Ristorante Cooperativo

Ristorante Cooperativo, widely known in Zurich as Coopi, is a historic Italian restaurant whose identity is closely linked to the city’s Italian immigrant community and to the political history of the European left. Its institutional roots go back to the Società Cooperativa Italiana Zurigo, established in 1905 to promote socialist cooperation among Italian immigrants. The cooperative created a library and a restaurant intended to provide affordable food and a social meeting place for people who had arrived in Switzerland from Italy. The restaurant became particularly important during the Second World War. Zurich was a place of refuge for Italian anti-fascists and other political exiles, and the Cooperativo developed into a center for socialist resistance to fascism. Filippo Turati, a founder of the Italian Socialist Party, was among the figures associated with the venue; a bust of Turati remains part of the restaurant’s historical identity. During the war years, the Italian-language newspapers Avanti! and L’Avvenire dei Lavoratori were edited in connection with the restaurant. Copies were reportedly transported clandestinely from Zurich into Italy in suitcases adapted with double bottoms, making the venue part of an information network opposed to Mussolini’s regime. After 1945, Coopi continued to serve as a meeting place for Zurich’s left-wing intellectual, labor and immigrant communities. Its public role expanded during the student activism of the late 1960s. Moritz Leuenberger, who later became a member of the Swiss Federal Council, was among the students who frequented the restaurant. The venue also served as a base for opponents of James Schwarzenbach’s anti-immigration initiatives, with the campaign associated with later Swiss National Councillor Ezio Canonica. The restaurant’s historical guest list has included figures from several political and cultural traditions. Benito Mussolini reportedly ate there in 1913, before his later leadership of Italian fascism, after speaking at May Day events in Zurich. Vladimir Lenin is reported to have had his last meal in Switzerland at the Cooperativo before returning covertly to Russia in 1917. Bertolt Brecht also patronized the restaurant during his time in Switzerland. A well-known anecdote describes Brecht questioning why the walls displayed Karl Marx but not Lenin or Joseph Stalin, to which he was told that the Cooperativo was not a place for dictators, including on its walls. In 2004, the restaurant received Gerhard Schröder, then Chancellor of Germany, after he attended an exhibition opening by the Swiss artist Schang Hutter. Coopi has also undergone several relocations. It began on Zwinglistrasse, moved to Militärstrasse 36 in 1912, and transferred to Strassburgstrasse 5 in 1970. In the mid-2000s, the restaurant faced a possible closure because Zurich authorities planned to replace a flexible historical rent arrangement with a market-level lease. The cooperative argued that the higher rent would make continued operation impossible. Rather than closing, the restaurant moved in 2008 to its current location at St. Jakobstrasse 6. Its significance therefore combines restaurant operations with the preservation of a distinctive social, migrant and political history in Zurich.

