Conti, Dufourstrasse, Zurich

A power lunch, where deals are made and palms are potentially greased, needs a fitting setting. The Conti – run by the Bindella group – lives up to the expectation by sporting a dining room with a beautiful stucco ceiling. In the older days apparently it was a favorite place of newspaper journalists who liked to smoke. Smoking is no longer permitted, but a lady was vaping. If you’re unsure what this is – think of it like chewing on the end of a ballpoint pen and trying to fool yourself into liking cold steam laced with nicotine. Nowadays the atmosphere is pristine, just like the table cloths and silverware.

The menu is extensive, traditional and upscale Italian. To start off we settle on the mixed salad. You’ll notice that even the plates are branded. The salad was fresh, with a good variety of carrots, celery, tomatoes and baby leafs tossed around. The sauce was of the French (white and creamy) variety. While the nationality of the sauce is irrelevant, its lack of taste isn’t.

Boiled beef is the actual translation of the main course, but manzo bollito sounds much more appetizing. The meat was cooked the way it should be. The potatoes & vegetables served in separate dishes, giving it the fancy feel which does the establishment justice. In stark contrast the frugal serving of mustard fruits, mustard and horseradish. Luckily a second helping avoided a fight at the table over the five slivers of horseradish.

Dessert was a very straight Tiramisu, no frills just good flavor. The Conti delivers on its promise – classic and upscale. The fact that quite a few tables drank wine for lunch sends a pretty clear signal: dining here is for people who have a certain air of calmness about themselves.