Old Swiss House

Old Swiss House occupies a beautifully preserved seventeenth-century half-timbered house at Löwenplatz 4 — directly opposite the Lion Monument carved into the cliff face — and has been operated by the Buholzer family as a restaurant continuously since 1859. The interior, with its painted wood panels, leaded windows and antique furniture, is a destination in its own right.

The cuisine is Traditional Swiss with a strong central-Switzerland register: Älplermagronen (the alpine pasta-and-cream gratin), Wiener schnitzel cooked tableside (the house signature, prepared at the table on a copper trolley), Luzerner Chügelipastete, perch from Lake Lucerne, fondue and raclette in season.

The wine list is a focused Swiss programme with serious depth on Vaud, Valais and Grisons reds, plus a respectable French selection. The traditional Swiss spirits programme (kirsch, pflümli, träsch) is among the best in the city.

The room takes around 120 covers across multiple connected dining rooms in the original house, plus a sheltered courtyard for warm-weather service. Service is family-run and warm; the tableside schnitzel preparation is performed by long-serving senior staff. Open every day; reservation a week ahead is wise.

Old Swiss House is the Lucerne team-dinner booking — the wood-beamed seventeenth-century house at Löwenplatz next to the Lion Monument is genuinely beautiful (it has been a restaurant since 1859), the Wiener schnitzel is cooked tableside (which gives the night a piece of theatre that a group enjoys), and the family ownership across multiple generations means the staff know how to run a long evening for a table of eight. Order the cheese fondue for the start of the meal.