Ristorante Cooperativo emerged from the Società Cooperativa Italiana Zurigo, an organization founded in Zurich in 1905 by Italian immigrants to advance cooperative and socialist principles. The society established a library and created a restaurant where Italian workers and other immigrants could eat at affordable prices. From the beginning, the restaurant was more than a commercial dining room: it provided a shared social space for an immigrant population and a base for political, cultural and labor activity. Its historical importance grew during the period of fascism in Italy. During the Second World War, Zurich hosted Italian socialist exiles and anti-fascist activists, and the Cooperativo became a meeting point for resistance networks. Filippo Turati, a founder of the Italian Socialist Party, was associated with the restaurant and is commemorated there by a bust. The newspapers Avanti! and L’Avvenire dei Lavoratori were edited in connection with the venue during the war. These Italian-language publications opposed the fascist regime and were smuggled into Italy from Switzerland, reportedly in suitcases with concealed double bottoms. The Cooperativo maintained its political and intellectual role after the war. In the late 1960s, it became a gathering place for Zurich’s left-wing intelligentsia and student movement. Moritz Leuenberger, later a Swiss Federal Councillor, was among its student patrons. The restaurant was also connected with opposition to James Schwarzenbach’s anti-immigration initiatives, with later National Councillor Ezio Canonica among the figures associated with that political milieu. The venue’s reputation attracted prominent patrons from politics and literature. Benito Mussolini reportedly visited in 1913, before becoming Italy’s fascist leader. Vladimir Lenin is said to have eaten his last meal in Switzerland at the restaurant before returning to Russia in 1917. Bertolt Brecht patronized the Cooperativo during his Swiss stay. An anecdote about Brecht’s visit holds that he asked why a portrait of Karl Marx was displayed without portraits of Lenin or Stalin, receiving the response that the restaurant was not a place for dictators, even in its wall decoration. In 2004, Gerhard Schröder, then Germany’s chancellor, dined there after attending a Schang Hutter vernissage. The restaurant has occupied several Zurich addresses. Its original premises were on Zwinglistrasse. In 1912 it moved to Militärstrasse 36, and in 1970 it relocated to Strassburgstrasse 5. Its continued existence was threatened in 2006 when the city, which owned the building, planned to raise the rent from a flexible historical arrangement to a market-based level. The cooperative warned that the proposed terms would make the business unsustainable. The dispute ultimately preceded a move rather than a permanent closure. In 2008, Ristorante Cooperativo transferred its operations to St. Jakobstrasse 6, its location since then. The restaurant remains notable as both a Zurich dining establishment and a surviving institution of Italian immigrant, cooperative, labor and anti-fascist history.

• 2008

  Move to St. Jakobstrasse 6

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  Ristorante Cooperativo moves to its current Zurich address and continues operating after the earlier rent controversy.

• 2006

  Rent dispute threatens continued operation

  [2]Zurich's Italian landmark faces axeswissinfo.ch

  A proposed increase to market-level rent on the city-owned premises raises the possibility that the cooperative restaurant will close.

• 1970

  Move to Strassburgstrasse 5

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  The restaurant moves to Strassburgstrasse 5, where it remains until its later relocation in 2008.

• 1940

  The restaurant becomes an anti-fascist meeting point

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  During the Second World War, the Cooperativo becomes associated with Italian socialist exile networks and the production and circulation of anti-fascist Italian-language newspapers.

• 1917

  Reported final Swiss meal of Vladimir Lenin

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  Lenin is reported to have eaten at the Cooperativo before covertly leaving Switzerland for Russia.

• 1913

  Reported visit by Benito Mussolini

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  Mussolini reportedly eats at the restaurant after speaking at Zurich May Day festivities, before his later rise as Italy’s fascist leader.

• 1912

  Move to Militärstrasse 36

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  The restaurant relocates from its original Zwinglistrasse premises to Militärstrasse 36 in Zurich.

• 1905

  Società Cooperativa Italiana Zurigo is founded

  [1]Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org

  Italian immigrants in Zurich establish the cooperative society to promote socialist cooperation and support community institutions, including a library and an affordable restaurant.

A historic, community-oriented Italian restaurant and cooperative institution in Zurich, positioned around affordability, social gathering and its heritage within Italian immigrant, labor, socialist and anti-fascist movements.

• Restaurant cuisine

  Italian restaurant meals

  Ristorante Cooperativo is principally a dining venue rather than a packaged-food brand. Its offer is associated with Italian cuisine and the tradition of providing reasonably priced meals to Zurich’s Italian immigrant and broader community clientele. The available reference material does not specify a stable menu, signature dish or proprietary product line.

• 2008

  Relocation following the rent disputeStrategy

  Background

  The restaurant’s long-term premises on Strassburgstrasse 5 were affected by a proposed shift from a flexible historical rent arrangement to market-level rent.

  Action taken

  The cooperative moved the restaurant to St. Jakobstrasse 6 instead of ending the institution’s operations.

  Aftermath

  The relocation allowed Ristorante Cooperativo to continue operating while preserving its role as a historic Zurich restaurant and community institution.

  Source

1. 1Ristorante Cooperativoen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Zurich's Italian landmark faces axeswissinfo.ch