Historical cafés

This café-bar dating back to the late 19th century has preserved its soul as a neighbourhood bar. In the evening, people go there for beers, cocktails or nice wines, in an atmosphere at once bohemian, trendy and good-natured.
That little extra from the food insider "Tania Brasseur": Whether the weather is foul or fair, no matter, as the terrace and indoor room both have tremendous charm. In addition, you can have a snack at any time.
Favourite drink: The absinth

Generous portions of pancakes during the week and brunches at the weekend in this trendy Lausanne establishment. Add to that a homemade ginger juice or a creamy flat white and you’ll get your day off to a flying start!
That little extra from the food insider "The Lausanne Guide": The building is nicknamed the Lausanne “Flatiron” as a nod to New York’s iconic pointy-shaped building that recalls an iron.
Favourite dish: The pancakes

This pretty Belle Époque kiosk now houses a café full of charm. There are a few tables inside and many more outside, at the foot of the church. Don’t leave without admiring the floor mosaic!
That little extra from the food insider "Cuisine Helvetica": Do you see the famous clock? The Lausanne History Museum stored it for 14 years to prevent it from being damaged and put it back up when the café – refurbished in 2012 – reopened.
Favourite snack: The hazelnut tart

Traditional yet contemporary, elegant yet friendly, the “BM” serves a bistro-style cuisine based on local products. The magnificent terrace sheltered by a pergola is a must to make the most of long summer evenings!
That little extra from the food insider "The Lausanne Guide": The continuous food service at the weekend, from noon to 10.30 pm!
Favourite dish: The beef tartare

Listed as one of Lausanne’s “Historical Cafés”, this bistro serves vegetarian dishes that are as colourful as the paintings decorating its walls. The wood storefront dating from the 1900s and the quirky window display add further to its charm.
Tipp vom Food Insider "Cannelle Rebelle": The creativity in every dish, as well as colourful and tasty salads.
Favourite dish: The toasted goat’s cheese salad

In the heart of Lausanne, this legendary address offers local, seasonal dishes, local artistic events and an eco-responsible approach. A friendly place where eating, drinking and chatting go hand in hand.
That little extra from the food insider "Cannelle Rebelle": Marta, the former manager of the café, created a hot chocolate that became famous: an unctuous delight to be discovered!
Favourite drink: The Marta hot chocolate

On the edge of the Jorat Natural Park, this gastro restaurant – distinguished by a Michelin green star – will surprise you thanks to the diversity of its dishes based on Vaud ingredients. Its terrace is deliciously bucolic.
That little extra from the food insider "¿Quand est-ce qu’on mange?": The always creative amuse-bouches and the so moreish bread+homemade butter duo.
Favourite dish: The ultra-local game, when it’s in season

This historic brasserie, the meeting place of regular customers, serves traditional Swiss specialities such as “papet vaudois”, half-and-half fondue, as well as a large choice of wines from the region.
That little extra from the food insider "Cuisine Helvetica": Admire the painting by Henri Gillard that represents a winegrower contemplating Lake Geneva.
Favourite dish: The malakoffs

Founded in 1780, Pinte Besson is the oldest restaurant in Lausanne that is still in business and one of the ten oldest bars in Europe. It serves a generous local cuisine in a wood-panelled setting that has a unique charm.
That little extra from the food insider "Guidegastronomique.ch": The great selection of Swiss wines.
Favourite dish: Fondue moitié-moitié (half-half cheese fondue)

Located in a building dating back to 1862, this restaurant serves fine, classical French and Italian cuisine, in particular homemade pasta and game when it’s in season. The service is professional and friendly.
That little extra from the food insider "¿Quand est-ce qu’on mange?": The very moreish homemade spaetzle served with game dishes.
Favourite dish: The lobster spaghetti

Café du Grütli is at the beginning of the paved pedestrian street called La Mercerie near Place de la Palud. It has welcomed guests since 1849 and offers a quiet, friendly and out-of-time setting. Guests mostly come for its fondues but all dishes are delicious and can be enjoyed with a glass of excellent wine.

Discover « Le Lyrique », this former traditional Vaud café transformed into a French and Greek restaurant.

Le Chalet Suisse above Lausanne is a lovely getaway out in the green. In the summer, enjoy your meal on the terrace offering a beautiful view of Lausanne, Lake Geneva and the Alps.

