Hotels
Kindli Hotel Historic stay in the Lindenhof Quarter
© marcschuermann.com
More than 500 years old, the Kindli was built in the late Middle Ages as a refuge for pilgrims. Known then as "Zum Christuskind", it belonged to the Benedictine monastery in Einsiedeln. Shortly after the Reformation, the roof of the house served as a prison for Anabaptists and it wasn’t until 1918 that the house was again officially referenced. At the time, an innkeeper took over the establishment and turned it into an old-town-local restaurant with musical amusement. In 1993 it was a restaurant with cabaret under the name "Opus", and later revived as "Kindli" in 2002.
Since then, the new proprietress, Gisela Lacher, has carefully renovated the house and established a sophisticated gastronomic restaurant. The hotel above the restaurant serves again, as in the pilgrim times, as "overnight rooms" and with this she has reinvigorated the Kindli Hotel. The hotel rooms are individually decorated in an English townhouse style and are continually modernized. I myself have stayed in a delightful, newly renovated superior corner room overlooking the surrounding cobblestone alleys.
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Room 33 is an elegant, yet cosy place to board: light molton curtains. A Hästens bed of gigantic proportions with an even larger duvet and pillows. Real art hang on the walls covered with grey-brown wallpaper. Dark brown lacquered furniture and silk reading lamps by the beds. A comfortable rotating armchair covered in beige linen. A touch of the Orient Express. Everything is freshly spruced up yet somehow still teemed with history. Even the bathroom with its black and rose-colored tiling invites you to stay and I am particularly pleased with the English fittings, the lighted makeup mirror, and a trolley with countless, luxurious toiletries.
I truly sense the atmosphere of the Kindli as more of a private townhouse than a hotel, with all the real art, the countless coffee-table books in the corridors, and the free drinks offered. This is attributed to Gisela Lachner’s regular presence, beginning early at breakfast, where she maintains a brief conversation with each of the guests, while they enjoy their muesli, fresh pastries and other breakfast staples in the restaurant.
And the location of the Kindli is great. The historic Lindenhof and the Lake of Zurich are just around the corner. All the important places of interest are located in Zurich’s historic district including the most beautiful family-run businesses, such as the charming store En Soie. For an excellent lunch nearby you could almost be in Paris at bistro Lumière, of which the interior has also been stylishly cared for by Gisela Lacher.
As I leave the restaurant after breakfast, I glance once again at a real Kandinsky and a drawing by Albert Anker. It's almost like being in a museum. Only cosier. A place certainly to come back to!
