Aboutus

Rennweg 26, 8001 Zürich
Hosting evenings since 2010

Alpenglühen Lounge has hosted evenings of cards, board games and company in Zürich’s Old Town since 2010. Come for a game, stay for the people you meet at the table.

Website created in 2026

Opened: October 2010
Address: Rennweg 26, 8001 Zürich
Partners: Clubs in Geneva, Basel, Bern and Lucerne

Our story

It started with a simple wish: a warm room in the middle of Zürich where anyone could sit down, learn a game and leave with new friends.

Alpenglühen Lounge was founded in 2010 by a small group of friends who had spent years hosting card evenings in their own kitchens. When a wood-panelled first floor on Rennweg came up for rent, they took it, borrowed eight tables and opened with a single Tuesday Jass night. The room filled within a month, and it has rarely been quiet since.

The founders noticed something the city was missing. Zürich has fine bars and fine restaurants, yet few places where strangers sit at one table and talk for three hours. So they built the lounge around that: tables sized for four, hosts who introduce people, games that need conversation, and light that makes everyone look like they have just come down from the mountains.

Over fifteen years the lounge took over the whole building, began partner evenings with clubs in Geneva, Basel, Bern and Lucerne, and founded a Jass league that now has twenty-two teams. Each new room kept the same idea: good company first, everything else in its service.

Today we count the years by the people rather than by the rooms: the couples who met over a game of Tichu, the colleagues who come every Thursday for the quiz, the newcomers to Switzerland who learned their first Swiss German at our tables. We intend to keep it that way for the next fifteen.

Website created in 2026

What we hold to

Care in small things

We aim to make every evening a little better than the last. That means clean cards, chairs that are comfortable for hours, a host who remembers how you take your coffee, and the patience to explain a rule for the third time.

Company before competition

The best evenings happen when people come together. We keep a welcoming, inclusive room where everyone belongs, whatever their background, their language or how long they have been playing.

New games, old habits

We add new games every month and adjust the rooms as our members ask, while keeping the things that make the lounge feel like itself: the light, the pace and the long table.

Honest and responsible

We are open about how we work and treat guests, staff and neighbours fairly. The lounge is for adults aged 18 and over, and our hosts make sure every evening stays relaxed, respectful and safe.

Geneva members’ deskRue du Rhône 48, 1204 Genève[email protected]+41 22 310 74 52

Website created in 2026

The people behind the evenings

Andrea Vogel, managing director, in a black blazer — Andrea VogelManaging Director

Samuel Frei, head of operations, in a white shirt and dark tie — Samuel FreiOperations

Giulia Rossi, head of community, with long dark hair — Giulia RossiCommunity

Martin Zimmermann, head of programme, in glasses and a navy jacket — Martin ZimmermannProgramme

Andrea Vogel

Managing Director

Andrea spent twenty years in Swiss hospitality, from mountain hotels in Graubünden to theatre bars in Zürich, before joining the founders in 2012. She leads the lounge with a clear view: people come for the company, and everything else should help that happen.

Samuel Frei

Head of Operations

Samuel keeps the house running: rotas, kitchen, cellar, the lift that must work on every busy Friday. His eye for detail is why the tables are set at five sharp and the coat check never loses an umbrella.

Giulia Rossi

Head of Community

Giulia grew up in Lugano and runs the league, the newcomers’ evenings and the partner nights with other cities. She is the reason so many members first came alone and now arrive in groups.

Martin Zimmermann

Head of Programme

Martin chooses the games, writes the quiz and plans the calendar with members. He tests every new box on the staff first, which makes for some long Monday afternoons.

Basel officeSteinenvorstadt 53, 4051 Basel[email protected]+41 61 271 83 40

Website created in 2026

Record

Fifteen years, measured plainly. No trophies on the wall, just the things we are glad to have done.

Fifteen years on one street

Since October 2010 the lounge has stayed at Rennweg 26, growing from one floor to the whole house.

About 3’800 members

Members from across Switzerland, most of them from Zürich and its neighbouring towns, many of them regulars for years.

A league of 22 teams

The Alpenglühen Jass league plays every Tuesday from September to May, with teams from Zürich, Geneva, Lucerne and Winterthur.

240 games on the shelf

Card games, board games and strategy games, each one played and explained by our hosts before it reaches the tables.

Six evenings a week

Open Tuesday to Sunday from 17:00, with the quiz on Thursdays, live music on Fridays and fondue on winter Sundays.

Neighbourhood evenings

Several times a year we host quiz nights for Old Town neighbourhood associations and local charities, who keep everything raised on the night.

Website created in 2026

Members in their own words

“The lounge changed what I expect from a night out. I came for a game and found a circle of friends I see every week.”

Sandra WyssZürich, member since 2016

“The detail in the rooms is remarkable and the programme never gets stale. What stands out is the feeling of belonging: you are not a guest here, you are part of the house.”
Patrick BühlerBasel member

Sandra Wyss, a member from Zürich, smiling at the bar — Sandra, Patrick and Anaïs.

Patrick Bühler, a member from Basel, in a dark jacket — Sandra, Patrick and Anaïs.

“Three years in and it still surprises me. The hosts remember your name, the rooms are spotless and the evenings bring people together beautifully.”
Anaïs FavreGeneva member

Bern members’ desk: Marktgasse 37, 3011 Bern · [email protected] · +41 31 312 60 94. Website created in 2026

Inside the lounge

The Salon set for the evening: round tables, armchairs and a chandelier under a curved lit ceiling — The Salon before the doors open.

A lively crowd at the bar on a Friday night under red stage light — Friday night at the bar.

The games room with a large round table, purple carpet and a crystal chandelier — The games room on the second floor.

Curved sofas with red cushions around a low table in a warm-lit lounge — The sofa corner, kept for long conversations.

A daylight room with a brick wall, plants, wooden tables and a long banquette — The garden room on Sunday afternoons.

A band playing on a small stage under coloured lights in front of a full room — Live music on Fridays.

Website created in 2026

Join us on Rennweg

See for yourself why so many people make the lounge part of their week. Come with friends or come alone; there is a table and a game waiting either way.

Reserve a table See what an evening holds

Lucerne members’ deskHertensteinstrasse 34, 6004 Luzern[email protected]+41 41 210 85 76

Website created in 2026