Lake Side sits at Bellerivestrasse 170 in the Zurichhorn park, directly on the eastern shore of Lake Zurich. The official Zurich tourism board lists it as a Mediterranean restaurant with a terrace, bar and conference center, and the venue's own site bills the spot as a place to settle into the summer lounge with a fine cocktail and the alpine panorama in front of you.
Published February 10, 2026 · By Daniel Okafor
The room
The pull here is the water, not the interior. Lake Side runs a large lakeside sun terrace at the edge of Zurichhorn park, with the lake on one side and the alpine skyline on the horizon. The official site frames the offer in three parts: a hearty lunch, a relaxed coffee and cake in the afternoon, and the summer lounge for an evening cocktail.
The setting carries the venue. Zurichhorn is a public lakeside park about two kilometres south of the Bellevue tram hub, reached on the number two or four tram or by the lake path. The terrace looks straight across the open water, which is why the room fills first on warm afternoons and holds through sunset.
What to order
The kitchen is Mediterranean and seafood-led, with a dedicated sushi list alongside fish and crustacean plates, per the venue's published menus. For a drink with the view, the summer lounge is the place the operator points guests toward a cocktail, while the wine list covers Swiss and international bottles for a slower glass on the terrace.
A sensible first visit pairs a cocktail or a glass of wine with a sushi plate, taken on the terrace rather than indoors. Pricing sits at the upper end for Zurich, in line with a waterfront address and a full restaurant kitchen. The afternoon coffee and cake service is the lower-commitment way to use the same view.
Who it is for
Lake Side suits a couple after a lake view at sunset, a group marking an occasion on the terrace, and anyone who rates the setting as highly as the drink. It is a restaurant with a bar and a summer lounge rather than a late cocktail den, so it is a poor fit for a midnight session. Visitors who want the water without a full meal can take the afternoon service or an evening drink in the lounge.
Best time to go
The terrace is a warm-season room. Late afternoon into early evening, when the light drops over the lake, is the window the venue is built around, and the summer lounge is the seat to ask for. A weekday holds the calmer crowd, since warm weekend evenings draw a full house.
Opening hours run Monday to Saturday from 11:30am to 10:00pm, with Sunday given over to an extended brunch from 11:00am, per the venue's posted times. Reserving ahead is the safe move for a terrace table on a clear evening, which is when demand peaks.
The detail worth knowing
Lake Side took the Swiss Location Award in 2025, an industry prize for event and hospitality venues, which it displays on its own site. That recognition tracks with how the room earns its keep, as much an event and lounge address as a walk-in bar. The location inside a public park, rather than on a private rooftop, is what gives the terrace its open feel.
The venue is run by Kramer Gastronomie, which keeps the kitchen and the bar to a consistent standard across the seasons. Few Zurich addresses put a full sushi counter, a wine list and a cocktail lounge on the same stretch of open shoreline. The lake, not a signature serve, is the reason to book.
The bottom line
Lake Side is a Zurichhorn restaurant and summer lounge on the shore of Lake Zurich, where the terrace and the view do the work. Come in the warm months, take a cocktail or a glass of wine on the water at sunset, and pair it with the sushi or a seafood plate. It is a setting-first bar with a view rather than a destination cocktail room, and the lake is the reason to go.
Keep exploring with our best bars with a view in Zurich guide, the full Zurich bar guide, and our edit of rooftop and view bars worldwide. Pair Lake Side with Belvoir Restaurant Bar, Pavillon Le Raymond, and Restaurant Rigiblick Bar.
