How long have you been living in Zurich?
I had lived in Zurich for two years in total, before I was two years in Lucerne. Now I am based in Winterthur, where I enjoy our garden to the fullest. Sowing, nourishing and harvesting your own vegetables is such a wonderful process… and a wonderful reminder to value as well as cherish every ingredient and food Mother Earth provides us with.
What do you love most about Zurich?
It’s a place of change and happenings. I find it fascinating to see how new pop-up stores and off spaces are created, and how fast the food and art scene is growing. What I also love about Zurich is that it does have this “international metropolis” feeling, but at the same time it’s also very smallish and “Swiss-ish”, meaning you still run into friends and acquaintances while being on the go.
What do you do?
I work as a freelance photographer and artist, whereas I describe myself as a visual storyteller. Next to my visual work I host Vietnamese supper clubs where I serve homemade meals and infuse my artistic visions of dealing with topics such as migration, identity and our perspective on Asian culture as well as representation of people with Asian heritage.
You can find me and my supper club under @myliennguyen and @milissupperclub on IG.
How do you feel about the food scene in Zurich?
Enriching and diverse! I love that there are more and more restaurants with Asian cuisine opening up. You’ll find your Korean BBQ, several Japanese ramen places, dumpling bars, Vietnamese restaurants… I remember my teen years where I only got good Vietnamese food at home. Now there are some acceptable places in Zurich too. (Homemade is still the best, right?)
Name your top 3 restaurants in Zurich.
Miki / Ikoo, Zum Guten Glück, Le Cèdre
Where would you take a date?
Ice Cream date! Eisvogel, Gelateria Di Berna or Gelati Tellhof.
Which Swiss dishes would you encourage travelers to try?
In my opinion the Engadine kitchen is internationally totally underrated! Sure, fondue and raclette, but that’s probably already on every to-do list of every tourist visiting Switzerland. So, I recommend Capuns, Pizokel and Bündner Nusstorte (nut cake)!