Brasserie cuisine in a mythical place in Lausanne

A little corner of Bavaria in Lausanne! Pretzels, sausages and sauerkraut are served in this establishment dating back to 1881. With more than 50 beers, the menu includes seasonal dishes and a few vegetarian offerings.
That little extra from the food insider "Cuisine Helvetica": From the Lausanne train station, it takes about 10 minutes to walk up to the brasserie. When you get there, spot the “H” on the left side of the façade, a memento of its first owner, Jean-Wilhelm Hirt.
Favourite dish: The saucisse à rôtir (roast sausage)

Located in the area under the station, the Café de Grancy serves, in an art-deco atmosphere, a tasty, locavore brasserie cuisine that allows itself a few creative, exotically inspired dishes.
That little extra from the food insider "Guidegastronomique.ch": When the weather is fair, book one of the tables on top of the metro line, with a view over the lake.
Favourite dish: The trio of tartare

Tasty burgers made with local ingredients

Brasserie du Cygne in Lausanne’s lively Chauderon quarter has served guests since 1902. The restaurant has successfully perpetrated its tradition but stays in synch with modern times with its interior decoration and the way the dishes are presented.

Nestled amidst 1,000 m2 of bucolic parkland to the west of Lausanne, this building is an oasis of peace just minutes from the town centre.

Enjoy the light refreshments offered by the Rotunda at Bellerive-Beach pool. This restaurant linked to the Bellerive swimming pool (1937), the work of Marc Piccard, is open only during the warm season. The original substance of this rotunda with glass all round was carefully restored. Its modernist architecture reflects the hygienist concerns of the pool’s designers.

For more than 20 years, chef Stéphane Chouzenou has been listing on a blackboard his French dishes that honour gastronomic tradition while including more contemporary creations.
That little extra from the food insider "Guidegastronomique.ch": The wine list features a few older vintages at affordable prices.
Favourite dish: The lobster risotto

Perched on the roof of the Conservatory, this art-deco café serves a brasserie-style cuisine, with generous helpings. In the afternoon, the lunch menu gives way to a selection of sharing dishes, salads, burgers and some sweet treats.
Le truc en + de la food insider "Jennifer Segui": When the weather is fair, the rooftop terrace is the dream location to make time stand still, as you’re lulled by the scales escaping from the Conservatory.
Favourite dish: The chicken liver salad

The Etoile Blanche is a relaxed, friendly bar-restaurant situated in the heart of Lausanne. It is a favourite of students, cool thirty-somethings and a fair few English-speakers looking for a pub atmosphere at the end of the day.

A stone’s throw from the lakeside, local customers and tourists mingle in this restaurant open every day, eating a fondue, röstis or … a generous and perfectly crispy outside and tender inside cordon-bleu. Simply delicious.
That little extra from the food insider "¿Quand est-ce qu’on mange?": The non-stop service.
Favourite dish: The cordon bleu

Ideally located at the train station, this vegetarian and vegan restaurant offers a large buffet of tasty dishes with flavours from near and far. You can enjoy a nutritious meal to eat in or as a takeaway.
That little extra from the food insider "Cuisine Helvetica": In the former Buffet de la Gare, this restaurant is decorated with mural paintings dating from the beginning of the 20th century that represent Swiss tourist spots.
Favourite dish: The “Power Greens”

What could be better to escape than a terrace in a green glade? In this former farmhouse, we savour dishes that are local, or even ultra local, as some of the ingredients are grown in the kitchen garden.
That little extra from the food insider "Lila Erard": The walking trails and cycling routes that lead to the inn, through fields and forests.
Favourite dish: The asparagus risotto

For more than 35 years, this family establishment located at the foot of the Cathedral has been delighting Lausanners with its meat dishes and bistro-style creations based on products from the local terroir.
That little extra from the food insider "Jennifer Segui": All the dishes are incredibly tempting, yet we wouldn’t miss out on the deserts. Homemade and seasonal, they are delicious, refined and totally moreish.
Favourite dish: Game, when it’s in season

The Café des Avenues is a welcoming venue at the junction of Jurigoz, Fantaisie and Montchoisi avenues. This café-restaurant has the feel of a 1950s brasserie.

Situated near to the park in Valency, L’Indochine serves Vietnamese cuisine in a cosy and colourful setting.

Drink coffee while savouring a delicious “Wuthrich” chocolate.