Swiss voters are about to weigh in on a ban on tobacco ads, but smoking remains alive and well. finews.com looks at the favored smoking enclaves for Zurich's bankers.


1. Storchen

Storchen Cigar Bar 500
(Image: Storchen)

The riverside luxury hotel maintains a cigar bar where Lorin Peccolo oversees a humidor of over 30 varieties, put together in conjunction with nearby tobacco shop Wagner. A surprisingly wide selection of food and drinks are also available in the Storchen’s wood- and leather-furnished fumoir, adorned with stained glass windows and a barrelled ceiling.

2. Camino

Camino Fumoir 1
(Image: Camino)

In the heart of Zurich’s newest neighborhood, this is the foodie’s favorite both for eating and smoking. Run by a mother-daughter team, Camino maintains an artfully decorated separate smoking room. The location near Zurich’s central train station makes it hard to beat for nearby UBS and Credit Suisse.

3. Falken

David Willen_Tania Willen_Studio Willen
(Image: Falken)

The newest addition to Wiedikon’s vibrant dining scene opened just months into the pandemic but is already a favored city dining haunt. The Falken maintains a spacious, sumptuously furnished separate smoking area to its main bar, restaurant, and terrace.

4. Stapferstube da Rizzo

Stapferstube di Rizzo Fumoir 500 1
(Image: Stapferstube da Rizzo)

This Italian restaurant run by Giovanni Rizzo maintains its own smoking room with a well-stocked humidor. Tucked into a discreet side street in an affluent Zurich neighborhood, it is popular with local A-listers.

5. Aura

Aura Lounge 1 1
(Image: Aura)

The old stock exchange is in the heart of Paradeplatz – and maintains a spacious, well-lit upstairs smoker’s bar and lounge. The riverside restaurant is a favorite with carnivorous bankers.

6. Hofwiesen

Hofwiesen Fumoir
(Image: Hofwiesen)

The traditional Austrian restaurant has converted its Wintergarden into a smoking lounge for up to 14 people. Located on Zurich’s northside, Hofwiesen is near to Zurich’s main stadium and exhibition center.

7. Coco

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(Image: Coco's)

Operated by gastro guru Michel Péclard, Coco’s Grill sits directly on Paradeplatz next to J. Safra Sarasin. The cozy, wood-furnished bar is popular with bankers during the after-work, pre-dinner hour.

8. Kronenhalle

Kronenhalle brasserie 500
(Image: kronenhalle.ch)

The Zurich dining institution banned smoking in its bar but opened a first-floor smoker’s lounge which includes a small, exclusively-stocked humidor. Like the restaurant, the vibe is alpha-male, and food and drinks can be ordered through the house phone.