I had to put a quick list together of my commonly visited restaurants in Zurich for some swiss friends. So here's a copy. I've not put down other restaurants like Hiltl, Cheyennes/Iroqois, Chässtube Rehalp (posted here before) because if I sit here and think of all restaurants, I'd never leave.





Casual Asian places:

Beyond – this is Sichuan /Chinese food where the staff from the Chinese Embassy go to eat. They have two menus – one is normal “trendy” menu where they also have Thai stuff, but they have another menu …. And the food is quite different. This is just across the road from the Hbf, on the Landesmuseum side.
Restaurant Beyond (http://www.restaurant-beyond.ch)
Zollstr. 20
8005 Zürich
New number: 043 366 83 45

Tiffins – great trendy thai food. Very crowded after 7:30pm on most days but very quick service. http://www.tiffins.ch/start.html

Peking Duck and some other chinese dishes - Entehuus, Alfred Escher-Str. 11 8002 Zürich, T 01/2014490. Went there for Peking Duck and were surprised at how inexpensive it was.

Brunch:

Bohemia – has good food normally but also great Sunday brunch including English breakfast or American style pancakes. This is on Kreuzplatz (Tram 11) http://www.bohemia.ch/bohemia/

Creperie Güntal – has great Crepes. I had the one with Salami, leek (lauch), olives, chilli and Mark had the smoked trout with crème fraise. Also has sweet crepes. Open ‘till late. In Wipkingen, near Escher-Wyss Platz

GRÜNTAL CREPERIE
BREITENSTEINSTR. 21
8037 ZÜRICH
SCHWEIZ
Tel. +41 (0) 43 366 85 02
(this place has moved - I'm leaving it here until I find out its new address)


Thai

(Added 30/8/2007) Ah Hua - My current favourite Thai place. Booking is necessary. There are two restaurants due to demand and they're mostly booked out during meal times. Plenty of locals, atmosphere is very casual and price is good. There's no website but I'm adding a link to a german review:
http://www.myzuri.ch/artikel/278.php
Ah Hua - Brauerstr 9, 8004 Zurich (044 241 3937)
P/s: Spicy is spicy - I actually got a chilli rush with the Lab Gai

Roi Et – Really good Thai place. It’s not “trendy” but there are plenty of delicate flavours in the food. Very extensive menu for such a small place. Bus Stop: 31/32 Militairestrasse, off Langstrasse.
Roi-Et. Schöneggstrasse 30, 8004

Blue Monkey – Another good restaurant in Niederdorf. Trendy setup. Don’t go upstairs – it’s just same food for more price. Stay down, in the restaurant/café. www.bluemonkey.ch


Bang Song Thai – Good but booking essential. Also in the Niederdorf
Bang Song Thai.
Kirchgasse 6,
Zürich,
Phone:, +41 (44) 252 3331

Indian

Kings Kurry – probably the indian restaurant with the best reputation in Zurich. Service can sometimes be a bit slow but food is good. Near Bhf Wiedikon. http://www.kingskurry.ch/

Spice Route – very good place, as loved by many. Opposite Letzigrund Stadium. http://www.spiceroute.ch/index.html

Kerala – Very good south indian food. I can recommend their buffet on Wednesdays and Sundays. A good place to try south Indian food.
http://www.keralarestaurant.ch/


Ravi’s – this is in Wipkingen and they have different things. Also good but perhaps not as good as the top restaurants - but different cook, different tastes. http://www.ravis.ch

Just recently tried Handi in Oerlikon and quite liked it. Service was a little slow, but hey, one has to relax with indian food. http://www.handi-restaurant.ch


Restaurants for Special Occassions

Romantik Hotel Florhof Restaurant - This is our favourite restaurant. It’s French and the food is always good. The chef lives in Colmar and goes home on the weekends. But you have to check if its open on weekends because it sometimes is. I can really recommend this place for a great cosy meal. Don’t really need to dress up but you can. We would go in normal jeans. If you have a birthday, let them know. The chef will make a cake. http://www.florhof.ch/ We’ve never been disappointed.


(Added 16/2/07)Rigiblick Restaurant - A great restaurant with really good creative food and wonderful ingredients. The location is quiet - just at the Rigiblick stop. You can take the Seilbahn up from Seilbahn Rigiblick stop (trams 9/10 bus 33). If you have a birthday, let them know. The chef made us a cake. More info: http://www.restaurantrigiblick.ch/ There is also a Bistro that I've not tried.


Japanese

I don't know much about Japanese food but Ginger on Seefeldstrasse is nice (across the road from Tiffins) but expensive. The chef prepares all dishes in the center (sushi/sashimis) and places it on a conveyor belt. The restaurant is very small and you can chat with chef and watch the preparation. It’s a bit pricey but the quality is good. I don’t like fish, but I always find something to eat because they also do stuff with beef and eggs and vegetarian.

(Added 16/2/07) Just recently discovered Samurai which is great. It's a small place that is almost always booked out, so it pays to book well in advance. More info: http://www.samurai7.ch/

(Added 04/07/07) Excellent and copious sushi near Stauffacher. Beautiful setting - http://www.ishi.ch



Misc

Heuguemper – is pretty good. In die Altstadt. Worth a try. http://www.restaurantheuguemper.ch


Il Golosone – behind jelmoli carpark has very good pizzas. Very fresh ingredients. Always crowded on the weekends so either book or go early. Currently, our favourite pizza place but place is tied with Don Leone (see below).
Il Golosone
Uraniastrasse 20
8001 Zürich

Bindella - Another really good Italian place. Currently they have really good piemontese truffles. http://www.bindella.ch/

Don Leone – Friends have checked out this place and it passed their inspection too. Service can sometimes be slow though. Sort of place you go to take your time. So I wouldn’t recommend going there before a movie eventhough it’s around the corner from Stauffacher’s Metropole cinema. http://donleone.ch/home.html
Owner also owns Franco's Pizza in Oerlikon. I know some italian friends who work nearby and go there for lunch everyday.



Lebanese (Added 2/3/06)

This has always been a good option for a mixed group of vegetarians and meat-eaters. Le Cedre http://www.libanesisch.ch/ is probably the most well known in Zurich. Booking is usually required on weekends unless you're really lucky. We’ve never been disappointed. Mezzeh has always been yummy. Belly Dancers on some days. Unfortunately, this means that all discussions cease while extremely loud music is played while she goes from table to table.

Another option is Arabesque http://http://www.arabesque.li/. The food is also good and the mezzeh is slightly different to Le Cedre's. Also has Belly Dancers on some days. Same deal with the loud music. Would recommend booking on weekends.



Special Places Link (Added 7/2/08)


I just came across this link for the best fifty restaurants in Zurich. I am a bit sceptical if that is the top 50 - but the site is laid out with restaurant photos and link ... so if you're looking for the special place, it might be a good starting point.