Aa-Ron L.
Yelp
I'm so stoked to have found a good Swiss all-rounder to cater to my every dinner desire.
Restaurant zum Kropf, a.k.a. Bierhalle Kropf, has it all - a skillful mix of reminiscent surroundings, conscientious service and an enticing menu!
The nom de guerre 'Bierhalle Kropf' emanates from its earlier personality. There's actually quite some history to these walls. According to the owners, it was originally built in 1444 as a residence and subsequently housed numerous well-to-dos and promis including the mayor of Zürich. Only in 1888 was the ground floor turned into a restaurant and Bavarian-style beer hall. Since then, ownership has changed hands but not much else. In fact, the murals and ornamental wood and marble are mostly original. Unfortunately, I wouldn't call it a beer hall any longer. They only offer 3 beers, all run of the mill. The food, fortunately, is anything but. And the choices are expansive!
The menu is mostly Swiss traditional but touches of Kropf's Bavarian roots are still evident with goodies like schweinshaxe, weisswürstel and leberknödelsuppe. The veal wienerschnitzel is known for being one of the best in town and I would agree, served with choice of fries, potato salad or mixed salad. The pumpkin cream soup was downright decent. The ingenuously named 'shrimp cocktail' was delicious, but to my pleasant surprise it wasn't shrimp. I quickly identified these wee invertebrates as crawfish and confirmed with the waitress. She corroborated, didn't explain and I didn't ask. I consider it an upgrade! The Assiette "choucroute garnie", braised beef, smoked pork loin, pork sausage and a thick cut of speck with sauerkraut and steamed potatoes is the 'anytime' metzgete, for truck driver appetites. But it's just as much quality as quantity. It's all perfectly prepared and juicy moist. Because of this dish, I can't "expand" on their dessert offering.
Prices are fair, comparable to or slightly above Zeughauskeller. Speaking of Zeughauskeller; their food and service is inferior to Kropf's but their beer selection kicks Kropf's arsch.