Above the City, in the April Sun: The Nest Just Opened — and I Was There
Beatrice Lessi
There are places in Zurich you think you know, and then someone takes you somewhere new and reminds you that this city still has surprises up its sleeve. Literally.
Last week I attended the season opening of The Nest, the rooftop bar at Storchen Zürich — and I’m still thinking about it.
The Nest sits on the sixth floor of one of Zurich’s most storied hotels, right on the Limmat, and it is the kind of place that feels intimate without being cramped. Lounge sofas, a relaxed atmosphere, and a view that stops you mid-sentence. This is not a loud, flashy rooftop. It’s small, elegant, and genuinely pretty — the kind of spot that works equally well for a business lunch or a date you want to remember.
What made this opening special was the food. Chef Stefan Jäckel — the one-Michelin-star, 17-GaultMillau-point mastermind behind La Rôtisserie downstairs — has brought his touch to The Nest’s new Business Lunch concept. His style is precise French technique with modern, seasonal influences, and it shows in every bite. He treated us to the best salmon I have ever tasted. I don’t say that lightly. And yes, there were Mediterranean-inspired small plates to go with it, each one clean, light, and completely intentional.
The view deserves its own paragraph. The Storchen is already famous for its terrace downstairs — that iconic spot on the water where you can actually arrive by boat. But up here, the perspective shifts entirely. You look out over the rooftops of the old town, across the Limmat, and right onto the Grossmünster — Zurich’s great Romanesque landmark, which is currently getting what Irene Franco of The Living Circle aptly described as its Botox treatment: a full scaffolding makeover that will last through 2027. It looks different from usual, yes — but the boats still glide past, the Swiss flags still wave on the ferries, and the quiet rhythm of the city centre is as hypnotic as ever.
Good food, a privileged view, and a glass of something cold in the April sun. The Nest is open again — go.
