat und Trüffelbutter

Zanderfilet auf Lyoner-Kartoffeln mit Salbei-Wirsing und Paprikajus

Dessert vom Wägeli

A steady drop hollows the stone is an old german saying. Thanks to my bravery, conniving personality and persistence I present you with the first formal review of the highly anticipated restaurant Clouds on top of the Prime Tower. As pointed out before, my anonymous approach has its limits when you try to snag a table at the most sought after hot-spot. It actually took me multiple tries (once I even showed up in person and waited in the lounge to no avail) and a bit of luck to get a table. I seldomly talk about the setting, but Clouds is a different story. If you’re into railways like myself, it is a fantastic place, since you’re looking at Zurich HB like you’ve never have before. The view alone is worth a visit (I’ve attached a picture at the end). If you’re planning on getting married, want to impress out-of-town folks or are trying to show that speed-dating acquaintance how urban you are – this is the place to go to. It doesn’t have much heartfelt soul and the crowd could be any business crowd in New York or Berlin, but it oozes sophistication and it just fits Zurich and the Prime tower perfectly. Before starting my meal I was slighltly put off since one of the long obelisk shaped breads I tasted had fruit and nuts in it. That would be nice for cheese at the end but I thought it was disturbing at the beginning. I start off with a Calamares Carpaccio, scallops and some chorizo. I liked the dish, especially since the chef showed a lot of balance and restraint in the use of the spicy sausage, as well as the delicate presentation of the octopus. Next dish was a corn veloute with popcorn and kapaun (castrated rooster). Now when it was served I was told it was a “Maispoularde” and some of the corn kernels were a tad chewy. I think here there’s room for improvement in menu description and execution. The slightly deconstructed Raviolone revolving around and egg in the middle, topped with cheese slices & truffled sauce while resting on a bed of spinach was a fun and tasty course. I was slightly perplex, when the waitress offered to shave some more Perigord truffles on top, I declined for the reason of me being not the biggest truffle fan, but it certainly was a generous gesture. Looking around the dining room it seemed that every main course is served with sauce, which is brought to the table in a seperate container and then artfully poured over your plate. So the same was true for my pike perch on savoy (wirsing) and potatoes a la Lyonnaise, accompanied with a jus made of peppers. The only criticism here were that I thought the potatoes were more like chips and were fried too much for my taste. I felt that the peppers sauce elevated the dish and highlighted the fish. For dessert I picked some small tibits off the Wägeli (cart). I’ll come right to it, I never though that with two acclaimed chefs in the kitchen this could work and to be honest the place is pretty fucking fantastic. I could sit for hours and stare out the window at the trains, only to be interrupted every now and then with a tasty course. There is still room for improvement, so if I’d have to guess I’d say they’ll be looking at 15 to 16 Gault Millau points moving forward. Whoever came up with the concept here deserves praise and I’m willing to bet a good bottle of Champagne, that Clouds will be a Zurich hotspot for months to come. Prices were actually okay for all the food I ate:

Rechnung

Real-life Märklin feeling