The Veggie Gourmet

Plonk in the heart of bustling and fashionable Zurich is this twin-levelled restaurant, simply called ‘Hiltl’’. It is not one of those severe, fanatical and low-cal places. Here Rolf Hiltl makes sure they serve fine wine, aromatic teas and coffees and even their juice bar has ‘Campari Citrus’ and ‘Martini Grapefruit’. There’s a separate drinks menu and even a separate dessert menu.

Rolf Hiltl (the current owner) did complete and thorough research and found that people under 30 are more likely to change their food habits and geared his restaurant towards them. I may not be in his target age group, but this is the kind of restaurant which I am happily drawn to. I order a ‘Vitamin Punch’ and browse through the large ‘English’ menu, which is a vegetarian’s dream come true. Cold and hot starters, a huge salad bar, cheeses, desserts and more! The restaurant is multi-cuisine, in the true sense of the word, serving Spanish paella, Russian stroganoff, Thai green curry, Swiss roesti, tofu schnitzel and even burgers. And yes! There is Indian food too.

It’s here that I realise you can be vegetarian and still have a truly international gourmet meal.

I meet professors, yuppies (even an Indian couple), who eat here because they believe vegetarianism works. Professor Helmut Rottka, a medical doctor from Fricie Universitat, Berlin, points out, ‘‘Carefully controlled studies of vegetarians have shown that a balanced vegetarian diet reduces almost all the risk factors for diet-dependant diseases such as high blood pressure, heart attacks, diabetes and gout.’’ Here are some important facts that I learn from the venerable doctor…

• Vegetarians are two-thirds less likely to get cancer than non-vegetarians
• The likelihood of vegetarians suffering a heart attack is 60 per cent lower than that of non-veggies
• A vegetarian diet contains almost all the essential nutrients in quantities recommended by national and international dietary councils.
• The high fibre in vegetarian food — about 40 gm a day — not only ensures active normal digestion but also helps to prevent many diseases of modern society.

No wonder more and more people are turning to vegetarianism. And that explains why this restaurant has been around since 1898. This would’ve pleased the founder, Ambrosius Hiltl, who was pushed into a vegetarian diet because of his rheumatoid arthritis. He not only got cured but also got himself a dream restaurant. He surely would’ve been as pleased as punch (the Vitamin one on his menu). Me too!