George Clooney at Geneva's Hotel de Ville Restaurant?

Unfortunately, not the day I went for lunch--oh well, better luck next time! Because of its location across the street from Geneva's Parliament, the Hotel de Ville Restaurant attracts all kinds of dignitaries, heads of state, movie stars, and Geneva VIPs. Recently, Koffi Annan was seen there, as well as the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, along with Shakira, the singer, to name a few.

The restaurant was originally built for Count Calandrini in the 1500s, naming the house Tavel. In the 1600s, the restaurant served the armed soldiers who ate there. In the 1700s, it became a tavern, then from 1800-1830, it was transformed into a brewery. Finally, in 1984, Jean-Ives GLAUSER, nicknamed Père Glozu bought the locale because of its prime location opposite parliament. With his new restaurant, what is now today called the Brasserie-Restaurant Hotel de Ville, is popular because of its affordable lunch menu and great location in the heart of Old Geneva.

I chose a Fricassée de Porcelet, or pork stew with a delicious, dark, rich Bordelaise sauce. It was served with polenta and Swiss cheese. My partner, Pierre, chose the menu du jour for 19€, VERY affordable for Geneva. A dry Swiss white Chasselas, Cuvée Mère Royaume, was a perfect compliment to the meal.

This restaurant maintains services long ago forgotten by other restaurants, like Steak Tartare made tableside. The waiters have worked there for many years, and knew their customers by name. My waiter, Sebastien, was very attentive, telling me about the history of the restaurant and some of the stories of famous people coming there. I asked him about the tipping situation, since it wasn't clear to me if the rules were the same in Switzerland, as in France, for example, where service was included. He said that the restaurant covered about 10% of the tips, but then patrons usually tipped 5-10% on top of this. I asked if French people knew this--he sadly shook his head no.

I loved the history of this place, with Swiss police hats of different eras surrounding the ceiling, and military relics throughout. I would love to be a fly on the wall when dignitaries came to lunch, discussing world peace among other important topics. I would definitely add this to my short list of affordable yet delicious lunch spots in Geneva!